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The L.A. Rams Have Fired Head Coach Jeff Fisher
Jeff Fisher. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
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Talk about a brief honeymoon. The Rams are only in their first year back from exile, and already the team is swimming in a sea of awfulness.
It all came to a boil this Monday, when the Rams announced that Head Coach Jeff Fisher has been fired:
The Los Angeles Rams have relieved Jeff Fisher from head coaching duties. Full statement to follow.
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) December 12, 2016
In a release, team owner Stan Kroenke said that, “this is the right time to make a change as our performance has not lived up to my or our fans' expectations. We all are focused on improving as an organization and building a team that makes Los Angeles proud.”
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Frankly, it’s not much of a surprise. After posting a four-and-one record to start off the year, the Rams would go on to lose eight of their next nine games, which culminated in a 42-14 thrashing at the hands of the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.
It wasn’t just the losing record that plagued Fisher. There were questions about his coaching decisions, much of which centered around his aversion to playing rookie quarterback Jared Goff (who really does kinda suck right now). Also, there was a bizarre spat that resulted with Fisher banning Rams legend Eric Dickerson from walking onto the sidelines and interacting with the players (Fisher, apparently, thought Dickerson was too critical of the team).
Weirdly, the firing comes just a week after Fisher got a two-year contract extension from the Rams. Speaking on the new deal, Dickerson joked that Fisher was possibly blackmailing the Rams' front office. "Where are the naked pictures at?" said Dickerson.
Fisher had been coaching the Rams since the 2012 season, when they were still in St. Louis.
[Update 12:49 p.m.]
It looks like special teams coordinator John Fassel has been named as interim head coach:
#BREAKING: special teams coach John Fassel named interim Head coach #Rams
— Liz Habib (@LizHabib) December 12, 2016
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