The Rams reached the Divisional Round in the 2020 season, but it seems as if they're at a bit of a crossroads.
Coach Sean McVay was quick to acknowledge the team would be undergoing serious evaluation at all positions after the Rams didn't mount a ton of resistance in their postseason defeat at the hands of the Green Bay Packers. Of course, such evaluation inevitably starts at quarterback. General manager Les Snead was similarly vague with his responses related to Jared Goff on Tuesday.
"Not going to get into specifics on those," Snead said when asked if Goff would be the Rams' quarterback in 2021, via the Associated Press' Greg Beacham. "What I can say is Jared Goff is a Ram in this moment and I said it's way too early to speculate. The future, that's a beautiful mystery."
The mystery might be beautiful to those trying to keep vital information to themselves, but it won't help Rams fans sleep at night. Los Angeles should be expected to add a veteran at the position in the offseason to push Goff -- if he's still on the roster -- and the only other option at the moment is young signal-caller John Wolford. McVay praised Wolford effusively ahead of his start in Week 17, but an early injury in his ensuing playoff start robbed the Rams and the general public of even a shred of evaluation.
Goff, meanwhile, has been reliably inconsistent, finishing with a solid statistical line (67 completion percentage, 20-13 TD-INT ratio, and a passer rating of 90) but the Rams arrived to their weekly contests never quite knowing which Goff they'd get. In some weeks, Goff would come out on fire, stringing together five-to-10 straight completions and getting the Rams going offensively. Other weeks, he'd struggle to establish a semblance of a rhythm, undercutting Los Angeles' offensive ambitions.
"We want to be a better offense, that includes Jared," Snead said, via Rams reporter Sarina Morales. "It is way too early to get into specifics. Sean definitely wants to make sure we get back to being more explosive, scoring more points, not turning the ball over as much."
It's clear the Rams aren't getting what they expected from Goff when they signed him to an extension. Whether that means a change is coming remains to be seen. It very well could be the Rams' brain trust simply applying public pressure to a quarterback they think could use it.
Or, it's a preview of a big move at the position. Without an obvious replacement at this point, we can only let time tell us what happens. But one thing is for certain: The Rams aren't being bashful about their desires to improve offensively to match their league-leading defense.
