Rams offense sputters into bye

ST. LOUIS -- Year 3 of the Steve Spagnuolo experience was supposed to be the payoff. It might be the buyout with more games like the first four.

The St. Louis Rams appeared poised to become a legitimate contender in the weak NFC West after last season's six-win improvement. Instead, they're winless and set to be heavy underdogs for several weeks when they emerge from the bye, largely because of an offense that has regressed under their new coordinator.

Josh McDaniels vaulted to wonderboy status because of his success with the Patriots. He was the youngest coach in the NFL just a few years ago. He was the man who would lift Sam Bradford & Co. to a higher plane when the Rams hired him. Both parties said it was the beginning of a beautiful relationship during the preseason.

Nobody's smiling now. The mistakes have been numerous and the breakdowns wide-ranging -- numerous dropped passes, iffy pass protection, false starts, lack of discipline and red zone woes.

The opening stretch has been daunting. The Eagles, Giants and Ravens are long-established playoff presences, and the Redskins appear to be on the rise, so it's no surprise the Rams have a losing record.

But the Rams have been playing catch up for all but 6 1/2 minutes and been beaten by an average of nearly 17 points.

"I feel like we are a better team," Rams running back Steven Jackson said. "From the outside, it doesn't look like it."

It's easier now to remember that McDaniels lost 17 of his last 22 games in Denver before getting the boot last December, and that the Broncos scored six points in his swan song.

"I think everybody can do a better job of what we're doing, starting with me," McDaniels said. "Once we do it right, or when we do it right, we usually get the results we're looking for."

The rebuilding job undertaken by Spagnuolo and general manager Billy Devaney seems shaky four games in. Spagnuolo is 8-28, and the Rams are early favorites for yet another pick at the top of the draft.

The Spags-designed defense has been flawed, too, getting torched by the Eagles and Ravens. St. Louis has surrendered 113 points, tied for second-most in the league, and is last against the run.

"I've got a wonderful wife, that's my only sanity," Spagnuolo said. "I'm hanging my hat on the fact that I see no quit in our football team."

Things maybe wouldn't look so dire if the Rams had defeated the Redskins last week. Spagnuolo noted Washington only scored 17 points.

"The worst part about it is we just keep shooting ourselves in the foot," safety Quintin Mikell said. "It's the same thing every week. Penalties and getting beat on third down, dropping balls. That's stuff you can't have happen."

The worst part about the Rams' predicament is they're averaging one touchdown per game and next to last in the league in scoring with only 46 points.

Bradford has been sacked 17 times, most in the NFL. Some of it falls on a highly paid offensive line, but a lot of the punishment comes while Bradford's waiting for plays to develop.

The quarterback let his frustration show during last week's loss to the Redskins. He walked in circles after getting crunched yet again and lifted his arms skyward. The Rams (0-4) limped into the bye after gaining 172 yards last week.

"There have been seasons where it hasn't gone the way you wanted it to go in one stretch or another, and this is really one of those things," McDaniels said.