There’s still one week left in the season, but the Los Angeles Rams have nothing left to play for. They were eliminated from playoff contention on Saturday night with their heartbreaking 34-31 loss to the 49ers.
It effectively brings an end to a seriously disappointing season for the Rams, as they became just the fifth team since 2009 to miss the playoffs the year after making it to the Super Bowl.
For a team that appeared poised to return to the postseason and make another run at a title, this season fell way short of expectations.
The question now is why?
There are always several reasons for a team coming up short, whether it’s coaching, execution, injuries or just sheer bad luck. All of the above apply to the 2019 Rams.
Here are the six biggest reasons they missed the playoffs this season, in no particular order.
Injuries
The Rams were very fortunate on the injury front in 2017 and 2018. They didn’t lose many key players to injuries in the last two years, but this season, that wasn’t the case. Here’s a list of players who were hurt and missed multiple weeks this season:
- LG Joseph Noteboom (IR)
- C Brian Allen (IR)
- CB Aqib Talib
- OLB Clay Matthews
- S John Johnson (IR)
- WR Brandin Cooks
- RT Rob Havenstein
- TE Gerald Everett
Yes, every team deals with injuries, but the Rams had eight starters miss multiple games. Todd Gurley also sat out one week, Robert Woods missed a game for a family matter, Troy Hill didn’t play in Saturday’s loss due to a broken thumb, and Austin Blythe had an ankle injury that forced him to miss one game.
The Rams had issues of their own that they could control, but injuries were a big factor this season, too. They took a toll, particularly on the offensive line and in the secondary.