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Significant Investments: 12 Questionable Checks that Stan Kroenke has Written Since Purchasing the St. Louis Rams

By Patrick Karraker

Nov 9, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke on the sidelines prior to the game against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. The Cardinals defeated the Rams 31-14. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 9, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke on the sidelines prior to the game against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. The Cardinals defeated the Rams 31-14. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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St. Louis Rams Ray Sherman
August 18, 2012; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Rams wide receiver coach Ray Sherman talks with wide receiver Brian Quick (83) in the second half against the Kansas City Chiefs at the Edward Jones Dome. The Rams won 31-17. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /

2. The “Rockstar” Coaching Staff

One of Fisher’s conditions when he became head coach was that Kroenke expand the budget to accommodate a “rockstar” group of assistant coaches, with the thought being that a bright collection of coordinators and position coaches would be a key to making the Rams competitive. Kroenke, who despite his $6.3 billion-dollar net worth, had been so frugal as to deny Steve Spagnuolo’s 2011 coaching staff a dedicated quarterbacks coach, threw his agreement to meet Fisher’s demands back in St. Louis’s face in the relocation statement, bragging about the fact that the Rams have “significantly increased the coaching and scouting budgets” under his ownership, yet have not received satisfactory attendance from St. Louis fans in return.

Despite Fisher’s hopes for a “rockstar” staff, it’s hard to say that the Rams’ staff of assistants has even been good, much less elite, through four seasons. They’ve been through three coordinators on each side of the ball, and the increase in the coaching budget seems to have resulted in an overload of voices on the field and in the meeting rooms, rather than truly elite position coaches being hired to the staff. The Rams started the season with 27 coaches on the staff (that number was reduced to 26 after the midseason firing of offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti). That group included three strength coaches, at least two position coaches assigned to every position group besides running backs, two coaches with extremely ambiguous titles and responsibilities (assistant head coach Dave McGinnis and senior defensive assistant Chuck Cecil), and two father-son duos (Fisher and his son Brandon, a defensive backs coach, and offensive line coach Paul T. Boudreau, and his son, Paul F., the assistant special teams coach).

Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams and defensive line coach Mike Waufle are truly great coaches and have continually gotten the most out of their players. Offensive line coach Paul Boudreau has definitely had his moments, developing tackle Joe Barksdale into a great player and fusing a cast of nobodies into a respectable line during 2015, though he has failed to get much out of 2014 first-rounder Greg Robinson. Other than those three, though, is there really a Rams position coach that jumps out as great?

The secondary did get substantially better in 2015 and had much fewer coverage breakdowns. Perhaps that’s the result of Cecil, a well-known former defensive coordinator, being absolved of his responsibilities coaching defensive backs and being replaced by the duo of Brandon Fisher and former quality control coach Dennard Wilson. Ironically, if coaching was indeed the cause of the secondary’s improvement during 2015, it would be due to the replacement of a highly-paid coach with one receiving his first opportunity as an NFL position coach. With that said, Cecil did remain on the Rams’ payroll this year, likely due to the fact that he played a year for Fisher and has coached with him for 14, so if Kroenke wants to be more frugal with the budget, he could hold them accountable for their poor performance rather than allowing Fisher to reassign them to nondescript roles.

Considering that the Rams got the worst production from the quarterback position of any team in the NFL during 2015, it’s safe to say that first-year QBs coach Chris Weinke didn’t have a great rookie coaching campaign. Weinke, who previously had coached only at the high school level and was a late addition to the staff, will have to be accountable for his group’s failure this year. Wide receivers coach Ray Sherman, despite his 40 years in the business and status as a former NFL offensive coordinator, has consistently failed to develop young receivers or get the most out of his veterans. After four years of subpar production, one wonders how much longer the 64-year-old Sherman will keep his job.

All in all, it’s safe to say that Fisher’s “rock star staff” ideas have not gone according to plan, and if the Rams have indeed substantially increased their budget for assistant coaches, that would be another “significant investment” Kroenke has made that has not really been worth it.

Next: 1. Jeff Fisher

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