No. 1 pick Jared Goff to make Rams debut Sunday

“I want to play”. Case Keenum has started every game, passing for 2,169 yards with 11 interceptions and nine TDs. That growth was exemplified two weeks ago during a practice in which Goff got the majority of reps with the first-team offense and by all accounts dominated the afternoon.

Until Tuesday morning, when Rams head coach Jeff Fisher sat his quarterbacks down and made the move.

Finally, the Jared Goff era is upon us. His high sack ratio (6.8%) suggests this may be more than just Keenum causing this offense to underperform, but even Keenum himself won’t be able to really defend his performances so far, throwing more touchdowns than interceptions in a game only 3 times this season.

For better or worse, everyone is about to discover whether Goff is worth the pile of draft picks that the Rams handed to Tennessee in April for the right to move up and select Goff.

Goff was tipped as the first quarterback to be taken throughout his final year with the Golden Bears, but the emergence of Carson Wentz at North Dakota State made it a straight shootout for the two.

“I felt in my heart, I was getting closer and closer over the last couple of weeks”, Fisher said. “It was a progression”.

“We have to put him in position to make some quick decisions, get rid of the football, and make some plays”.

“If you look at the young quarterbacks that have been successful, they have people on their staff that have either: been quarterbacks that were developed, have coached quarterbacks that have been developed right or [have] been in systems forever that quarterbacks have flourished in”. This is part of the reason why the Rams’ running game has struggled as much as it has. A week later, the Coliseum crowd booed Keenum and chanted for Goff during a 13-10 loss to Carolina. Then things started to unravel and Keenum was not only not making the plays but he was turning the ball over.

For Goff, it was a message he’s been waiting to get nearly since the moment he was drafted first overall last April. “I learned a lot from the things Case did, both good and bad”. I think I have, and I think I’ve been ready for a little while. I feel confident in myself and I know my teammates feel confident in me.

Many have wondered why this decision took so long, as the Rams offense has sputtered this season. He’s not excited about this, but he also understands the situation.

Goff’s arm strength, size and decisiveness are NFL-caliber, but the Rams acknowledge he had a longer learning curve than some passers because of coach Sonny Dykes’ offensive style at California, where the quarterback doesn’t often take snaps under centre or call plays on the field.

It is fair to assume he will face a learning curve in his first National Football League start and for the rest of the season, but there is some additional pressure on his shoulders based on how well other rookie quarterbacks have performed in 2016.