Fisher Guns Down Four Pillars

Anthony Bafaro

When the dust finally settled, when the melded blood and mud had dried and crusted over in the new day's sun, there stood one man, masked in black lenses and a finely-combed beaver pelt lip garnish.  Lying lifeless, beyond the barrel-smoke of his break-action, were four pillars: Faith, Character, Core Values, and Team First.

The 49ers are finished, you understand me?
I see a red sash, I kill it.  You tell Jim Harbaugh
the Rams are coming.  You tell him Jeff Fisher is coming,
and Hell's coming with him, you hear me?
Hell's coming with him!

With the four pillars lying in the wake of the franchise, St. Louis Rams fans are about to be embraced, for the first time in their history, with real, cut-throat, football.  The Greatest Show on Turf was a fantastic display of offensive ingenuity and precision, but it was not trench warfare.  What’s coming now is not just smack-you-in-the-mouth football, it's make-you-bite-the-curb football. 

If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you know I’m not a Spagnuolo hater.  However, in this game, you’re not going to survive 

if you insist on bringing choir boys to a street fight.  You can’t pass on great football ability just because some 22-year-old kid likes to get drunk in the off season and has been in a bar fight or two.  I’m not saying seek out a team full of criminals (though I would set a one felony minimum for all defensive players, preferably aggravated assault), but we can no longer afford to draft and sign C-grade players that go to church over B-grade players that go to strip clubs (goodbye Brandon Gibson, old friend; oh how I will miss mocking your steady supply of Sunday blunders).  Part of being a good coach is being able to handle those kind of guys until they grow up.  That’s why you pay Jeff Fisher $7 million dollars per year; he knows how to contain the hoopelheads enough to utilize the maniacs inside of them. 

This balance of discipline is particularly evident in Fisher’s defenses.  According to information gathered by NFC West blogger Mike Sando, from 2001-2010 the Titans led the league in both unnecessary roughness and roughing the passer penalties.  Fifteen-yard penalties can be back breakers, especially in critical situations, but these stats only tell part of the story.  Over that same time period, the defenses as a whole were, on average, in the bottom half of the league in total penalties taken.  There isn't a wholesale lack of discipline.  They don’t rack up lazy, sloppy penalties (like, say, constant delay of game and false-start penalties immediately following your own timeouts); they go full speed, break late, and crash hard, mostly into the opposing quarterbacks.  That same level of barbarism is applied on the offensive line, where Fisher coached teams are consistently in the top-ten for fewest sacks allowed. 

There is a definite psychological factor to this game, and intimidation through physical oppression seems to be Fisher’s weapon of choice.  Earlier this month, in an interview on 101 ESPN’s “The Fast-Lane,” Fisher noted that he motivates his players to take pride in the way that their physical play affects opponents after the game and going into the next week.  That kind of philosophy helps you win divisions.  Don't just win the game, make sure your opponents have to study next week’s game plan from the ice tub.  Make sure your opponents barely have the moxie to suit up for next game, let alone win. 

This team will finally have an identity, one that’s more about attitude than schematics.  Over the course of Fisher’s career, he has been good, bad, and middle of the road in a number of offensive and defensive categories.  He’s suggested that the talent level of individual positions will determine the game plan (of course, so did McDaniels).  How much he throws will depend on his passing game talent.  How much he blitzes will depend on the penetration ability of his front four.  Being flexible in scheme allows for the full utilization of all players’ strengths.  A confident willingness to take a chance on some "red-flag" players provides the opportunity to improve roster strength overall and brings a tangible edge to the style of play.  This team will not necessarily be identified as a running team, a passing team, or a blitzing team, but they will have an identity.  They’ll play through the whistle, then steal the whistle, throw it on the ground and laugh maniacally as they stomp it to pieces.  They’ll protect their own quarterback and disembowel his counterpart.  They will physically degrade and embarrass their opponents every chance they get.  The Fisher-era Rams are coming, and Hell's coming with them.