Question Bulger’s play, but not his toughness
Marc Bulger is coming off his two worst seasons in his six years as the St. Louis Rams’ starting quarterback. There are many reasons why, not all of his doing, but there’s no disputing that. Bulger himself acknowledges that he hasn’t come near to displaying the form that earned him Pro Bowl spots after the 2003 and ‘07 seasons.
And he’s off to rocky start this year. He’s completing only 50 percent of his passes, has thrown for just one touchdown, and his passer rating is a mediocre 69.5. Plus, his team is 0-2 and his offense has produced a league-low seven points.
But know this: Those who question Bulger’s toughness couldn’t be more off the Marc (pun and misspelling intended).
As he dressed in the locker room Sunday at FedEx Field, a large, ugly welt across his back was noticeable. So were knots on both arms. The bruise on Bulger’s back was the result of a vicious shot he took after he scrambled for a 3-yard gain late in the first half. Bulger slid, which means he’d given himself up and shouldn’t be hit.
But Redskins end Andre Carter drilled him anyway, and then 350-pound tackle Albert Haynesworth piled on. No flag was thrown, but either or both players should’ve been called for a personal foul. Had the victim been Brett Favre, Peyton Manning or Tom Brady, you can bet the yellow hankies would’ve been flying from all directions.
Bulger was in considerable pain, and the Rams called a timeout to allow him to pull himself together. And then he went right back to the huddle and pushed on.
His play can be criticized, but not his grit. Bulger takes a beating, never complains about it, never points a finger at his teammates.
That’s toughness, folks.
Notes & quotes:
*Other than the knee injuries to C Jason Brown and RT Jason Brown, the Rams mainly collected bumps and bruises in the 9-7 loss to the Redskins.
*It’s possible that both S Craig Dahl (hamstring) and G John Greco (wrist) both could be back this week.
*The Rams have been outscored 37-7. After two games last year, they were on the short end of a 79-16 count. Hard to say which is worse.
*Unless the Dolphins get shut out tonight vs. the Colts, the Rams will be the lowest-scoring team in the NFL heading into Week 3.
*Asked about WR Donnie Avery’s fumble problems in the first two games, coach Steve Spagnuolo said: “We’ll keep working with him. We’re always talking about (holding the ball) high and tight. Hopefully the adage that (fumbles) come and go in bunches is true and he’s gotten them all out of his system.”
*Spagnuolo works hard to keep his players in a positive mode despite their troubles. Asked who keeps him upbeat, Spagnuolo said, “My wife, Maria. And that’s the truth. I’m blessed that I’ve got her.”
All for now . . .
Bulger is gun shy no doubt but who wouldn’t be after the pounding he has taken over the years. He’s our guy right now and any of you yahoos want to volunteer to take his place call Spags. Meanwhile keep the faith…it WILL get better!
you guys have got to be kidding, Marc Bulger is the biggest wuss ever to put on a football uniform. I watched the game and replayed it later. I have taken harder hits it flag football. His effort is pathetic
Bulger isn’t gun shy - he’s shell-shocked. This guy needs to be sent home and let’s hope he’s not a victim of post traumatic stress disorder.
Why not put in Boller and see what he can do?
Four incomplete passes in the last chance series of the game tells you all you need to know about Bulger’s offensive potential. Maybe Boller will not do better, but he can’t do worse. Seven points in 2 games! Give Boller and chance. Give us some hope.
Dale is a real man of genius. We salute you, iron god of the flag-football field.
Everyone that thinks Boller should start has not watched his career. He has been awful, including this preseason against vanilla defenses. And obviously sdram didn’t watch the game closely, because two of those incompletions on the final series were flat out drops by the receivers and McMichael. I understand that Bulger hasn’t been great, but who would in this offense with this line and these receivers. PLEASE STOP CALLING FOR BOLLER! You just night get it and really regret it.
Dale - did you really just compare your flag football prowess to a pro quaterback taking a hit from Albert Haynesworth? Wow. Some of the posts on this site are stunning, simply stunning.
Boller will have to play at some point this season,there shouldnt be any doubt,when and for how long is the only question about it
Its time to bench Avery……too many damn fumbles. Fumbling the opening kickoff of the season? UNACCEPTABLE! Fumbling after a catch in the Redskins game. Making a stupid block in the back penalty on SJax’s long run? What a joke this guy has turned into. Just think, we took this guy over DeSean Jackson.
Anyone critical of Bulger has no grasp at all of the game and what he has been up against the last several seasons. Lining up against, and getting repeatedly clocked by defensive linemen like a Haynesworth, a man weighing over 300 lbs, strong, fast, and mean as hell, with street free agents and under-achieving guys on your end offering little to no resistance, yet still having the guts to go back out and try to lead your team, that is the epitome of leadership. You don’t do it with words. SJ, while one hell of a back with the ball in his hands, is less than 50% at picking up blitzes. Yet Bulger keeps getting up off the ground. After he is run him out of town and goes elsewhere like Kurt and returns to all pro form with a half way decent team will you appreciate just how good he is.
I have yet to see a guy like Haynesworth at the local park playing flag football, what an embarrassing comparison. He would literally kill you, Dale, with one hit. Bulger has brass ones, Dale, to continue to line up for this current Rams team.
Nice to finally seeing some support for the guy who plays his a$$ off, takes a lot of hits both metaphorically and literally. He played well on Sunday and it’s a shame his receivers couldn’t get open for him to throw them the ball.
They shouldn’t have even been in that position if it wasn’t for Avery. For those who want to run Avery out of town, remember that Avery is young and is going to make mistakes, but he will get better.
We run too many good players out of town out of impatience and then wonder why we don’t have good players. Case in point, LB Scott Shanle of NO. He was a draft pick of ours. Same with Jon Alston with the Raiders. There are others too but it’s gonna’ take awhile to rebuild this team. I know our d-line is just being pieced together but bear with it until we can improve it.
If we jump off the bandwagon after every loss this year your legs are gonna’ get tired. We played a decent team and played them dang near even. That was a lot of improvement in one week. Can’t wait to see what happens next week.