All right let's play Tuesday Quarterback

[Taylor Millard]

Marc Bulger is 5-0 as a starter this year.

Kurt Warner is 0-5 as a starter this year.

Warner is the starter for the Rams next week.

Do you do what the Patriots did last year and keep Warner as the backup incase Bulger goes down? Or do you start him next week anyway?

The same goes for Kordell Stewart if/when Tommy Maddox comes back.

What do you do?

[sirdizzy]

Nope start Warner because hes on my fantasy team and my #1 guy Brian Griese is out for 3 weeks


i have the best team in my league and the worst Qb problems i have had warner, griese, brad johnson, and tommy maddox as Qbs this season and all of em have got injured and caused me problems

[jjwr]

There are some differences in the situations. When Bledsoe went down the team was 0-2 but had shown some life. Sadly most who weren't looking through jaded glasses knew that Bledsoe had taken a enormous beating the past few years and the team wasn't built to his strength.

When Brady came in he had the quick delivery that the team could actually use as the line was still so poor that they couldn't hold their blocks long enough for Bledsoe to do his stuff.

When Bledsoe was healthy the team was surging and I really don't think Bledsoe could have emulated what Brady was doing at that point, the team just wasn't built for the way he plays.

Now the Rams on the other hand, they've got Faulk and a great set of Wideouts and that may be a huge factor in Bulger success. Put him on the Bengals, how would he do? Bulger may not be as good as his numbers but in fact is helped by the great team around him.

Warner is the reigning MVP, something was obviously wrong early on in the year with him and with the team. With the new commitment to running and him being healthy he deserves the shot and will get it. If they go downhill fast you may see the hook but I think he'll come back and do quite well.

In Pittsburgh, Stewart was already pulled once for Maddox so I don't see why it won't happen again.

So my choices, put in Warner and let him play, if they bomb early and he throws some early picks then consider pulling him.

Give Stewart the reins and see how Maddox does, if Maddox comes back and can play then he'll play when he's ready.

What about Denver? I could see Buerlein finishing out the year if he does well regardless of Griese's health.

[sirdizzy]

i agree with ou on Buerlein, shanahan hasn't been that pleased with Griese even when they were winning if steve does good Griese could be benched for the playoffs

[Jedieb]

Buerlein is a pretty good QB. I actually think that Griese has been doing a great job. If Buerlein does light it up, he did have a 4,000 yard season at Carolina, then Shanahan might be tempted to stick with him. I'd go back to Griese as soon as he's healthy. Same with Warner, once he's good to go, he's my starter. Warner's in a tough spot though. Winning is the bottom line and if he starts to struggle people are going to turn on him quick. as for Kordell, I think his time in Pittsburg is done. The only way I see him coming back is if he gets incredibly hot and leads the Steelers to the Superbowl. Anything short of that and he's playing for someone else next year. Probably the Cowboys, uggh...

[CMJ]

The best team in the metroplex is UNT. ;)

[JMK]

It's a tough spot for Mike Martz to be in. I'm sure a part of him wants to go with Bulger, but it isn't fair that the reigning MVP loses his job to injury. Give him the ball back, and if he sucks, go back to Bulger. Although that's easier said than done as the Rams season hangs on each game.

[Jedieb]

Realistically, the Rams could be out of the playoff hunt with a loss in the next couple of weeks. That's put them in a tough spot. Just how long does Martz go with Warner if he struggles? Will Faulk be good enough to go next week to help ease the load for Warner? The Rams are going to Washington. I think it's actually a bonus for them to be on the road. If they're at home the fans are likely to start booing the minute Warner starts struggling. The Skins aren't a powerhouse by any means so Warner is getting a good game to come back in. We'll have to wait and see just how many of the Rams early season woes really were his fault. I think he should be able to light a few teams up down the stretch. I just hope the Rams keep winning enough to make that last game of the season against the Niners meaningful. That would be a great showdown if a playoff spot was on the line.

[Taylor Millard]

Originally posted by CMJ
The best team in the metroplex is UNT. ;)

The best football team in the Metroplex is UNT :p

:lol :lol

[Figrin D'an]

I'm going to come at this from a bit of a different point of view...

The Rams beat the Bears 21-16. The Bears, a horrible offensive team, managed to hang in the game, and the Rams really didn't look tremendously impressive on the offensive side of the ball. Sure, Bulger threw for over 300 yards, but a good portion of that was against soft coverage.

Bulger or Warner is the big media question right now, but the Rams' success comes down to one player: Marshall Faulk. If they get him 25 touches a game, they can be balanced on offense, and the QB, whomever it may be, can use play action and quick slants to get the ball downfield... just as St. Louis has done in the past. During the Rams 0-5 start, Faulk was being underused, both as a running back and check-down receiver. During the next 4 games, Faulk's workload increased to a typical Rams gameplan, and they won. Last night, Faulk missed the game, and while Gordon played fairly well, they clearly lacked the explosiveness that comes from Faulk being in the game, and the game was close.

Being that Warner has been an MVP, and that he's led them to a Super Bowl title, he deserves to get his job back. However, because of his struggles early this season (partially poor play, partially bad play calling) and the Rams must-win scenario every week, one bad half of play against the Redskins this week could be enough to for him to get pulled in favor of Bulger.

The key is Marshall Faulk. He might not play this weekend, which could be trouble. The Rams aren't good enough to go on the road against even a below .500 team without Faulk and expect to roll over the opposition. Washington has a very good, playmaking secondary. I expect this game to be very close.

[JMK]

I thought that Faulk should have won the MVP last year. His value to that team is so plain to see.

[Jedi Master Carr]

The Rams key game will be next sunday when they play at Kansas City, that will be a hard game because the Chiefs can light it up and the Rams defense doesn't look great. Plus the Chiefs' defense has been playing pretty good lately, should be an interesting game.

[JMK]

Aren't they all interesting these days?

[Jedi Master Carr]

But that is the first time Vermil will face off against his old team, first time Trent Green will see the Rams again, plus its the Missouri War, the game is always exciting, plus both teams need to win to keep their playoff Hopes alive.

[Jedieb]

That game is going to be amazing. But the game of the week this week is Bucs/Packers! I'm really going to be pumped for this one. I'll probably watch it with the in laws who are big Buc fans. To think of all the access I had to those horrible orange clad Vinny Testeverde led teams. Talk about bad timing. D'oh!