Arguably the best part of training camp starting, outside the obvious sight of an oasis in the all-too-long football desert of summertime, is that we finally start to get real stories and storylines to discuss. We largely get to move on from the never-ending narratives of the true offseason.
Which is what makes Joe Buck’s recent comments on ESPN’s Get Up that much funnier.
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We know all about the hype the Los Angeles Rams are getting this offseason. They’re the Super Bowl favorites according to all the major sportsbooks, reigning MVP Matthew Stafford is being placed near the top of nearly every preseason quarterback ranking, they improved their weaker side of the ball by adding the best defensive player in the league and a multi-time All-Pro at cornerback. The good news has almost been overwhelming, and the Rams are justly being placed on a pedestal for all of it.
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So, after a spring and summer lauding the franchise, it was at least eyebrow-raising to see a video at ESPN.com this week titled “Why Joe Buck questions the hype around the Rams.”
Opinions on Buck are split, to say the least. He’s been a part of the NFL ecosystem for over three decades, first as the long-time No. 1 play-by-play broadcaster on Fox for both the NFL and MLB, and since 2022 as the voice of Monday Night Football on ESPN. To add a personal thought, as someone who does play-by-play professionally, I think Buck is quite good at what he does and have been a fan for years. You ask others and they’ll tell you, often graphically, how much they despise him and wish he’d be disappeared from society. Needless to say, it’s a mixed bag.
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But there’s no denying the guy knows football, he’s been calling games plenty long to have learned at least something. So, what does Joe Buck think about the Rams and why we should pump the breaks on the hype train?
“As we all know, it’s why the schedule feels a lot different in November than it does when it comes out in May, you’ve got to stay healthy,” Buck said. “The Rams have an MVP quarterback who is not a young guy and still has that bad back, I assume, so they just have to, and we as fans have to hope he stays healthy.”
That’s it. That’s all. They have to stay healthy, and that’s why Buck “questions” the Rams’ hype.
I implore you to watch the video itself (linked above), because it only helps you realize how absurd this exercise is. And it doesn’t appear to be Buck’s fault either. He joins in a discussion about the impact of possibly adding Aaron Donald, and he also shares that he thought the defense was already good before adding Myles Garrett and Trent McDuffie.
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Then, at the 54-second mark of the clip, he awkwardly stares into the camera, passes for an unnatural half beat and adds in the bit about why they have to stay healthy. It’s impossible to say without having an IFB in your ear on the day of the show, but that sure looks like a producer telling him to say something to stir the pot or to disagree instead of just continuing to build the hype.
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More than anything, this is just funny. The Rams aren’t perfect on paper, by any means, but they deserve the hype they’re getting and with so much positive news all offseason (from L.A.’s perspective, anyway), the Worldwide Leader In Sports is grasping at the flimsiest straws to create some kind of back and forth about it. Thankfully, there will be real football to talk about and debate soon enough.
By the way, the Rams will play two Monday night games this year: Week 2 against the New York Giants and Week 5 against the Buffalo Bills.
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