Back in late March, it was announced that the Los Angeles Rams would be the subject of season 2 of Amazon's All or Nothing show documenting the behind-the-scenes action of an NFL team.
And yes, the upcoming season will be must-see programming for Rams fans if the trailer is any indication.
From the relocation of the franchise from St. Louis to Los Angeles to trading up for the #1 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft to take QB Jared Goff to a 4-12 season and the firing of Head Coach Jeff Fisher, there's plenty to watch...and none of it's "good."
The Rams have not enjoyed a winning season since 2003, the longest streak in the NFL. Despite their lack of on-field success, the Rams, motivated by COO Kevin Demoff's interpretation of the Rams as a content provider moreso than a football team, participated in three reality shows last season ensuring maximum coverage of their on-field inability.
They were subject of HBO's Hard Knocks, the award-winning show that was nearly universally panned this season for featuring a team as lackluster and unentertaining as the Rams. Several wives of the players participated in E!'s Hollywood and Football. It has not been picked up for another season. Now, they'll be the focus of Amazon's profound examination of the ins and outs of an NFL football team over the journey of an NFL season.
Season 1 of the show focused on the Arizona Cardinals who went 13-3 and lost in the NFC Championship to the Carolina Panthers.
This season will show the Rams off in embarrassing fashion to the larger NFL audience. You do have to wonder what the value here is. It's a very, very well-produced show, just like Hard Knocks. But is the exposure helping the NFL? It's certainly not going to help the Rams expand their popularity (again, see: Hard Knocks).
The Rams returned to LA in 2016 to much fanfare with an excited, curious local fan base. Much of that base was shed thanks to the 4-12 record and the performance of the offense. Now with the Los Angeles Chargers in town, it's fair to ask what kind of hold the Rams will hold on Angelenos and local sports media in 2017.
Perhaps nothing will give us a better understanding of how tight that hold is than the reaction to Season 2 of All or Nothing.
The season is available on June 30. We'll cover it in its entirety here at TST.