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Poll: Should Rams Go With the Hot Hand or the Old Man Next Sunday?

It’s just your standard backup quarterback vs. third string quarterback battle in St. Louis. Head Coach Jeff Fisher says Shaun Hill is the man when healthy. What do you think?

By Brandon Bate
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Rams secured their first win of the season on Sunday, on the road against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  One of - if not the - brightest spots on the Rams’ offense yesterday was QB Austin Davis, who was getting his first ever career start in the NFL.

In a less than ideal situation, the Rams lost Sam Bradford in a preseason matchup against the Browns, and saw veteran backup Shaun Hill sidelined with a thigh injury midway through their Week 1 game against the Vikings.  That opened the door for Austin Davis, who was jettisoned into a game that had already gotten out of hand.  Needless to say, having your third string quarterback on the field two quarters into the 16 game season left cause for concern.

Here’s how the Vikings game looked, statistically for both Hill and Davis, each of whom played two quarters:

QB
Comp/Att’s
Yds
Avg.
TD
INT
Sacks/Yds
QBR
Rating
A. Davis
16/23
192
8.3
0
1
4/21
10.3
76.7
S. Hill
8/13
81
6.2
0
1
1/6
25.3
47.3

There’s obviously nothing stellar to see here, and it wouldn’t be fair to draw a conclusion on the potential Week 2 starter utilizing any of the information above.

But the Rams wouldn’t have to.  Shaun Hill, listed as Questionable on Sunday morning, was ruled out [thigh] prior to the start of the game.

Davis stepped in as the starter for the first time in his NFL career, and to say he pleasantly surprised would probably be an understatement.  His overall stats weren’t flashy [192 yds, 1 INT], but he lead the Rams to their first victory of the year...on the road.  He kept mistakes to a minimum, throwing only a few errant passes, but overall put the ball in a position where only his receivers could get it.  Maybe most importantly, Davis showed composure in the pocket.  When the pocket began to break down, Davis stepped up and made the necessary throws.  According to Pro Football Focus, Davis was 7 for 10 [73 yards] when facing pressure, and 9 for 14 [112 yards] when facing the Buccaneers' blitz.

It’s fair to say his mobility, something Shaun Hill has far less of, helped extend plays.  For more on Austin Davis' first NFL win, TST writer misone has a great breakdown.

But shortly after the game concluded, and despite the solid play of Davis, Jeff Fisher was proclaiming Hill the starter when he returned to health.

It’s brought about mixed emotions amongst the fan base.  It appears that many want to roll with the "hot hand," but the head coach looks set to get return to the "old man."

If you had your druthers, who’d be starting next Sunday...even if Shaun Hill is green-lighted to play?


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