The Los Angeles Rams are perhaps the biggest surprise of the 2017 season. After going 4-12 in 2016, the Rams are 10-4 and challenging for a first-round bye in the playoffs.
Los Angeles can clinch the NFC West and lock up a playoff berth on Sunday, but what looked like a potential Super Bowl season is decidedly less so. Not after the team lost its unheralded MVP this week.
Todd Gurley and Aaron Donald are just fine, but kicker Greg Zuerlein was placed on injured reserve on Wednesday with a season-ending back injury.
Gurley may be the Rams' superstar and defensive tackle Donald their best player, but Zuerlein is overwhelmingly indispensable.
Zuerlein was named to his first Pro Bowl this week, a much-deserved honor. Currently, he is the league leader in scoring. He's accounted for 158 points in 14 games this season. The next closest player is New England Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski with 137 points.
The sixth-year pro was on pace to rack up 181 points this season, a total that would rank second in league history. He was also averaging 11.3 points per game, the best mark in the NFL.
The impact of Zuerlein's place-kicking is easily quantifiable using these stats, but it may be best articulated by his fellow Rams.
"Certainly you always want to try to finish those drives with touchdowns, but I think when you have a player like Greg, you feel like once you get really inside that 40-yard line, we feel pretty confident that he's going to be automatic," head coach Sean McVay said in November.
Quarterback Jared Goff echoed his coach's sentiments and discussed the team's assured ability to come away with points once past midfield.
What an incredible luxury for a sophomore quarterback and rookie head coach.
The Rams own the 10th-best offense in the game and the league's 12th-ranked defense, but without its All-Star special teamer, the team's playoff stay may be short-lived.
Zuerlein made 38 of his 40 field-goal attempts this season. As a result, the Rams share the league lead in points scored with 438.
Points are much more difficult to come by in the playoffs, and without the guarantee of a made kick from Zuerlein, the Rams are likely to struggle to score once they reach the postseason.
They'll have to march further downfield and they'll have to improve their red-zone efficiency - which currently ranks 20th in the league - as the team converts just 54 percent of their trips inside the 20-yard line into touchdowns.
Sam Ficken will stand in for Zuerlein for the remainder of the season and he's yet to convert a kick at the NFL level. In fact, he hasn't attempted a kick in the NFL since going undrafted in 2015.
Los Angeles leads the league in field goals per drive. That's a recipe for defeat with insurmountable pressure set to fall on the boot of an inexperienced kicker.
In order to contend for a championship, the Rams will have to call an audible on its current offensive approach. It's not impossible, considering McVay's ability to extract success out of the team in mere months, but while he can help Goff make changes at the line on the fly, McVay isn't allowed as much control in the kicking game.
(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)
