Better Know the Enemy: St. Louis Rams

A look ahead at this week's Jets foe

Every week during the season, we’ll scout out the Jets' next opponent. This week, that opponent is the St. Louis Rams.

If you thought there was no way for anyone associated with the Jets offense to come out of this year looking good, you'd be wrong but only on a technicality. 

It's definitely a stretch to call Brian Schottenheimer part of this year's offense, but the former offensive coordinator definitely looks better than he did when he was the guy calling the plays that failed to generate anything at this point. The team called it a mutual decision when Schottenheimer left the team, but, as in a romantic breakup, we're pretty sure that's an impossibility. 

Schottenheimer got the axe and played the scapegoat for the offensive issues of last season. Nine games of Tony Sparano have made it fairly clear that the same problems exist no matter which plays are being called. 

That looks good for Schottenheimer, as does the fact that he's managed to get better results out of Sam Bradford than the Rams got in 2011. Bradford may not be back on track to be the next great quarterback -- it's amazing how quickly the seats in front of him got filled -- but he's certainly a guy headed in the right direction. 

You can't say that about Mark Sanchez or, judging from the opinions of guard Matt Slauson and a slew of anonymous Jets, Tim Tebow. So Schottenheimer's life is certainly looking a lot better now than it was when he was liable for trying to get the Jets into the end zone. If he's able to beat the Jets on Sunday, it will be an even clearer win for him. 

With that, here are a few of the guys who will be celebrating in the home locker room if the Jets don't draw up something a bit more appealing.

The New Sheriff - Jeff Fisher set a pretty good tone for the future of the franchise when he sat down rookies Chris Givens and Janoris Jenkins for last week's game after they violated curfew. Coaches talk about establishing a culture a lot, but they rarely follow through in such a meaningful way when players they need to win are involved. 

Like Father, Like Son - With Howie Long as a father, Chris Long had a pretty big shadow over him as he grew up to be a defensive end like the old man. He's proven to be a chip off the old block with 18 sacks since the start of the 2011 season while also drawing attention that's enabled Robert Quinn to tee off on quarterbacks from the other side of the line. 

A Familiar Style - The Jets have had their troubles over the years with Wes Welker, a smallish wide receiver undrafted out of Texas Tech who has great chemistry with his quarterback while putting up huge numbers in the passing game. Enter Danny Amendola, a smallish wide receiver undrafted out of Texas Tech who has great chemistry with his quarterback while putting up huge numbers in the passing game. 

A Familiar Face - Remember when trading Wayne Hunter was going to be a great thing for the Jets offense? Ah, memories of younger and foolish summer days. 

Josh Alper is also a writer for Pro Football Talk. You can follow him on Twitter.

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