Joe Torosian's Outsiders Sports

By Joe Torosian

Kick it!

About last night…It was worse than the chicken at Tresky’s. Oh well, life goes on.

Fog City kicked the Rams’ butt…and I wish they had run up the score.

To an extent, I do believe the Rams looked tired. To an extent, I do believe it was the typical sluggishness of starters getting on the field for the first time, and to an extent, yes, it was absolutely the 49ers’ play.

I can handle and deal with all of it…but, as was passed on to me: “I thought running zone on 3rd less than 7 was all done with the BEST pass rusher and 2 new corners?  But call me crazy…”

On top of that, Chris Shula brought no adjustments. For a defense the Rams spent a lot of money on, it was dictated to rather than dictating anything themselves.

Note to Kam Kinchens: See Eddie Brown, Super Bowl 14.

Note to Sean McVay: Five tight ends, two very good running backs, on fourth and less than one at the goal line, don’t put the ball in the hands of your 38-year-old quarterback.

The Dodgers put Shohei Ohtani on the 15-day injured (Whatever you do, don’t say, “disabled”) list. With a knee and bicep issue, he’s not eligible to come back until September 23rd—a nice vakay before October.

#107—May the San Francisco Giants rot and lie stinking in the earth…

“If you want to grow the game, grow it in the United States. We got a lot of kids that aren’t playing football. So let’s play games where we need to grow the game in our country.”—Jon Gruden.

X/Twitter Response: “Agreed. Play these games in massive college stadiums that don’t have NFL in their state. Alabama, Clemson, Nebraska, Oregon, etc would all be such cool venues for an NFL game & provide an experience to fans who don’t have NFL close by.”

Twenty-Five years ago this morning, I was in the shower, and my wife pounded on the door and said we were under attack.

I thought she was crazy. I got out of the shower, wrapped a towel around my waist, went dripping to the family room, and saw both towers burning.

I took our daughters to school. A lady I knew was at a stop sign smiled so kindly at me, and I wondered if she knew what was going on.

It was deadline day at The Mid (while we posted daily to the website, there was still a weekly hard copy circulating 12 to 15 thousand hard copies).

It was surreal; we listened to the radio, did our jobs, and I wrote a column about how—like December 7th—nothing would ever be the same again.

(Later I received a letter from the parents of El Monte swimming legend and Olympian (3 gold medals) Sandy Neilsen thanking me for the column.)

I went home, couldn’t take my eyes off the news, and left for a college Bible Study I was leading.

Driving West on the 210 that night, with the radio updating that there was no way to know the death count because of the destruction, I drove on. Somewhere around Eagle Rock, I broke down and cried my eyes out.

Razz, hassle me about the Rams today—all good.

But…please leave a comment about where you were on this day 25 years ago. It’s important to remember and record.

The Dude abides…

1,354
Galatians 2:11-14
jtbank1964@yahoo.com
“RamView” M-W-F
Follow Joe on X: @joet13b

By Joe Torosian

Kick it!

Was that a boring game last night?

I’m not down with starting the season on a Wednesday night, but I wasn’t bored.

As I’ve aged, I appreciate every NFL game I see. There’s always something to learn, something to see, and it’s pure competition and struggle. I love it.

My favorite games are messy games where teams have to find a way. Don’t get me wrong, I think flags thrown on the far side of the field once a play has begun are ridiculous, and flagging an offensive lineman (while wearing a number 50-thru-79) for being one yard downfield immediately makes my mind jump to government overreach.

I enjoyed the game last night, and I really enjoyed it as a Rams fan. It was a great win for the Rams.

Like last year, the Seattle Seahawks come across as a good team that’s been posing as a great team.

I’m going to break a rule here… I’m going to use the phrase, “Pump the brakes.”

Pump the brakes on the Seahawks. They are not a transcendent all-time great team. Did they win last night, or did the Patriots give the game away?

New England worked so hard to give that game away, you would have thought they had money on blowing a ten-point lead.

As a Rams fan, I was thoroughly encouraged. Drake Maye was terrible, while fanboys (Colin Cowherd) actually believe the Seahawks made plays.

Placing Maye’s meltdown to the side, let’s look at Seattle’s lone touchdown. It’s fourth and one at midfield, and the one guy you can’t let beat you is Jackson Smith-Njigba.

I don’t know if Mike Vrabel was having a Russini fantasy flashback or what, but the one guy he left open on that play was JSN.

As long as teams play bad, and Terry McAulay has the NFL offices on speed dial, the Seahawks will remain a contender. They’re not a bad team; they’re a good team; they’re just not a great team.

And what I saw from the Emerald City team was a so-so pass rush and a so-so offensive line.

It was a great night for the Rams. Now they have to follow it up with a win over Fog City.

Last Add New England: If I had a voice in the Patriots’ front office, I would have considered Kiffin-ing Romeo Doubs on the tarmac.

While the following remains my deepest MLB desire for 2026…#106—May the San Francisco Giants rot and lie stinking in the earth…I can’t help but notice the Dodgers, who many were shoveling dirt on, have won seven in a row.

Last Add MLB: In the last eight seasons, the Dodgers have eliminated the Milwaukee Brewers from the postseason three times.

Note to Rams: Pound the ball tonight…

Last Add Rams: I expect San Francisco LT Trent Williams to play a great game tonight. This is the healthiest he’ll be all season, and he has every motivation in the world to stop Myles Garrett.

First Add Sam Darnold: It was such a rando injury, I don’t think not playing in the preseason had anything to do with it.

There might be some arguments for playing starters in the preseason, but Darnold going down isn’t one of them.

Good for Drew Lock.

The Dude abides…

1,353
1 Corinthians 5:12-13
jtbank1964@yahoo.com
“RamView” M-W-F
Follow Joe on X: @joet13b

By Joe Torosian

Kick it!

Once I had a job where I was the third person in the pecking order.

The boss would yell at me because it was easier to yell at me than it was to yell at the dude who was #2 in the pecking order. Continue reading →

By Joe Torosian

Kick it!

I love the flexing Seattle Seahawks media, fans, and players are doing about Aaron Donald’s return. Essentially saying the Rams needed to bring Donald back to stop the Seahawks.

Having Donald back is an advantage — no doubt —but as long as Terry McAulay is in the Prime booth with the NFL office on speed dial, the Seahawks remain a leg up on everybody…and, possibly, so do bookies across America.

Next Add Donald’s Return: Everyone is speculating the Rams will run the table and go undefeated.

No, the Rams will not go undefeated…I think they could lose to Fog City next week in Australia.

That’s not a hot take, that’s just what I think is possible.

The game in Melbourne will be the Super Bowl for the San Francisco 49ers. I think they’re going to throw everything, including the kitchen sink, into Week One.

They’ll have to do it Week One, because by Week Ten, the IR will be full, and we don’t know who in the front office or on the coaching staff will be arrested, in a car accident, or both.

Next Add Rams Perfect Season: McVay’s Rams tend to start sluggish because the first three weeks of a season are generally their preseason.

The Rams are 11-7 since 2020 after three weeks.

Last season they didn’t look great against Houston and Tennessee, and then looked great against Philadelphia before collapsing in the second half.

Last Add Rams Perfection: In 2021 the Rams started 3-0…and then everyone went Harry Hysterical when they went 0-3 that same November.

Honestly, who’s the jackwagon that allowed that San Jose State-USC game on Saturday to be played at high noon?

(Player safety, yeah, sure…whatever.)

Are the Chargers really going to play the 2026 season—perhaps their most important season since immigrating to Los Angeles—with Trey Lance and DJ Uiagalelei as their backup quarterbacks?

(I know Uiagalelei was cut, but may end up on the Practice Squad.)

The Tennessee Titans put Will Levis in the street. Shouldn’t they take a flyer on him? Heck, even Easton Stick—also available—would be an improvement on what the Bolts have now.

Double-Heck…why wouldn’t the Atlanta Falcons spin the wheel on Levis?

Speaking of local…

The Cleveland Browns waived local El Monte product Davon Booth…somebody locally should give the kid a look-see.

Between college football kicking off and NFL roster cuts, I forgot the MLB season was still going on. Did you?

Yes, of course,…#101—May the San Francisco Giants rot and lie stinking in the earth…

But the struggle to the bottom of the MLB is heating up. The Los Angeles Angels and Colorado Rockies are currently tied with 52-85 records. The Rockies have lost four in a row, but the Halos have responded with a seven-game losing streak of their own.

…And the Las Vegas A’s are only a game out with a 53-84 record.

As Frazer Smith once said, “No matter how worse you are, there’s always somebody out there trying to be a little bit worser.”

The Dude abides…

1,348

Matthew 16:13-20

jtbank1964@yahoo.com

“RamView” M-W-F

Follow Joe on X: @joet13b

By Joe Torosian

Kick it!

Conclusion: Watching the ongoing implosion of the Buss family reminds me, again, that money/generational wealth are not the greatest gifts you can give your children.

Seventeen years ago, my mom died, and among the gifts she gave us over a lifetime was the blessing that all we had to do as a family was divide up her photos.

Selfishly, while I’m still going to root for the New York Knicks, I really want the Lakers to do well.

Have you seen the recent pics of Luka? Can Walker Kessler be a 2026 statistical version of Vlade Divac?

The New York Times recently ran a huge piece on CTE and football.

As I shared a few months ago, don’t sell your soul to a “scientific” report. No matter how credible it sounds. Before diving in, ask who paid for it, what their agenda is, and why they claim absolute certainty.

I share this in light of a Facebook memory that popped up from 13 years ago about the imminent end-of-the-world scenarios “Climate Change” would bring about in the next five years.

“Joe! It’s already happening!” And the “science” would be cited.

Match that with the millions of gallons of Kool-Aid swallowed about the absolute certainties of COVID six years ago.

And I refuse to believe everyone was trying to be safe and careful with the information they had. No, there was an agenda beyond the “greater good” narratives.

And this is where CTE becomes a thing with football. Don’t trust everything you are told or see in print. (If you got a pastor that expects you to trust him over the Bible, you need to fire that guy.)

Rather ask where the money behind it is coming from, who the information serves, and why it—like everything else—is an absolute. (Like the pastor telling you his church is the only true church.)

The “science” the MLB trusts can’t even figure out how to preserve and protect million-dollar arms.

We can’t even define or agree on what a woman is in this culture, but a “scientific” report by the New York Times has nailed all things CTE, football, and traumatic brain injury?

Yeah, and Kawhi Leonard will play 82 games this season.

We still have football because it makes so much money, but there is an agenda—arming itself with fear & emotion—to get rid of it.

I can go on a long rant on why football is great…and easily produce another 500 words on why it is important for young men…and maybe the last island remaining where we encourage our young men to grow as men…and why there’s an agenda to destroy it…but not today.

Speaking of football…Two things are true about the Los Angeles Rams after Saturday’s dirt-roading of the New Orleans Saints.

1—The discussions about there being a legitimate battle for QB2 were ridiculous.

2—The Rams are the only NFL team that can give snaps to their #3s/Practice Squad guys with the expectation they’re going to play good football.

I’m not condemning Kansas City, New Orleans, or any other NFL franchise to a high draft pick next April, but the Rams are the only team I’ve seen operationally that looks ready for the regular season.

Last Add Saints-Rams: Is anybody looking out for Jourdan Rodrigue? I’ve sung her praises, but the pairing of her with Brenda Song was an image-destroying catastrophe.

Someone should have been looking out for her, and demanding that she stay on the football script—a script she does really well with.

Instead, all that celebrity in the booth moment did was give fuel to every dude arguing women shouldn’t be involved with football at any level.

…And I’ve never said that. I don’t want them doing play-by-play…and if they’re going to provide analysis, they need to be as good as Rodrigue has been in the past.

Late to the party on this, but my only question regarding the Ennis Kanter Freedom-Natasha Cloud spat over the weekend is, did he say something?

I haven’t heard anything about him verbally taunting her (I welcome correction), so if she was triggered merely by his presence and t-shirt, the whole thing’s her fault.

Then I begin to wonder if the rage was pre-planned. In the end, all Cloud did was show the QNBA’s immaturity and shed more light on a debate it can’t win.

Hey, the New York Mets are only nine games back in the National League Wildcard race.

#99—May the San Francisco Giants rot and lie stinking in the earth…

Last Add Mets: I’m telling you there’s a chance.

The Dude abides…

1,346
1 Corinthians 10:13
jtbank1964@yahoo.com
“RamView” M-W-F
Follow Joe on X: @joet13b