Hard Knocks 2016 could be major distraction for Los Angeles Rams

Hard Knocks 2016 could prove to be an issue if the Los Angeles Rams aren’t careful.

Yes, it’s great to have professional football back in Los Angeles, but with that kind of move comes a great deal of responsibility when dealing with the media.

Hard Knocks is preparing to have a blockbuster series featuring the Rams in their upcoming season. The 2016 edition of the show may not air until August, but it’s presence has been felt since the show announced a joint effort with Los Angeles.

For the Rams, the focus has to remain on football, especially with the new players they acquired heading into training camp and the eventual regular season.

Los Angeles is going to be a hard enough place to play, but that comes with the perks of loyal fans — not to brush up on those from St. Louis, but the fans in Los Angeles have continued to do their teams justice since sports arrived in the city.

As the show continues filming and camp goes on, here are three reasons that the reality could set in sooner rather than later for Los Angeles.

Last year’s chaotic scenario at quarterback proved to be a trying time for the franchise.

Nick Foles was thought to be the long-term solution at the position, but after getting benched by the team in favor of Case Keenum in the middle of the season, that idea took a complete detour.

Keenum’s role as the fill-in guy didn’t go great, but instead went as expected, earning him the favor of team executives for the time being.

For obvious reasons, meting expectations isn’t inherently a bad thing, but the Rams clearly looked like they were ready to move forward by drafting Jared Goff with the top pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.

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Goff had a losing record while at Cal and is also an air-raid familiar quarterback — players who are known for being busts at the professional level — so he has enough pressure as it is, let alone if he gets picked to be the starter.

The Rams also struggled finding hope in previous quarterback Sam Bradford, who was shipped to Philadelphia for Foles, so this has been an ongoing issue and is nothing new to the team.

Mix that with making sure that Todd Gurley feels comfortable with whoever is declared the Week 1 starter and you’ve got the perfect content for a series like Hard Knocks.

The reason this ties into being a distraction is because there hasn’t been a clear cut answer at quarterback, and the team’s draft decision to go for another quarterback only makes the situation more complicated.

Having camera crews covering every aspect of the training camp Los Angeles is putting on could lead to an opportunity for players that might want special attention to get what they want — but not in the best interest of the franchise.

Next: Can Pharoh Cooper Immediately Contribute?

With their quarterback gap still wide open, the Rams can avoid issues with Hard Knocks if they show full faith in their season starter.