EARTH CITY, Mo. -- St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher has been steadfast in his commitment to veteran quarterback Shaun Hill since starter Sam Bradford was lost to a torn ACL on Aug. 23.
When Hill departed Sunday's 34-6 loss to the Minnesota Vikings with what the Rams called a strained left quadriceps, the conspiracy theorists began coming out of the woodwork claiming that Hill's mediocre first half was the reason he exited.
On Monday, Fisher strongly denied that anything other than Hill's leg was the reason for his departure.
"I have not heard anything along those lines," Fisher said. "I'm telling you the truth. I've never messed around with the quarterback situation in my entire career. I am speaking truthfully. He's got a quad strain and we took him out of the game, period. ... That's absurd."
Hill was making his first start as a Ram after signing in St. Louis as a free agent during the offseason. He was 8-of-13 for 81 yards with no touchdowns but threw an interception late in the first half that Fisher said was due in part to his aching quad.
According to Fisher, he and Hill discussed the injury at halftime and came to the conclusion that Hill would only make the injury worse by continuing to play.
Hill stayed on the sideline in full uniform for the second half but Fisher said that was because they agreed he could take shotgun snaps if something were to happen to backup Austin Davis.
After the game, Hill deferred all questions about his injury to Fisher, which fueled some of the speculation.
As for this week, Fisher said Hill's practice status will be a day-to-day proposition and emphasized that if Hill is healthy, there is no quarterback controversy in this or any other week.
"If Shaun is able to play, he will be our starter," Fisher said. "There's no issue there. Shaun's our quarterback, so if he's healthy, he starts, and that will be the case throughout the season."