Friday, February 27, 2009

Free agency: the opening flurry

* To their credit, the Rams made an all-night effort last night to get CB Ron Bartell re-signed, but he is going to "test" the free-agent market, with scheduled visits to New Orleans and Denver. Upshot: Bartell won't be a Ram in 2009. Once a player starts making free-agent visits, they're usually gone. Bernie Miklasz has blamed Jay Zygmunt for not getting Bartell wrapped up much, much, earlier. My question, though: did Jay-Z have much power to do anything last year? I'm more inclined to believe the loss of Bartell is going to be the one botch of the Rams' transition to new management. I think Billy Devaney etc. did not anticipate the market for CBs to go as nuts as it has (Thanks, Oakland!) and thought Bartell would be much easier to sign.

* The Rams' #1 free agency target appears to be Baltimore center Jason Brown. He's to visit Rams Park later today.

* To address their backfield, the Rams have also been in touch with Philip Buchanon of Tampa Bay, and, of course, James Butler of the Giants. Eh. Neither of those guys excites me very much. Yes, Buchanon's better than anybody they've got, but realistically, at his best he's no better than a #2 CB.

* Reporters dueled back and forth on the Rams' interest in Bart Scott, all moot: the Jets got to him first and have signed him.

* Richie Incognito and Victor Adeyanju received tender offers from the team, but the lowest level. If another team signs Incognito to an offer sheet, the Rams can either match or let the other team have him for a 3rd-round pick. For Adeyanju it's a 4th-round pick. Good moves here; I would have overpaid. I don't see an offer sheet coming for either player.

* Mark Setterstrom was not tendered and becomes an unrestricted free agent.

* Washington signed Albert Haynesworth to a 7-year, $100 million contract. Do the salary cap rules ever actually apply to Daniel Snyder, or does he have a permanent get-out-of-jail-free card from the league? How is it the Redskins NEVER fail to get the big-money players they want?


It's good to see the Rams emerging as a factor in free agency, but they'd better get Brown if they're going to lose Bartell. There are still plenty of defensive holes to fill.

Thursday, February 26, 2009

RamView's free agency strategy

My best-laid plans for the Rams in free agency were cruelly laid to waste when the Dolphins re-signed Channing Crowder last night. Another cruel blow was the Michael Crabtree combine meltdown. With the market opening tonight and NFL general managers ready to storm it like a Long Island Wal-Mart, here's what I'd attempt to do for the Rams:

Priority 1: cornerback, where I'm going after Andre Goodman of Miami, who won't command similar dollars to Ron Bartell but should provide similar play.
Priority 2: Sam LB. My play is for Jamie Winborn, who I think would come pretty cheap, but I can easily see Billy Devaney going after Michael Boley, who's miscast in Atlanta's new defensive scheme.
Priority 3: offensive line. The free agent market is terrible, but the Rams need Adam Goldberg. He's capable of starting and Barron's the only starting tackle they have for sure right now. And if they want to keep RFA Richie Incognito, he'll require at least a first-round tender.
Priority 4: big, sloppy run-stuffer, though the free agent market is pretty much limited to Grady Jackson and Colin Cole.
Priority 5: Leonard Weaver, if there's any cap room left.
Priority 6: strong safety, guess I'll settle for James Butler, who'd better be cheap.
Priority 7: veteran WR. Considering the Crabtree flameout and the pretty soft FA market, the Rams would be best off keeping Holt, even at full price.
Priority 8: QB2. No hurry, I doubt there'll be any kind of rush on QBs.

Also: resign Jason Craft for nickel back; Dane Looker for WR depth; second-round tender RFA Victor Adeyanju. I'm relying on the draft to come away with a minimum of a starting LT, a starting center and a QB3.

Do the Rams, even without Pace and Holt, have enough cap space to pull most of these moves off? Hell if I know. Do I look like the Throat-Slasher? But this is at least how I'd prioritize the Rams' efforts at signing free agents if I were calling the shots.

I won't claim to know what the Rams' free agency priorities are. I can guess they're going after Boley and Butler. Rumor has it they'll go after Jeff Garcia and Buffalo center Duke Preston. Weaver's been on their radar. But we have yet to guess how they'll fill coming gaping holes at cornerback, offensive tackle and wide receiver.

Answers should start arriving in Rams Nation very, very soon.

FA defensive backs preview

UFA DBs as of 02/26/2009 (from kffl.com)
RamView's Top 5 CBs: 1 - Jabari Greer 2 - Bryant McFadden 3 - Chris Gamble 4 - Keiwan Ratliff 5 - Karl Paymah
Top 5 FS: 1 - Jim Leonhard 2 - Eugene Wilson 3 - Brian Dawkins 4 - James Butler 5 - Dwight Smith
Top 5 SS: 1 - Jermaine Phillips 2 - Darren Sharper 3 - Yeremiah Bell 4 - Jon McGraw

Sleepers: Andre Goodman, Corey Ivy

Gawd No: Pac-Man, Fakhir Brown, Corey Chavous, and any number of old, broken down DBs in this year's FA pool

Rams FAs: Ron Bartell is an unrestricted free agent, along with Fakhir Brown, Jason Craft and Ricky Manning Jr. Corey Chavous was cut shortly after last season. O.J. Atogwe got the franchise tag at free safety.

Rams analysis: By letting Bartell hit the open market, the Rams have created a Jimmy Kennedy-sized problem in the secondary. Bartell's now likely to command an $8 million a year contract, much, much more than what he's worth to the Rams. Assuming the Rams don't bring back the only occasionally-competent Unca Fakhir, well, let's just say you're starting the other teams' WRs every week in your fantasy league. The best CB currently signed to the roster is Jonathan Wade, a willing hitter with speed, but at best, a nickel back with a lot of unrealized potential. Justin King's probably next, and he missed all his rookie season with a blown knee. Who knows what that's done to the speed the Rams drafted him for? Then there's Tye Hill, who's rapidly developing into as bad a first-round pick as the Rams have ever made. He was so shell-shocked early last season he looked like he needed to be committed to a rubber room. And with his knack for indurability, he would have found a way to get injured in that rubber room. The Rams are going to have to come up with two or three veteran CBs to field even a competitive secondary. O.J. Atogwe got the franchise tag at free safety despite his liabilities in coverage and ken for selfish play (he lost the home game against San Francisco last season by trying to intercept a late TD pass instead of knocking it down). But he's also about the only Ram defender who can force a turnover, so he's definitely valuable. The strong side remains the hole it has been ever since Toby Wright left town. Todd Johnson looked like a promising incumbent after (FINALLY) replacing Chavous last season, but he withered into a tackle-missing mess by the end of the season like every other Ram SS of the last decade. With Bartell gone, the Rams are worse off in the secondary than anywhere else on the team, including offensive line.

Viewing the field: This year's DB market makes up for its lack of quality with abundant quantity. RamView has no way to put decent research into all of these guys before free agency starts tonight, so this is a rather quick overview. I'm a big fan of Greer's play in Buffalo. He's part of a solid young core there that I honestly thought would have gotten the Bills farther along by now. Gamble has more of the size the Rams need in their secondary, but if you're going to spend Gamble money, why not spend it on Bartell? Leonhard is an up-and-coming safety who's also a dangerous kick returner for the Ravens. Wilson came into the league as a corner out of Illinois. His flexibility could come in quite handy here. Though 30, Goodman's career is still peaking, and he might be as good as Bartell at a much cheaper price. He was the best player in Miami's secondary down the stretch last season and his statistics are worthy of a shutdown corner. And RamView can't close out without mentioning longtime favorite Corey Ivy. No, he wouldn't be anything higher than a nickel back, but darnit, the guy has a knack for making plays.

RamView's moves: There are a lot of "names" out there the Rams could go after as a quick fix for their looming Bartell snafu. There's older CBs like Chris McAlister and Dre Bly who have been game-changing playmakers but who have lost at least a step. Leigh Bodden, Domonique Foxworth and Drayton Florence are on my next level: younger players but ones who have topped out at the average-to-above average level. Justin Miller's a knucklehead, but he can return kicks, which increases his, or Chris Carr's, or even R.W. McQuarters', value to the Rams, regardless of their coverage skills, or lack thereof. Needing two veteran CBs, and a SS who can tackle, the Rams may have to use all of their salary cap space at this position. RamView would renew Craft's contract and go after Goodman and Miller, hopefully having Bly and Manning Jr. to fall back on in the event of quick rejection.

What the Rams could do: If Steve Spagnuolo believes his former SS for the Giants, James Butler, is a guy to get, then I'll agree with him. Odds are, though, that the economics of the market are going to force them to try to resuscitate Hill's career to be able to field a defensive backfield.

Prediction: The Rams bring in Butler at SS, and another former Giant, Will Allen, to hold the fort across from Hill at CB. They might surprise me and spend a lot more, but Spagnuolo's never had really great secondaries to work with. If the Rams do anything big on defense in FA, it'll be in the front seven. One thing for sure: RamView is making damn sure to get Larry Fitzgerald in fantasy football this season.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Trent Green cut

Jim Thomas is also reporting that Trent Green has been cut. The Rams are definitely going to have to bring in some new blood at quarterback. Early web rumor: Jeff Garcia (who's NO YOUNGER).

It's a shame for Trent, because he's a class guy and being unemployed sucks. But it's also a great thing for him. He got through his last season in the NFL without another brain injury.

Retire now while you're ahead, Trent. It's time.

Article

AND THE ANGELS SANG HALLELUJAH!

Just saw word on the Rampagers mailing list that the Rams have.....

CUT.

DREW.

BENNETT.


Rejoice, Rams Nation! And put a painful bow on the "era" of the worst free agent signing the Rams have ever made. (One of these days I need to get the all-time worst team page updated.)

What a great sports week for me! The Cardinals "losing" worthless Jason Isringhausen and the Rams dumping the awful Bennett might almost make up for it when Torry Holt and Orlando Pace get the axe.

FA linebacker preview

UFA DL as of 02/25/2009 (from kffl.com)
RamView's Top 5 ILBs: 1 - Ray Lewis 2 - Channing Crowder 3 - Jonathan Vilma 4 - Bart Scott 5 - Takeo Spikes
Top 5 OLBs: 1 - Jamie Winborn 2 - Keith Brooking 3 - Michael Boley 4 - Paris Lenon 5 - Ryan Nece

Sleepers: Keyaron Fox, Rocky Boiman

Gawd No: Larry Izzo, Mike Peterson

Rams FAs: The Rams don't appear to have a lot of free agent concerns of their own at linebacker. There's special team specialist Gary Stills, who at age 34 probably won't be back, not at a very high cost, at least.

Rams analysis: A big part of the Rams' defensive failure against the run is that they haven't been strong enough right up the middle. Will Witherspoon had a terrific 2007 at Mike linebacker but got dominated and injured week after week in 2008 as his lack of size left offenses unafraid to run at him. Pisa Tinoisamoa had one of his best seasons as a pro on the weak side, but while continuing to get out of position too often and give up big plays. Quinton Culberson could not parlay a solid preseason into regular season success. The youngster was confused on the field a lot and eventually supplanted by capable veteran Chris Draft. David "Mr. Irrelevant" Vobora got some time at Mike with Witherspoon out injured but failed to impress. Chris Chamberlain, Gary Stills and even late-season addition Larry Grant tore it up on special teams. Chamberlain in particular appears to have a lot of potential, but again, he's a smallish LB and the Rams are a team that needs to get bigger and tougher at this position, particularly in the middle.

Viewing the field: RamView's biggest regret looking over the free agent LB market is that the Rams aren't a 3-4 team. The 3-4 ILB position is easily the most scintillating one in the FA market, led by Hall-of-Fame lock Ray Lewis, who isn't slowing down at 33. He led this FA class in tackles and passes defended last year, and can still get to the QB. But St. Louis obviously isn't in his future. The Jets, with Lewis' old DC Rex Ryan at head coach, are said to have the most interest. Miami hasn't made Crowder an offer, and he's ticked off about it. Somebody's going to hit it big, signing a 25-year-old, 6'2", 250-lb MLB with a chip on his shoulder. He's started every year in Miami, including his rookie year and calls the defensive signals. What makes Crowder not quite ideal is repeated problems with his knees and that he might be better suited on the outside in a 4-3. Jonathan Vilma is a tackling machine whose deal allows him to become a free agent, but he will likely be scooped right back up by the Saints. Similar situation for Bart Scott, whom the Ravens are making a big push to re-sign, though his tackle totals have been dropping since 2006. Spikes had a fine year for the Whiners in 2008 but would almost have to be used as a 3-4 ILB. Pittsburgh's Fox is a special teams terror and a big hitter who made tons of plays for them last preseason. They're likely to keep him but he has good qualities and a chance to blossom at the age of 27. Another LB to eyeball is 30-year-old Andra
Davis of Cleveland, who's struggled in a passive scheme there after ringing up 149 (199, according to the team) tackles in an aggressive scheme in 2005. Izzo's had a great career as a special teamer but I can do without any guys linked to the Barry Bonds trial, can't you?

The OLB market's nowhere near as good, because unlike Nick Wagoner, I don't cop out and include players who have already been franchised. Should Karlos Dansby really be considered available when he would cost two first round picks? Of course not. SLB Winborn is infinitely more available, because Denver cut him in a salary dump, even though he had easy career highs last year of 99 tackles and 11 passes defended. He also led Denver in special teams tackles a couple of years ago. Brooking's a WLB on the down side of a fine career. Boley, a smallish SLB, could be a fine addition to an aggressive defense; he struggled and got benched last year because he doesn't read-and-react very well. But with Boley, you have to keep in mind a domestic dispute arrest from last year. Detroit actually had some good LBs last year. 6'2" 235 Lenon was an ILB there but is better suited to a 4-3 SLB. He's a good all-around athlete with a mean competitive streak and about 120 tackles each of the last two years and he's good at covering backs. Nece, who of course is the son of Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott, had 68 tackles as Detroit's SLB last year and deserves points for being the kind of upstanding citizen you want to have in your locker room. Boiman had 73 tackles in K.C. last year just as a part-time starter. Sounds like he knows how to go find the ball. Peterson, who of course was drafted with the pick the Rams sent to the Colts for Marshall Faulk, got benched during Jacksonville's
defensive struggles last year and also got suspended for arguing with coach Jack del Rio. Don't think a rookie coach will want to have that kind of challenge on his roster.

RamView's moves: Fix this position. The Rams' free agent priorities need to be on the defensive front seven, especially when effective solutions are available. I'm moving Will to, um, Will, and going hard after Crowder for Mike. Pisa's trade bait because I'd rather take a run at Winborn for the strong side. Draft's my all-purpose backup, with Chamberlain and Culberson filling out the unit, depending on the draft.

What the Rams could do: If Wake Forest LB Aaron Curry doesn't go first in the draft, ahem, there's a heck of a good chance he's going second. Either way they're going to need a Sam, so Devaney could very easily fire up the Atlanta pipeline and bring Boley in under the assumption that last year was a fluke. Antonio Pierce's name comes up a lot since he was Spagnuolo's MLB the last couple of years.

Prediction: Devaney signs Boley as the new Sam. If they draft Curry, he's the Mike and Will's the Will. If they don't, Will stays at Mike, Pisa stays at Will, and Devaney regrets he didn't try harder for a free agent MLB.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

FA defensive line preview

UFA DL as of 02/24/2009 (from kffl.com)
RamView's Top 5 DEs: 1 - Bertran Berry 2 - Igor Olshansky 3 - Chauncy Davis 4 - Ebenezer Ekuban 5 - Kalimba Edwards
Top 5 DTs: 1 - Albert Haynesworth 2 - Antonio Smith 3 - Rocky Bernard 4 - Colin Cole 5 - Jonathan Babineaux

Sleepers: Davis, Cole

Gawd No: John Engelberger, Jimmy Kennedy

Rams FAs: Victor Adeyanju is a restricted free agent, while Eric Moore is unrestricted. La'Roi Glover is unrestricted from retiring.

Rams analysis: The Rams have to do SOMETHING with this defensive line, don't they? They were 29th in the NFL against the run, allowing over 150 yards a game, while tying for 16th in the league in sacks with 30. The sack total sounds a lot more respectable than the Rams' pass rush was. Leonard Little, who the team has announced will be back in 2009, played hurt all season and nearly led the team in sacks, with 6. James Hall, whose bad play far surpasses his bursts of good play, led the Rams with 6.5. Chris Long had 4 before appearing to hit the rookie wall late in the season, though the #2 overall pick from last year has plenty of promise and should pick up some of his teammates' slack this year. Victor Adeyanju posed no threat as a pass rusher despite playing a lot, while a serviceable-at-best run defender. Moore and C.J. Ah You round out the DEs for now, though neither has been a factor in the regular season. They figure to be victims of a thorough renovation of the defensive line by Steve Spagnuolo. In the middle, that probably means the end of the road for La'Roi Glover, although that leaves naught but training camp scrubs behind Adam Carriker and Cliff Ryan, and they need help. Carriker in particular got pushed around the whole of last season. And a team that gave up so many yards on the ground definitely needs a dominating presence in the middle.

Viewing the field: Haynesworth is the premier free agent lineman available. The dominating Titans tackle had more sacks last year with 8.5 than any other FA lineman. You could argue three things very successfully about Haynesworth: 1 - he may well have been the NFL MVP last year; 2 - he may well transform any defense he goes to, including the Rams', into a very good one; and 3 - with Pace and Holt likely off the payroll, the Rams can afford him. I'm not sure I'm buying, though. His reputation is that he'll put it in cruise control once he gets the big money. And he wants enough to buy a small nation. The Rams have played Arizona enough times to know what a pain in the ass Antonio Smith is. He's the kind of player you love, when he's on your team. He's 28 and peaking, with 80+ tackles and 9 sacks the last two years. Smith's overlooked by the general football public as a playmaker and would look great here in Glover's spot. As far as big, sloppy run-stoppers, the Rams could go after Grady Jackson, the very definition of big and sloppy, or look to others younger than the 36-year-old planetoid. Green Bay's switching to the 3-4 and are said to believe 6'1", 330-lb 29-year-older Colin Cole isn't what they're looking for at nose tackle. Cole's a lunch-bucket guy who was buried in the Packer d-line rotation till last year. He pushed the pocket well enough for a career-high 11.5 QB pressures, and he's big and physical unlike anyone the Rams have up front. Bernard is smaller by 20 pounds but has better potential to get to the QB while coming off a career high season with 55 tackles. He's another pain in the ass the Rams would love not to face twice a year, but he's also got a strike from the league (and society) for a domestic violence incident last April. Babineaux is smaller than what the Rams would be looking for at 6'2" 284, but he's just 27 and is still peaking as a playmaker and a pass rusher. Kennedy certainly has the size the Rams need in the middle, if only he could play.

As in most years, the UFA market at defensive end isn't going to yield an elite pass rusher. There's no DE on this year's list who had more than five sacks last year. Then again, that would have been good for third on the Rams. Berry is the elite pass rusher of this group, with threatening speed off the edge even at age 34, but he's nothing a healthy Little couldn't be. Olshansky's one of the league's strongest players and has been a dominant run-stopper but is strictly a 3-4 DE. Davis didn't get onto the field as much as Jamaal Anderson in Atlanta but has been a more productive player. His 4 sacks and 38 tackles last year were career highs. He also recovered three fumbles, and posed a good enough pass rush risk to take offensive attention away from John Abraham. Davis is only 26 and may just reach his real peak with his next team. Ekuban has averaged 6 sacks a season since 2004 but his tackle totals are dropping steadily. Edwards has always weirdly intrigued me, though he was a draft bust for Detroit. He's still young at 29 and had a career-high 48 tackles and near-CH 5 sacks for Oakland last year. And it won't cost a thing to pick him up; he is a free agent in the same way Jim Haslett is right now. Unemployed. The Raiders cut him to make room for Nnamdi Asomugha's ridiculous contract. Engelberger used to haunt the Rams a lot, but he's 32, maybe 260, and has 3 sacks since 2005. Don't be fooled by the past there.

RamView's moves: They've gotta get pass rushers on the edge and run stuffers in the middle. RamView would go after Chauncey Davis. He'll be an overall improvement over Hall: younger and around the ball more. Statistically, you could consider Hall a legitimate pass-rusher. I tend not to consider him legitimate at much of anything. Edwards can come in for you off the waiver wire and contribute just as much statistically as Hall as a 4th DE. I'd also go full-bore after Antonio Smith. He'd be perfect in the Glover role and you'd weaken a division rival without hiring a woman-beater like Bernard. Arizona got rid of their DC, so Smith might be more amenable to a move. That still leaves a need for Mr. Big and Sloppy, and since I'm going offensive line 1-2, he'll need to be a free agent as well.

RamView's 2009 defensive line:
DE: Little, Long, Chauncey Davis, Kalimba Edwards vs. Adeyanju in training camp for DE4
DT: Antonio Smith, Ryan, Carriker, Colin Cole

What the Rams could do: B.J. Raji of Boston College is becoming an increasing factor in the Rams' thought process for the #2 pick overall, not only because he's a needed big run stopper, but because Spagnuolo comes from a franchise that's had great success with B.C.'s players. Right now, though, it looks like they are hurting far too much on the offensive line to address the defensive line that early. Don't look for former Spagnuolo players to be factors, either. The main one available is William Joseph, who's a stiff. With a lot of money available with the presumed cuts of Pace and Holt to come, though, they HAVE to come away with veterans to work into the mix at DE and DT right away.

Prediction: If I'm right that Davis is worth going after, former Falcon assistant GM Billy Devaney will do it. So I'll predict myself to be right. :) But they'll also keep Hall and try moving Adeyanju inside. And if they sign a free-agent center as I've predicted, they're free to take Raji's DT partner Ron Brace with their second-round pick. And yep, he's big and sloppy.

Rams projection:
DE: Little, Long, Hall, Davis
DT: Ryan, Carriker, Brace, Adeyanju

Monday, February 23, 2009

FA offensive line preview

UFA OL as of 02/17/2009 (from kffl.com)
RamView's Top 5 Ts: 1 - Jordan Gross (signed) 2 - Vernon Carey (signed) 3 - Tra Thomas 4 - Kirk Chambers 5 - Daniel Loper
Top 5 Gs: 1 - Mike Goff 2 - Russ Hochstein 3 - Jason Fabini 4 - Kynan Forney 5 - Joe Berger
Top 5 Cs: 1 - Jeff Saturday 2 - Matt Birk 3 - Jason Brown 4 - Jake Grove 5 - Geoff Hangartner

Sleepers: Loper, Berger, Hangartner

Gawd No: George Foster, Milford Brown, Jeremy Newberry

Rams FAs: OTs Adam Goldberg and Brandon Gorin are unrestricted free agents; G Richie Incognito is restricted.

Rams analysis: Recent reports now indicate that Orlando Pace, as well as Torry Holt, won't be back with the Rams in 2009. Neither appear willing to restructure their contracts. I don't know why I was surprised to hear Pace wouldn't restructure. When has the guy ever taken less than the absolute top dollar he could get? This time, though, the Rams are too cap-strapped to bend over backwards for Pace, even though he's going to the Hall of Fame and is still their best pass-protector right now. That leaves the Rams a highly fuzzy future at LT. Alex Barron is in his walk year and should probably be left at RT if he's on the roster. The other backups are journeymen Goldberg, Gorin and a fairly unknown quantity in Anthony Davis. Good thing the Rams have that #2 overall pick. Goldberg's versatile enough to be a priority re-signing, but Gorin's coming off a season-ending knee injury last preseason and likely won't be back. On the interior, another priority for the Rams is a long-term solution at center, where they're currently undersized and underskilled. Brett Romberg's the only one of the three centers on the current roster (Nick Leckey, Cory Withrow) with much chance of returning. Romberg was game in 2007 but is proving to be neither big nor strong enough to anchor the position. Jacob Bell was a multimillion-dollar disappointment at LG last year; promising '08 draft pick John Greco could easily beat him out there and kick him out to RT. The enigmatic, to say the least, Richie Incognito is too good a run-blocker for the run-focused Steve Spagnuolo to let him get away despite penalty and discipline issues. '08 fifth-round draft pick Roy Schuening needs to have a big training camp; he's probably a dark-horse to make the team. Coming off his second straight year with a season-ending injury, Mark Setterstrom is a much longer shot.

Viewing the field: RamView hated the current free agent market for tackles even before Jordan Gross and Vernon Carey came off the top of it by resigning with their old teams. Half of the class is coming off season-ending injuries or couldn't even cut it with DETROIT (like Foster). I've never been that impressed with Gross, who's never lived up to his high draft status and certainly isn't worthy of being paid more than any other offensive lineman. Carey would have made the Rams bigger but not necessarily better. Dolphins Nation will tell you their team couldn't run between the tackles last season. Thomas has been to three Pro Bowls, but his play seems to be dropping off, and being in his mid-thirties, isn't the long-term solution the Rams need. Chambers and Loper are basically Adam Goldberg. Loper is two years younger at 27 and is a better athlete with good hands and good feet as a pass blocker. Like Goldberg, he can play anywhere on the line, though it has been for Tennessee, which hasn't exactly been a free agent gold mine for Rams Park. RamView ruled out Fred Miller for age and career-long penalty issues, Khalif Barnes for off-field issues and Max Starks for being Alex Barron without having Alex's durability. It's a bad, bad tackle market, and the Rams would be much better served picking up tackles in the draft and keeping the guys they have, even Barron. For the price you'll pay, Barron's as good as any free agent deal I can picture.

It's too bad the Rams probably won't look too hard for guards, unless they share the sentiment of many fans as far as running Incognito out of town on a rail. The guard market is stacked with great veterans, like Goff and Hochstein, in their early 30s with a few good years left. Berger's another version of Goldberg. He's a young guy stuck on the bench in Dallas but he's got good physical skills at guard, a good pull blocker who can get outside fast and pancake guys. Or, if Steve Loney wants to send ME out of town on a rail, and screaming, he'll lobby to get his old buddy Milf Brown back.

The top of the talent pool at center is also great, though there's no way the Colts let Saturday get away. The Rams have expressed interest in Birk, the 33-year-old Harvard grad who's been great for the Vikings. He holds his ground well, blocks well on the move and is a good pass-protector. Plus you figure a Harvard man won't screw up assignments, OR FORGET SNAP COUNTS, very often. He's everything the Rams lack in a center right now. Now go Google "Matt Birk" and see how many other teams are also interested in going after him. Whoever gets him is going to pay a LOT of money for an older offensive lineman. That makes Baltimore's Jason Brown, who I was calling for in the 2005 draft before the Rams drafted Incognito and (gulp) Jerome Carter, a very attractive option; he'll only be 26 when the season starts. Baltimore just cut Chris McAllister to clear a bunch of room under their cap, though. Carolina's Hangartner is only 26, is considered a very strong run-blocker, and is going to be stuck behind Ryan Kalil if he stays a Panther. He's the kind of player who'd be ideal for the Rams, coming into a starting situation right away.

RamView's moves: I'm writing these reviews in the right order: with Michael Crabtree's draft stock getting almost two inches shorter over the weekend at the combine, he's been replaced by Baylor tackle Jason Smith atop my BPA list. Now, if Detroit just doesn't take Smith at #1... Smith's going to have to step right in at LT, assuming the Rams can't keep Pace. Goldberg's almost becoming a MUST sign at this point, to back up the tackle positions at least, if not actually to start at one or another. My desire to get rid of Barron is strong enough to go after someone like Jon Stinchcomb off the Saints' line. I can go into 2009 with Bell and Incognito as starting guards, knowing I have Greco to step in for either right away. Romberg is good depth at center but not what I want in a starter. There are a lot of folks out there calling Alex Mack of Cal the greatest college center ever while at the same time saying the Rams can get him with their second round pick. If he's that great, shouldn't the Rams trade up to make sure they get him?

RamView's tentative 2009 offensive line:
LT - Jason Smith, Stinchcomb
LG - Greco, Bell
C - Mack, Romberg
RG - Incognito, Schuening
RT - Goldberg, Bell

What the Rams could do: With Pace gone and a free agent market weaker than a month-old diet Coke, the Rams have no choice but to upgrade their offensive line through the draft. The #2 overall pick HAS to be a tackle, either Jason Smith or maybe Eugene Monroe. Barron will stay at RT, Incognito at LG. With Pace's and Holt's departures leaving a large amount of cap space, they'll go hot and heavy after Birk.

Prediction: Jason Smith at LT, Birk at C, Barron at RT, Incognito at RG, Greco eventually beating out Bell at LG. That group has a shot at improvement over last year's offensive line, IF Smith plays somewhere close to Jake Long as a rookie, Birk has enough gas left in his tank, everyone stays healthy and Steve Loney can knit them together as a group by midseason. This year's going to be too soon, I fear, to look for a big turnaround on the offensive line, but barring any disasters, it could be the Rams' rock in 2010.

Nobody the Rams get this year is going to make anyone forget Orlando Pace, nor should they. Pace anchored a Super Bowl champion offensive line and was named to countless all-pro teams. He's going to the Hall of Fame, right there with Jackie Slater for greatest Rams offensive lineman, right there with Dan Dierdorf for greatest St. Louis offensive lineman. He has been a great asset to the St. Louis community while never seeking the spotlight for his charity efforts. A player of rare quality on the field and just as rare quality off of it. Sure, we all wish he'd never hired Carl Poston, and oh, yeah, we wish he'd restructure his contract now and finish out his career here as a Ram. But if anybody understands the just-a-business nature of the NFL, it's Orlando Pace, and we hope when he does leave St. Louis, it will be with as many good memories as we have of him here.

Saturday, February 21, 2009

On the bench press...

Monroe and Oher just got outlifted..... BY A KICKER.

USC kicker David Buehler just did 25 reps. He beat 27 of the linemen there.

Welcome to the top of the draft board...

to OT Jason Smith of Baylor. 33 bench presses. Now, if I could get the NFL Network guys to shut up about Detroit possibly drafting him...

With the Andre Smith meltdown, William Beatty of UConn and Eben Britton of Arizona have turned in good enough performances today to move into lower first-round contention. As silly as it is to have offensive linemen running the 40-yard dash, their sub-5.2 times speak well to their athleticism and preparation. Keep an eye out for their weight room results.

NFL Network frustrates me every year with its unwillingness to cover BOTH groups of linemen performing at the combine - we only ever get to see group 2 - but at least we're getting to see some new drills this year. The drill where they have linemen protecting against a defender on a wide split is extremely relevant to how the NFL game is played and could be illuminating.

Does anybody here know how to bench press?

Good grief, Eugene Monroe did only 23 bench presses? Michael Oher did ONLY 21? There's going to be QUARTERBACKS who do better than that! This draft gets worse every minute I watch Combine coverage. The Rams should spend 30-40 million dollars on a tackle who can't even bench press 25 times? We already know finesse is not what the Rams are looking for.

The top of the Rams' draft board is clearing out like the Dome in the 4th quarter of most of last year's Rams games. RamView now welcomes Jason Smith (who I haven't seen lift yet) and Michael Jenkins to the top of the board, while I guess I have to try to figure out Aaron Curry now as well.

Combine bombshells

It took just an hour, if that, for things to shake up dramatically at the top of the Rams' draft board.

NFL Network reports that Michael Crabtree has a stress fracture in his foot that will require surgery. He'll be out up to ten weeks. The draft is nine or ten weeks away. The team that drafts Crabtree will have to do so without seeing him work out. Something I have even more concern about: Crabtree's been listed everywhere up till now as 6'3", leaving fans, at least, thinking their team would be drafting another Larry Fitzgerald. Except Crabtree's official measurement is under 6'1.5".

First of all, this reminds me how much I hate college football programs for lying about the sizes of their players. But most importantly, should the St. Louis Rams really consider spending the #2 overall pick in the draft and 30-some-odd million dollars on a wide receiver of average size who has a bad foot?

Super coverage by NFL Network, not only with Adam Schefter breaking that news, but by the announce team, who've mentioned Terrell Owens and Jonathan Stewart playing with similar injuries - successes despite the injury - but also by mentioning the NBA's Grant Hill, a spectacular bust as a result of the same injury. As another network would say, fair and balanced.

The Rams, by the way, don't need to spend that high pick and tens of millions of dollars on a shorter-than-expected, injured player, whose speed we don't really know and who doesn't fill their biggest need. Crabtree's no longer the BPA at #2 assuming the Lions draft Matthew Stafford.

Scratch Andre Smith way, way off the list for the Rams. I wouldn't even consider him with the 2nd round pick. We don't need head cases here. Smith announced at the weigh-in yesterday that he wouldn't work out at the combine because hadn't worked out hard on his own and was badly out of shape. And today, he's AWOL from the combine. No, really. Nobody can find him.

But to be fair and balanced, Smith could be worth a look with the 2nd round pick if he nails his on-campus workout. His college tapes should speak for themselves, and his honesty, if perhaps not wise, is at least refreshing. Right now, he's really not blowing it any worse than a lot of players who were out of shape for the combine and just lied about why they didn't work out.

I put the blame for Smith's meltdown squarely on Nick Saban and the Alabama football program. We have long ago quit believing in the myth of the "student-athlete". Smith left Alabama as a junior. Odds are he'll never collect a degree from the school. But don't the school and its football program at least owe it to Smith to have him prepared enough for the combine not to be a public relations nightmare? Why not keep him working out as part of a pro-preparation program? Why not give him decent advice on what's smart and not smart to do in front of the pros? Wouldn't these services be appealing to prospective Crimson Tide players out of high school?

Do Nick Saban and the University of Alabama really care that little about their football players once they're done with them to let them come to the combine so physically and mentally unprepared?

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Rams franchise Atogwe

...and will pay the free safety $6.34 million this year. Around the Horns

"Torry.... could we borrow some cap space, please?"

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

FA tight end preview

UFA TEs as of 02/17/2009 (from kffl.com)
RamView's Top 5 TEs: 1 - Bo Scaife 2 - L.J. Smith 3 - Justin Peelle 4 - Jim Kleinsasser 5 - Tony Curtis

Sleeper: Curtis

Gawd No: Jerramy Stevens

Rams FAs: Humorously, kffl.com has Dominique Byrd listed as a restricted free agent. Wouldn't want to let him go for nothing!

Rams analysis: Despite Scott Linehan's exaggerated emphasis on the position throughout his tortured tenure as Rams head coach, tight ends continued to contribute little to nothing to the Ram offense last year. Randy McMichael led Rams TEs with 11 catches, and he didn't make it out of September, going down early with a season-ending ankle injury. A healthy McMichael, though, is still easily the best receiver and blocker of the team's TEs, especially considering the motley group behind him. Anthony Becht can catch a little, but was brought here as a blocking TE, where he's been a mixed bag. He seems solid enough as a run-blocker but isn't enough help in pass protection. Joe Klopfenstein has been a bust almost right out of the gate. He's inadequate in the blocking game - hasn't picked it up - and didn't show good enough hands last year to be considered a reliable receiver. Daniel Fells, on the other hand, represents one of the better personnel moves of Jim Haslett's short stay in the head coach's office. He showed good hands and good, physical after-the-catch running in very limited action. The Rams' new regime would be wise to give him a lot of attention in training camp and see what they have.

Viewing the field: Outside of Scaife, this is a terrible market, and Tennessee's well under the salary cap and not likely to let one of their best offensive players (58 catches last year) get away. Smith's still listed as Philadelphia's TE1, but Brent Celek will likely take over that job and the Eggles won't put up a big fight to keep Smith. His productivity has dropped well off his 2005-06 peak, and Eggles Nation will tell you he's a poor blocker that drops too many passes. Peelle had 30 catches for Miami in 2007, but most of his career he has been a one catch a game for 8-10 yards guy. Kleinsasser peaked as a receiver six years ago, but would be better than any Rams fullback candidate if they don't get Leonard Weaver. Same for Curtis, who is Dallas' 3rd-string TE but got a good amount of work there last year at fullback. Another bonus with Curtis is that he's just 25. Stevens is statistically better than any of the available TEs besides Scaife and will make big plays for you, but no new coach who says he's about character would ever bring that guy aboard.

RamView's moves: Cut Klopfenstein, go with three tight ends on the roster and use the freed-up roster spot on a position of actual value. I'll keep McMichael and even Becht, but give Fells every chance to take over at TE2.

What the Rams could do: There's no buzz about it in the rumor mill, but I think L.J. Smith could be in the Rams' plans. Pat Shurmur's going to want to be able to throw to the TE; Eggles TEs had close to twice as many catches (67) as Rams TEs (35) last year. And as Eggles QB coach, Shurmur's going to know what Smith is all about. The Rams probably have to try to make the best of a bad market, with McMichael in the last year of his contract, Fells still an unknown quantity and neither of the other two a remote offensive threat. Sure, they could decide to keep Klopfenstein. Which would mean they'd be agreeing with a Scott Linehan personnel decision that everyone else thinks was a bad one. Someone like Kleinsasser or Curtis could be in play if they were unable to land a true fullback such as Leonard Weaver.

Prediction: Klopfenstein out; Smith in.

Other FA TE previews: Nick Wagoner

Monday, February 16, 2009

FA wide receiver preview

UFA WRs as of 02/16/2009 (from kffl.com)
RamView's Top 5 WRs: 1 - T.J. Houshmandzadeh 2 - Antonio Bryant 3 - Bryant Johnson 4 - Amani Toomer 5 - Devery Henderson

Sleeper: Nate Washington

Gawd No: Jerry Porter

Rams FAs: Dante Hall and Dane Looker are unrestricted free agents.

Rams analysis: Though he still led the team, Torry Holt comes off a career-low year in 2008 (64 catches, 796 yards, just 3 TDs), isn't getting any faster, certainly isn't getting any younger (he'll be 33 when training camp opens), and is tying up $8 million in cap space for next season. All a fatal combination for fans of his who would prefer to see him in a Rams uniform all his career. Donnie Avery was 4th among rookie WRs in catches and showed explosive play-making ability, but also got lost and ran a lot of incorrect routes. He'll need to have a productive training camp. There wasn't a lot behind those two. Dane Looker is a gamer but will never be a guy who's going to draw attention away from the other wideouts. Keenan Burton made some spectacular plays, when anyone could find him, that is; he finished 2008 with just 13 catches. Derek Stanley had just 6 catches for 119, though one of those was an 80-yard TD, and he's got some ability as a kick returner. Dante Hall played bigger than his size as a WR (when he could stay healthy) but was a near total bust on special teams and shouldn't be back. Neither should Drew Bennett, though Jim Thomas insists he's too big a cap hit to cut this year. Are you sure? In the '08 preseason, Bennett literally depressed the Ram offense with his presence. He sprained a foot in Philadelphia in week 1 and missed the rest of the season. He had fewer catches than Quinton Ganther or Dan Klecko or Michael Bumpus. He had fewer catches than Madison Hedgecock. He had fewer catches than Aveion Cason. Want me to stop? He had fewer catches than Richard Angulo. Want me to stop? He had fewer catches than MARC BULGER! Drew Bennett has proven nothing but completely unreliable and the biggest bust in the history of Rams free agency. He has size but doesn't play with size. He has bad hands and bad concentration. He can't stay healthy; he hasn't his entire career. If Drew Bennett was a bank, even Congress wouldn't bail him out. Any of these guys you haven't heard of - Nate Jones, Joel Filani, Travis Brown or Matt Caddell - would be an improvement over the lamentable Bennett. And they're just the street free agents the Rams have on the roster as training camp fodder. Charlie Baggett's a good receivers coach, but the Rams shouldn't waste his time with Bennett. He's not a miracle worker!

Viewing the field: Houshmandzadeh has nearly 300 receptions since 2006 and is the leading receiver of this FA class. Even at 31, the Bengal figures to be a high-ticket item wherever he plays. A! B! behaved himself in Tampa last season and finally realized his potential, catching 83 balls after not even being in the league in 2007. Johnson looks like the premier big WR of this group, but even after getting away from Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin and fleeing to San Francisco, still managed only 45 receptions last year. Amani Toomer's a reliable possession receiver, but you'd never consider him a WR1 any more. Bobby Engram played like a WR1 in Seattle in 2007, but he's 36 now, 2 years older than Toomer, and has played one 16-game season since 2003. Henderson is just 26 and can get downfield. He has a crazy 21.6 career average per catch after averaging a sick 24.8 last year. He's really lost in the shuffle in New Orleans and could come quite cheap. Then again, he has yet to top 32 catches in a season. Washington's just 25, has a knack for the big play and can stretch a defense. The Steelers can't pay him a lot. His hands are his biggest question mark but from what I've seen, they're improving. The problem is that somebody's bound to overpay Washington, paying the dreaded "Super Bowl premium." Brandon Jones was my other sleeper candidate - 40 catches last year, can also get downfield and make big plays - but the Rams' experience signing away Titans has me reluctant to pull that particular trigger ever, ever again. WR is another position where it was hard to win the "Gawd No" award, with Ashley Lelie, Koren Robinson, Mike Williams, Reggie Williams and Darrell Jackson all in the mix, but brutal underachiever / locker room poison Jerry Porter is the big, um, winner. He got nearly $10 million last year to miss training camp with a hamstring injury, make 11 catches (10 more than Bennett!) in a regular season shortened by a groin injury, and according to teammates, foul the Jagwires' team chemistry in the process. So the Drew Bennett signing won't be the worst FA WR signing of the decade after all. (But it's close.)

RamView's moves: Holt's willingness to restructure his contract is one big influence on the future of the Rams WR corps; another is the 2009 draft. RamView's intent is to use the #2 overall draft pick on Texas Tech stud WR Michael Crabtree. He'll be the best player available at that pick because there's no way in hell the Lions take him at #1. (Although Crabtree's plan to hide from the stopwatch at the NFL Combine isn't helping his cause.) I'd try to make the best I can of the FA market and find a tackle to replace Alex Barron. Crabtree and Avery become the WR1/WR2 of the future, and Torry Holt would have to take a very big pay cut to justify keeping him around as a possession receiver / slot guy. So unless Detroit trades #1 to someone like Seattle, one year after the Rams let the best receiver in the history of the team go, I believe they'll need to let the (close) second-best receiver in the history of the team go. I am NOT paying the karmic debt incurred by cutting Bruce AND Holt while keeping Bennett, however. Drew's ass goes out the door first, and I don't care what the cap hit is. The one constant amongst all this WR chaos: Dane Looker surprises everyone AGAIN and makes the team again. RamView's projected 2009 WRs: Crabtree, Avery, Looker, Burton, Stanley, and a very cheap, low-risk veteran WR/special teams player. (Mike Furrey, anyone?) That's a ton of youth at WR, but if the Rams are going to be the run-heavy team they say they are, they'll have time for WRs coach Charlie Baggett to work his magic.

What the Rams could do: If the Rams don't believe the FA market for offensive linemen offers very much, given Spagnuolo's repeated mantra he'll emphasize the run, they're going OT with the #2 pick. That would improve the possibility of keeping Holt, though the Rams would certainly seek to re-structure his contract. If Holt turns that down, his $8 million cap figure will prove much too ripe for the team to resist moving him in some fashion; optimistically, by trading him for a draft pick. Thanks to Spagnuolo's Giants connections, Amani Toomer's name comes up a lot as a cheap alternative to Holt, should one be necessary.

Prediction: Holt will leave the Rams whether they go on to draft an OT or a WR. Sadly, it'll be with none of the outrage and angst that accompanied Isaac Bruce's inglorious exit, even though it should. Torry is no more than half a beat behind Isaac in his contributions to this franchise, as a Hall-of-Fame caliber WR, as a team leader and as a representative of the team and its city. People of Isaac's and Torry's character and work ethic are not ones to be simply set aside and forgotten when it's thought to be economically expedient. They leave gigantic holes on the field, in the locker room and in the hearts of Rams Nation. Torry's release hurts a little less; we're more prepared for it than we were for Isaac's, and Torry's openly talked about playing for other teams. But it's still going to hurt. I expect the Rams to get about a 4th-round pick for Holt and to attempt to replace his productivity with one of the veteran free agents, more than likely Amani Toomer. Spagnuolo will be the latest coach fooled by Bennett's size into thinking he'll actually play like a big WR. He won't. Again. Avery will beat him out and then struggle when he becomes the receiver defenses know they have to double-team, having no fear of the Rams' lack of speed outside of Avery. A recipe for another long year, except now filled with players Rams fans don't know yet, or don't like. Yecch.

Other FA WR previews: Nick Wagoner

Friday, February 13, 2009

Corey Chavous released

Reported on Around the Horns about a half hour ago...

The Rams gained $1.2 million against the cap by cutting the 33-year-old strong safety. And they did him a favor in the process; he had asked to be released as soon as possible so he'd have time before the start of free agency to find another job. Though I can't imagine it would be much more than a veteran minimum-paying backup job somewhere. Best of luck to Corey, whose biggest benefit would be that he's a man of good character and would be a positive veteran influence in a locker room. He'll benefit a team more off the field than he will on the field.

The remaking of the Rams roster has begun!

FA running back preview

UFA RBs as of 02/13/2009 (from kffl.com)
RamView's Top 5 RBs: 1 - Brandon Jacobs 2 - Derrick Ward 3 - Darren Sproles 4 - Correll Buckhalter 5 - Dominic Rhodes
Fullbacks: 1 - Leonard Weaver 2 - Terrelle Smith 3 - Heath Evans 4 - Lorenzo Neal 5 - Tony Richardson

Sleeper: J.J. Arrington

Gawd No: Ahman Green, RICHARD OWENS

Rams FAs: Travis Minor is a UFA. Samkon Gado signed a 1-year deal January 29.

Rams analysis: Steven Jackson is supposed to be the man the Ram offense revolves around, but since his monster 2006 season, he has disappointingly fit the NFL's definition of a non-durable good. He broke 1,000 yards rushing in 2007 and 2008, but also missed four full games each year. The Rams went 0-8 in those games, by the way. The Rams need Jackson to be able to stay on the field, but can't trust him to do it. Truly the horns of a dilemma, which the Rams make, well, hornier, by, as at QB, failing to have capable backups. There's no true RB2 to spell Jackson or fill his shoes when he's injured. Antonio Pittman never got untracked after starting last season injured. His speed never seems to translate to rushing success on a consistent basis, he drops WAY too many passes, and he got in trouble for skipping a practice late last season. Brian Leonard's career peaked when he leaped over that Raider in preseason his rookie year. Since then he's proven too slow-footed to take the load from Jackson and too small to be an effective NFL fullback, while incredibly proving even less durable than Jackson. At least Kenneth Darby looked like a "keeper" down the stretch in 2008 as an effective receiver and an elusive inside runner. He fumbled the ball WAY too much, though. The Rams' clear needs at RB are to come up with a real fullback and a RB2 who can credibly spell Jackson during games and step in as a part-time starter those weeks Steven is inevitably injured.

Viewing the field: No doubt the Giants have big decisions to make this offseason. Jacobs pounded for 5 yards a rush last year, scored 15 TDs, and ran for 1,089 yards. And he almost wasn't the best RB on the team, as Ward also ran for over 1,000 yards on a ridiculous 5.6 yards a carry, and 9.4 a reception on top of that. Both RBs are in their primes: Jacobs is 26, Ward's 28. Can the Giants possibly afford to keep both? San Diego has a similar dilemma. They're paying LaDainian Tomlinson a lot, but he's hitting the dreaded 30-year-old mark and is showing a lot of wear and tear. What do they do with Sproles? He's coming off his best season and is in line for big bucks, but at 5'6", 181, should he be considered anything other than a change of pace to a physical RB? He did have over 100 combined yards in San Diego's last three games, all of which were win-or-go-home. Buckhalter and Rhodes have both been effective in supporting roles, but both are over 30. Buckhalter's missed three full seasons his career with injuries, and Rhodes has a substance abuse policy suspension on his record. Since I'm picking lots of holes in my top 5, you can see I don't care a lot for the depth of this FA class at RB. The Rams can definitely pass on Green, who's lost all the speed of his early career but kept the propensity to fumble. I locked onto Aaron Stecker early on as a cheap fill-in, but he missed almost all of last year with a hamstring injury. A possible diamond in the rough is Arrington, who's young and talented enough to make you wonder how he'd fare behind a better offensive line on a team much more dedicated to the run. His special teams experience gives him additional value.

At fullback, Neal and Richardson are oldies-but-goodies, though the unfortunate emphasis is on OLD. The Cardinals' Smith reminds me a lot of James Hodgins. Weaver is a punishing blocker, an effective offensive weapon with 4.4 career yards per rush and 9.1 a catch, and he's only 26. As for Owens, one can only assume he's already shopping for homes in the Detroit metropolitan area.

RamView's move: If I could trust Buckhalter's or Stecker's health, I might make a move for one of those guys. But the last thing the Rams need to add to their RB corps is more guys who can't stay on the field. I support the move the Rams are rumored to be considering strongly here...

What the Rams could do: which is to make a play for Weaver. He gives them a true fullback, which they obviously don't have, with skills as a runner and receiver on top of it. He'd be their main fullback and #2 RB. Spagnuolo obviously knows the value of having a RB like Ward, but the big money he'll be looking for won't be a good deal for a 28-year old who wouldn't be the starter here. There aren't any draft prospects who excite me. The Rams would have to have someone fall to them in the later rounds to really justify taking a back from a fairly weak class.

Prediction: The Rams sign Weaver and keep Darby as the 3rd-down back. No way Spagnuolo is getting rid of a Rutgers guy, so Leonard will stay. He'll likely be a better special teams player than either Pittman or Gado. Pittman has the talent to stay around, but I suspect his attitude gets him run out of camp. Minor will find another home somewhere as a special teams specialist.

More FA RB previews: Nick Wagoner

Thursday, February 12, 2009

FA quarterback preview

UFA QBs as of 02/12/2009 (from kffl.com)
RamView's Top 5: 1 - Byron Leftwich 2 - Kurt Warner 3 - Kyle Boller 4 - Jeff Garcia 5 - Kerry Collins

Sleeper: Charlie Batch

Gawd No: Ken Dorsey

Rams FAs: none, Brock Berlin was signed to a 1-year contract January 27

Rams analysis: Marc Bulger's coming off his second poor season in a row. Since the beginning of 2007, he has 28 INTs vs. 22 TDs, is completing only 57.7% of his passes and has a passer rating of roughly 70, putting him down at the bottom of the league. Ever since signing a long-term, $60-million-plus contract two years ago, the guy who was once good enough to drive Kurt Warner out of town has looked mostly shot. Bulger had one - ONE! - 300-yard passing game last year, versus eight full games below 200. Bulger was a lot better player with Steven Jackson in the backfield, though, especially the last month of last season, by which time he could be said to have improved all the way "up" to solid-but-not-spectacular. Bulger's contract currently makes him too expensive to cut in any event. The Rams exacerbate the QB situation by, honestly, having very little behind him. 38-year-old Trent Green threw a pick every 12 attempts in 2008. Um, that's not good. Brock Berlin developed into a modestly successful preseason QB last year, but as he turns 28 in July, can hardly be considered a rising prospect. The new Rams QB mentor, Coach Curl, has his work cut out for him.

Viewing the field: Leftwich is still young at 29 and is coming off a good season in relief for the Steelers. He's very tough and strong-armed, and David Gerrard's flameout in Jacksonville makes him look better in the wake of his shocking cut right before the 2007 season there. Warner is obviously the best QB of the potential free agent pool; he's not #1 here because of his age and possible desire to retire. Boller has been a bust in Baltimore, but he's only 27, would probably be cheap, and has the physical tools and occasional bursts of competence of a QB that fools guys like me into thinking he'll be a solid QB for the right coach. Jeff Garcia's mobility and familiarity with the West Coast offense give him a slight edge over the similarly-grizzled Collins. With the Rams moving to the WCO this season, there's talk in Rams Nation of bringing Garcia in. At 38, though, he's not an upgrade in age over Trent Green. There are a mess of FA QBs the Rams, or any other team, would be best to avoid, including Rex Grossman, Joey Harrington, J.P. Losman, J.T. O'Sullivan and Patrick Ramsey. It is a tribute to how truly awful Ken Dorsey has been for the Browns that he beat all of those suspect QBs for the "Gawd No" distinction. The Steelers will probably let Leftwich go and get Batch re-signed to back up Ben Roethlisberger, but a savvy team might be able to sneak Charlie away. He played well for Pittsburgh in 2007 (missing 2008 with a blown knee) and is just 34. (Matt Cassel was already franchised when this was written and therefore was not considered.)

RamView's move: With Brett Freaking Favre possibly retiring for real, this, the 1,500th time, the folks at ESPN are depicting the Jets not only as a leading player for FA QBs, one of their draft analysts, Todd McShay, has them taking Mark Sanchez of USC with the #17 pick. If they do that, RamView would be on the phone with them immediately, asking what they want for, no, not Kellen Clemens, but third-string QB Brett Ratliff, who I believe is the next Kurt Warner in the making. I'm serious. All last preseason the guy was doing nothing but firing missiles and hitting receivers perfectly in stride, from any distance. I was disappointed Clemens, who is awful, maintained the #2 role ahead of him, and I wondered if the Jets knew what they had there. Short of realizing that pipe-dream of a move, Bulger's contract leaves the Rams merely rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic at QB for a year. And with the team chockablock with other needs, spending additional bushels of money on the position wouldn't be wise. I would like a younger, more mobile alternative for Green at QB2. Laugh if you will, but Ryan Fitzpatrick would come cheap and would be at least as good as Green, more than likely better, while also making the Rams 12 years younger at the position. I'd never consider him a long-term solution for starting QB, but I'd go after him, and also do something the Rams desperately need to do, draft someone this year to develop as a QB of the future. The Rams' many needs probably prevent them from using a 2nd-rounder on Josh Freeman (Kansas State), but the 4th would likely offer candidates such as Graham Harrell (Texas Tech), who sounds like an ideal WCO QB to me, or Curtis Painter (Purdue).

What the Rams could do: If the Rams make any move at all, I'm guessing it would be for Garcia, who Pat Shurmur would have coached at Philadelphia. But again, I can't see making any move for anything costing more than the veteran minimum, even though in this scenario, I'd bet Garcia, even at the age of 38, would get an opportunity to start. (Best of all, it gives me an opportunity to run a photo of Garcia's wife, Carmela DeCesare.)

Prediction: Coach Curl worked with Trent Green in Kansas City, and RamView's bet is that Trent stays aboard one more year as the primary backup to Bulger. I'm also betting the franchise finally realizes it needs to draft a young QB of the future and does so in April, with that player expected to supplant Berlin.

More FA QB previews: Nick Wagoner

Free agency preview preview

Chip Rosenbloom has overhauled the Rams' front office and turned it over to Billy Devaney.
Devaney has overhauled the head coach's office, putting Steve Spagnuolo in charge.
And as I've detailed earlier this week, Spagnuolo has overhauled the coaching staff.
For the St. Louis Rams, it's a whole new era in the front office and on the sideline.

With the opening of free agency on February 27th, the new era for the Rams on the field begins.
The big questions will be the futures of the last stalwarts of the Super Bowl XXXIV champions: Orlando Pace and Torry Holt. Their large cap numbers make them attractive targets for the unsentimental knife of the NFL capologist. Other veterans throughout the team are likely cut targets, though not as significant monetarily or historically as those two St. Louis all-time greats.

Another key date is next Thursday, the 19th: teams have to use their franchise tags by that date. This most likely affects O.J. Atogwe but could factor into negotiations with Ron Bartell as well. The front office should be very busy the next week securing the future of the Ram secondary.

But Pace, Holt, Atogwe and Bartell are far from the only players the Rams will be making decisions on in the coming days. With that in mind, RamView will start a position-by-position breakdown of the team and available free agents, while hoping to offer helpful advice on what the Rams need to do, and might actually do, on the field to turn the tide of the past few seasons.

Monday, February 9, 2009

Thoughts on Arizona / Warner / Boldin

Arizona's already becoming an strong favorite to keep the Super Bowl loser jinx going. You know, the one where the team that loses doesn't even make the playoffs the next season. Both offensive and defensive coordinators gone? Possibly followed by Anquan Boldin? Maybe even Kurt Warner? Forget about it. Though rumors are circulating that the Big Dead are going to interview Mike Martz.

Good God. Martz would kill Kurt Warner for sure this time. Retire, Kurt, retire!

When Warner does retire, he seems a good bet to be the one guy who'll actually retire to spend time with his family. He's made plenty of money and won't have to work again after football and he's the very personification of family values. But if he does choose to work again after his playing days, I would love to hear from him in a broadcasting booth. He knows the league, knows the players, breaks down plays as well as anybody in any TV booth right now, and has great positive energy that always sounds good on TV. Kurt didn't even sound that down in the losing locker room after the Super Bowl. I think he'd be ideal for TV. But I doubt he'll ever feel the urge to give it a try.

If Boldin does manage to force the Big Dead into trading him, who else is rooting for him to go to Kansas City and a reunion with sideline shouting match partner/new Chiefs HC Todd Haley? It makes every bit of sense on paper. The Chiefs are $30 million under the cap and badly need a WR to play alongside Dwayne Bowe. From Arizona's standpoint, they'd be trading Boldin outside the conference and should get a -very- good draft pick in return. But I'll predict Boldin ends up in Jacksonville if he gets traded. They're in a similar cap position, and unlike Tennessee and Buffalo, also in that $25-30 million cap neighborhood, they've proven willing to spend big, though BADLY, on the WR position in the past. After Reggie Williams, Jerry Porter, Dennis Northcutt, and Matt Jones have all pretty much come up bust, Jagwire Nation must want to get its WR situation right for once.

Super Bowl ads

This had to be the suckiest year for Super Bowl ads ever since people started paying attention to them. Can we stop going over the top in the media with Super Bowl commercial coverage, by the way? Since Super Bowl 32, most of the games have been close and terrific, putting the lie to the notion that the ads are the best part of the game. Especially this year. There wasn't that much that was very funny, and I really hate the E-Trade baby gimmick. I guess I was the only one who liked the Coke ad best, the one with all the insects who steal the guy's soda bottle. I found it clever, highly imaginative and highly interesting visually. Maybe a summertime ad didn't register well with folks watching TV in February.

Special teams analysis

Al Roberts had the Rams' special teams on an upward path last year, and I'd thought he was worth retaining as coach of that unit. But he wasn't rehired, and Rick Gosselin's annual special teams ratings show the Rams STs have/had a lot of work to do. The Rams did improve to 17th in the NFL under Roberts according to Gosselin's ratings, where I'm certain they ranked last previously. However, last year's special teams continued to rank last in kickoff coverage (surprisingly, since they allowed no TDs) and in average starting field position, which is a little unfair because the defense never stopped anybody and the offense didn't put together that many long drives, but also has to stem from special teams penalties and poor kickoff returns.

Gosselin also indicates the Rams had the worst FG percentage defense in the NFL.
Opponents made 96.8% of their FG attempts against the Rams last year. What the hell does that even mean, other than the Ram defense probably allowed a ton of short FG attempts? What is a team supposed to do on special teams to improve here, outbid the Browns for LeBron? But there's not much doubt that the Rams still have a lot of work to do, especially in every aspect of the kickoff game: returning, blocking and covering.

And yes, disgustingly, the Buffalo Bills under Bobby April, who was more useless here than Drew Bennett is now, had the league's best special teams in 2008, for the third time in five years. Screw you, April. Never has a supposed guru of something football-related been more useless than April was here for three years, and that includes Al Saunders last year.

New special teams coach Tom McMahon's challenge here clearly is to get those kickoff teams working in better order and in rapid fashion.

Rams coaching staff review, part 3

The Rams' coordinators for 2009:

* Offense: Pat Shurmur. The late Fritz Shurmur's nephew was hired away from Philadelphia, where he was QB coach. Not a bad record there, where he helped develop Donovan McNabb and also coached up Chad Lewis into a Pro Bowl TE. And as I also mentioned in my previous post on Shurmur, it looks like the Andy Reid coaching tree is going to plant the West Coast offense here in River City. All the more reason to draft Michael Crabtree, guys. RamView grade: B+.

* Defense: Ken Flajole. Flajole comes to the Rams from Carolina, where he was LB coach and developed young players like Will Witherspoon, Dan Morgan, Thomas Davis and Jon Beason into stars. He also ran an aggressive, ball-hawking secondary in Seattle. All of which I've mentioned previously. RamView grade: A-.

* Special teams: Finally, the Rams' special teams coach has been named, and he is Tom McMahon. I'll speculate on why Al Roberts ended up not being worth keeping as special teams coach, despite RamView's endorsement, in a bit in another post. McMahon was Atlanta's special teams assistant the last two years, and even though that's his only pro experience, that's almost all I need to hear. NFL.com puzzlingly does not offer defensive stats on special teams, but I know the Falcons just set the all-time record for fewest punt return yards allowed in a season. They were also 10th in kickoff return yardage and ranked 10th overall in Rick Gosselin's year-end special teams ratings. But back to that punt return stat. Combine that with the fact that Donnie Jones is coming off the 2nd-best season EVER by a punter and was already the Rams' one potent weapon. Put him on a unit that can really cover punts, and he's a lethal weapon in the all-important field position battle. Jones might lose a couple yards a punt, but good coverage will make it all back by pinning opponents deeper more often. Seriously, how often were Rams opponents backed up on their goal line last season? It didn't happen that often. McMahon's biggest test will be if he can become the first Rams special teams coach in eight years to put together a decent blocking scheme on kickoff returns, but RamView is enthusiastic about his hiring for the time being. RamView grade: B+.

For the most part, Steve Spagnuolo has done an excellent job bringing in successful coaches from successful programs, if you will. There's no Larry Marmies here, meaning, everybody's got some level of pro success. Sure, there's an amount of crony hiring going on, though certainly nothing that'd top Billy Devaney hiring old buddy Spagnuolo to be head coach in the first place. And even so, even the cronies who have been hired are at least experienced and successful cronies where they've been. The one exception may be TE coach Frank Leonard, not that I can name any other TE coach in the NFL, or the Rams' last one, for that matter.

In particular, Spagnuolo has hired well-qualified, experienced hands to run the offense, the side of the ball he doesn't specialize in, and is likely to take a hands-off approach there, while I expect him to work closely with the defensive coaches to put his stamp on the Rams defense. The stamp that has made the Giant defense a feared force in the league.

I have to say I like how this new era for the St. Louis Rams is taking shape so far.

Rams coaching staff review, part 2

Your 2009 St. Louis Rams offensive position coaches:

* Quarterbacks: RamView has already reviewed new QB coach Dick Curl and made copious fun of
his name. RamView grade: C+.

* Running backs: Sylvester Croom has joined the Rams as running backs coach. He just stepped down as head coach at Mississippi State. Prior to that job, you'd hear a lot of talk that he was one of the NFL's best assistant coaches, a great running back coach and a prime candidate for an NFL head coaching job. He coached Barry Sanders at Detroit, Ahman Green at Green Bay and I'm pretty sure Jerious Norwood played for him at State. I believe Croom represents an absolutely outstanding hire by Steve Spagnuolo. He'll make Steven Jackson better and is just the guy to develop a good backup for Jackson as well. I pity the rest of the NFL. The Rams have Sylvester Croom, and after bowing out at MSU, he has something to prove. The rest of the league better watch out. RamView grade: A+.

* Wide receivers: RamView has also previously reviewed new WR coach Charlie Baggett, and I'm enthusiastic that he's a good coach to work with the Rams' young receiving corps, which will include Michael Crabtree if I get my way in the 2009 draft. RamView grade: A-.

* Offensive line: Steve Spagnuolo has retained Brian Loney from Scott Linehan's staff as offensive line coach. The Ram line was a disaster early in the season, and apparently nobody is ever going to get Alex Barron to move on the right snap count, but the line protected Marc Bulger very well the last quarter of the season and was getting Steven Jackson some room to run as well. Let's hope Loney gets the Ram line moving upward from there. He'll be assisted by another holdover from Linehan's staff, Art Vandelay, though Vandelay hasn't coached o-line in the NFL and didn't produce much of anybody as a long-time college o-line coach. And oh, yeah, it's Valero. RamView grade: B.

* Tight ends: Though it hasn't been officially announced, it appears Frank Leonard will be assigned the job of making Joe Klopfenstein an NFL superstar. His only experience coaching TEs in his 25-year career, though, was the last two years at Kansas State. No all-pros from there recently that I'm aware of. He's considered to have a keen eye for talent because he was a scout for New England, and honestly, I don't know why he'd be at this position instead of having a role in the scouting department. I hardly believe two years at Kansas State qualifies one to be an NFL TEs coach. Art Vandelay would be better suited for this job; he's done it before in the NFL with solid results. Leonard's main qualification appears to be that he coached with Steve Spagnuolo at UConn nearly 20 years ago. His other qualifications are fine, but adding it all up, I don't get NFL TEs coach out of it. RamView grade: D+, because I really can't figure this one out. And oh, yeah, it's Valero.

TEs aside, a really funny thing I'm finding in my highly-amateurish grading of the Rams' new coaching staff is that I generally like the offensive coaches a lot more than the defensive coaches. That has me expecting that Spagnuolo is going to put his stamp on the Ram defense and let the Rams' offensive coaches coach.

Should be an effective setup.

On the way: part 3, the Rams' coordinators.

Rams coaching staff review, part 1

So much to post, so little time...

Steve Spagnuolo pretty much finished up hiring the coaching staff the last couple of weeks while yours truly was caught up in the throes of the winter flu and a crush at work. To try to catch up, I'll do a three-part review on everybody who's on board for 2009, starting with the defensive position and strength coaches:

* Defensive line: Brendan Daly. Daly's most important experience is that he's coached the Vikings defensive line since 2006. The Rams website is quick to point out the Vikings had the league's best run defense all three of those years. They also went from 30 sacks (25th in NFL) in 2006 to 38 (8th) in 2007 to 45 (4th) in 2008. Compare that to the Rams' 34/31/30. It would certainly be short-sighted not to mention that Daly won't have Pat Williams, Kevin Williams or Jared Allen here. But unmistakably, Daly has worked with defensive lines that accomplish everything you want a defensive line to do. RamView grade: A-.

* Linebackers: RamView's already offered a review of new LB coach Paul Ferraro. Until I know better, his primary qualification appears to be that he was HC Steve Spagnuolo's college roommate. RamView grade: C-.

* Secondary: UPDATE (2/9): The Rams have hired Clayton Lopez as their new cornerbacks coach.
It appears previously-hired defensive assistant Andre Curtis will coach the Rams' safeties. Curtis is another extremely green member of the Rams' coaching staff, with just three years in the pros. His primary qualification at this time appears to be that he worked for Spagnuolo in New York. Lopez has coached DBs the last three years with... THE DETROIT LIONS. Yes, there is a team with a lot of outstanding secondary play. He was DB coach at Oakland (another fantastically successful football team) in 04-05 and assistant DB coach in Seattle in 02-03. Well, at least Lopez has coached Nnamdi Asomugha, (which I just spelled correctly WITHOUT looking up!) because I cannot imagine why in THE BLUE HELL you would raid DETROIT's staff for position coaches. Detroit the last three years with Lopez on the staff: 2008 - 27th in pass defense, 32nd (i.e. DEAD LAST) in INTs; 2007 - 31st in pass defense, 14th in INTs; 2006 - 25th in pass defense and in INTs. What exactly is the thought process that says, yes, I've got to have THAT guy? Is Spagnuolo trying to fill up his defensive staff with questionable hires to make himself look better? I am really puzzled on the coaches he's hired to run the back seven.

RamView grade: D.

* Strength coaches: Rock Gullickson and Chuck Faucette. Faucette is the assistant coach and a holdover from Scott Linehan's staff. Spagnuolo says it's "evident" that Faucette is valuable in the weight room. Everything I know about strength coaches is what I see on NFL Network at the NFL Combine, so to me, that means he's good at being a spotter and yelling things like "Hup!" and "Shoot this thing!". Gullickson and his awesome first name come to the Rams after three years with the Packers and six with the Saints. So that's funny; he worked with Jim Haslett but comes here after Haslett's gone. A little more weird irony: he was at Louisville the first year Scott Linehan was offensive coordinator there. Oddly, and unlike most of this staff, there's no time Gullickson and Spagnuolo worked together, though Rock did put in three years at Rutgers.

Do I know if the Packers or Saints of the Rock Gullickson Era were particularly well-conditioned or strong teams? Nope. I do like that he was strength coach at Texas for five years. That's one of those college programs I'm convinced knows what they're doing in a weight room. Therefore, Gullickson knows what he's doing in there. The Rams in recent years have been a team of repeated
injuries and a team that gets outmuscled constantly at the line of scrimmage. There were rumors that Dana LaDuc's training regimen was weirdly better-suited for hockey players than football players. The best training innovation at Rams Park the last three years, installing a sand pit to run in to strengthen ankles and cut down on the Rams' ridiculous number of ankle sprains, didn't come from the training staff; it came from center Brett Romberg. Christie Brinkley would be an upgrade for the Rams as a strength coach. Actually, it would be fun if the Rams would try that, or infinitely more awesomely, Chuck Norris.

RamView doesn't know Rock Gullickson from Tim or Tom Gullickson, but the change in strength coach by itself merits no worse than a B grade.

Next post: the offensive position coaches.