Thoughts on yesterday's workout coverage, a/k/a big men jumping:
* Is there any less illuminating interview in the NFL than Steve Spagnuolo? NFL Network interviewed him after yesterday's workouts, and what we got was plenty of nothin'. The most notable things Spags did was try to hit on Kara Henderson (Coach did you give Kara my number?) and say that if the Rams did get a young QB, he'd like to play him a few series a game, which is what Andy Reid did with Donovan McNabb. I guess the news item there is that Spags is thinking that far ahead as far as drafting a QB.
* NFL Net must really hate the Rams. Because they're filled with nothing but awful advice for them. One talking head after another continues to insist the Rams HAVE to draft Sam Bradford despite an injury history that's keeping him out of this year's Combine and that hasn't given anyone any film to watch on him in like a year. Let's at least see him work out before declaring him The Man, eh?
Or you've got Jamie Dukes and now Rich Freaking Eisen continuing to try to cram the Michael Vick Project down our throats, when we've got almost as little evidence of what he can do on the field post-prison as we do with Bradford post-college. Dukes insists Vick will give the Rams the #1 running game in the NFL, though the presence of Steven Jackson wasn't enough to get them any better than a 1-and-15 record last year.
And God bless Mike Mayock for ripping into Eisen about a nanosecond after his Vick offering. “How much value is Vick supposed to have as a starting QB?” Mayock had the wisdom to ask.
Indeed.
* Everybody settle down about Bruce Campbell. The year I finally wise up and go into a Combine determined not to go nuts over a player's performance in gym shorts (or are those ridiculous get-up they're wearing this year pajamas?), NFL Network uses up its hype budget the first day on the Maryland OT. After his 34 bench presses and 4.85 40, the fine NFL-N announcers all tried to breathlessly one-up each other on how high Mr. Campbell is going to be drafted now. First round. Mid-first round. Top ten!
SETTLE DOWN! This isn't as much about Campbell's performance as it is NFL Network's desperate effort to make the Combine appear relevant. This year, I've never heard more that teams are determined to rely much more on game film and campus workouts than on Indianapolis' gym class. In this case, Campbell, who is just a junior, is said not to look nearly as good on film as he does at the NFL's annual pajama party. The hardest hit he may have delivered in his short career was to the Vertex machine yesterday.
The Combine is a good tool. For fans. We can learn more about players we don't have a great chance to watch very much. But unless the NFL changes overtime to a match race between right tackles, teams would be very smart if they draft the likes of Bruce Campbell for much more than their abilities as workout warriors.
* Prospective kick returner Trindon Holliday ran a 4.34. Well, hooray. He should. He's one of the country's most heralded track stars.
Also, I think he's about 4.34 feet tall.
* Not bubble stocks. Indiana lineman Rodger Saffold, who Mike Mayock called a 2nd-3rd round pick at guard, is someone the Combine should be getting people excited about. He's a 4-year starter. He was reportedly the best player at the East-West Shrine Game. His workout, which included a broad jump that was over a foot better than the average at his position, backs up his on-field performance. He looked as good as any of the tackles during the kick-slide drill, which I wish NFL Net would have shown in its entirety. In fact, he was a tackle for the Hoosiers, which confuses me given Mayock's insistence on calling him a guard. Rodger Saffold's a player who I think can really help out an offensive line.
Trent Williams' draft stock hasn't been in much danger, and he did nothing to hurt it yesterday. He looked fine in drills and put up a 4.88 40. Now there's a lineman who pushed himself into legitimate top 10 consideration. Russell Okung's 38 bench presses and overall performance should also keep his stock very high. Mike Iupati and Brian Bulaga came in a little lighter, but I doubt any lineman did much to hurt their stock yesterday.
It sounds to me like the 307 reported for Ndamukong Suh's weight was his Combine weigh-in. I'm happy about that if I've got it right; I was really afraid he was going to show up under 300 lbs. Which Gerald McCoy did, at 295, if I've got it right.
* Senior Bowl redux. A couple of players I liked at the Senior Bowl did nothing to hurt their stock yesterday. John Jerry ran a very good 5.15 and looked very good in the mirror drill. He looked badly slow in kick-slide, but that is not a drill at which interior linemen excel. As one of the commentators put it yesterday, that's why they're interior linemen. Shawn Lauvao looked good at whatever he was doing every time he got on screen. His 33 bench press total was impressive and he looked as quick as the tackles in kick-slide. Mayock has never had Lauvao in his top five of anything, so I've got hope that the Rams, who need to pick up some offensive line depth, can steal him away in the middle rounds.
* Bear stocks. Some players saw their prospects decline yesterday, at least in my eyes. More and more teams are looking at Vladimir Ducasse as a guard, a rabbit punch to his (and his agent's) pocketbook. I'll get to TE in a minute, but Oregon's Ed Dickson had the unfortunate luck to drop nearly everything I saw thrown to him. I'm flummoxed on how Jermaine Gresham and Rob Gronkowski are the top two tight ends when neither played last year, and Gronkowski barely even worked out yesterday.
And the big one, Colt McCoy measuring in at just over 6'1”. And he's not throwing this weekend, either. Yeah, that's not helping me out a lot, at least.
* Tight ends go deep. My hopes are realized in this year's tight end class. It's very deep and the Rams don't have to use a high pick to come away with a legitimate starter at the position. Liked Jimmy Graham of Miami. Has the basketball pedigree you always like to see at the position. He ran well and caught very well. He didn't need throws to be perfect to bring them in. He wasn't even the only Graham to excel. Garrett Graham of Wisconsin caught everything. The Badgers put out NFL-quality tight ends one year after another. BYU's Dennis Pitta would be a great under-the-radar player to come away with. Very smooth player with very respectable workout numbers (27 benches, 4.67 40) and Mayock says he has the best hands of any receiver in the draft. After two years of Randy McMichael, I guarantee you the Rams need that. Though his 40 time wasn't stellar, Gresham seemed too fast for the QBs in the gauntlet drill. Lot of throws behind him and a tough time making catches as a result. Coming off injury, though, a very respectable effort. Tony Moeaki did well, but I don't know; he looks really squatty, more like a fullback than a TE. Clay Harbor of Missouri State looks like a workout warrior. 30 benches, 4.68 40, not the greatest hands. Dorin Dickerson's lighter than any TE this year by 20 lbs, so his 4.4 40 was suitably well ahead of the rest of the field. He outlifted some of the big names, too, and Mayock put him over as a tough inline blocker despite his smaller size and a matchup nightmare because of his speed. Though he dropped a couple of passes, he's really the tight end the Rams need, though he's likely too high a draft pick by now for the Rams to actually get him.
As a fan, at least, I'll have to spend the rest of the weekend looking for the most suitable second-round pick for the Rams. Maybe it's Dickerson. I'm not so sure any more it's McCoy. And of course, if the Rams do decide to go QB #1 overall, it'll be helpful to know the second tier of defensive linemen.
Business is starting to pick up in Rams Nation.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
FA preview: Defensive line
Reviewing the offensive positions for free agency 2010 has been like listening to a lame cover band, but over on the defensive side of the ball, there are real rock stars all over, led by Julius Peppers and Richard Seymour. The UFA class is so deep at defensive line, a player as good as Casey Hampton might only be the 4th- or 5th-best free agent at his position. Teams are going to have no problems finding someone to turn their defense around, right? Free agency is gonna rock with defensive linemen!
Well... for the first time in this year's free agency previews, defensive tackle's where we're going to see the franchise tag really come into play. That position's likely to be heavily depleted before teams like the Rams can even get in the gate. A rash of injuries late last season hurt the defensive end class before it even got started. Aaron Kampman's an All-Pro but he's coming off a torn ACL. Jason Taylor's a future Hall-of-Famer who still got it done last year at 35, but he's coming off recent shoulder surgery and will be on the shelf till May. Jimmy Wilkerson's 6 sacks for Tampa last season would have made him one of the sack leaders of this group. Torn ACL.
Sorry to harsh your buzz. The UFA defensive line class looked as good as third row seats for Pearl Jam, but we ended up with bad lawn seats for Styx instead. And as I clearly still have too much time on my hands, let's sail away into the grand illusion of the 2010 free agent market...
Defensive line
Rams current depth chart:
End: Chris Long, Leonard Little, James Hall, C.J. Ah You, Victor Adeyanju, James Wyche, Sean Conover
Tackle: Cliff Ryan, Darell Scott, LaJuan (WHO?) Ramsey, Leger (DOOZER) Douzable, Gary Gibson, Adam Carriker, Chris Bradwell
Notes: Little and Hall are unrestricted free agents. Adeyanju and Gibson will be restricted free agents with the current CBA in place. Ryan is a RFA no matter what.
Analysis: The Ram defensive line was probably short on talent in 2009 and definitely short in results. The Rams were only 27th in the NFL in stopping the run, with 137.6 yards allowed a game, and were even worse at sacking the quarterback, ranking 30th in the league with just 25 sacks. Chris Long came on strong at the end of the season and finished with 5 sacks. Long is on the verge of a breakout season so long as he can turn more of his QB pressures into actual sacks, and he stops getting shut down by tight ends 1-on-1 in the running game. That sprung way too many big runs last year. He's also the lead culprit on a defense where every player is fooled badly, and way too easily, by play-fakes. Long's going to need help on the other end of the line, though, which may be problematic. Little led the team with 6.5 sacks, but age (35) and injury are catching up with him to the point he's considering retirement. And he's enough of a liability against the run that he's really only a pass rush specialist at this point of his career. Hall might have been the team's best all-around lineman. He had 4.5 sacks, drew some holding penalties and is the best run defender of the DEs. He disappears on the field for long stretches, too, though, and just turned 33. Ah You beat out Adeyanju in training camp for his pass rush, and made some nice plays, but only had 1 sack and was a major liability against the run. After spending seemingly forever on the Rams' inactive list, Adeyanju got extended playing time late in the season, but as with his whole career, wasn't much of a pass rush threat. Most of the season the Rams had to blitz to get any pass rush going; their 4-man rush posed almost no threat. The Rams are in dire need of players who can get to the quarterback.
The Ram tackles were mostly a ragtag group of late-round draft picks and waiver wire pickups, and tended to play like it. Ryan is a steady player and led the group with 42 tackles, but it almost felt like Ramsey made more key plays like tackles-for-loss that bog down a drive. Rookie Scott came on late in the season and showed nice quickness and pursuit, and possibly potential, at the position. Doozer had his moments, and Gibson flashed some early promise before his leg was broken early in the season, but the Rams are FAR from having a game-changer or a dominator in the middle of the line. They get pushed around too much against the run and provide too little push up the middle on passing downs. If the Rams are as done counting on Carriker as I am, they'll have him in a similar spot on their depth chart. It's not altogether certain that he even would have made the team last training camp, and he will probably settle the issue and march straight to the Rams Draft Bust Hall of Fame by injuring himself picking up his suitcase the night he leaves for camp this year. It's not untimely that this year's draft shakes out to have major help for the Rams at defensive tackle at the top. As with the ends, these guys can make some plays, and they play hard for sixty minutes. Their ability is just short of what the Rams need to be competitive.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA DEs: 1) Julius Peppers 2) Adewale Ogunleye 3) Chike Okeafor 4) Tyler Brayton 5) Vonnie Holliday
Top 5 UFA DTs: 1) Richard Seymour 2) Vince Wilfork 3) Aubrayo Franklin 4) Ryan Pickett 5) Casey Hampton
Sleepers: Fred Robbins, Jimmy Wilkerson
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Jason Babin, Justin Bannan, Alfonso Boone, Tim Bulman, Kendrick Clancy, Philip Daniels, Ryan Denney, Marques Douglas, Nick Eason, Dwan Edwards, Jason Ferguson, Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, Jarvis Green, Vonnie Holliday, William Joseph, Jevon Kearse, Jimmy Kennedy, Travis Kirschke, Rodney Leisle, Anthony Montgomery, Bryan Robinson, Cory Redding, Paul Spicer, Kyle Vanden Bosch, Reynaldo Wynn
The doctor will see you now: Aaron Kampman, Jason Taylor, Jimmy Wilkerson, Reggie Hayward, Jermaine McGhee, Rob Meier, Ian Scott, Rodrique Wright
Gawd no: Tank Johnson, Derrick Burgess
Viewing the field: Defensive tackle has to be the strongest position in free agency this year. It's the one position the CBA provisions for 2010 managed not to mess up. However, since most of the other positions -have- been messed up by the CBA, defensive tackle's where we're likely to see the franchise tag in heaviest use. All of the top 5 are very likely candidates for the tag; Wilfork and Franklin have been tagged already. I have to cop out and just rank a bunch of likely-to-be-franchised DTs, though, because the falloff's pretty steep after the top 5. For old guys, Jeff Zgonina and Hollis Thomas both have some game still left. Zgonina, 39, had 28 tackles and 2.5 sacks for Houston last year. Thomas started with the Rams, was picked up by Carolina, and ended up with 35 tackles. Each had more tackles last year than any Rams DT other than Ryan. Just sayin. 32-year-old Robbins is a likelier target. He was good for 5.5 sacks a season from 2006-08 before losing his starting job in New York last season to injury and Chris Canty's big contract. Hmm, ex-Giant, Spagnuolo... Tank Johnson's about the only young, physically-gifted DT you're going to see dodge the franchise tag in 2010, but his past off-the-field troubles make him a much more natural fit in Cincinnati than he should be in St. Louis.
2/25/2010 Update: all of my top 5 DTs are in fact effectively off the market now. The first four have all been franchised, Pickett getting tagged yesterday, and the Steelers signed Hampton to a new deal.
Too bad defensive end's nowhere near as deep, with the falloff beginning after the top... one, really. Elite athlete and sackmaster Peppers may have the best chance of any free agent to make truly funny money this uncapped season. Short of Shahid Khan actually giving Peppers Flex-N-Gate, though, it's hard to see him coming here, and New England and Philadelphia are rumored to be hot on his trail. Ogunleye has dangerous speed, and 7 sacks last year, but almost all of it against terrible lines (3 vs. Green Bay's while it was still Swiss cheese) and/or terrible teams (3.5 vs. the Lions and Rams). So is it the player, or the opposition? For Brayton, maybe it's the team he's on. He has 10 sacks in 2 years for Carolina; he had 7 the previous 5 years in Oakland. Maybe he's a late bloomer? Okeafor's gone from an 8-9 sack player to a 4-5 sack player, and he's 34. Holliday's 5 sacks last year were his most since 2006, but he's also 34. They might be guys the Rams have to look to if Little or Hall don't return. Aaron Kampman would have been #2 here easily if not for a torn ACL at the end of last season. Very similar story for Wilkerson, who had 6 sacks for Tampa last year. I've liked him ever since he came out of Oklahoma in 2003. It would seem a very risky bet that either player would be ready by training camp, though. 2005 NFL sack leader Burgess, 31, might give a team a little more upside. For those like Bernie Miklasz who seem to contend the Rams are too uninteresting not to go after Michael Vick, I'll go along with it as long as they also sign Burgess.
Link: Neighbor sues NFL player Derrick Burgess over pack of pit bulls
Now that would be interesting.
RamView's move: In 1997, the downtrodden, rebuilding Rams drafted Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award winner Orlando Pace with the first overall pick in the draft, laying part of the foundation for their 1999-2001 run. So in 2010, the downtrodden, rebuilding Rams will draft the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award winner again, Ndamukong Suh. Steve Spagnuolo gets Billy Devaney to bring in one of his old players in Robbins. Add them to Ryan, Scott, and whoever wins the last spot, now you've got some pressure coming up the middle. And that wouldn't be RamView's last call to the 201 area code.
In 1999, the downtrodden, rebuilding Rams traded a couple of draft picks for a young, disgruntled Pro Bowler, and he, Marshall Faulk, was another big part of the foundation for the Rams' winning run. So, let's repeat history again. Osi Umenyiora wants out of New York; let's make a deal, Billy. It's makeable. It shouldn't cost a ransom in draft picks, and there's no cap hit for either team to worry about this year, right? Let's get it done! A d-line of Osi, Suh, Ryan and Long? Fuhgeddaboutit!
Prediction: The Rams draft Suh and Spagnuolo adds Robbins to the middle of his attack. I'll adjust my predicted draft strategery and say they go DE in the 3rd round and RB in the 4th. Adding Suh and someone like, say, George Selvie, probably isn't a bad start toward fixing the Rams' defensive line problems, but if they don't make a big free agent move or trade at defensive end to go along with the two rookies, they'd better have Little coming back for one more season.
C.J. Ah You can't do it all by himself, you know.
Well... for the first time in this year's free agency previews, defensive tackle's where we're going to see the franchise tag really come into play. That position's likely to be heavily depleted before teams like the Rams can even get in the gate. A rash of injuries late last season hurt the defensive end class before it even got started. Aaron Kampman's an All-Pro but he's coming off a torn ACL. Jason Taylor's a future Hall-of-Famer who still got it done last year at 35, but he's coming off recent shoulder surgery and will be on the shelf till May. Jimmy Wilkerson's 6 sacks for Tampa last season would have made him one of the sack leaders of this group. Torn ACL.
Sorry to harsh your buzz. The UFA defensive line class looked as good as third row seats for Pearl Jam, but we ended up with bad lawn seats for Styx instead. And as I clearly still have too much time on my hands, let's sail away into the grand illusion of the 2010 free agent market...
Defensive line
Rams current depth chart:
End: Chris Long, Leonard Little, James Hall, C.J. Ah You, Victor Adeyanju, James Wyche, Sean Conover
Tackle: Cliff Ryan, Darell Scott, LaJuan (WHO?) Ramsey, Leger (DOOZER) Douzable, Gary Gibson, Adam Carriker, Chris Bradwell
Notes: Little and Hall are unrestricted free agents. Adeyanju and Gibson will be restricted free agents with the current CBA in place. Ryan is a RFA no matter what.
Analysis: The Ram defensive line was probably short on talent in 2009 and definitely short in results. The Rams were only 27th in the NFL in stopping the run, with 137.6 yards allowed a game, and were even worse at sacking the quarterback, ranking 30th in the league with just 25 sacks. Chris Long came on strong at the end of the season and finished with 5 sacks. Long is on the verge of a breakout season so long as he can turn more of his QB pressures into actual sacks, and he stops getting shut down by tight ends 1-on-1 in the running game. That sprung way too many big runs last year. He's also the lead culprit on a defense where every player is fooled badly, and way too easily, by play-fakes. Long's going to need help on the other end of the line, though, which may be problematic. Little led the team with 6.5 sacks, but age (35) and injury are catching up with him to the point he's considering retirement. And he's enough of a liability against the run that he's really only a pass rush specialist at this point of his career. Hall might have been the team's best all-around lineman. He had 4.5 sacks, drew some holding penalties and is the best run defender of the DEs. He disappears on the field for long stretches, too, though, and just turned 33. Ah You beat out Adeyanju in training camp for his pass rush, and made some nice plays, but only had 1 sack and was a major liability against the run. After spending seemingly forever on the Rams' inactive list, Adeyanju got extended playing time late in the season, but as with his whole career, wasn't much of a pass rush threat. Most of the season the Rams had to blitz to get any pass rush going; their 4-man rush posed almost no threat. The Rams are in dire need of players who can get to the quarterback.
The Ram tackles were mostly a ragtag group of late-round draft picks and waiver wire pickups, and tended to play like it. Ryan is a steady player and led the group with 42 tackles, but it almost felt like Ramsey made more key plays like tackles-for-loss that bog down a drive. Rookie Scott came on late in the season and showed nice quickness and pursuit, and possibly potential, at the position. Doozer had his moments, and Gibson flashed some early promise before his leg was broken early in the season, but the Rams are FAR from having a game-changer or a dominator in the middle of the line. They get pushed around too much against the run and provide too little push up the middle on passing downs. If the Rams are as done counting on Carriker as I am, they'll have him in a similar spot on their depth chart. It's not altogether certain that he even would have made the team last training camp, and he will probably settle the issue and march straight to the Rams Draft Bust Hall of Fame by injuring himself picking up his suitcase the night he leaves for camp this year. It's not untimely that this year's draft shakes out to have major help for the Rams at defensive tackle at the top. As with the ends, these guys can make some plays, and they play hard for sixty minutes. Their ability is just short of what the Rams need to be competitive.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA DEs: 1) Julius Peppers 2) Adewale Ogunleye 3) Chike Okeafor 4) Tyler Brayton 5) Vonnie Holliday
Top 5 UFA DTs: 1) Richard Seymour 2) Vince Wilfork 3) Aubrayo Franklin 4) Ryan Pickett 5) Casey Hampton
Sleepers: Fred Robbins, Jimmy Wilkerson
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Jason Babin, Justin Bannan, Alfonso Boone, Tim Bulman, Kendrick Clancy, Philip Daniels, Ryan Denney, Marques Douglas, Nick Eason, Dwan Edwards, Jason Ferguson, Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, Jarvis Green, Vonnie Holliday, William Joseph, Jevon Kearse, Jimmy Kennedy, Travis Kirschke, Rodney Leisle, Anthony Montgomery, Bryan Robinson, Cory Redding, Paul Spicer, Kyle Vanden Bosch, Reynaldo Wynn
The doctor will see you now: Aaron Kampman, Jason Taylor, Jimmy Wilkerson, Reggie Hayward, Jermaine McGhee, Rob Meier, Ian Scott, Rodrique Wright
Gawd no: Tank Johnson, Derrick Burgess
Viewing the field: Defensive tackle has to be the strongest position in free agency this year. It's the one position the CBA provisions for 2010 managed not to mess up. However, since most of the other positions -have- been messed up by the CBA, defensive tackle's where we're likely to see the franchise tag in heaviest use. All of the top 5 are very likely candidates for the tag; Wilfork and Franklin have been tagged already. I have to cop out and just rank a bunch of likely-to-be-franchised DTs, though, because the falloff's pretty steep after the top 5. For old guys, Jeff Zgonina and Hollis Thomas both have some game still left. Zgonina, 39, had 28 tackles and 2.5 sacks for Houston last year. Thomas started with the Rams, was picked up by Carolina, and ended up with 35 tackles. Each had more tackles last year than any Rams DT other than Ryan. Just sayin. 32-year-old Robbins is a likelier target. He was good for 5.5 sacks a season from 2006-08 before losing his starting job in New York last season to injury and Chris Canty's big contract. Hmm, ex-Giant, Spagnuolo... Tank Johnson's about the only young, physically-gifted DT you're going to see dodge the franchise tag in 2010, but his past off-the-field troubles make him a much more natural fit in Cincinnati than he should be in St. Louis.
2/25/2010 Update: all of my top 5 DTs are in fact effectively off the market now. The first four have all been franchised, Pickett getting tagged yesterday, and the Steelers signed Hampton to a new deal.
Too bad defensive end's nowhere near as deep, with the falloff beginning after the top... one, really. Elite athlete and sackmaster Peppers may have the best chance of any free agent to make truly funny money this uncapped season. Short of Shahid Khan actually giving Peppers Flex-N-Gate, though, it's hard to see him coming here, and New England and Philadelphia are rumored to be hot on his trail. Ogunleye has dangerous speed, and 7 sacks last year, but almost all of it against terrible lines (3 vs. Green Bay's while it was still Swiss cheese) and/or terrible teams (3.5 vs. the Lions and Rams). So is it the player, or the opposition? For Brayton, maybe it's the team he's on. He has 10 sacks in 2 years for Carolina; he had 7 the previous 5 years in Oakland. Maybe he's a late bloomer? Okeafor's gone from an 8-9 sack player to a 4-5 sack player, and he's 34. Holliday's 5 sacks last year were his most since 2006, but he's also 34. They might be guys the Rams have to look to if Little or Hall don't return. Aaron Kampman would have been #2 here easily if not for a torn ACL at the end of last season. Very similar story for Wilkerson, who had 6 sacks for Tampa last year. I've liked him ever since he came out of Oklahoma in 2003. It would seem a very risky bet that either player would be ready by training camp, though. 2005 NFL sack leader Burgess, 31, might give a team a little more upside. For those like Bernie Miklasz who seem to contend the Rams are too uninteresting not to go after Michael Vick, I'll go along with it as long as they also sign Burgess.
Link: Neighbor sues NFL player Derrick Burgess over pack of pit bulls
Now that would be interesting.
RamView's move: In 1997, the downtrodden, rebuilding Rams drafted Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award winner Orlando Pace with the first overall pick in the draft, laying part of the foundation for their 1999-2001 run. So in 2010, the downtrodden, rebuilding Rams will draft the Outland Trophy and Lombardi Award winner again, Ndamukong Suh. Steve Spagnuolo gets Billy Devaney to bring in one of his old players in Robbins. Add them to Ryan, Scott, and whoever wins the last spot, now you've got some pressure coming up the middle. And that wouldn't be RamView's last call to the 201 area code.
In 1999, the downtrodden, rebuilding Rams traded a couple of draft picks for a young, disgruntled Pro Bowler, and he, Marshall Faulk, was another big part of the foundation for the Rams' winning run. So, let's repeat history again. Osi Umenyiora wants out of New York; let's make a deal, Billy. It's makeable. It shouldn't cost a ransom in draft picks, and there's no cap hit for either team to worry about this year, right? Let's get it done! A d-line of Osi, Suh, Ryan and Long? Fuhgeddaboutit!
Prediction: The Rams draft Suh and Spagnuolo adds Robbins to the middle of his attack. I'll adjust my predicted draft strategery and say they go DE in the 3rd round and RB in the 4th. Adding Suh and someone like, say, George Selvie, probably isn't a bad start toward fixing the Rams' defensive line problems, but if they don't make a big free agent move or trade at defensive end to go along with the two rookies, they'd better have Little coming back for one more season.
C.J. Ah You can't do it all by himself, you know.
Friday, February 19, 2010
FA fullback, center rankings
Got better info on fullbacks and centers available in free agency, so for fun I'll go ahead and rate the two positions here. The Rams don't figure to be very active at either position, with solid starters in Mike Karney and Jason Brown, though they could potentially look for a backup center, depending on how well Mark Setterstrom recovers from his torn tricep from back in December.
Top 5 UFA fullbacks
1 - Jeremi Johnson, Bengals
2 - Justin Griffith, Seahawks
3 - Tony Richardson, Jets
4 - Lawrence Vickers, Browns
5 - Terrelle Smith, Lions
Top 5 UFA centers
1 - Kevin Mawae, Titans
2 - Casey Rabach, Redskins
3 - Wade Smith, Chiefs
4 - Nick Leckey, Saints
5 - Seth McKinney, Bills
Top 5 UFA fullbacks
1 - Jeremi Johnson, Bengals
2 - Justin Griffith, Seahawks
3 - Tony Richardson, Jets
4 - Lawrence Vickers, Browns
5 - Terrelle Smith, Lions
Top 5 UFA centers
1 - Kevin Mawae, Titans
2 - Casey Rabach, Redskins
3 - Wade Smith, Chiefs
4 - Nick Leckey, Saints
5 - Seth McKinney, Bills
Thursday, February 18, 2010
FA offensive line preview
Maybe KFFL.com's free agent tracker isn't the best resource to work from when researching this year's offensive line market. I had to remove signed players, RFAs, UFAs turning into RFAs by the CBA, retired players, players who aren't actually free agents and players who aren't actually in the NFL. But by the time I got done, I was left with a fairly manageable list, though one as likely to be fully accurate as any given Obama administration "jobs saved" figure.
My favorite scratch-off was tackle Jon Runyan. KFFL's not incorrect to list him as a free agent, but in fact, Runyan is now running for Congress. If he wins there, maybe the White House is in his future. President Ford was a lineman for the University of Michigan, and President Reagan was the Gipper for the cinematic University of Notre Dame. You'd have to like how the 6'7", 330-lb Runyan lines up against the sub-5'5" (and clearly compensating) likes of Kim Jong-Il and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. (Runyan at negotiations: Who needs nuclear arms when you have (flexing) guns like these?)
On now to the Department of the Interior and (QB) Homeland Security...
Offensive line
Rams current depth chart:
Center: Jason Brown, Mark Setterstrom, Drew Miller
Guard: Left: Jacob Bell, Roger Allen
Right: John Greco, Mark Lewis
Tackle: Left: Alex Barron, Eric Young
Right: Jason Smith, Adam Goldberg, Phil Trautwein, Ryan McKee
Long snapper: Chris Massey, Ryan Neill
Notes: Barron and Setterstrom will be restricted free agents with the current CBA still in place. Neill is apparently a RFA no matter what happens with the labor agreement. Massey is an unrestricted free agent.
Analysis: The Ram offensive line gave some reasons for optimism in 2009, but other than in the lone win over the Lions, never really pulled together into a cohesive, effective unit. That's certainly part a talent issue, but at least half the problem was injuries, where the Rams haven't seemed to catch a break since 1999. Season in a nutshell: they were down to their in-effect 4th-string RG Allen by the season finale, and -he- suffered a major injury during that game, forcing 4th tackle Trautwein off the bench.
The line has a solid foundation in Pro Bowl alternate Brown. Bell's game improved in 2009 over a disappointing 2008, but just to average. You'd like to see him get pushed around less in the run game than he does at times. Richie Incognito was probably the line's best run-blocker but proved not to be worth the cost in penalties and knuckleheaded plays. Setterstrom originally filled in for him, and capably, but his extensive injury history's proving he's best used in small doses. Setterstrom has added value in that he backs up Brown as well as the guard positions. The 2010 starter would seem to be Greco, who's still something of an x-factor since we haven't seen him for an extended period. He's hard to move, a definite plus. Swing tackle/guard Goldberg plays just well enough at times you think he can start, just bad enough at times you wonder how he's on the team. For the amount of moving around he did last year, though, he did a pretty admirable job and is valuable in his ideal role of "sixth man". Goldberg and Setterstrom are the only proven veteran o-line talent the Rams can bring off the bench, though. Their depth is tenuous at best, and given the rash of injuries this unit has experienced, needs to become much stronger.
That leaves us the tackle position. 2009 top pick Smith was playing NFL starter-quality RT by week 9, but was lost for the season after that due to a concussion. Smith is an enthusiastic, powerful run blocker, though he had his rookie moments in pass protection. He was drafted to play LT here, but was blocked by the paradox that is Alex Barron, a player who somehow manages to become more useless, yet more indispensable, season after season. Barron's mental errors border on constant. He's the most-penalized man in the NFL, and plenty of plays blew up last year because Barron's head didn't appear to be in the game. If not for this year's weird CBA conditions, he'd almost certainly be on his way out of town. But Barron has one positive quantity the rest of the Rams' line has lacked for a while: he stays healthy. That's not worth keeping him at LT and stunting Smith's growth, and probably isn't worth keeping him this year, since he's more than likely gone next year and the Rams would be making a mistake not to start looking forward now. But his physical reliability, on this offensive line, is worth something.
On special teams, the Rams are very well-set at punter and placekicker, but may have a difficult decision to make at long snapper, convenient to address here since it's a line position. Chris Massey has been rock-steady here for 8 years, but is now a UFA and coming off a blown knee. Ordinarily, you'd say, no-brainer, lock the guy up, but mid-season replacement Neill is 3 years younger and was flawless in his stead. At least it's the rare position where the Rams have a couple of good choices available.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA OTs: 1) Chad Clifton 2) Mark Tauscher 3) Barry Sims 4) Tony Pashos 5) Artis Hicks
Top 5 UFA OGs: 1) Keydrick Vincent 2) Stephen Neal 3) Chester Pitts 4) Rex Hadnot 5) Bobbie Williams
Sleepers: T: Jonathan Scott G: Kevin Boothe
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Junius Coston, Brandon Gorin, Tutan Reyes, Ephraim Salaam, Tra Thomas, Ryan Tucker, Langston Walker, Guy Whimper, Kynan Forney, Ben Hamilton
The doctor will see you now: Russ Hochstein, Jon Jansen, Levi Jones, Montrae Holland, Kendall Simmons
Gawd no: Jeremy Bridges, Mike Gandy, Cornell Green, Damion McIntosh, Mike Williams
Viewing the field: This blog's supposed to be about the Rams, but it's clear the Packers have some important decisions to make at tackle in the next 2-3 weeks. LT Clifton's been to the Pro Bowl several times, but the Packer line was shredded repeatedly last season until Tauscher settled things down for them at RT. As for the two 49er backups, 35-year-old Sims is still thought a good pass protector, while Pashos is an aggressive, physical RT best at run-blocking. I also like him because for TV player intros, he says he's from "the University of Chief Illiniwek". Hicks has been a versatile backup for the Vikings, a good "glue guy" off the bench who rookie Phil Loadholdt beat out there for the starting RT job.
The guard market is really bad and extremely difficult to evaluate, with almost every candidate coming off some kind of injury. Panthers guard Vincent was one of the few to start every game in '09 while playing at a decent level, though he's not the best pass blocker. Neal has been a solid member of the Patriot o-line, but has struggled with injuries for 5 years and is considering retirement at 33. Pitts is an original Houston Texan who played every game in team history before a knee injury cost him almost all of 2009. If he bounces back from microfracture surgery, you'd have a good athlete and tough-to-move lineman with guard and tackle versatility. Hadnot came into last season scheduled to start at RG for Cleveland before an MCL injury set him back. He got the starting job back by the end of the season and can also help a team out at center. (Kevin Mawae is the only UFA I could identify as a full-time center, and the Rams won't be looking for help there anyway, so no center run-down.) 345-lb road-grader Williams has missed only 3 starts since 2004 and none since 2006, but draws a lot of penalties. Yeah, been there, done that.
Scott's about the best sleeper tackle I can come up with. He's just 27 and physically ideal for tackle but hasn't played up to his potential in either Buffalo or Detroit, in part because of injury troubles. Boothe is only 26, has great speed and feet for his size and did a passable job for the Giants last year off the bench.
Bridges is the Big Dead tackle who's really a guard and was pwned by Chris Long last year. Another Dead tackle, Gandy, has never impressed me, especially against speed rushers, and he's coming off a sports hernia injury suffered around Christmas. Green was a starter in Oakland but has a domestic violence arrest on his rap sheet. Probably the wrong guy to bring in here right about now. McIntosh wasn't even good enough to win a starting position in Seattle over Sean Locklear. Williams played guard for the Redskins last season at 370 pounds, after losing 100 pounds in the offseason. No wonder he had a torn foot muscle at the end of the season. Poor foot was probably crying, no mas, no mas!
RamView's move: I don't make a very big secret out of wanting to get rid of Barron. Let's get Smith over to LT where he's supposed to be and bring a guy like Pashos in to replace the Human False Start, with Goldberg backing them up. Bell, Brown and Greco start in the middle, but I'd love to steal away a guy like Boothe to bolster the line's depth. Guards don't get much love on draft day, so the Rams could also find a very nice bargain in the later rounds. I'm a Massey fan and hope to keep him around at least another 8 years.
Prediction: Barron's not going anywhere, partly because the Rams want to drive me crazy, and a lot because he's too cheap, too dependable, and good enough when he's on to justify the non-move. Barron played his best right after Bulger called him out a couple of years ago, and right after Steve Spagnuolo briefly benched him last year, if anybody's taking notes. Smith will win them over and start the season at LT, though, while the younger and cheaper Neill nudges Massey out of the long-snapper spot. A veteran guard wouldn't be a bad pickup - maybe Forney, a Falcons starter while Billy Devaney was down in Atlanta. But, 44 sacks last year and Barron's penalties notwithstanding, I don't see a lot of change coming to the look of the Ram offensive line, through free agency, at least.
My favorite scratch-off was tackle Jon Runyan. KFFL's not incorrect to list him as a free agent, but in fact, Runyan is now running for Congress. If he wins there, maybe the White House is in his future. President Ford was a lineman for the University of Michigan, and President Reagan was the Gipper for the cinematic University of Notre Dame. You'd have to like how the 6'7", 330-lb Runyan lines up against the sub-5'5" (and clearly compensating) likes of Kim Jong-Il and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. (Runyan at negotiations: Who needs nuclear arms when you have (flexing) guns like these?)
On now to the Department of the Interior and (QB) Homeland Security...
Offensive line
Rams current depth chart:
Center: Jason Brown, Mark Setterstrom, Drew Miller
Guard: Left: Jacob Bell, Roger Allen
Right: John Greco, Mark Lewis
Tackle: Left: Alex Barron, Eric Young
Right: Jason Smith, Adam Goldberg, Phil Trautwein, Ryan McKee
Long snapper: Chris Massey, Ryan Neill
Notes: Barron and Setterstrom will be restricted free agents with the current CBA still in place. Neill is apparently a RFA no matter what happens with the labor agreement. Massey is an unrestricted free agent.
Analysis: The Ram offensive line gave some reasons for optimism in 2009, but other than in the lone win over the Lions, never really pulled together into a cohesive, effective unit. That's certainly part a talent issue, but at least half the problem was injuries, where the Rams haven't seemed to catch a break since 1999. Season in a nutshell: they were down to their in-effect 4th-string RG Allen by the season finale, and -he- suffered a major injury during that game, forcing 4th tackle Trautwein off the bench.
The line has a solid foundation in Pro Bowl alternate Brown. Bell's game improved in 2009 over a disappointing 2008, but just to average. You'd like to see him get pushed around less in the run game than he does at times. Richie Incognito was probably the line's best run-blocker but proved not to be worth the cost in penalties and knuckleheaded plays. Setterstrom originally filled in for him, and capably, but his extensive injury history's proving he's best used in small doses. Setterstrom has added value in that he backs up Brown as well as the guard positions. The 2010 starter would seem to be Greco, who's still something of an x-factor since we haven't seen him for an extended period. He's hard to move, a definite plus. Swing tackle/guard Goldberg plays just well enough at times you think he can start, just bad enough at times you wonder how he's on the team. For the amount of moving around he did last year, though, he did a pretty admirable job and is valuable in his ideal role of "sixth man". Goldberg and Setterstrom are the only proven veteran o-line talent the Rams can bring off the bench, though. Their depth is tenuous at best, and given the rash of injuries this unit has experienced, needs to become much stronger.
That leaves us the tackle position. 2009 top pick Smith was playing NFL starter-quality RT by week 9, but was lost for the season after that due to a concussion. Smith is an enthusiastic, powerful run blocker, though he had his rookie moments in pass protection. He was drafted to play LT here, but was blocked by the paradox that is Alex Barron, a player who somehow manages to become more useless, yet more indispensable, season after season. Barron's mental errors border on constant. He's the most-penalized man in the NFL, and plenty of plays blew up last year because Barron's head didn't appear to be in the game. If not for this year's weird CBA conditions, he'd almost certainly be on his way out of town. But Barron has one positive quantity the rest of the Rams' line has lacked for a while: he stays healthy. That's not worth keeping him at LT and stunting Smith's growth, and probably isn't worth keeping him this year, since he's more than likely gone next year and the Rams would be making a mistake not to start looking forward now. But his physical reliability, on this offensive line, is worth something.
On special teams, the Rams are very well-set at punter and placekicker, but may have a difficult decision to make at long snapper, convenient to address here since it's a line position. Chris Massey has been rock-steady here for 8 years, but is now a UFA and coming off a blown knee. Ordinarily, you'd say, no-brainer, lock the guy up, but mid-season replacement Neill is 3 years younger and was flawless in his stead. At least it's the rare position where the Rams have a couple of good choices available.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA OTs: 1) Chad Clifton 2) Mark Tauscher 3) Barry Sims 4) Tony Pashos 5) Artis Hicks
Top 5 UFA OGs: 1) Keydrick Vincent 2) Stephen Neal 3) Chester Pitts 4) Rex Hadnot 5) Bobbie Williams
Sleepers: T: Jonathan Scott G: Kevin Boothe
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Junius Coston, Brandon Gorin, Tutan Reyes, Ephraim Salaam, Tra Thomas, Ryan Tucker, Langston Walker, Guy Whimper, Kynan Forney, Ben Hamilton
The doctor will see you now: Russ Hochstein, Jon Jansen, Levi Jones, Montrae Holland, Kendall Simmons
Gawd no: Jeremy Bridges, Mike Gandy, Cornell Green, Damion McIntosh, Mike Williams
Viewing the field: This blog's supposed to be about the Rams, but it's clear the Packers have some important decisions to make at tackle in the next 2-3 weeks. LT Clifton's been to the Pro Bowl several times, but the Packer line was shredded repeatedly last season until Tauscher settled things down for them at RT. As for the two 49er backups, 35-year-old Sims is still thought a good pass protector, while Pashos is an aggressive, physical RT best at run-blocking. I also like him because for TV player intros, he says he's from "the University of Chief Illiniwek". Hicks has been a versatile backup for the Vikings, a good "glue guy" off the bench who rookie Phil Loadholdt beat out there for the starting RT job.
The guard market is really bad and extremely difficult to evaluate, with almost every candidate coming off some kind of injury. Panthers guard Vincent was one of the few to start every game in '09 while playing at a decent level, though he's not the best pass blocker. Neal has been a solid member of the Patriot o-line, but has struggled with injuries for 5 years and is considering retirement at 33. Pitts is an original Houston Texan who played every game in team history before a knee injury cost him almost all of 2009. If he bounces back from microfracture surgery, you'd have a good athlete and tough-to-move lineman with guard and tackle versatility. Hadnot came into last season scheduled to start at RG for Cleveland before an MCL injury set him back. He got the starting job back by the end of the season and can also help a team out at center. (Kevin Mawae is the only UFA I could identify as a full-time center, and the Rams won't be looking for help there anyway, so no center run-down.) 345-lb road-grader Williams has missed only 3 starts since 2004 and none since 2006, but draws a lot of penalties. Yeah, been there, done that.
Scott's about the best sleeper tackle I can come up with. He's just 27 and physically ideal for tackle but hasn't played up to his potential in either Buffalo or Detroit, in part because of injury troubles. Boothe is only 26, has great speed and feet for his size and did a passable job for the Giants last year off the bench.
Bridges is the Big Dead tackle who's really a guard and was pwned by Chris Long last year. Another Dead tackle, Gandy, has never impressed me, especially against speed rushers, and he's coming off a sports hernia injury suffered around Christmas. Green was a starter in Oakland but has a domestic violence arrest on his rap sheet. Probably the wrong guy to bring in here right about now. McIntosh wasn't even good enough to win a starting position in Seattle over Sean Locklear. Williams played guard for the Redskins last season at 370 pounds, after losing 100 pounds in the offseason. No wonder he had a torn foot muscle at the end of the season. Poor foot was probably crying, no mas, no mas!
RamView's move: I don't make a very big secret out of wanting to get rid of Barron. Let's get Smith over to LT where he's supposed to be and bring a guy like Pashos in to replace the Human False Start, with Goldberg backing them up. Bell, Brown and Greco start in the middle, but I'd love to steal away a guy like Boothe to bolster the line's depth. Guards don't get much love on draft day, so the Rams could also find a very nice bargain in the later rounds. I'm a Massey fan and hope to keep him around at least another 8 years.
Prediction: Barron's not going anywhere, partly because the Rams want to drive me crazy, and a lot because he's too cheap, too dependable, and good enough when he's on to justify the non-move. Barron played his best right after Bulger called him out a couple of years ago, and right after Steve Spagnuolo briefly benched him last year, if anybody's taking notes. Smith will win them over and start the season at LT, though, while the younger and cheaper Neill nudges Massey out of the long-snapper spot. A veteran guard wouldn't be a bad pickup - maybe Forney, a Falcons starter while Billy Devaney was down in Atlanta. But, 44 sacks last year and Barron's penalties notwithstanding, I don't see a lot of change coming to the look of the Ram offensive line, through free agency, at least.
Monday, February 15, 2010
FA TE review
Evidence continues to pour in that NFL teams are going to have extreme difficulty improving themselves via this year's free agent market. The tight end position's yet another example. With Owen Daniels, Bo Scaife and Tony Scheffler reverting back to restricted free agents with the league failure to extend the current CBA, we're left with a pool half-filled with blocking TEs in their early- to mid-thirties and half-filled with players coming off major injuries. North Korean grocery stores have better selection than this.
In short, if your team's counting on free agency to improve its tight ends, odds are strong they're still going to be left with loose ends.
Tight end
Rams current depth chart:
Randy McMichael: 34 receptions for 332 yards, 1 TD
Daniel Fells: 21 receptions for 273, 3 TD
Billy Bajema: 8 catches for 94
Notes: Fells is a restricted free agent. McMichael is unrestricted. And in case you're worried, now-Buffalo TE Joe Klopfenstein is restricted.
Analysis: McMichael's one of many Rams who'd be best off forgetting 2009 ever happened. The veteran TE was one of the biggest disappointments on the team. His blocking was occasionally good, but he wasn't reliable as a receiver at all, committing critical drops all season long. The Rams' ball-control offense has to have a reliable pass-catching TE to succeed; McMichael turned out to be badly cast for the role. With 3 TDs, Fells was the red zone target McMichael wasn't, but he has yet to develop into a consistent part of the passing game. It's a TE corps in bad need of speed, skill at getting open and ability to make plays after the catch. Blocking TE Bajema at least exceeded expectations, showing unexpectedly good hands in making the occasional play downfield.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA TEs: 1) Ben Watson 2) Brandon Manumaleuna 3) Alge Crumpler 4) Will Heller 5) Leonard Pope
Sleepers: Billy Miller, David Martin, Reggie Kelly
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Dan Campbell, James Dearth, Darnell Dinkins, Casey Fitzsimmons, Michael Gaines, Ben Hartsock, Sean Ryan, L.J. Smith, Quinn Sypniewski, Ernest Wilford, Kris Wilson
Gawd no: Anthony Becht
Viewing the field: That top five should tell you all you need to know about the thinness of this year's free agent market. Heh, I just used the word "thin" while referring to Brandon Manumaleuna and Alge Crumpler. The heavyweight of the group, though, is definitely Watson, a fine athlete with excellent speed, a favorite of some of us Rams draftniks back in 2004. Though not a top blocker, Watson can run all the routes, and has to feel left out of the NFL's recent explosion at TE the way he's been used in New England. Watson has to be itching for the chance to be a major offensive contributor. Yes, I ranked Manu second. He developed into a good blocking TE in San Diego and is still a viable goal line target. If you're going to go after Michael Vick, you might as well get him his old favorite target in the 400-lb. Crumpler, no? He's about 1/3 as productive as he was at his career peak, though (and 1/3 heavier). Heller's a Manu-type, though his 29 catches last year nearly matched his combined output from the previous SIX seasons. Pope took over the starting job in Kansas City by the end of last season and could be an attractive option for his youth (26) and height (6'8), though he's still susceptible to sloppy play.
Martin, Miller or Kelly would all be reclamation projects coming off injuries that cost them their 2009 seasons. Miller, 32, coming off a torn Achilles, has been a good clutch receiver and had 45 catches for New Orleans in '08. Martin, 30, recovering from a sports hernia, has good hands, decent speed, and had back-to-back 30-catch seasons for Miami before the injury. Kelly, 32, missed '09 in Cincinnati due to a ruptured Achilles (ouch) but had a career-high 31 catches in '08. You could do worse than one of these guys. For instance, McMichael. Or Becht, another of those guys who blocks well everywhere unless you bring him to St. Louis.
RamView's move: Do you trade out of the Suh-weet spot? The Rams' biggest need this offseason appears to be more draft picks. It's going to be hard to come away with a decent TE prospect this year and fill arguably bigger needs otherwise. As you can see, short of throwing ridiculous money at Watson, free agency's not going to be much help. The Combine will probably reveal a nice later-rounds prospect, ala Kevin Boss a couple of years ago, who the Rams can pick up, but it looks like that's about the best chance for improvement here. If you sign a guy like Manu, you're going to get almost zero offense out of the position; one of the reclamation projects, you're probably giving up too much blocking. So I'm hoping I make a good call based on the Combine; I luck out there sometimes.
Prediction: We'll see Watson in St. Louis next year, but more likely in the visiting uniform of the Chiefs, aka Patriots West. While they hope Fells breaks out, the Rams' only likely TE signing will be to get a high-character veteran who's only a year older than Watson, and has 3 60-catch seasons to his credit.
You guessed it: Randy McMichael.
In short, if your team's counting on free agency to improve its tight ends, odds are strong they're still going to be left with loose ends.
Tight end
Rams current depth chart:
Randy McMichael: 34 receptions for 332 yards, 1 TD
Daniel Fells: 21 receptions for 273, 3 TD
Billy Bajema: 8 catches for 94
Notes: Fells is a restricted free agent. McMichael is unrestricted. And in case you're worried, now-Buffalo TE Joe Klopfenstein is restricted.
Analysis: McMichael's one of many Rams who'd be best off forgetting 2009 ever happened. The veteran TE was one of the biggest disappointments on the team. His blocking was occasionally good, but he wasn't reliable as a receiver at all, committing critical drops all season long. The Rams' ball-control offense has to have a reliable pass-catching TE to succeed; McMichael turned out to be badly cast for the role. With 3 TDs, Fells was the red zone target McMichael wasn't, but he has yet to develop into a consistent part of the passing game. It's a TE corps in bad need of speed, skill at getting open and ability to make plays after the catch. Blocking TE Bajema at least exceeded expectations, showing unexpectedly good hands in making the occasional play downfield.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA TEs: 1) Ben Watson 2) Brandon Manumaleuna 3) Alge Crumpler 4) Will Heller 5) Leonard Pope
Sleepers: Billy Miller, David Martin, Reggie Kelly
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Dan Campbell, James Dearth, Darnell Dinkins, Casey Fitzsimmons, Michael Gaines, Ben Hartsock, Sean Ryan, L.J. Smith, Quinn Sypniewski, Ernest Wilford, Kris Wilson
Gawd no: Anthony Becht
Viewing the field: That top five should tell you all you need to know about the thinness of this year's free agent market. Heh, I just used the word "thin" while referring to Brandon Manumaleuna and Alge Crumpler. The heavyweight of the group, though, is definitely Watson, a fine athlete with excellent speed, a favorite of some of us Rams draftniks back in 2004. Though not a top blocker, Watson can run all the routes, and has to feel left out of the NFL's recent explosion at TE the way he's been used in New England. Watson has to be itching for the chance to be a major offensive contributor. Yes, I ranked Manu second. He developed into a good blocking TE in San Diego and is still a viable goal line target. If you're going to go after Michael Vick, you might as well get him his old favorite target in the 400-lb. Crumpler, no? He's about 1/3 as productive as he was at his career peak, though (and 1/3 heavier). Heller's a Manu-type, though his 29 catches last year nearly matched his combined output from the previous SIX seasons. Pope took over the starting job in Kansas City by the end of last season and could be an attractive option for his youth (26) and height (6'8), though he's still susceptible to sloppy play.
Martin, Miller or Kelly would all be reclamation projects coming off injuries that cost them their 2009 seasons. Miller, 32, coming off a torn Achilles, has been a good clutch receiver and had 45 catches for New Orleans in '08. Martin, 30, recovering from a sports hernia, has good hands, decent speed, and had back-to-back 30-catch seasons for Miami before the injury. Kelly, 32, missed '09 in Cincinnati due to a ruptured Achilles (ouch) but had a career-high 31 catches in '08. You could do worse than one of these guys. For instance, McMichael. Or Becht, another of those guys who blocks well everywhere unless you bring him to St. Louis.
RamView's move: Do you trade out of the Suh-weet spot? The Rams' biggest need this offseason appears to be more draft picks. It's going to be hard to come away with a decent TE prospect this year and fill arguably bigger needs otherwise. As you can see, short of throwing ridiculous money at Watson, free agency's not going to be much help. The Combine will probably reveal a nice later-rounds prospect, ala Kevin Boss a couple of years ago, who the Rams can pick up, but it looks like that's about the best chance for improvement here. If you sign a guy like Manu, you're going to get almost zero offense out of the position; one of the reclamation projects, you're probably giving up too much blocking. So I'm hoping I make a good call based on the Combine; I luck out there sometimes.
Prediction: We'll see Watson in St. Louis next year, but more likely in the visiting uniform of the Chiefs, aka Patriots West. While they hope Fells breaks out, the Rams' only likely TE signing will be to get a high-character veteran who's only a year older than Watson, and has 3 60-catch seasons to his credit.
You guessed it: Randy McMichael.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
FA WR review
Word has emerged recently that the Rams and Isaac Bruce are going to make arrangements that will allow him to retire as a Ram. And for those brief hours, he's still going to be the St. Louis Rams' best wide receiver. Maybe new receivers coach Nolan Cromwell can talk a fellow team legend into staying a while?
And why stop there? The Jagwires just cut Torry Holt after just one season with the team, the logic being that his fairly modest contributions on the field didn't merit holding back their young and supposedly up-and-coming receivers.
Modest, indeed. Torry Holt's 51 receptions for 722 yards last season beat every Rams wide receiver by at least 4 receptions and 133 yards. Donnie Avery's speed makes him a better deep threat, right? Yet Holt's yards per catch in 2009 was nearly two yards better than Avery's. Why did the Rams run Torry off again?
As long as we're at it, Az Hakim's just sitting in Arizona running a burger joint; get him on the phone! And Ricky Proehl... OK, he's 42, that may be really stretching it.
But wouldn't the Greatest Show on Earth Reunion Special put a bunch of butts back in the Edward Jones Dome's seats? Whaddya say, Mr. Khan? Let's get the band back together! (P.S., I hear Kurt Warner's free these days, too.)
Short of that, here's a look at the current free agent market at wide receiver. Though it's short Vincent Jackson, Miles Austin, Brandon Marshall, Braylon Edwards and Brad Smith due to the CBA snarl-up, it's still got an interesting name or two...
Wide receiver
Rams current depth chart:
Donnie Avery: 47 receptions, 589 yards, 5 TDs led the team.
Laurent Robinson: 13 receptions for 167 yards and a TD. Played only the first three games.
Brandon Gibson: 34 catches for 348. 4 starts in 9 games as a rookie mid-season arrival via trade.
Keenan Burton: 25 receptions for 253. Missed almost half the season.
Danny Amendola: 43 catches for 326 yards.
Ruvell Martin: 6 catches for 99. Another midseason acquisition, he appeared in 8 games.
Jordan Kent: 1 catch, 5 yards.
Brooks Foster: Spent season on injured reserve.
Notes: Martin becomes a restricted free agent without a league CBA.
Analysis: Due to injuries, inexperience and inability, the wide receiver position is where the Ram offense ran aground in 2009. Defenders were thicker on Rams receivers last year than paparazzi on Brangelina. I "got" why the Rams drafted Avery in 2008 and slowly got on board with the pick, but his '09 season was a bust. He was a ball player without confidence, and his hands got worse down the stretch. He ended the season looking a lot more like a WR3 at best than the #1 role/vacuum he got sucked into to start the season. Some alarming analysis: Avery was the Rams' most-targeted receiver last year, but was second in catches, and despite being targeted 30 more times, had only 4 more catches than Danny Amendola! That simply isn't #1 receiver stuff. Robinson and Marc Bulger appeared to have good chemistry early in the season, and Robinson looked like a legitimate #1, the only Ram WR who could really even get open, until he repeated a career-long trend of getting hurt. In his defense, though, his season-ending injury in the home opener was a very freaky one. Burton showed flashes of ability, but also disappeared on the field a lot, then disappeared for the season with a week 9 knee injury, staying in his career-long injury pattern. Rookie Gibson was the most-promising-looking WR after Robinson, understandably raw at times but also capable of making big-time plays. He'll be a Ram to watch. Most of Martin's production came on plays where the opposing defense forgot to cover him. Amendola's style as a kick returner doesn't lend itself well to taking a lot of extra punishment as a WR. He proved useful on short, underneath routes but wasn't really a threat to turn any into a long gainer. Kent is a terrific special teams player and is worth having on your roster just for that. Foster's season-ending injury in training camp just shows he's already getting the hang of being a receiver for the Rams.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA WRs: 1) Nate Burleson 2) Chris Chambers 3) Torry Holt 4) Derrick Mason 5) Kevin Walter
Sleepers: Derek Hagan, Domenik Hixon, Bobby Wade
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Arnaz Battle, Antonio Bryant, Marty Booker, Terrance Copper, Mike Furrey, Joey Galloway, Greg Lewis, Brandon Lloyd, Sean Morey, Muhsin Muhammad, Kassim Osgood, Josh Reed, Kelley Washington, Jeff Webb
Gawd no: Donte Stallworth, Terrell Owens, Hank Baskett, Airese Currie
Viewing the field: Burleson had 62 catches last year in Seattle, and when healthy, has always been a legitimate deep threat and a dangerous punt returner. But the biggest bonus to the Rams signing Burleson would be that they don't have to try to figure out how to stop him any more, BECAUSE THEY NEVER HAVE. Chambers recaptured a little of his Miami glory in Kansas City last year, amassing 608 yards and 4 TDs there in 9 games. He's still just 31, and either he or Burleson would be #1 WRs if they came here, which should be another lure. The obvious problem for Holt is that he's 34 and has lost a lot of speed. Though no #1, again, he'd be the best Rams WR upon arrival. Mason led this group of receivers last year with 72 receptions for over 1,000 yards, a brilliant season, but he'll either return to Baltimore or retire. Walter was considered a disappointment in Houston last season but still has 170+ catches the last 3 seasons. Again, that beats any Rams receiver.
A couple of Giant free agent WRs bear mentioning, given Steve Spagnuolo's old ties there. Hagan's only 25 and has very nice size at 6'2", 215. He had problems with dropped passes his rookie season but is said to have good hands now, along with some elusiveness and YAC ability, and is a deep threat. He's had only 9 catches in 2 seasons in New York, but 50 the previous 2 in Miami. Hagan has youth and ability the Rams can't afford to turn their noses up at. Big but slim, Hixon had just 15 catches for the Giants last year, but 43 for almost 600 yards the year before. Think of it this way - the two are a couple of Brandon Gibsons, but with experience. Wade has over 140 catches the last three seasons, though his role's filled pretty well here by Amendola.
The Rams are in deep need at this position, but as always, better take care how far they stoop. Then again, a team serious about acquiring Michael Vick might as well bring Stallworth along for the ride, though with a designated driver, for sure. Funny thing is, the Rams probably consider him a better fit than Owens. T.O.'s rap sheet may be clean, but he'd be an awful fit for many, many other reasons, not the least of which is his declining skills. Hank Baskett didn't exactly impress with his ball skills on that onside kick in the Super Bowl. Playmate wife or not, I'll pass. KFFL lists Bears WR Airese Currie as a UFA. I have to admit I'd never heard of the guy. Google "Airese Currie Lisa Lampanelli", and I'm pretty sure you'll wish you never had yourself.
RamView's move: The Rams' most crying offensive need is a #1, veteran WR. They need to, and I would, go balls-out after Burleson, Chambers or Walter, though I fear the extra transition tag teams get when this uncapped season becomes a reality is probably going to mess with my plans. A guy like Hagan is practically as good as anybody they have right now, and is the kind of young, low-risk, and cheap acquisition that ought to be a no-brainer. I mentioned Dexter McCluster in the RB review as a draft prospect; he has potential to help them as a slot receiver as well. Season-long practice-squadder Sean Walker also better get a nice long look in training camp, where no WR, including Avery, should be considered immune from getting cut.
Prediction: Rams Park will continue to drive Rams Nation, or me, at least, nuts about this position by essentially standing pat, hoping Avery overcomes Kennison syndrome, Gibson continues to develop and Robinson and Burton find ways to miraculously suit up for double-digit games in a season. We'll have to hope their patience is rewarded.
Next: tight ends.
And why stop there? The Jagwires just cut Torry Holt after just one season with the team, the logic being that his fairly modest contributions on the field didn't merit holding back their young and supposedly up-and-coming receivers.
Modest, indeed. Torry Holt's 51 receptions for 722 yards last season beat every Rams wide receiver by at least 4 receptions and 133 yards. Donnie Avery's speed makes him a better deep threat, right? Yet Holt's yards per catch in 2009 was nearly two yards better than Avery's. Why did the Rams run Torry off again?
As long as we're at it, Az Hakim's just sitting in Arizona running a burger joint; get him on the phone! And Ricky Proehl... OK, he's 42, that may be really stretching it.
But wouldn't the Greatest Show on Earth Reunion Special put a bunch of butts back in the Edward Jones Dome's seats? Whaddya say, Mr. Khan? Let's get the band back together! (P.S., I hear Kurt Warner's free these days, too.)
Short of that, here's a look at the current free agent market at wide receiver. Though it's short Vincent Jackson, Miles Austin, Brandon Marshall, Braylon Edwards and Brad Smith due to the CBA snarl-up, it's still got an interesting name or two...
Wide receiver
Rams current depth chart:
Donnie Avery: 47 receptions, 589 yards, 5 TDs led the team.
Laurent Robinson: 13 receptions for 167 yards and a TD. Played only the first three games.
Brandon Gibson: 34 catches for 348. 4 starts in 9 games as a rookie mid-season arrival via trade.
Keenan Burton: 25 receptions for 253. Missed almost half the season.
Danny Amendola: 43 catches for 326 yards.
Ruvell Martin: 6 catches for 99. Another midseason acquisition, he appeared in 8 games.
Jordan Kent: 1 catch, 5 yards.
Brooks Foster: Spent season on injured reserve.
Notes: Martin becomes a restricted free agent without a league CBA.
Analysis: Due to injuries, inexperience and inability, the wide receiver position is where the Ram offense ran aground in 2009. Defenders were thicker on Rams receivers last year than paparazzi on Brangelina. I "got" why the Rams drafted Avery in 2008 and slowly got on board with the pick, but his '09 season was a bust. He was a ball player without confidence, and his hands got worse down the stretch. He ended the season looking a lot more like a WR3 at best than the #1 role/vacuum he got sucked into to start the season. Some alarming analysis: Avery was the Rams' most-targeted receiver last year, but was second in catches, and despite being targeted 30 more times, had only 4 more catches than Danny Amendola! That simply isn't #1 receiver stuff. Robinson and Marc Bulger appeared to have good chemistry early in the season, and Robinson looked like a legitimate #1, the only Ram WR who could really even get open, until he repeated a career-long trend of getting hurt. In his defense, though, his season-ending injury in the home opener was a very freaky one. Burton showed flashes of ability, but also disappeared on the field a lot, then disappeared for the season with a week 9 knee injury, staying in his career-long injury pattern. Rookie Gibson was the most-promising-looking WR after Robinson, understandably raw at times but also capable of making big-time plays. He'll be a Ram to watch. Most of Martin's production came on plays where the opposing defense forgot to cover him. Amendola's style as a kick returner doesn't lend itself well to taking a lot of extra punishment as a WR. He proved useful on short, underneath routes but wasn't really a threat to turn any into a long gainer. Kent is a terrific special teams player and is worth having on your roster just for that. Foster's season-ending injury in training camp just shows he's already getting the hang of being a receiver for the Rams.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA WRs: 1) Nate Burleson 2) Chris Chambers 3) Torry Holt 4) Derrick Mason 5) Kevin Walter
Sleepers: Derek Hagan, Domenik Hixon, Bobby Wade
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Arnaz Battle, Antonio Bryant, Marty Booker, Terrance Copper, Mike Furrey, Joey Galloway, Greg Lewis, Brandon Lloyd, Sean Morey, Muhsin Muhammad, Kassim Osgood, Josh Reed, Kelley Washington, Jeff Webb
Gawd no: Donte Stallworth, Terrell Owens, Hank Baskett, Airese Currie
Viewing the field: Burleson had 62 catches last year in Seattle, and when healthy, has always been a legitimate deep threat and a dangerous punt returner. But the biggest bonus to the Rams signing Burleson would be that they don't have to try to figure out how to stop him any more, BECAUSE THEY NEVER HAVE. Chambers recaptured a little of his Miami glory in Kansas City last year, amassing 608 yards and 4 TDs there in 9 games. He's still just 31, and either he or Burleson would be #1 WRs if they came here, which should be another lure. The obvious problem for Holt is that he's 34 and has lost a lot of speed. Though no #1, again, he'd be the best Rams WR upon arrival. Mason led this group of receivers last year with 72 receptions for over 1,000 yards, a brilliant season, but he'll either return to Baltimore or retire. Walter was considered a disappointment in Houston last season but still has 170+ catches the last 3 seasons. Again, that beats any Rams receiver.
A couple of Giant free agent WRs bear mentioning, given Steve Spagnuolo's old ties there. Hagan's only 25 and has very nice size at 6'2", 215. He had problems with dropped passes his rookie season but is said to have good hands now, along with some elusiveness and YAC ability, and is a deep threat. He's had only 9 catches in 2 seasons in New York, but 50 the previous 2 in Miami. Hagan has youth and ability the Rams can't afford to turn their noses up at. Big but slim, Hixon had just 15 catches for the Giants last year, but 43 for almost 600 yards the year before. Think of it this way - the two are a couple of Brandon Gibsons, but with experience. Wade has over 140 catches the last three seasons, though his role's filled pretty well here by Amendola.
The Rams are in deep need at this position, but as always, better take care how far they stoop. Then again, a team serious about acquiring Michael Vick might as well bring Stallworth along for the ride, though with a designated driver, for sure. Funny thing is, the Rams probably consider him a better fit than Owens. T.O.'s rap sheet may be clean, but he'd be an awful fit for many, many other reasons, not the least of which is his declining skills. Hank Baskett didn't exactly impress with his ball skills on that onside kick in the Super Bowl. Playmate wife or not, I'll pass. KFFL lists Bears WR Airese Currie as a UFA. I have to admit I'd never heard of the guy. Google "Airese Currie Lisa Lampanelli", and I'm pretty sure you'll wish you never had yourself.
RamView's move: The Rams' most crying offensive need is a #1, veteran WR. They need to, and I would, go balls-out after Burleson, Chambers or Walter, though I fear the extra transition tag teams get when this uncapped season becomes a reality is probably going to mess with my plans. A guy like Hagan is practically as good as anybody they have right now, and is the kind of young, low-risk, and cheap acquisition that ought to be a no-brainer. I mentioned Dexter McCluster in the RB review as a draft prospect; he has potential to help them as a slot receiver as well. Season-long practice-squadder Sean Walker also better get a nice long look in training camp, where no WR, including Avery, should be considered immune from getting cut.
Prediction: Rams Park will continue to drive Rams Nation, or me, at least, nuts about this position by essentially standing pat, hoping Avery overcomes Kennison syndrome, Gibson continues to develop and Robinson and Burton find ways to miraculously suit up for double-digit games in a season. We'll have to hope their patience is rewarded.
Next: tight ends.
Friday, February 12, 2010
FA RB preview
We fans always seem to come into the free agency part of the NFL calendar with high expectations of our favorite team buying their way to the promised land. I fear that's been especially true when we think about going into 2010 as an uncapped season. Woo-hoo, the sky's the limit! Or alternately, we fear that Jerry Jones and Daniel Snyder are going to bring new meaning to the term "funny money" and price the small-market teams out of being able to sign their own stars forever.
Well, we can relax. The uncapped 2010 has been balanced very neatly by the measure that makes a player wait until his sixth season of eligibility to become an unrestricted free agent. That player is a restricted agent for 2010's purposes. And that has really killed the talent level that would have been available in free agency this year. At RB, for instance, it's taken Darren Sproles, Leon Washington, Jerious Norwood and Jerome Harrison, any of whom would look great in Rams blue and gold, effectively off the market. This year's fullback market becomes so bad I'm not even going to bother to rate them separately as I usually would.
For disclaimer purposes, my research of who's available in free agency comes from kffl.com and footballsfuture.com. If they've got anything wrong there, it can easily be wrong over here. (In fact, I've already had to correct this article because footballsfuture had Leon Washington's FA status wrong.)
On to (what's left of) the RBs.
Running back
Rams current depth chart:
Steven Jackson: 324 carries for 1,416 yards (4.4 avg); 51 catches for 322; 4 TDs; named to Pro Bowl.
Ken Darby: 27 carries for 152 yards (5.6 avg); 18 catches for 96.
Samkon Gado: 14 carries for 26 yards (1.9 avg); 3 catches for 25.
Chris Ogbonnaya: 11 carries for 50 yards (4.5 avg); 1 catch for 19.
Mike Karney: 2 carries for 8 yards; 6 catches for 16.
Notes: Darby and Gado are restricted free agents. Gado would be unrestricted but there's no collective bargaining agreement.
Analysis: Steven Jackson obviously isn't the problem with the Rams offense. Most weeks, they counted mostly on him carrying the whole offense on his back through 8-man fronts (or more) keyed to stop him. No one in the NFL worked harder than Jackson last year, as he made the Pro Bowl, and despite the protests of Vikings fans, was the best RB in the NFC, while going up against defenses rightly treating him at the Rams' only offensive threat. The quick and favorable resolution of possible criminal charges against him this week leave him secure as a team leader. But Jackson's epic efforts last season took their toll. He skipped the Pro Bowl invite due to back injuries (and their aftermath) that dogged him late in the season. He won't last late into this season if the Rams don't put better people behind him who can credibly spell him for even a carry or two. Gado's laughable stats were actually boosted by an 11-yard run. His total yards for the season totaled less than the preseason TD run against the Jets that was likely the reason he made the team. 51 of Darby's yards came on a fake punt. The two ran like their shoelaces were tied together, at least until week 15, when Darby actually showed a little speed and niftiness, and 7th-round pick Ogbonnaya chipped in with a similar outing. Karney's a decent fullback and led Jackson to some nice gains, but the Rams need to add at least one running back competent enough to borrow some of Jackson's carries and to step into a bigger role if (when) he gets hurt.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA RBs: 1) Willie Parker 2) Chester Taylor 3) Adrian Peterson (Not That One) 4) Kevin Faulk 5) Ahman Green
Sleeper: Aaron Stecker
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Chris Brown, Alonzo Coleman, Justin Griffith (FB), Terrelle Smith (FB), Lawrence Vickers (FB)
Gawd no: Larry Johnson, Dan Kreider
Viewing the field: A threat to score from anywhere on the field, Parker's my pick of this lot. But can you keep him healthy? And if he switches teams, won't he be much more likely to pick one where he can step in as the starter? At the same time, he's 29; how much does he have left? Taylor turned 30 last season and saw his yards per carry drop to a career-low 3.6. Good receiver and role player, though. Peterson, also 30, does a lot of little things well. He's a good receiver and blocker and a great special teams player. Lacks top speed, though. Faulk's been the ideal 3rd down back for New England for years now, but it's tough to picture him voluntarily leaving the Patriots at the age of 33. Much to my shock, it's been three years since Ahman Green last fumbled, though he has only about 180 carries in that timespan. His hands are still a concern, though, as are his long injury history and declining speed and skills. Stecker's got some quickness and can help a team out as a kick returner, but he's no longer much of a big-play threat. Most of his career, though, he's been a guy the Rams could never tackle, at least. LJ's descent from 20-TD rusher to locker room rotten egg came with stunning speed, while Kreider's one of many fullbacks and tight ends kicking around the league who always seem to be good blockers except when they're wearing a Rams uniform.
RamView's move: Parker's speed would make him a well-suited change-of-pace to Jackson. But realistically, the Rams can't provide him or any other veteran RB enough carries to make it worth their while to come here. Several of the other free agents would be upgrades to Darby or certainly Gado, but I doubt worth the effort of signing them to a deal of any significance. Peterson would be a great pickup if they could swing it, but in the end, the Rams are going to have to look to the draft. I still think their first two picks will be N. Suh and Colt McCoy. The draft gurus seem to think Jahvid Best will be on the board at pick #33; I disagree. A guy who can score from anywhere on the field, runs a sub-4.4 40 and has some Chris Johnson in his game should be a first-rounder, shouldn't he? If he slides, my head may explode trying to decide between him and McCoy. Best is the kind of RB I feel the Rams need to add: smaller, quicker, can get outside, hopefully can catch some passes. I'm going to continue to say Best goes in the first round and try to fill this role with a later pick. I was a big fan of Darren Sproles the year he was drafted; this year, Dexter McCluster may be the new Sproles. I'll draft him to replace Gado. Darby stays as Jackson's emergency backup, but in a typical game, I'm expecting a Rams 2010 draft pick to be the first RB off the bench.
Prediction: I'm daft enough to think I'm close to the truth here. The difference for the Rams is the kind of back they'll look for. They were a heartbeat and a well-timed trade by the Jets away from drafting Shonn Greene at the top of the 3rd round last year. Greene's not exactly a scatback; neither is the very similar Ben Tate from Auburn, who I'll predict for their 3rd-round pick. Ogbonnaya's got potential to move ahead of Darby on the depth chart, and I'll be little surprised to see somebody come from out of nowhere in training camp to beat out Darby and Gado for the last spot.
Next: wide receivers.
Well, we can relax. The uncapped 2010 has been balanced very neatly by the measure that makes a player wait until his sixth season of eligibility to become an unrestricted free agent. That player is a restricted agent for 2010's purposes. And that has really killed the talent level that would have been available in free agency this year. At RB, for instance, it's taken Darren Sproles, Leon Washington, Jerious Norwood and Jerome Harrison, any of whom would look great in Rams blue and gold, effectively off the market. This year's fullback market becomes so bad I'm not even going to bother to rate them separately as I usually would.
For disclaimer purposes, my research of who's available in free agency comes from kffl.com and footballsfuture.com. If they've got anything wrong there, it can easily be wrong over here. (In fact, I've already had to correct this article because footballsfuture had Leon Washington's FA status wrong.)
On to (what's left of) the RBs.
Running back
Rams current depth chart:
Steven Jackson: 324 carries for 1,416 yards (4.4 avg); 51 catches for 322; 4 TDs; named to Pro Bowl.
Ken Darby: 27 carries for 152 yards (5.6 avg); 18 catches for 96.
Samkon Gado: 14 carries for 26 yards (1.9 avg); 3 catches for 25.
Chris Ogbonnaya: 11 carries for 50 yards (4.5 avg); 1 catch for 19.
Mike Karney: 2 carries for 8 yards; 6 catches for 16.
Notes: Darby and Gado are restricted free agents. Gado would be unrestricted but there's no collective bargaining agreement.
Analysis: Steven Jackson obviously isn't the problem with the Rams offense. Most weeks, they counted mostly on him carrying the whole offense on his back through 8-man fronts (or more) keyed to stop him. No one in the NFL worked harder than Jackson last year, as he made the Pro Bowl, and despite the protests of Vikings fans, was the best RB in the NFC, while going up against defenses rightly treating him at the Rams' only offensive threat. The quick and favorable resolution of possible criminal charges against him this week leave him secure as a team leader. But Jackson's epic efforts last season took their toll. He skipped the Pro Bowl invite due to back injuries (and their aftermath) that dogged him late in the season. He won't last late into this season if the Rams don't put better people behind him who can credibly spell him for even a carry or two. Gado's laughable stats were actually boosted by an 11-yard run. His total yards for the season totaled less than the preseason TD run against the Jets that was likely the reason he made the team. 51 of Darby's yards came on a fake punt. The two ran like their shoelaces were tied together, at least until week 15, when Darby actually showed a little speed and niftiness, and 7th-round pick Ogbonnaya chipped in with a similar outing. Karney's a decent fullback and led Jackson to some nice gains, but the Rams need to add at least one running back competent enough to borrow some of Jackson's carries and to step into a bigger role if (when) he gets hurt.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA RBs: 1) Willie Parker 2) Chester Taylor 3) Adrian Peterson (Not That One) 4) Kevin Faulk 5) Ahman Green
Sleeper: Aaron Stecker
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Chris Brown, Alonzo Coleman, Justin Griffith (FB), Terrelle Smith (FB), Lawrence Vickers (FB)
Gawd no: Larry Johnson, Dan Kreider
Viewing the field: A threat to score from anywhere on the field, Parker's my pick of this lot. But can you keep him healthy? And if he switches teams, won't he be much more likely to pick one where he can step in as the starter? At the same time, he's 29; how much does he have left? Taylor turned 30 last season and saw his yards per carry drop to a career-low 3.6. Good receiver and role player, though. Peterson, also 30, does a lot of little things well. He's a good receiver and blocker and a great special teams player. Lacks top speed, though. Faulk's been the ideal 3rd down back for New England for years now, but it's tough to picture him voluntarily leaving the Patriots at the age of 33. Much to my shock, it's been three years since Ahman Green last fumbled, though he has only about 180 carries in that timespan. His hands are still a concern, though, as are his long injury history and declining speed and skills. Stecker's got some quickness and can help a team out as a kick returner, but he's no longer much of a big-play threat. Most of his career, though, he's been a guy the Rams could never tackle, at least. LJ's descent from 20-TD rusher to locker room rotten egg came with stunning speed, while Kreider's one of many fullbacks and tight ends kicking around the league who always seem to be good blockers except when they're wearing a Rams uniform.
RamView's move: Parker's speed would make him a well-suited change-of-pace to Jackson. But realistically, the Rams can't provide him or any other veteran RB enough carries to make it worth their while to come here. Several of the other free agents would be upgrades to Darby or certainly Gado, but I doubt worth the effort of signing them to a deal of any significance. Peterson would be a great pickup if they could swing it, but in the end, the Rams are going to have to look to the draft. I still think their first two picks will be N. Suh and Colt McCoy. The draft gurus seem to think Jahvid Best will be on the board at pick #33; I disagree. A guy who can score from anywhere on the field, runs a sub-4.4 40 and has some Chris Johnson in his game should be a first-rounder, shouldn't he? If he slides, my head may explode trying to decide between him and McCoy. Best is the kind of RB I feel the Rams need to add: smaller, quicker, can get outside, hopefully can catch some passes. I'm going to continue to say Best goes in the first round and try to fill this role with a later pick. I was a big fan of Darren Sproles the year he was drafted; this year, Dexter McCluster may be the new Sproles. I'll draft him to replace Gado. Darby stays as Jackson's emergency backup, but in a typical game, I'm expecting a Rams 2010 draft pick to be the first RB off the bench.
Prediction: I'm daft enough to think I'm close to the truth here. The difference for the Rams is the kind of back they'll look for. They were a heartbeat and a well-timed trade by the Jets away from drafting Shonn Greene at the top of the 3rd round last year. Greene's not exactly a scatback; neither is the very similar Ben Tate from Auburn, who I'll predict for their 3rd-round pick. Ogbonnaya's got potential to move ahead of Darby on the depth chart, and I'll be little surprised to see somebody come from out of nowhere in training camp to beat out Darby and Gado for the last spot.
Next: wide receivers.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
RAMS SOLD TO ILLINOIS BUSINESSMAN
Today marks the end of an era in NFL history as the Rosenbloom family are on their way out of team ownership 57 years after Carroll Rosenbloom became majority owner of the Colts. Chip Rosenbloom and Lucia Rodriguez have an agreement to sell their majority stake in the team to business Shahid Khan, as reported by Bernie Miklasz this morning.
Khan, 55, lives in Champaign-Urbana and owns auto-parts manufacturer Flex-N-Gate Corp., which earned more than $2 billion last year. His family moved from Pakistan to St. Louis when he was a child and he has lived in Champaign-Urbana for over 40 years. He does not appear to be buying the team to move it. It looks once again like the Rams will stay in St. Louis for the long term.
Stan Kroenke has the right of first refusal and the right to sell Khan his 40% of the team but he does not appear to be a significant obstacle in the way of the sale, which is expected to take 6-8 weeks to complete and will have to be approved by the rest of the NFL owners.
It's a big day, and a celebratory one, in the history of football in St. Louis.
Link section to update throughout the day.
* Additional Khan profile info and team purchase details from Miklasz. Link Khan's tax issues (see below) should not be a significant hurdle on his way to ownership of the Rams.
* Khan may be the Steve Jobs of bumpers. In 1978, he started a company out of his garage to design and manufacture one-piece bumpers which are now the industry standard. He bought Flex-N-Gate in 1980. NMSDC article
* As you might guess from his Champaign-Urbana address, Khan graduated from the University of Illinois. He recently gifted the school a new tennis complex.
* He and his wife Ann also sponsor five professorships at the U of I's Center on Health, Aging and Disability.
* Khan is a Republican campaign donor; he backed Mitt Romney for President.
* The Khans are suing former financial advisers after losing a significant amount of money in a tax shelter plan that wasn't actually a valid tax shelter at the time they invested in it. That led to the IRS going after them for back taxes. I am poor at analyzing this sort of thing; the article is here. It involved buying and selling options on foreign currency. A district court originally ruled in Khan's favor against the IRS but that decision was overturned in federal court. Khan appears to be planning to keep fighting the IRS to get back $68 million in back taxes he paid as a result of the case. (After all, he may need that for Ndamukong Suh.)
* Shahid Khan Afridi, one of the world's best cricket players, is making it really hard for me to find info about "our" Shahid Khan.
* Khan was the cover boy of an advertising feature on minority-owned businesses that ran in Fortune magazine. Link (Warning: It's a 5-plus MB PDF) He says Flex-N-Gate has never had a year where it lost money. Detroit wouldn't give Flex-N-Gate the time of day, though, because of its small size, until a Wall Street Journal cover article in 1991 detailed FNG's successful relationship with Toyota. (No, FNG doesn't make brakes. Remember? Bumpers.) Khan has no plans to take FNG public.
OK, that's about 30 pages of Google search results; maybe I better try to do some work this morning.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
FA QB review
Good grief, is it time to preview the NFL free agent market already?
At the Rams' website, Nick Wagoner says yes. Let's just say RamView's about as prepared for free agency right now as the state of Louisiana was for bad weather in 2005. Fortunately, my lack of preparation is infinitely more survivable, so let's dig on in.
One thing I won't do that Wagoner does is uselessly rank restricted free agents, and that includes players like Jason Campbell who look unrestricted right now, but will revert back to restricted when the new NFL calendar year hits without a collective bargaining agreement, which is as big a lock as there is in sports these days. I don't know why Wagoner bothers with a top 5 that has four players about as likely to actually change teams as Alex Barron is to make the Pro Bowl. It's like making a list of the world's most eligible women with Angelina Jolie, Eva Longoria, Heidi Klum and Danica Patrick on the top, when they're all married.
But now that we're free of restrictions, let's also start at quarterback, shall we?
Quarterback
Rams current depth chart:
Marc Bulger 140-257 (56.7%), 1,467 yards, 5 TD, 6 INT, passer rating 70.7 in 9 games
Kyle Boller 98-176 (55.7%), 899 yards, 3 TD, 6 INT, passer rating 61.2 in 7 games
Keith Null 73-119 (61.3%), 566 yards, 3 TD, 9 INT, passer rating 49.9 in 4 games
Mike Reilly DNP; rookie with no career stats
Notes: Bulger is due to make $8.5 million in 2010. Boller is an unrestricted free agent.
Analysis: 2009 was frequently referred to in NFL coverage as "The Year of the Quarterback". Too bad the Rams sat it out. They were 5th-worst in the NFL in passing yards, 6th-worst in passer rating, 4th-worst in INTs with 22 and 3rd-worst in TD passes with 12, one of which was by the kicker, Josh Brown. Bulger, the opening day starter, once again did not come close to starting all 16 games, and Ram QBs were sacked 44 times, 7th-most in the league. Bulger's still an accurate thrower and I believe the biggest reason for his downfall last season was that his receivers let him down. But at the same time, he's not a QB who makes the players around him better, and his accuracy and decision-making seemed to decline as last season wore on, an ongoing trend as he's taken a solid beating the last couple of seasons. He can run an offense as a game-manager kind of QB but doesn't show any more that he can go out and carry an offense to a win if he has to. And as always, injuries are a major problem for Bulger, as his immobility in the pocket makes him a sitting duck. It's a legitimate question for Rams Park whether Bulger can deliver value on the field anywhere close to his scheduled salary. For most of the length of his current megacontract, he hasn't. Boller is a gamer and has good mobility, but he's not consistently accurate, and at his best, he's just good enough to get you beat. His knack for costly turnovers wrecked the legitimate chance he had here last season to take over as the starter. Injuries continue to dog his career as well. There's little about Boller's game that cries for the Rams to bring him back next season. Null's statistics were surely awful. He was way too careless with the ball and his deep passing accuracy is poor. Null's got good short accuracy, though, and he showed he can run the offense with good rhythm in spurts. He hung tough in the pocket better than any Ram QB last season and has the best play-fake on the team. Null's an intelligent player with significant holes in his game but also significant potential. If he shows he's polished the rough areas this training camp, he's a legitimate QB2 candidate. I suspect Mike Reilly will enter training camp as the "camp arm" with a possible shot at QB3 at best, but there can't be much of a book out there on him. He's certainly welcome to pull a Kurt Warner on everyone if he's got it in him.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA QBs: 1) Chad Pennington 2) J.P. Losman 3) David Carr 4) Patrick Ramsey 5) Chris Redman
Sleeper: Brian St. Pierre
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Charlie Batch, Mark Brunell, A.J. Feeley, Jeff Garcia, Josh McCown, Charlie Whitehurst
Gawd no: Rex Grossman, Daunte Culpepper
Viewing the field: I know why Wagoner leaves the RFAs in when he analyzes the free agent field now. This QB class, for instance, is depressing just to look at, filled with washouts, washed-ups, and at-best-backups. Pennington probably doesn't have enough arm left any more to even be a serviceable paper boy, but he's a proven winner, team player and mentor to younger QBs. If he can pass a physical, that is. Losman ranks high because he's about the only one under 30, with starting experience, with a good arm, with mobility, and because, like I said about Kyle Boller last year, he has just enough potential to fool guys like me into thinking he'll be a solid QB for the right coach. It's doubtful he's a fit for what the Rams want to do on offense anyway. Carr and Ramsey are basically Bulger except they can move a little. Redman sees the field very little but came on strong for Atlanta at the end of '07. I remember saying this time in '08 that the Rams should go after him. The scouting report for St. Pierre reads much better than I've ever seen the guy play. But if the scouts say he's a good leader, has a strong arm, is mobile, reads the field well, and can take a hit, the Rams ought to make sure to take a look at him. He may have an issue with a back injury, though. The streaky, brain-farting Grossman, however, would be a complete waste of money and a roster spot. Culpepper has always been a turnover machine. He'd be a great fit if he were still somewhat mobile and his size allowed him to absorb plenty of punishment, but he's too beaten up any more for that.
RamView's move: My hunch, though it's really only that, is that Colt McCoy is going to play his way up into being very draftable with the Rams' 2nd-round pick, and I think I'd have to spend it on him if my hunch is right. With Bulger being pretty damn expensive as a mentor, and not really knowing how well he'll embrace the role, I think I'd part ways with him and go (a lot) cheaper with Pennington in the role of mentor/backup and throw McCoy into the fire. I can live with Bulger another year if the draft value at QB doesn't prove to be there with one of the early picks. I'm dumping Boller no matter what I do. If Bulger stays, I like Redman as a backup, but St. Pierre would be fine (if healthy). I don't care that neither has had much starting experience; the UFA QB's this year that do have mostly spit the bit. Null and Reilly battle it out for #3 in camp, which I'd expect Null to win.
Prediction: The Rams will open free agency by cutting Bulger after failing to negotiate his contract down. The Raiders will give Philadelphia their first-round pick for Michael Vick, after which the Rams will strenuously deny they ever had any interest in him. They'll end up signing someone like Carr and trade up into the late first round of the draft to select opening day 2010 starter McCoy. Since Mike Martz really wanted to draft him in 2003, Boller ends up in Chicago. Bulger signs with, of course, the Big Dead, takes over as starter at midseason when, of course, Matt Leinart flames out, and leads them back to the playoffs on the strength of a couple of 350-yard, 4-TD efforts, against, of course, the Rams.
Next: running backs.
At the Rams' website, Nick Wagoner says yes. Let's just say RamView's about as prepared for free agency right now as the state of Louisiana was for bad weather in 2005. Fortunately, my lack of preparation is infinitely more survivable, so let's dig on in.
One thing I won't do that Wagoner does is uselessly rank restricted free agents, and that includes players like Jason Campbell who look unrestricted right now, but will revert back to restricted when the new NFL calendar year hits without a collective bargaining agreement, which is as big a lock as there is in sports these days. I don't know why Wagoner bothers with a top 5 that has four players about as likely to actually change teams as Alex Barron is to make the Pro Bowl. It's like making a list of the world's most eligible women with Angelina Jolie, Eva Longoria, Heidi Klum and Danica Patrick on the top, when they're all married.
But now that we're free of restrictions, let's also start at quarterback, shall we?
Quarterback
Rams current depth chart:
Marc Bulger 140-257 (56.7%), 1,467 yards, 5 TD, 6 INT, passer rating 70.7 in 9 games
Kyle Boller 98-176 (55.7%), 899 yards, 3 TD, 6 INT, passer rating 61.2 in 7 games
Keith Null 73-119 (61.3%), 566 yards, 3 TD, 9 INT, passer rating 49.9 in 4 games
Mike Reilly DNP; rookie with no career stats
Notes: Bulger is due to make $8.5 million in 2010. Boller is an unrestricted free agent.
Analysis: 2009 was frequently referred to in NFL coverage as "The Year of the Quarterback". Too bad the Rams sat it out. They were 5th-worst in the NFL in passing yards, 6th-worst in passer rating, 4th-worst in INTs with 22 and 3rd-worst in TD passes with 12, one of which was by the kicker, Josh Brown. Bulger, the opening day starter, once again did not come close to starting all 16 games, and Ram QBs were sacked 44 times, 7th-most in the league. Bulger's still an accurate thrower and I believe the biggest reason for his downfall last season was that his receivers let him down. But at the same time, he's not a QB who makes the players around him better, and his accuracy and decision-making seemed to decline as last season wore on, an ongoing trend as he's taken a solid beating the last couple of seasons. He can run an offense as a game-manager kind of QB but doesn't show any more that he can go out and carry an offense to a win if he has to. And as always, injuries are a major problem for Bulger, as his immobility in the pocket makes him a sitting duck. It's a legitimate question for Rams Park whether Bulger can deliver value on the field anywhere close to his scheduled salary. For most of the length of his current megacontract, he hasn't. Boller is a gamer and has good mobility, but he's not consistently accurate, and at his best, he's just good enough to get you beat. His knack for costly turnovers wrecked the legitimate chance he had here last season to take over as the starter. Injuries continue to dog his career as well. There's little about Boller's game that cries for the Rams to bring him back next season. Null's statistics were surely awful. He was way too careless with the ball and his deep passing accuracy is poor. Null's got good short accuracy, though, and he showed he can run the offense with good rhythm in spurts. He hung tough in the pocket better than any Ram QB last season and has the best play-fake on the team. Null's an intelligent player with significant holes in his game but also significant potential. If he shows he's polished the rough areas this training camp, he's a legitimate QB2 candidate. I suspect Mike Reilly will enter training camp as the "camp arm" with a possible shot at QB3 at best, but there can't be much of a book out there on him. He's certainly welcome to pull a Kurt Warner on everyone if he's got it in him.
Free agency
Top 5 UFA QBs: 1) Chad Pennington 2) J.P. Losman 3) David Carr 4) Patrick Ramsey 5) Chris Redman
Sleeper: Brian St. Pierre
Thanks, we'll get back to you: Charlie Batch, Mark Brunell, A.J. Feeley, Jeff Garcia, Josh McCown, Charlie Whitehurst
Gawd no: Rex Grossman, Daunte Culpepper
Viewing the field: I know why Wagoner leaves the RFAs in when he analyzes the free agent field now. This QB class, for instance, is depressing just to look at, filled with washouts, washed-ups, and at-best-backups. Pennington probably doesn't have enough arm left any more to even be a serviceable paper boy, but he's a proven winner, team player and mentor to younger QBs. If he can pass a physical, that is. Losman ranks high because he's about the only one under 30, with starting experience, with a good arm, with mobility, and because, like I said about Kyle Boller last year, he has just enough potential to fool guys like me into thinking he'll be a solid QB for the right coach. It's doubtful he's a fit for what the Rams want to do on offense anyway. Carr and Ramsey are basically Bulger except they can move a little. Redman sees the field very little but came on strong for Atlanta at the end of '07. I remember saying this time in '08 that the Rams should go after him. The scouting report for St. Pierre reads much better than I've ever seen the guy play. But if the scouts say he's a good leader, has a strong arm, is mobile, reads the field well, and can take a hit, the Rams ought to make sure to take a look at him. He may have an issue with a back injury, though. The streaky, brain-farting Grossman, however, would be a complete waste of money and a roster spot. Culpepper has always been a turnover machine. He'd be a great fit if he were still somewhat mobile and his size allowed him to absorb plenty of punishment, but he's too beaten up any more for that.
RamView's move: My hunch, though it's really only that, is that Colt McCoy is going to play his way up into being very draftable with the Rams' 2nd-round pick, and I think I'd have to spend it on him if my hunch is right. With Bulger being pretty damn expensive as a mentor, and not really knowing how well he'll embrace the role, I think I'd part ways with him and go (a lot) cheaper with Pennington in the role of mentor/backup and throw McCoy into the fire. I can live with Bulger another year if the draft value at QB doesn't prove to be there with one of the early picks. I'm dumping Boller no matter what I do. If Bulger stays, I like Redman as a backup, but St. Pierre would be fine (if healthy). I don't care that neither has had much starting experience; the UFA QB's this year that do have mostly spit the bit. Null and Reilly battle it out for #3 in camp, which I'd expect Null to win.
Prediction: The Rams will open free agency by cutting Bulger after failing to negotiate his contract down. The Raiders will give Philadelphia their first-round pick for Michael Vick, after which the Rams will strenuously deny they ever had any interest in him. They'll end up signing someone like Carr and trade up into the late first round of the draft to select opening day 2010 starter McCoy. Since Mike Martz really wanted to draft him in 2003, Boller ends up in Chicago. Bulger signs with, of course, the Big Dead, takes over as starter at midseason when, of course, Matt Leinart flames out, and leads them back to the playoffs on the strength of a couple of 350-yard, 4-TD efforts, against, of course, the Rams.
Next: running backs.
Jackson not charged
The Las Vegas police department will not bring charges against Steven Jackson for the domestic abuse allegation made by his former girlfriend last month, citing insufficient evidence. The case has been closed. AP articleThe original charge was prominently reported on TMZ; the news that charges have been dropped just barely makes it to the bottom of their main page, seeing as it's obviously less important than "Snooki" getting a new boyfriend.
Obviously, we'll never know what "really" happened, but this news still represents a major P.R. bullet dodged by the Rams, though one that grazed Jackson and very likely leaves a scar.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Rams hire Cromwell as receivers coach
A defensive back to coach receivers, you ask? Cromwell actually has a lot of experience in this role: 1998 in Green Bay and 1999-2007 in Seattle. He comes here from Texas A&M, where he was receivers coach and offensive coordinator.
Wide receivers Cromwell would have worked a lot with in Seattle include Darrell Jackson, Koren Robinson and Bobby Engram. D.J. Hackett developed pretty well under Cromwell as well before succumbing to a variety of injuries.
Unfortunately, the wide receivers of the Cromwell era in Seattle, led by Jackson, were known best for their inability to hang on to the ball. But since the Rams have rarely covered Seattle receivers in recent years anyway, maybe coach Cromwell can lend some help to that side of the ball.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Goodell hearts STL...
"We want to be in St. Louis."
Even though Goodell's hypocritical and likely uninformed proclamations against Rush Limbaugh caused unneeded difficulty for the lead effort to keep the Rams in here, it's still nice to hear that from an NFL commissioner for once. After all, Pete Rozelle didn't exactly stand in Bidwill's path to Phoenix, and Paul Tagliabue seemed to do everything he could to keep any NFL team, expansion or existing, from coming here, and clearly held a grudge for years after the Rams did move here.
It's nice that it at least looks like the league commissioner's in our city's corner for a change.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Can we quit talking about the commercials now? Forever?
Seriously. Has there ever been a CRAPPIER set of Super Bowl commercials? This has to have been the worst crop since people started paying attention to the in-game advertising. I have never seen such a bunch of unfunny and unappealing bunch of commercials in my life. Very few winners, very few commercials that were even likable. My votes:
Funniest: Denny's screaming chickens, which tells you how low the bar went tonight.
Best: Google's ad, simple yet nicely-done. Told a nice story and spotlighted the product.
Mentionable: For a long time, the only good ones were the first two. Bud Light with the house made out of beer cans, and Snickers with Betty White and Abe Vigoda playing pickup football. (Snickers appears to have come out the winner in polls according to Monday morning's news.) Bridgestone's killer whale was funny; the sock monkey and his toy buddies going to Vegas (Kia, I think) was funnier. The Coke sleepwalking safari one wasn't too bad. The VW "slug bug" commercial was one of the better ones. Funny, highlighted the product, and had a funny punch line with Stevie Wonder.
But it was mostly a night of bleh, meh and yecch. So many spots looked like they had some promise and ended up flat. A-B, how about a punchline for the Clydesdale ad with the longhorn? Instead they went for schmaltz, and it wasn't even good schmaltz. Did Coke commission a commercial with all the Simpsons characters but tell the writers not to be funny? Once again, not even good schmaltz. WAY too many commercials with unattractive, flabby people walking around without shirts, without pants or walking around in their underwear. That's not going to get me to buy any product, people. Those were crude enough, and then you had the Megan Fox one, which had a lot of potential until we got the thinly-veiled masturbating kid joke. We really need THAT from a commercial? And what was with all the suck-ass commercials that went nowhere, then basically said, we know this ad sucked, come see the long version on our website? Um, no, Mr. and Mrs. Griswold. Besides, I'm on a dial-up anyway.
And W, T, F?!?!? was Jay Leno doing in a spot for David Letterman's show, especially one allowing him to be completely one-upped? Who's the idiot advising Leno it's a good idea to do a spot like that? Never mind, we've all had enough of NBC's awful late-night decision-making the last couple of months.
And even on a night of unfunny, crude and/or mediocre commercials, there was a clear winner for Worst Commercial of the Night. Congratulations to the Boost Mobile Shuffle. Moronic lyrics, unwelcome thong-based humor, Jim McMahon and Mike Ditka making total idiots out of themselves, this one pretty much had it all.
I'd make more fun of Boost Mobile blowing $2.5 million on that crap had my own government not seen fit to idiotically do the same with our tax dollars for a Census ad that's already been on a million times. And still hasn't been funny. And witnessing the brutal dictatorial environmentalist attitude posing as humor in the Audi Green Police commercial, it's altogether possible the U.S. government bought that commercial, too.
Anybody who goes on about tonight's commercials at the water cooler tomorrow morning, feel free to punch them in the face for me.
Funniest: Denny's screaming chickens, which tells you how low the bar went tonight.
Best: Google's ad, simple yet nicely-done. Told a nice story and spotlighted the product.
Mentionable: For a long time, the only good ones were the first two. Bud Light with the house made out of beer cans, and Snickers with Betty White and Abe Vigoda playing pickup football. (Snickers appears to have come out the winner in polls according to Monday morning's news.) Bridgestone's killer whale was funny; the sock monkey and his toy buddies going to Vegas (Kia, I think) was funnier. The Coke sleepwalking safari one wasn't too bad. The VW "slug bug" commercial was one of the better ones. Funny, highlighted the product, and had a funny punch line with Stevie Wonder.
But it was mostly a night of bleh, meh and yecch. So many spots looked like they had some promise and ended up flat. A-B, how about a punchline for the Clydesdale ad with the longhorn? Instead they went for schmaltz, and it wasn't even good schmaltz. Did Coke commission a commercial with all the Simpsons characters but tell the writers not to be funny? Once again, not even good schmaltz. WAY too many commercials with unattractive, flabby people walking around without shirts, without pants or walking around in their underwear. That's not going to get me to buy any product, people. Those were crude enough, and then you had the Megan Fox one, which had a lot of potential until we got the thinly-veiled masturbating kid joke. We really need THAT from a commercial? And what was with all the suck-ass commercials that went nowhere, then basically said, we know this ad sucked, come see the long version on our website? Um, no, Mr. and Mrs. Griswold. Besides, I'm on a dial-up anyway.
And W, T, F?!?!? was Jay Leno doing in a spot for David Letterman's show, especially one allowing him to be completely one-upped? Who's the idiot advising Leno it's a good idea to do a spot like that? Never mind, we've all had enough of NBC's awful late-night decision-making the last couple of months.
And even on a night of unfunny, crude and/or mediocre commercials, there was a clear winner for Worst Commercial of the Night. Congratulations to the Boost Mobile Shuffle. Moronic lyrics, unwelcome thong-based humor, Jim McMahon and Mike Ditka making total idiots out of themselves, this one pretty much had it all.
I'd make more fun of Boost Mobile blowing $2.5 million on that crap had my own government not seen fit to idiotically do the same with our tax dollars for a Census ad that's already been on a million times. And still hasn't been funny. And witnessing the brutal dictatorial environmentalist attitude posing as humor in the Audi Green Police commercial, it's altogether possible the U.S. government bought that commercial, too.
Anybody who goes on about tonight's commercials at the water cooler tomorrow morning, feel free to punch them in the face for me.
Super Bowl 44 MVPs
It seems destined that Drew Brees is going to win Super Bowl MVP, and I won't begrudge him the honor. It's too bad, though, that there won't be offensive and defensive MVPs tonight, so Tracy Porter could get something. Reggie Wayne (tonight's LVP) appeared to be in the witness protection program in the first half, then Porter jumps the route for the back-breaking 78-yard pick-six to seal the game with the Colts trying to come back for the tie. Porter deserves some kind of award tonight. Head coach Sean Payton deserves a game ball, too. Going on 4th-and-goal at the end of the 1st half proved absolutely the right move once the Saints got the ball back and got the FG anyway. The onside kick to start the second half was the ballsiest call in Super Bowl history. Another key decision was getting the double-team back out on Dwight Freeney, after which the Colt pass rush completely disappeared. Sean Payton seemed to make all the right moves tonight.
Congratulations to the world champion Saints.
The Michael Vick Project
Despite our shared first name, Michael Vick and I couldn't be much different. I've got 13-14 years on him. He's been a world-class athlete; I haven't been anywhere close. He's an African-American who grew up in the projects. I'm a Caucasian of German/French/Irish extraction who's always lived in Midwestern farm country. He once signed a contract worth $130 million. I aspire to be worth 0.2% of that someday. And, unavoidable to the discussion, he's a convicted felon; I have at worst a handful of traffic violations, and none of those in the last 20 years.
And yet the signs are increasing, despite the Philadelphia Eagles' earnest statements to the contrary, that Michael Vick and I may be sharing a building next year, the Edward Jones Dome. Talk has only increased that the Rams are interested in him, and it's being slowed by absolutely no public objection of which I am aware, outside some of us in the "blogosphere," which includes my own very clear objections, on the field and off.
Bernie Miklasz has reported that Rams assistant coaches are talking to their Eagle counterparts about Vick. He also reported public comments from Steve Spagnuolo last week in which coach Spags practically broke the NFL's tampering rules:
“I’ve got a lot of respect for Michael as a player. Everything I’ve heard out of Philadelphia is kind of good. We haven’t gone down that road in our process yet. I think he’s a terrific player.”
Maybe I'm trying way too hard to read between the lines, but there's certainly nothing there to suggest the Rams aren't actively considering or pursuing the Vick option. Plus there was the recent ESPN 101.1 interview with Spagnuolo where he backed away from the "Four Pillars" like Tye Hill backing away from Amani Toomer before the snap. Yes, that happened, and no, neither should EVER be necessary.
But it's happening. There's going to be a point (if it hasn't happened already, who knows?) where Billy Devaney and Steve Spagnuolo are going to look Michael Vick in the eye and make a judgment whether he is the man to bring here, the man to make the starting QB, the man to make the team leader. On a team where the current team leader certainly has his own problems, is this the right move? Can we mere fans ever get a chance to find out without the chance to sit in a room with Michael Vick ourselves?
Probably not. But we might be getting the next best thing. Last week, BET started running what's billed as a documentary series called The Michael Vick Project. All the rumors out there have made this series particularly relevant to Rams fans.
So I'll be watching and learning, and until the Vick rumor is resolved one way or another, I invite Rams Nation to do the same. Is Michael Vick a thug? Is he a good man who got caught up in a bad situation? Is he a professional athlete with a slick P.R. operation? The Michael Vick Project looks like a good opportunity to make a somewhat-informed decision.
Let's hear his case and see what we think.
And yet the signs are increasing, despite the Philadelphia Eagles' earnest statements to the contrary, that Michael Vick and I may be sharing a building next year, the Edward Jones Dome. Talk has only increased that the Rams are interested in him, and it's being slowed by absolutely no public objection of which I am aware, outside some of us in the "blogosphere," which includes my own very clear objections, on the field and off.
Bernie Miklasz has reported that Rams assistant coaches are talking to their Eagle counterparts about Vick. He also reported public comments from Steve Spagnuolo last week in which coach Spags practically broke the NFL's tampering rules:
“I’ve got a lot of respect for Michael as a player. Everything I’ve heard out of Philadelphia is kind of good. We haven’t gone down that road in our process yet. I think he’s a terrific player.”
Maybe I'm trying way too hard to read between the lines, but there's certainly nothing there to suggest the Rams aren't actively considering or pursuing the Vick option. Plus there was the recent ESPN 101.1 interview with Spagnuolo where he backed away from the "Four Pillars" like Tye Hill backing away from Amani Toomer before the snap. Yes, that happened, and no, neither should EVER be necessary.
But it's happening. There's going to be a point (if it hasn't happened already, who knows?) where Billy Devaney and Steve Spagnuolo are going to look Michael Vick in the eye and make a judgment whether he is the man to bring here, the man to make the starting QB, the man to make the team leader. On a team where the current team leader certainly has his own problems, is this the right move? Can we mere fans ever get a chance to find out without the chance to sit in a room with Michael Vick ourselves?
Probably not. But we might be getting the next best thing. Last week, BET started running what's billed as a documentary series called The Michael Vick Project. All the rumors out there have made this series particularly relevant to Rams fans.
So I'll be watching and learning, and until the Vick rumor is resolved one way or another, I invite Rams Nation to do the same. Is Michael Vick a thug? Is he a good man who got caught up in a bad situation? Is he a professional athlete with a slick P.R. operation? The Michael Vick Project looks like a good opportunity to make a somewhat-informed decision.
Let's hear his case and see what we think.
Happy Super Bowl Sunday
I dunno, I may be an idiot but I'm starting to feel like this game is going to be lower-scoring than everybody seems to think.
Obviously one of tonight's keys will be how Dwight Freeney's situation resolves itself. If the Colt pass rush is significantly affected, Drew Brees should pick their secondary apart. No one's expecting this to be much of a running game at all, yet, wouldn't it be wise strategy by either team to try to establish the run and keep the opposing offense off the field? But because of their still-overlooked run defense, which doesn't rely on Freeney, I like the Colts' chances of doing that a lot better than the Saints'. If there's a player who jumps up out of nowhere to become a big factor today, I say it's Joseph Addai. He'll be key as a runner and as a blitz pick-up man. I just don't see the Saints getting to Peyton Manning without gambling significantly with blitzes. Their secondary's good, but he'll pick them apart tonight anyway, especially when they blitz. And to steal a point from NFL Playbook, look for Peyton to do a lot of Gay-bashing tonight. Randall Gay, that is. If Donnie Avery can beat the guy for two TDs, what are the Colts wideouts going to do to him? And has anybody ever mentioned that Manning hasn't lost a game he played start-to-finish all season?
Yeah, I thought so. Ultimately tonight, it'll be too much Manning for the Saints to handle.
Official prediction: Colts 34, Saints 28. (down from 38-35)
No live blog tonight. Got pizza and wings to attend to.
Enjoy the game. Shouldn't be too hard.
Obviously one of tonight's keys will be how Dwight Freeney's situation resolves itself. If the Colt pass rush is significantly affected, Drew Brees should pick their secondary apart. No one's expecting this to be much of a running game at all, yet, wouldn't it be wise strategy by either team to try to establish the run and keep the opposing offense off the field? But because of their still-overlooked run defense, which doesn't rely on Freeney, I like the Colts' chances of doing that a lot better than the Saints'. If there's a player who jumps up out of nowhere to become a big factor today, I say it's Joseph Addai. He'll be key as a runner and as a blitz pick-up man. I just don't see the Saints getting to Peyton Manning without gambling significantly with blitzes. Their secondary's good, but he'll pick them apart tonight anyway, especially when they blitz. And to steal a point from NFL Playbook, look for Peyton to do a lot of Gay-bashing tonight. Randall Gay, that is. If Donnie Avery can beat the guy for two TDs, what are the Colts wideouts going to do to him? And has anybody ever mentioned that Manning hasn't lost a game he played start-to-finish all season?
Yeah, I thought so. Ultimately tonight, it'll be too much Manning for the Saints to handle.
Official prediction: Colts 34, Saints 28. (down from 38-35)
No live blog tonight. Got pizza and wings to attend to.
Enjoy the game. Shouldn't be too hard.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Senior Bowl notes, day 4
Not a lot to note from the broadcasts of Thursday's practices, even compared to Wednesday's. The players practiced without pads and ran a lot of half-speed drills that I just don't get a lot out of. And the "Path To The Draft" show, when asked to name the players who helped their pro prospects out the most this week, proceeded to give a rundown of about two dozen players. Yeah, thanks for that.* Secondary primary. CBs looked good in both practices today. Patrick Robertson broke up one pass and intercepted Zac Robinson's poor overthrow in 7-on-7. Perrish Cox also had a nice pass break-up for the South. For the North, Kyle Wilson broke up a couple of passes and blanketed Mardy Gilyard beautifully on kind of a red zone broken play. My favorite CB of the week has been Chris Cook, who broke up one pass and intercepted another pretty stupid pass, stupid because he had his man absolutely smothered. I couldn't ID the offending QB. SydQuan Thompson struggled a little but Mike Mayock stayed behind him, saying he's a player who's better on game day than he is in practice.
* Passing muster. QB play is improving. Tony Pike threw some very precise red zone passes into tight spaces. Tim Tebow's throwing seems to have improved throughout the week. He had a sweet deep completion to Florida teammate Riley Cooper. Jarrett Brown got most of the 11-on-11 reps that were televised. Corey Chavous projected Dan LeFevour as a second-round pick, apparently higher than the draftnik consensus has him.
* WR projections and objections. Taylor Price didn't show good hands, missing a couple of catches. Cooper, on the other hand, looked a lot better today than he had all week. The entertaining moment of the day was Chavous RIPPING Mayock's ranking of Golden Tate, Arrelious Benn and Demaryius Thomas as his 2nd-thru-4th-best WR prospects. Amazingly, Mayock just let Chavous' criticism slide by. They both agree on Dez Bryant as the #1 WR prospect; Chavous ranks Brandon LaFell 2nd while practically calling Mayock's other WR rankings a joke.
* Same old stuff. The biggest problem with NFL Network's coverage is that they always focus on the same old guys. They talked in depth about Taylor Mays for the FOURTH straight day. Are there no other prominent players to talk about? For the record, Mays acknowledged in an interview that he needs to go for the ball more and for the big hit less. Hey, and did you hear Mike Iupati's good? Well, we heard it again. Is Mayock the guy's agent? They showed Iupati pretty much running like a deer during special teams drills. They also said Terrence Cody should be a FIRST-round pick by a team running a 3-4 defense, but he'd pretty much better not gain a pound from where he is right now. Yeah, I've got 395 in the Mount Cody Combine Weigh-In pool.
* So who do I think helped themselves the most this week? Iupati went from a player I'd never heard of at all to a sure top-20 pick. Kyle Wilson and Brandon Graham probably played their way into the first round. Chris Cook, Devin McCourty and Alex Carrington look like nice sleeper picks. Also good weeks for Jared Odrick, Patrick Robertson, Daryl Washington, Sean Weatherspoon, Dexter McCluster, Tyson Alualu, Shawn Lauvao, Koa Misi, John Jerry, Stafon Johnson, Myron Rolle, and Ben Tate. And yes, that's as bad as what I criticized the Path to the Draft show for doing earlier.
The short answer is the Idahoans, Iupati and Wilson. Who saw that coming? The hotbed of NFL draft talent - Idaho?
* Stock down: Danario Alexander for getting hurt again. Zane Beadles never looked very good. Terrence Cody's neighborhood baker. Anybody from Kentucky. Riley (Drew Bennett) Cooper. Joe (Hands of Soap) Webb. May the Combine be better to each of you.
That leaves me with just the game itself to review. I may do that this coming weekend. There's nothing going on Sunday night, is there?
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