Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Rams report, 11/30

* Big dogs. The bad news: the Rams are 13.5-point underdogs to the 49ers on Sunday. The good news: they're not even the biggest underdogs of the week. The Patriots are 20.5-point favorites over the Colts.

* Flea market. Rams transactions: what team would be hard-up enough to take a player from the practice squad of a 2-9 team? Yes, the 0-11 Colts, to whom the Rams have lost practice squad LB Scott Lutrus. The Rams replaced Lutrus with LB Eddie Jones. They also cut David Gilreath from the PS and replaced him with WR John Chiles. Both new practice squadders are former Texas Longhorns.

The Rams had one of their former linemen, Roger Allen, in on Tuesday for a tryout. He was released by the Saints over the weekend. They also tried out WRs Wesley Lyons and Owen Spencer.


Ex-Rams transactions: Chris Massey has landed a job with the Bears, who waived their long snapper. Also, the Chargers waived Eric Young again, and the Seahawks waived David Vobora injured. Guess he won't get to smack-talk the Rams' special teams before kickoffs like he was here in St. Louis.

In other long snapper news, Cleveland cut Ryan Pontbriand, who helped the Rams beat the Browns by snapping the ball off a teammate's leg on the missed (or blocked) game-winning FG attempt. Pontbriand caused a FG miss in their loss to Cincinnati this week by rolling the snap on the ground.

* Congratulations to Steve Spagnuolo on his part in creating a Hall-of-Famer. Patrick Peterson. The shoes Peterson wore in Sunday's game are going to the Pro Football Hall of Fame to commemorate his 4 punt return TDs of 80 yards or more in one season. TWO AGAINST THE RAMS.

-$-

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Shahid Khan buying Jagwires

Big doings in Jacksonville today... they have fired head coach Jack Del Rio (yes, I am building a list of coaching candidates to replace Steve Spagnuolo; no, Jack Del Rio will not be very high on that list), and Wayne Weaver has reportedly agreed to sell the team to Shahid Khan. Khan, you'll remember, attempted to buy the Rams last summer, but then-minority owner Stan Kroenke exercised his option to buy the rest of the team.

Khan got pretty touchy-feely coverage around here last summer because he presented himself as a fan of the team and a Rams season-ticket holder, and the Rams' stability was going to be questionable until the Rosenblooms were able to sell it. So he was the white knight. I doubt he can convince many in Florida that he's practically a local and has always been a fan of the team.

I mention this because this is the second time Khan has made a play for an NFL franchise strongly considered a candidate to move to Los Angeles. I hope he keeps the Jags in Jacksonville, otherwise, we'll always wonder what he really had planned for the Rams.

I also hope Stan Kroenke isn't sitting behind a desk somewhere this morning saying - Shit, I'd better beat Khan to the west coast!

Update: Khan said in his official statement that he is fully committed to delivering Jacksonville its first Super Bowl championship, and that he "can't think of a better place to be."

Again, I hope he keeps the team where it is, but if he can't think of a better place to be, he's not thinking very hard.

-$-

Monday, November 28, 2011

Rams update, 11/28

* RamView: recap for the latest Rams debacle: Link
The main website is back up to date again after about a month of neglect.

* Injuries: light injury report coming out of the Arizona game, mostly nicks and tweaks.
- Sam Bradford slightly re-aggravated his sprained ankle but it isn't said to be serious.
- Darian Stewart has a concussion, which he must have gotten on B. Wells' 52-yard run in the 4th. He will have to be monitored.
- Dominque Curry slightly dislocated a shoulder but played through it.
- Day-to-day: Justin Bannan (upgraded, shoulder), Chris Chamberlain (hamstring), Josh Hull (upgraded, hamstring), Donnie Jones (ankle), Mark LeVoir (upgraded, pectoral), Britt Miller (hamstring).

If LeVoir can go, I wonder if you don't put him at LT and move Adam Goldberg inside to get Jason Brown the hell off the field.

- I guess Danario Alexander (hamstring) is improving; he's deemed likelier to return to practice this week. Most of the rest of the Rams listed on the last report played through the Arizona game. Only guy up in the air from my standpoint is Cadillac Williams.

-$-

Saturday, November 26, 2011

Rams update, 11/26

* Transactions:
- Jason Smith to IR; see related post. His roster spot goes not to Rams practice squadder Ryan McKee, but to offensive lineman Bryan Mattison from Baltimore's PS. That's three PS guys in reserve should any of the Rams' o-linemen get injured the rest of the season. And Mattison's a converted defensive lineman.

* Injuries:
- Justin Bannan is out for Sunday. Josh Hull and Mark LeVoir have been previously ruled out.
- Danario Alexander sounds very doubtful. He and Austin Pettis are considered gametime decisions, but Pettis sounds much more likely to actually play. Pettis was a full participant Friday. We may still end up with Nick Miller getting playing time at receiver and punt returner. Brilliant.
- James Laurinaitis should be good to go.
- Chris Long and Cadillac Williams were limited Friday. I imagine Long is very likely to play and the Rams are just keeping him off his injured ankle. Unsure of Williams' actual status, guessing questionable at best.
- Lance Kendricks and Justin King were full participants Friday, so I assume they're good to go.

Arizona: Kevin Kolb is questionable. I just watched Arizona's game in San Francisco last week, where John Skelton melted down so badly he was replaced for the 4th quarter by Richard Bartel, who was almost as bad. Starting to look like Kolb will be the guy on Sunday.

* Fine day for a Seahawk:
- Kam Chancellor was fined $40,000 for hitting Kendricks in the head late in last week's game. Russell Okung was fined $7,500 for an unnecessary roughness penalty.

-$-

Friday, November 25, 2011

Jason Smith: career post mortem

No day at Rams Park would be complete without someone going onto injured reserve. Today's honoree was Jason Smith, who hasn't made progress after suffering a concussion against Dallas four weeks ago. The Rams are taking the prudent course and shutting him down for the season. Speaking of prudent courses, they're on the hook for $10 million to Smith next season. Therefore, after just three seasons, we've probably seen the last of the Rams' 2009 first-round pick, the second pick overall, in a Rams uniform. And given he's just suffered his second season-ending concussion in three years, I would hope for his safety we've seen the last of him in an NFL uniform.

Jason Smith turns out to be a spectacular draft bust. Billy Devaney picked him as the left tackle of the future, the keystone of the plan to build the Rams around the lines. Injuries kept him from settling in there effectively his rookie year, then Rodger Saffold, a second round pick, outplayed him for the position and evicted him to right tackle the next training camp. Smith showed ability as a run blocker there but tended to struggle as a pass protector unless the play called for the ball to come out quickly. Could he have become a better player? Who knows? His injuries never let him stay on the field long enough to develop.

Was Devaney the only person mistaken about Smith? Not at all. Did you hear Mel Kiper or Mike Mayock call Smith a bad pick at the time? No. Pro Football Weekly ranked Smith right where the Rams took him. #2 player overall, #1 tackle. (Only thumbs-down I can find was from Charlie Casserly, who said there was no top 10-quality tackle in the '09 draft. Nice call.) Scouting reports on Smith showed no significant injury history, and, opposite to his actual career, suggested the system he played at Baylor would suit him well as a pro pass-blocker but would lead him to struggle as a run-blocker.

Should the Rams have taken a different tackle? Maybe. Now, they surely wouldn't have taken the running joke that was Andre Smith. But Michael Oher or Eugene Monroe were certainly in play. But just like Smith, Oher couldn't hack it at LT in Baltimore and is back at RT for the Ravens. And go off the Scouts Inc. reports from ESPN.com Insider - Oher, Monroe and Smith all grade out about the same as pros. Maybe the secret is not to over-rely on Combine bench press performance. Smith appeared to gain his edge at the Combine in the weight room, benching 33 times to 23 for Monroe, 21 for Oher.

Should the Rams have addressed a different need? Many, including me, thought their worst need going into the '09 draft was run defense. And I did pretty brilliantly suggest that Brian Orakpo was the best athlete in that year's draft. But with Chris Long and James Hall playing effectively, you weren't going to spend a high pick on a pass rusher. Then my brilliance pretty well stops, because like most who wanted to address defense that year, I would have gone with Aaron Curry, who was just as bad a bust for Seattle as Smith is here. He was traded to Oakland earlier this season for a bag of dirty jockstraps. The Rams did a far better job addressing their run defense in the second round by drafting James Laurinaitis, who wouldn't have become a Ram had they drafted Curry. Had the Rams agreed they needed to address run defense at #2 overall, would they have avoided the Curry trap? Would they have made B.J. Raji the #2 pick with marijuana rumors swirling around him? I can't imagine it.

I recall Bernie Miklasz being peeved that the Rams didn't draft Mark Sanchez. Hard to say today that the Rams would be a lot better off with him, though, watching him flounder this year with the Jets. Could have made Ndamukong Suh a Ram in 2010, though.

Late addition: I don't know how I forgot the very strong Michael Crabtree contingent, but that went down in flames when he "shrunk" two inches at the Combine and showed up with a broken foot. And judging from his lack of elite production at San Francisco, the Rams made a good move not trusting $60 mil on a player they weren't even going to get to see work out before that year's draft.

We can call Jason Smith a bust for the Rams. I think that's fair. He's a blown pick that will wind up setting the franchise back 2 to 3 years. Everybody who wants to fire Billy Devaney - I'm solidly on the fence - will point to how poorly Smith ultimately worked out here.

All that's fair for criticism, if there was an obvious way the Rams could have avoided the problem. Somebody show me a realistic way Devaney could have avoided it and I'll call him a dummy. For now, I can only call Devaney, the Rams, and Jason Smith himself, extremely unlucky.

-$-

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Rams report, 11/24

* Clayton to IR. Mark Clayton gave it a game effort but his legs just weren't ready to return to the full-time wear-and-tear of the NFL season. He had a lot of knee pain at Wednesday's practice and was limited. It's been determined since that he needs to have both knees scoped. His season's over. Nick Miller was re-signed to the main roster to replace Clayton.

* Offensive line shuffle. With no depth left on their offensive line but practice squad players, the Rams are re-shuffling the offensive line so they can get their best players on the field. The new-look line: Adam Goldberg at left tackle, Jacob Bell at left guard, Tony Wragge at center, Jason Brown at right guard, Harvey Dahl at right tackle.

My first question - why wasn't something like this done last week instead of leaving complete scrub Kevin Hughes out there? Brown was active.Why not bring him off the bench and kick Bell outside? Very little shuffling needed there. Steve Loney couldn't think of that when the Rams needed something to bail them out of the fire? Another reason Loney needs to go.

I like the new alignment much better than leaving Sam Bradford at the mercies of practice squadders like Hughes or new acquisition Thomas Welch. Dahl has tackle experience, Goldberg has left tackle experience. Brown's a lot stronger weak link, if you will, than a total scrub, and who knows, maybe a couple of weeks on the bench will bring new urgency to his game.

* Full injury report (Wednesday):
Limited: Danario Alexander (hamstring), Lance Kendricks (concussion), Justin King (knee/ankle), Chris Long (ankle), Austin Pettis (knee), Cadillac Williams (calf)
Not practicing: Justin Bannan (shoulder), Josh Hull (hamstring), Mark LeVoir (pectoral), Jason Smith (concussion). James Laurinaitis also did not practice, but the good news is that the MRI on his injured foot did not show any serious damage.

* Blame Bud Light, not me, but ha, ha, if I'm stuck watching the Cardinals-Rams dog on Sunday, so should everyone around here on TV, and y'all are, now that Bud Light and the Rams have bought up enough tickets to qualify the game for sellout status. KTVI, noon, Sunday. Enjoy.

* Tryouts: The Rams had defensive tackle Kade Weston and cornerback Morgan Trent in for tryouts Tuesday but did not sign either player.

* Cuts: The Rams waived RB Eddie Wide from IR Tuesday, which I assume means he's healthy enough to play but the team didn't have an opening for him.

* Alumni report: Kris Adams had a tryout with Seattle.
Phil Trautwein was added to New Orleans' PS.

* Statistic of the week: Steve Spagnuolo needs one win to tie Scott Linehan for career coaching wins. Also Josh McDaniels.

-$-



Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Another cornerback down

Make it an even ten cornerbacks to have hit the Rams' injured reserve list this season. Marquis Johnson, reported as having an abdominal injury after Sunday's game, turns out to have a lacerated spleen. It's supposed to get better with just rest, but Johnson's season is over.

Good Lord, they've had cornerbacks with blown knees, a broken neck, a broken ankle, a torn spleen, corners injured by their own teammates, corners injured in training camp, corners injured at the team scrimmage.... Forget Deadliest Catch, the most dangerous job in America is playing cornerback for the Rams.

Transactions:
Johnson's spot on the Rams roster will be taken by tackle Thomas Welch, who tried out here last week but had to be signed off of Buffalo's practice squad. The practice squad position that opened when Kevin Hughes was promoted will be filled by rookie cornerback Kendric Burney. Best of luck to him; he'll need it. 

-$-


Hall of Fame update

Former Rams Jerome Bettis, Kevin Greene and Aeneas Williams were all selected again this year as semifinalists for induction to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Also on the list are former St. Louis Cardinals head coach and offensive innovator Don Coryell and safety Steve Atwater, who attended high school in St. Louis.

3 of last year's semifinalists - Ray Guy, Lester Hayes and Art Modell - did not repeat this year.
8 candidates were not semifinalists last year: Atwater, Clay Matthews, Karl Mecklenberg, Bill Parcells, Donnie Shell, Will Shields, Steve Tasker and Ron Wolf. The voters continue to taint the process by making semifinalists out of Paul Tagliabue and Edward DeBartolo Jr. again this year.

Bettis would seem to have a strong chance at induction this year; the fifth-leading rusher of all time was a finalist last year. The semifinalists will be reduced to 15 finalists in January, then up to five will be selected on Super Bowl weekend for the Hall of Fame. (These are just the modern-day players; they can be joined in the Class of 2012 by one or both of the Seniors Committee selections, Jack Butler and Dick Stanfel.)

My guesses today for the final 5: Bettis, Parcells, four-time finalist Cris Carter, #4 all-time rusher Curtis Martin and 11-time Pro Bowl tackle Willie Roaf.

-$-

HoF semifinalists to be announced today

The Pro Football Hall of Fame's list of semifinalists for the induction class of 2012 will be announced on NFL Network sometime after 4:00 this afternoon. They will narrow the list from 105 preliminary modern-era nominees to 25.

Former Rams on the preliminary list:
Jerome Bettis
Bud Carson
Stephen Davis (first time eligible)
Henry Ellard
Kevin Greene
Chuck Knox
Eddie Kotal (Rams scout from 1947 - 1961)
Clark Shaughnessy (head coach 1948  - 1949)
Dick Vermeil
Aeneas Williams

Bettis was a finalist last year. Greene and Williams were semifinalists, as was late Cardinals coach Don Coryell.

If all of last year's semifinalists qualify again, and the voters keep the unsavory candidacies of Paul Tagliabue, Eddie DeBartolo and Art Modell alive, there will be four semifinal openings. (Note I am uncertain when, or how, a candidate runs out of eligibility.) The key first-time eligibles for 2012 are Bill Cowher, Bill Parcells, Marty Schottenheimer, Tiki Barber, Keyshawn Johnson, Drew Bledsoe, Will Shields and Rod Smith.

Parcells and Shields should be locks to make the final 25, and are locks to be inducted into the Hall. I'd guess Parcells makes it on his first year of (re)eligibility. Shields deserves to, but might have to queue for a couple of years behind other offensive line candidates.

Greene should continue to be a semifinalist at the very least. Third all-time in sacks, and they're starting to induct guys behind him on that list like Richard Dent. And I cannot tell you why the hell Rickey Jackson should be in the Hall of Fame and Greene isn't.
 
Cowher's candidacy is clouded by rumors he'll be back coaching in the league next season. Schottenheimer's 200 wins are more than any eligible coach, but if the lack of Super Bowl rings keeps Chuck Knox out of the top 25 with 186 wins, and Dan Reeves with 190, I'm not feeling it for Marty. We all love Vermeil, but I don't know if 120 career wins will ever be enough to put him over the top.


I can't see putting Smith or Johnson in the top 25 if Ellard can't get there. Ellard easily has more career receiving yards than either, and has as many receptions as Johnson. It might be telling that the Hall of Fame website didn't even list Smith among the notable new eligibles. Boo to them for that, but no new WRs this year unless it's Ellard.

Bledsoe's 8th all-time in career passing yards and is an interesting case for those of us expecting Kurt Warner to walk in in a couple of years with the same number of Pro Bowls (4) and 12,000 fewer career yards. And heck, yes, Warner is walking right into the Hall in a couple of years. Bledsoe's .500 career record (.655 for Warner) makes him look a lot more like Jim Hart, though, and Jim isn't going to make the Hall. Sorry, but no.

Barber and Eddie George have very similar career statistics, and George couldn't crack the top 25 last year. Plus Barber is a gigantic jerk. So no.

I threw support to Roger Craig earlier, but I didn't have to, he was a semifinalist last year. Two former semifinalists I'd like to see get back in: Redskins tackle Joe Jacoby and special teamer Steve Tasker of the Bills, a 7-time Pro Bowler.

If I really had my druthers, I'd rip out the St. Louis-hating, not particularly distinctive or innovative commissioner Tagliabue, federal criminal and serial salary cap-violator DeBartolo, and Modell for the mortal sin of moving the Browns out of Cleveland. I'd replace them with Henry Ellard, Sam Mills and Gil Brandt.


 -$-


Another long injury report, 11/22

Here's where the Rams stand heading into the week of practice for the Arizona game next Sunday:

The biggest names on the list right now are Chris Long and James Laurinaitis. Long got his ankle rolled up on by Robert Quinn during a sack against Seattle Sunday. He played the whole game with the injury, though, and he's considered day-to-day. Laurinaitis has a sore foot and will get an MRI on it as a precautionary measure.

If Laurinaitis is unable to play, and with Josh Hull already considered out for the Arizona game after re-aggravating his hamstring injury, I'm unsure who the Rams would line up at MLB. I would lean toward Brady Poppinga for his run defense, but a quick Google search reveals that Bryan Kehl played some MLB for Steve Spagnuolo with the Giants in '08 after Antonio Pierce got hurt.

Let's just do the rest by position.

DT: Justin Bannan injured a shoulder during Sunday's game that was still very sore yesterday, so he will be sent off for an MRI.

LB: Bryan Kehl played Sunday and came out OK, take him off the injury list.

CB: Marquis Johnson was hospitalized overnight due to what's reported as an abdominal contusion, likely suffered on Justin Forsett's TD run. And good grief, that could actually be anything. Don't mess around with internal injuries. Justin King is day-to-day with a sprained ankle and swelling in his knee. A MRI didn't show anything serious.

OL: Mark LeVoir will be out 2 to 4 weeks due to a sprained pec injured early in the Seattle game. It'll be a big surprise if current street free agent Renardo Foster isn't the Rams' LT Sunday, unless he hasn't been able to stay in shape. Actually, I'm a little surprised Ryan McKee didn't get the call-up from the PS instead of Kevin Hughes. A little more experience, a little better feel for the speed of the game. Jason Smith may have to be placed on IR. He is still not recovered enough from his concussion to pass an exertion test, and the Rams need the roster spot. Rodger Saffold had surgery on his torn pectoral yesterday and will hopefully be back at it in 4-5 months.

WR: Austin Pettis and Mark Clayton will be limited in practice due to sore knees. Danario Alexander still has tightness in his hamstring and doesn't look very optimistic for Sunday. Brandon Gibson played through a groin injury Sunday, take him off the injury list for now.

TE: Mild concussion for Lance Kendricks after that hit from Kam Chancellor late in the Seattle game. Could be back as early as Wednesday or Thursday. Got a little lucky with that one.

RB: Not sure of Cadillac Williams' status with the calf injury. Jerious Norwood was not active Sunday but was reportedly a healthy scratch.

Arizona: There is no line on Sunday's game yet, but early reports are that the Cardinals will start John Skelton again at QB; Kevin Kolb's foot is responding much more slowly than hoped. Honestly, the Rams will be worse off with Skelton starting, he looks like he's gaining confidence.

Transactions
Just to get it officially listed, Kevin Hughes was activated from the practice squad Saturday to fill the spot opened when Saffold went on IR. Hughes' practice squad slot was still open at last report.

Alumni report
Jimmy Kennedy (Giants) reinstated from four-week league illegal substance suspension.
Jermale Hines added to Carolina PS.
Jonathan Wade cut by Miami.
Eric Young cut again by San Diego.

-$-

Saturday, November 19, 2011

Saffold out for season

Rodger Saffold is going to need season-ending surgery to repair the pectoral he tore while weightlifting after practice yesterday.

So that'll be Mark LeVoir Charlie Clemons beats approximately 40 times tomorrow. Let's get a call in to Renardo Foster's agent, shall we?

I hate this season.

-$-

Friday, November 18, 2011

2nd injury update, 11/18

This year's Rams team gets so many injuries it really isn't enough to update them once a day. For instance, after Friday's practice, Rodger Saffold strained a pectoral muscle lifting weights. For the love of God. Unknown if he'll play Sunday till the MRI comes back.

Justin King is another maybe for Sunday. He did not practice today, but his ankle sprain is not a high ankle sprain and he could be all right to go. I'd leave him out this week, the best thing he's got going for him is his speed, which he won't have less than a week after spraining the ankle.

Out for Sunday: Danario Alexander, Jason Smith, Cadillac Williams.

Should play Sunday: Brandon Gibson, Josh Hull, Bryan Kehl, Lance Kendricks, Jerious Norwood.

-$-

Seattle game sells out

Somehow enough tickets have been sold for Sunday's matchup between the 3-6 Seahawks and the 2-7 Rams to avoid a TV blackout. (Not that I'm expecting to see more than half the stadium actually filled.) Game will be on KTVI-2 at 3:05 p.m.

Figuring there was no chance for a sellout, I was planning to record the Red Zone channel during the game hoping I'd get a few plays to review when I get back home, and at least have something to file in my Rams video collection (which I was too stupid to start until 2006). In the past, if a game didn't sell out, I'd just record that week's "Rams Weekly" on KTVI, but the Rams apparently suck so much they quit doing that show in the middle of this season! (At least, it hasn't been on since the bye week.)

Sunday is Military Appreciation Day at the Dome, so I'll bet a lot of the previously-surplus tickets for Sunday are going to men and women in uniform. The more the merrier...

-$-

Injury update, 11/18

* Nothing definitive on Justin King's ankle injury yet, with Jim Thomas reporting this morning that he "turned" it. Nick Wagoner made it sound a lot less serious than originally thought, so we'll see.

Out for Sunday:
Jason Smith (concussion)
Danario Alexander (hamstring) - still can't go full-speed
Cadillac Williams (calf) - doesn't look good for Sunday

Better news:
Rodger Saffold (head) split reps yesterday and should get the start Sunday.
Darian Stewart (neck) was upgraded to full practice participation, along with Eugene Sims (shoulder), according to Wagoner.
Lance Kendricks (foot) is moving well and is on schedule to play.
Jerious Norwood (hamstring) got a lot of work yesterday and should be active. In fact, he'll be the #2 RB with Cadillac still up on blocks.
Brandon Gibson (groin) was upgraded to limited participation. Also limited: Josh Hull and Bryan Kehl.

Seattle:
Sidney Rice was a full participant in practice Thursday, per KFFL.
-$-

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Rams report, 11/17

Injuries: ESPN 101 is apparently reporting that Justin King suffered a "significant injury" near the end of Thursday's practice. I apologize for jinxing Justin, who's had a bad injury history up to this season but has played this year with a variety of injuries and deserved a toughness award. He looked like the one Rams corner who was going to survive the 2011 season.

Additional reporting on ESPN 101 says it's an ankle injury.

If King becomes the tenth DB to hit the Rams' IR this season, and why we weren't asking this around injured DB #3 or 4, what the hell are they doing wrong at Rams Park? Is there something wrong with the practice turf? Is there something about the drills they run? Are they overworking the DBs somehow in practice or otherwise? Do they practice indoors too much? Not enough? Is there something wrong with their weight training? Is is a coincidence the Rams also have so many injured receivers? Yes, some of the injury plague on this year's team has been freak, unavoidable, in-game stuff, like Amendola or Salas or Hoomanawanui. But come on. Possibly ten players seriously injured at one position and another string of players injured at the position they practice against? There's bad luck, and there's ridiculous. Nobody has this much bad luck. Something else has to be wrong.

The rest of the team: (to be updated)
Did not participate: Brandon Gibson (groin), Jason Smith (concussion), Cadillac Williams (calf)
Limited: Danario Alexander (hamstring), Josh Hull (hamstring), Bryan Kehl (ankle), Lance Kendricks (foot), Jerious Norwood (hamstring), Rodger Saffold (head), Eugene Sims (shoulder), Darian Stewart (neck)

From listening to a radio report from Jim Thomas during lunch, Kendricks' chances of playing Sunday don't sound very good. Great, TEs have been eating the Seahawks alive the last couple of weeks, and the Rams? Don't have any.

It sounds like Sam Bradford's getting all the snaps at practice again, though, so at least we can take him off the injury report.

Not wanting to feel left out, the Seahawks will be down two starting offensive linemen for Sunday and the rest of the season. Their whole right side is out with knee injuries, with John Moffitt injured in their win over Baltimore, and James Carpenter tearing an ACL in practice yesterday.

I'd bet the under for Sunday's game.

Transactions: It was in fact Chris Smith who got the spot on the practice squad opened up when Nate Ness was promoted.

Alumni report: Jonathan Nelson has joined the Panthers' practice squad.

-$-

Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Transactions report, 11/16

* The Rams have promoted Nate Ness from the practice squad to fill the roster position opened when Al Harris went on injured reserve. Let's all hope Nessie can excel as a loch-down corner. His spot on the practice squad was still open at last word, though the Rams did have several players in for tryouts who could fill it:

- Kendric Burney, a rookie free agent CB from North Carolina who got some good reviews at the Senior Bowl;
- Chris Smith, who was with the Rams in training camp, and released from the IR after injuring a knee during the team's open scrimmage at Lindenwood;
- OT Thomas Welch, who has spent time with the Patriots and Vikings;
- Trumaine McBride, a 5th-year CB formerly with the Bears and Big Dead. Would not be PS-eligible.

I salute any cornerback brave enough to even try out with the Rams given all the corners that have had major injuries here this year. Rams Park has become the Bermuda Triangle for CBs. The equipment manager should issue every new CB a Star Trek red shirt.

I think Burney would be a good pickup, but the Rams need to go after Smith; he'd have an unprecedented opportunity to go on the Rams' injured reserve twice in the same year.

* Alumni report:
- The Jagwires signed George Selvie to their roster and had Mortty Ivy for a visit.
- The Raiders added Terrail Lambert to their practice squad and also worked out Mikhail Baker. No surprise, the Raiders working out fast guys. A little more surprising the Rams apparently aren't making much of an effort to bring back players formerly on their roster, and a draft pick this year in Baker at that.
- Renardo Foster tried out with the Bears, who lost starting guard Chris Williams for the season.
- The Panthers waived Jermale Hines. I missed that the Colts had cut him during one of my work flurries. They had him for about a week after stealing him off waivers when the Rams tried to move him to the PS. Thanks for that, Polian.

-$-

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Rams report, 11/15

The Rams won over the Cleveland Browns Sunday (RamView) in what could be their final win of the season, since they may have to forfeit the rest because they have too many injured players to field a roster. Another NFL team could go down in a plane crash this week and still have a shorter injury list than the Rams. Here’s how it looks:


Al Harris – out for season, torn ACL against Cleveland. This is a real shame for Harris, who I thought was playing pretty great ball but now could be facing the end of his NFL career with his second blown knee in three years at age 36. So, your 2011 Rams secondary is now: Justin King (ironically, ask anyone before the season, they would have called King the frailest of the Rams’ DBs), Josh Gordy, Marquis Johnson and Rod Hood, who has yet to be active this season. Wow.

Harris becomes the NINTH CB the Rams have had to IR this season:

Harris (torn ACL)
Ron Bartell (fractured neck vertebra)
Bradley Fletcher (torn ACL)
Jerome Murphy (broken ankle)
Tim Atchison (hamstring, waived from injured reserve)
Chris Smith (injured knee during team scrimmage in August, released with injury settlement)
Mikail Baker (knee/hamstring, waived from IR)
Dionte Dinkins (ankle, designated minor injury, waived from IR)
Brian Jackson (knee)

As far as a roster replacement, Rams 7th-round pick Jonathan Nelson was still out there last I looked, though he just had a tryout in Denver yesterday.

Michael Hoomanawanui - torn ACL against Cleveland. I’m sure the way Joe Haden hit him was accidental, but it sure looked dirty and there was no way Michael was going to get away from it without a serious injury. It looks like the Rams will count on Lance Kendricks bouncing back from his foot injury and not add another TE to the roster. Logically, Stephen Spach becomes the 3rd TE.

Hard to tell what this injury means long-term for Michael or the Rams. A nine-month recovery period would bring him back in the middle of next year’s training camp. Given his terrible injury history, I foresee difficulty getting him on the field in 2012. He probably starts the season on PUP, and the Rams are probably going to have to pick up another TE sometime in the offseason.

Rodger Saffold – left the Cleveland game due to a head injury, but did not suffer a concussion, so chances are good he’ll return to the starting lineup against Seattle.

Darian Stewart – injured his neck against the Browns. Will be limited in practice tomorrow.

Justin King – with my apologies for speaking too soon earlier, King also had a non-concussion head injury at the end of the game Sunday. Expected to play against Seattle.

Cadillac Williams left the Cleveland game trying to enter the game. Yes, he injured himself running onto the field. Day-to-day with a calf injury.

Brandon Gibson has a sore groin and is questionable for practice tomorrow.

Eugene Sims has been playing with a sore shoulder; I’ll also call him questionable for tomorrow.

Returning, or at least hoping to: Danario Alexander (limited basis), Jerious Norwood, Josh Hull, Bryan Kehl

Not returning: Jason Smith (concussion) has been unable to pass a physical exertion test without re-experiencing symptoms.

Tis only a flesh wound: Steven Jackson played through a foot injury against Cleveland but didn’t show much sign of being hurt at all. My guess is the Rams will take it easy on him through the week but he’ll definitely start against Seattle.

Sam Bradford came out of the Browns game for one play after getting hit in the thigh. His ankle sprain continues to improve; he didn’t have to wear a boot after the game like he had the week before.

Enemy casualties: The Seahawks have lost rookie RG John Moffitt for the rest of the season due to MCL and PCL injuries. I mistakenly called him and James Carpenter left-side linemen in the last RamView. Could be a blow to Seattle’s running game, which was just starting to get untracked.

* Questionable favoritism: All these injuries, and the Rams are 2-point favorites over the Seahawks? Who just beat Baltimore and have won on the road this season over the Giants? Huh?

* Transactions – though they’re expecting Hull and Kehl back and just signed David Nixon last week and just IR’ed a TE and a CB, the Rams have picked up… another linebacker, Justin Cole, from the Chiefs’ practice squad. And that move doesn’t exactly offer the Rams much-needed roster flexibility – sign a player from another team’s practice squad, you have to keep him on your main roster for three weeks.

-$-

Friday, November 11, 2011

Rams report, 11/11

* Injuries.
Limited participation in practice Thursday: Sam Bradford (ankle), C.J. Ah You (calf), Gary Gibson (hip), James Hall (knee), Josh Hull (hamstring), STEVEN JACKSON (foot), Bryan Kehl (ankle), Darell Dorell Scott (concussion), Eugene Sims (shoulder), Darian Stewart (ankle).


Hall is the only addition from Wednesday’s report.

The team is expecting to have enough depth to get by at DT Sunday. Gibson’s injury isn’t major, and Scott has been cleared for contact.

Bradford took about half the snaps at QB.

Not participating: Danario Alexander (hamstring), Lance Kendricks (sprained foot), Jerious Norwood (hamstring of doom), Jason Smith (concussion). Pretty good bet none of the four will play against Cleveland.

* Ex-Rams transactions. Terrail Lambert and Mortty Ivy were dropped respectively from the Saints’ and Steelers’ practice squads. The Saints had Cord Parks in for a tryout. The Redskins signed Fendi Onobun to their practice squad.

* Snubbed! OK, not really. To the shock of absolutely no one, there are no Rams on either Sports Illustrated's or Pro Football Weekly’s midseason All-Pro teams. The Rams are currently 31st in PFW’s power poll. As if they’d beat the Colts.

Thinking about it a little further, Steven Jackson and Chris Long have pretty strong cases to at least make the NFC Pro Bowl roster. Voting’s already open for the game at NFL.com, so consider supporting the rare few Rams who are playing at a high level. James Laurinaitis and Darian Stewart wouldn’t be wastes of votes, either.

-$-

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Rams report, 11/10

First of all, the Rams suck. They freaking suck. I guess that’s not a huge status update. But we can now be pretty sure the win over the Saints was a fluke the size of Haloti Ngata, and this team MIGHT finish the season with two wins if it’s lucky. I never expected to need to go into the 2011-2012 offseason with an eye on top-3 draft picks or new head coaching candidates. But we’re there. Steve Spagnuolo lost a game the Rams had won in Arizona and I am seeing no improvement out of the guy or certainly the team after 40 games. Rant over, on with the update.


* Injuries. Mark Clayton, who says he’s at 90% right now, was activated from the PUP list. The soreness he had from straining his Achilles tendon has gone away and he is slated to be the Rams’ slot receiver this Sunday in Cleveland. Not the same, sadly, for Greg Salas, whose season ended last Sunday due to a broken fibula.

Sam Bradford’s sprained ankle isn’t expected to be a problem the rest of the season. He wore a walking boot after Sunday’s game but hasn’t needed it since Monday.

About half the team is injured again. Not participating in practice Wednesday: Danario Alexander (hamstring), Josh Hull (hamstring), Bryan Kehl (sprained ankle), Lance Kendricks (sprained foot), Jerious Norwood (hamstring), Eugene Sims (shoulder) and Jason Smith (concussion). Alexander was already being considered doubtful for the Cleveland game on Monday.

Limited: C.J. Ah You (calf), Bradford, Gary Gibson (hip), STEVEN JACKSON (foot), Darell Dorell Scott (concussion), and Darian Stewart Ankle. I don’t know when Jackson even injured his foot but he isn’t expected to miss any time.

Brandon Gibson injured a quad during the Arizona game but wasn’t listed on the injury report.

And on the concussion front, Scott could be ready for contact drills soon, but Smith’s symptoms haven’t gone away enough to even permit a baseline test yet.

* Lineup changes. Word’s out that Jason Brown is going to be benched at center in favor of Tony Wragge. I don’t know why this move wasn’t made sooner. I kind of thought Brown was the only center on the roster and the Rams were stuck with him. Brown is a first-class person but unfortunately a third-class offensive lineman. He tips off his snaps. He’s good for causing the line at least one false start a game by screwing up on the snap count. He’s frequently pushed backward in the running game or making foul blocks like the one on 4th down late in the game in Arizona. He hasn’t pass-protected well, either, and blitzers have stampeded up the middle past Brown all season. I have no idea who Jim Thomas is citing when he says Brown grades out as one of the Rams’ best o-linemen this season. Brown hasn’t gotten the job done this year at all.

My ranking, for the record:

1. Harvey Dahl. Mediocre at best, though. Has not been the difference-maker it was hoped he’d be.

2. Jacob Bell makes enough good plays to be #1, but too many bad plays and stupid penalties hold him down.

3. Adam Goldberg’s off to a pretty good start at RT in place of Jason Smith.

4. Wragge.

5. Jason Smith. A mess in pass protection but he can run-block.

6. Brown.

7. Rodger Saffold. One of the worst meltdowns by a second-year player in memory.

8. Mark LeVoir. I’m stumped why he hasn’t been cut already after poor blocks on two of Sunday’s crucial plays.

Wragge’s here because he’s more of a mauler; the Rams are making a good move to give him a look.

* Transactions. The Rams cut QB Tom Brandstater when they assigned Clayton to the active roster. Salas was placed on injured reserve. LB David Nixon got his roster spot.

The Rams also dropped WR Gentleman Kris Adams from the practice squad and replaced him with WR David Gilreath. Chase Blackburn worked out here for the job that ended up going to Nixon.

The Colts waived Daniel Muir. I wonder what the chance is he’s back here soon, with the Rams running a little short at DT right now.

Former Rams receiving tryouts around the league this week included Fendi Onobun in Cincinnati and Hall Davis in Carolina. Dominique Byrd was cut after I believe a week with the Redskins.

* Miscellaneous. The Rams made NFL history in the third quarter Sunday. It was the first time in NFL history a team scored exactly 4 points in a quarter.

* Up next. The Cleveland Browns are three point favorites over the Rams Sunday, and there is little reason to bet on the Rams any time the rest of the season. My prediction is the Browns win 14-6. Josh Brown will put the Rams up 6-0 at halftime on the strength of two 50-yard FGs, but Josh Cribbs will return two punts for TDs because the Ram coaching staff is too fucking stupid to kick away from the league’s most dangerous returners. Cribbs, by the way, said in a locker room interview yesterday, “I can’t give nothing [sic] away, but they put something special in for me.” He may get a bigger offensive role this week.

-$-

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Rams report, 11/5


Injuries
Questionable: Sam Bradford. Bradford split reps in practice with A.J. Feeley yesterday, his biggest workload since getting injured against Green Bay. Reports say he is throwing well and moving well. The Rams' primary concern is Bradford's ability to make hard plants on his injured ankle in situations where he has to run. He will be a gametime decision.

Brady Poppinga is also listed as questionable, but insists he's at full strength. Bryan Kehl is also listed as questionable after suffering a "mild" high ankle sprain in practice Thursday. There's such a thing as a "mild" high ankle sprain? Plus, he was in a walking boot yesterday. No way he's playing.

OUT for Sunday:
Danario Alexander (hamstring)
Jerious Norwood (hamstring)

Darell Dorell Scott (concussion)
Jason Smith (concussion)

Mark Clayton will NOT be activated from the PUP list this weekend. His Achilles tendon continues to be a problem. Thanks for the poor reporting on Clayton all week, local media. The information we had was that he was a full participant earlier in the week, then there was no information on him at all, much like what would happen with a player considered recovered from an injury. The Rams will have to either put Clayton on the main roster early next week or shut him down for the season. I'd suggest the latter, but then again, I only know what the local media tells me, which means I know little.

Probable: Tony Wragge.

Justin King is considered 100%. Whether or not that is a good thing remains to be seen.

For the Big Dead, Kevin Kolb is listed as doubtful and John Skelton is highly likely to be their QB Sunday. Kerry Rhodes and Joey Porter are out. Beanie Wells and Todd Heap are questionable.

Ex-Rams transactions
Kevin Payne had a tryout with the Lions; Eric Young bounced back onto the Chargers' roster from the PS. 

-$-


Friday, November 4, 2011

Rams report, 11/4

Injuries
Out Thursday:
Danario Alexander and Jerious Norwood re-aggravated hamstring injuries.
Jason Smith and Darell Dorell Scott remain out with concussion symptoms.

Sam Bradford (ankle) did some individual work and threw in 7-on-7 drills. Nick Wagner reported he looked sharp and threw well, and still has a chance of starting against Arizona.

Limited:
Bryan Kehl (ankle), Brady Poppinga (calf), Tony Wragge (knee)

There was some confusion yesterday on Mark Clayton. One local report listed him as a full participant, another said he was limited. He was not on the Thursday injury report at all, however. Either he’s good to go now or there’s a significant piece of information I’m missing.

Big Dead:
Kevin Kolb (toe) was still in a walking boot yesterday. Looking more and more like John Skelton will start for them. Rob Housler and Kerry Rhodes have also sat out the last two days. Beanie Wells was upgraded to limited. Also limited yesterday: Todd Heap, Joey Porter, LaRod Stephens-Howling.

Transactions
Naturally, the minute I start relying on ProFootballWeekly.com for transactions, they become completely unreliable like every other source I’ve tried. Or else there were no transactions anywhere in the league the last two days.

Actually, I know a couple that affected ex-Rams:

- The Raiders put Chris Johnson on season-ending IR for a hamstring pull.

- And it’s been a season to forget for Mike Sims-Walker. After getting cut after an ineffective 11-catch stint here in St. Louis, he was even worse with the Jagwires. He had just 1 catch for 11 yards in 2 games before being IR’ed for an unspecified knee injury. He’s having surgery next week. He also recently had to have a tooth pulled. I know getting MSW lined up correctly before the snap here was like pulling teeth, but that’s ridiculous.

-$-

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Rams report, 11/3

Injuries
Limited practice participants: Danario Alexander, Mark Clayton, Brady Poppinga, Tony Wragge.

Full practice participants: Jerious Norwood, Justin King.

King says he's 100 percent sure he's playing this week. Really? Because I'd keep starting Josh Gordy if it were my choice. Almost any other Rams DB of the last 5 years would have kept his back to the play and let Devery Henderson catch that ball late in the first half Sunday. Gordy GOT HIS HEAD TURNED and picked it off. The Rams should keep their best playmakers on the field.

Out: Jason Smith and Darell Dorell Scott with concussions. Both are still experiencing post-concussion symptoms so they're not even to where they would be tested to be cleared for action.

Sam Bradford was on the practice field with the rest of the team Wednesday, but only walked through some plays. He is making progress with the ankle injury and is now wearing a small brace. Seems pretty doubtful he'll be ready for Arizona, though.

Big Dead report
Kevin Kolb and Beanie Wells both sat out Wednesday's practice.

Transactions
all ex-Rams related:

Jonathan Wade signed by Miami.
Fendi Onobun, Derek Schouman and Travon Bellamy all tried out with Washington.
Jonathan Nelson tried out with New Orleans.
David Nixon tried out with Houston.

Miscellaneous
Robert Quinn's blocked punt against the Saints was enough to get him named NFC Special Teams Player of the Week. Steven Jackson and Chris Long were runners-up for offensive and defensive player of the week honors.

-$-


Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Rams rankings, 11/1


Where the Rams stand in the NFL after seven games…

Offense

Scoring (per game): 31st. Jagwires now in last. I’m also pleased to announce there is now no player in the NFL outscoring the Rams by himself.

Total yards: 28th

Passing
Yards: 26th
Team passer rating: 29th
Sacks: 31st with 27, tied with Miami. Seattle in last with 28.
Interceptions: Alone in 2nd place (3).
TDs: Still DEAD LAST (4).
Yards per attempt: 30th.


Rushing
Yards: 20th
Per carry: 9th (4.5)
TDs: Steven Jackson’s 2 TDs against the Saints leaped the Rams into 19th place from dead last.


Passing offense treaded water or lost ground this week, but the rushing game leaped up the charts.


Individual offense

Steven Jackson: leaped all the way up to 16th in the league from 28th, with 449 yards. He ranks 14th in yards per game. He’s unofficially 5th in yards per carry among running backs with a significant amount of carries.


Receiving: The NFL officially lists Greg Salas, with 20 receptions, as the Rams’ leading receiver. That’s 95th in the league (tied with Randy McMichael). But c’mon, man. Brandon Lloyd has 31 catches, good enough for 28th. Project him out at his Rams pace of 6 catches per game, though, and that 42 would be good for 7th in the league. Danario Alexander still has the most receiving yards as a Ram this year with 296, only good now for 76th in the league. But Lloyd’s combined 410 would make him 32nd, 22nd if you project out his Rams yardage per game.

Defense

Scoring (per game): 30th, passing up Denver this week.

Total yards: also 30th

Rushing: still DEAD LAST. They have closed to within 25.6 yards/game of 31st. The Rams put the Saints at the bottom of the league in yards per rush, and are now tied with the – Lions? And – Bears? For 31st. The Lions give up 5.2 a carry? Ndamukong Who?

Passing:
Yards: 15th
Per attempt: 16th
Completion %: 9th
Passer rating: 25th. Moved up from last week despite facing Drew Brees.
Sacks: Sunday’s performance leaped the Rams all the way up to 16th from 26th, with 17 sacks. Yes, they are now ahead of Jared Allen.
Interceptions: 21st

Chris Long leaps all the way back into the top ten in the league in sacks, 8th place with 6.

Miscellaneous
Penalties: 23rd
False starts: 2nd most in league, 18 (Chicago 1st with 20)
Turnover ratio: 17th (-1)

-$-


Rams update, 11/1

Let’s start with a significant helping of crow. The Rams did not lose 45-7 this week as I basically predicted; instead, they pulled off the upset of the season over the Saints, 31-21. (RamView) Congratulations to the whole team for ending that awful slump.

Another helping, please. Dominique Curry was possibly the Rams’ special teams player of the week. He was in on two tackles on kickoffs that kept Darren Sproles behind the 20. Sproles was not a factor at all on returns.

And Stephen Spach was even active Sunday! Second time all season. He’ll be passing Jerious Norwood soon at this rate.

Rams-Cardinals betting line for this Sunday is currently off the board due not just to Bradford’s status, but also Kevin Kolb’s. He’s got a badly-bruised toe and isn’t a sure thing to start for Arizona.

Injury report

* Sam Bradford (high left ankle sprain) is out of the walking boot, still considered day-to-day by head coach Steve Spagnuolo. Right now it sounds like he’s at least 50-50 to start against Arizona.

* Lots of boots made for walking around Rams Park. Mark Clayton (sore Achilles tendon) was in one over the weekend. He’s out of it now, but sounds doubtful for practice Wednesday.

* Darell Dorell Scott and Jason Smith (concussions) will continue to sit out Wednesday.

* Danario Alexander (hamstring) is expected to be back on a limited basis. Also limited: Jerious Norwood (hamstring) and Brady Poppinga (calf).

* Tony Wragge hyperextended a knee during the Saints game. I didn’t even know he was in the game! Not expected to miss time.

* Greg Salas got a minor ankle injury Sunday. Just sore.

* Justin King was very close to being active Sunday but the decision was to play it safe with his groin injury. He's full-go for Wednesday.

Transaction report

When Marquis Johnson was activated for the Saints game, the Rams put DB Brian Jackson on injured reserve. He’s the EIGHTH defensive back to be on the Rams’ IR or PUP list this year. Unless I lost count.

Ex-Ram watch: Continuing their bouncy practice squad careers, Mortty Ivy moved up to Pittsburgh’s main roster, while Eric Young was cut again by San Diego.

-$-