Paul Boudreau is expected to return to
the Rams for the 2012 season after a successful stop here in 2006-07
that saw him inexplicably replaced by Scott Linehan crony Steve
Loney. Boudreau has had a 25-year career as an NFL offensive line
coach, with stops in New Orleans, Detroit, New England, Carolina,
Jacksonville and Atlanta.
From 1987-1993 with the Saints,
Boudreau's offensive line finished in the top three in fewest sacks
allowed four times, leading the league in 1992 with just 15 sacks
allowed. Saint linemen made two Pro Bowls in that span: guard Brad
Edelman in '87 and center Joel Hilgenberg in '92. LT/LG Jim
Dombrowski and RT Stan Brock were mainstays on those lines. The
Saints were 3rd in the league in rushing in 1997 but had
declined to 17th by the time Boudreau left for Detroit.
Barry Sanders ran for 1,500 yards or
more all three years Boudreau coached the Lion o-line. LT Lomas Brown
went to the Pro Bowl in '94 and '95. Center Kevin Glover joined him
in '95, his first Pro Bowl after 11 seasons in the league. The Lions
were a top-ten line for fewest sacks allowed until dropping to 25th
in '96, with Brown having left for the Big Dead.
Bruce Armstrong made the Pro Bowl for
the sixth and final time in 1997, the first of Boudreau's two seasons
under Pete Carroll in New England. The Patriots allowed the
4th-fewest sacks in the league in '97 but were a bottom-of-the-league
rushing offense both seasons.
Boudreau knows centers. Tim Ruddy made
his only Pro Bowl while Boudreau was with the Dolphins in 2000. The
Dolphins were also 5th-best in 2000 in sacks allowed, with 28. And
that was with Jay Fiedler at QB – Dan Marino retired after the 1999
season, Boudreau's first year there. That line also had Richmond Webb
at LT. Those Dolphins teams also did not run especially well.
Boudreau's next two years in Carolina
were forgettable, especially the 1-15 team of 2001. The Panthers did
not run particularly well, and declined from 32 sacks in '01 to 44 in
'02, unable to get the right side of the line settled.
In three years in Jacksonville, the
Jagwires finished in the top 10 in sacks allowed twice, and the most
they gave up was 32. Boudreau went through several left tackles, but
Vince Manuwai, Brad Meester, Chris Naeole and Maurice Williams
cleared the way for top-ten running games in '03 and '05.
Which brings Boudreau to St. Louis for
the first time, and Steven Jackson's best season on the ground, 1,528
yards in 2006. Those Rams gave up a ton of sacks, though – 49 in
'06, 48 in '07, near the bottom of the league both years. Those lines
had a ton of injuries, though, the tail ends of the careers of
Orlando Pace and Adam Timmerman. The '07 team got shell-shocked by
losing Pace the first game of the season and never really got on
track, leading to an extended beating that pretty much ended Marc
Bulger's run in St. Louis as well. Boudreau got very nice results
down the stretch in '06 with spare parts like Mark Setterstrom, Brett
Romberg and Todd Steussie, and the '07 offensive line was kind of
like last year's secondary injury-wise. Though Bulger got battered
and Boudreau couldn't coax disciplined play out of Alex Barron or
Richie Incognito, fans were caught well off-guard when the Rams fired
Boudreau and were confident he'd pick right up where he left off in
Atlanta.
Which he did. With two players acquired
as rookie free agents on the right side of the line, Harvey Dahl and
Tyson Clabo, the Falcons became one of the best offensive lines in
the league. Clabo made the Pro Bowl in 2010. Atlanta allowed only 17
sacks in 2008 (5th in NFL). They were 3rd-best in the
league in 2010 (23 sacks). They finished in the top 10 all four years
Boudreau was there. They were also the #2 rushing team in the NFL in
'08, but have dropped to the middle of the pack since.
A criticism of Boudreau is that his linemen play dirty. Atlanta's line gained a reputation for cut-blocking downfield and hitting after the whistle. Justin Tuck went so far as to call Atlanta's offensive line "dirtbags" in the days leading up this year's playoff game. The Packers and Lions also complained this season about dirty play by the Atlanta line.
A criticism of Boudreau is that his linemen play dirty. Atlanta's line gained a reputation for cut-blocking downfield and hitting after the whistle. Justin Tuck went so far as to call Atlanta's offensive line "dirtbags" in the days leading up this year's playoff game. The Packers and Lions also complained this season about dirty play by the Atlanta line.
With the Falcons unable to adequately
replace Dahl or injured LT Sam Baker in 2011, and with notable
humiliations on 4th-and-shorts in the playoffs against the Giants,
Boudreau paid the price in the offseason, freeing him up to come back
here. Most of Rams Nation is happy with this development, though
after Steve Loney, we'd probably have been happy with a Sherpa yak
tender. I doubt that Boudreau has the magic to salvage Jason Smith,
but he's got a record of polishing castoffs and overlooked players
into gems. He's got a solid record coaching up centers, where the
Rams honestly have a gaping hole at the moment. And he's developed
cohesive, successful lines in New Orleans, Jacksonville and Atlanta,
without those teams having to make big splashes for “name”
players. Sam Bradford and a nation of Rams fans need your best work,
coach. Make it happen. B-plus
-$-
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