Rams' future Hall of Fame prospects

On the occasion of the induction of this year's Pro Football Hall of Fame class, Elliott Harrison wrote an in-depth piece at NFL.com looking ahead at who might make up the next ten classes. It's definitely worth a read, with a lot of depth and detail to it. For former Rams looking to get into the Hall, though, the news from this piece is decidedly mixed:

* When the class of 2013 was named earlier this year, RamView contended that 2014 has to be the year for Aeneas Williams and Jerome Bettis. Harrison projects their wait will have to be a little longer. First-time eligible Derrick Brooks should be a lock, and it turns out Walter Jones is eligible in 2014, and should be a lock as well. Jones, who most of us amateurs had as eligible first in 2015, really decreases the chances for the former Rams. So do first-time eligibles Marvin Harrison and Tony Dungy, who should be near-impossible to pass over as the first African-American coach to win a Super Bowl and as one of the finest gentlemen the game has seen. (E. Harrison thinks he gets passed over until 2015, though.) Then there's still Michael Strahan, a surprise pass-over for this past class, and Charles Haley, who Harrison believes is the biggest lock for induction next year. Aeneas went to more Pro Bowls than either of those guys, and Bettis gets strangely ignored as the #6 rusher of all time, but Haley's 5 Super Bowl rings say a lot, too. Harrison projects Bettis to enter the Hall in 2015, but Aeneas will have to hold on till 2017. St. Louis fans do get thrown a bone with Harrison's projection that Don Coryell will enter the Hall posthumously next year as a veteran's committee selection.

ESPN.com

* 2015 shapes up as an awesome year for Rams fans: Harrison projects Kurt Warner and Orlando Pace as first-time nominees, with Bettis joining them. Future road trip! The rest of the projected class is Dungy and near-certain lock Junior Seau.

* Unlike the Hall of Fame committee in recent years, Harrison doesn't forget the third-leading sacker of all time, Kevin Greene, who he thinks will make it in with the 2016 class. At least that's a good call. A much worse call: permanently soiling the Hall of Fame by including Eddie DeBartolo in the 2017 class.

Sports Illustrated

* And now here's a list of players who no doubt have, or will have, excellent Hall-of-Fame credentials in the coming decade. John Lynch, Andre Reed, Brian Dawkins, Charles Woodson, Reggie Wayne, Julius Peppers, Brian Waters, Lance Briggs (really?), Terrell Davis. Harrison has them all entering the Hall of Fame between now and 2021.

What's wrong with that list? Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt aren't on it! Harrison has them getting passed over SEVEN times and still not in the Hall at the end of his projections! Lance Freaking Briggs over Isaac Bruce? The second-best linebacker on the Bears for a decade over the 4th-leading wide receiver of all time? Bruce and Holt, not to mention Hines Ward, waiting outside the Hall while three safeties who couldn't cover either one of them get in? Did Harrison just forget Isaac and Torry were eligible? Though Wayne should pass Bruce and Ward on the career receptions list this year at age 34, how many years has he got left? He's really going to bury them so far in the career standings that he doesn't have to wait in line at the Hall like they're projected to? More power to him if he does, but I don't see it.

Bruce should be getting in right behind Harrison in my eyes. Ironically, it could be at the expense of one of the other eligible ex-Rams. But Bruce would belong in over Tim Brown, he'd belong in over Andre Reed, he'd certainly belong in over John Lynch, and he damn sure belongs in over a scumbag like DeBartolo.

Wide receiver logjam or no, the selection committee risks making the Hall of Fame worth less than the dirt it's built on if Isaac Bruce's bust isn't in there by 2017, and if Torry Holt isn't clearly one of the best 50 players on this list, well, then, even with as much thought as Elliott Harrison's put into it, we need a new list.

-$-

Rams-Cleveland recap

The Rams fell into a 17-0 hole thanks to an Isaiah Pead fumble and poor special teams and went on to lose 27-19 to the Browns in the preseason opener. The recap is on its way up now at ramview.com and has been up at the usual spots I post it since Friday afternoon. Think we're going to give up on the Usenet group, though, that place looks like a wasteland.

Positives: I was impressed with Sam Bradford. Thought the starting o-line pass-protected well and run-blocking was good. Chris Givens and Stedman Bailey popped at WR. Brian Quick's showing progress. Greg Zuerlein is already in top form, with 54- and 55- yard FGs.

Negatives: Rodger Saffold got beat badly on his second snap of the game and got injured. More below. Receivers had serious case of the drops, at least eight. Isaiah Pead was a wreck similar to what he was last preseason, fumbling his first carry and playing like he'd never attempted to return a kick in his life on special teams. Speaking of special teams, other than the kickers, they sucked. Returns were poor and they gave up a far-too-easy 91-yard punt return TD. Starting defensive line didn't even touch Brandon Weeden and the starting defense couldn't get the Browns, who opened with an eight-minute FG drive, off the field, missing tackles and blowing assignments.

Yes, that's a lot more negatives than positives, but I was still pretty happy with this first effort of preseason. Granted, my expectations were not very high, and things have to go up from here. But no reason to think they won't.

Injuries: I feared much worse, but Rodger Saffold has "just" a dislocated shoulder, and is only expected to miss one or two preseason games. Joseph Barksdale is now the starting right tackle, with Barrett Jones and Chris Williams also getting work over there in practice Saturday. Elsewhere on the injury list:
- Sammy Brown did not play Thursday, calf injury, current status unreported.
- Jermelle Cudjo's foot is out of the boot it has been in and he's closer to making a return. I'll bet he is. Did you see Conrath and Brodine Thursday night? Pretty impressive.
- Terrance Ganaway did not practice Saturday, leg injury.
- Matt Giordano did not practice Saturday, calf injury.
- Sean Hooey did not practice Saturday due to an ankle injury. He has a history of chronic ankle injuries; that and his bad outing Thursday night might be the writing on the wall, unfortunately.
- Andrew Helmick did not practice Saturday due to a hamstring injury, but we'll have to keep an eye on him as he appears to be coming along faster than originally projected.
- Lance Kendricks remains out due to his knee.
- Zac Stacy played Thursday but did not practice Saturday. He has been dealing with a leg injury.
- Jabara Williams did not play Thursday, hamstring injury, current status unreported.


I'll drop Matt Daniels from the list; he's been practicing since Monday and I imagine he's a go for Green Bay on the 17th.

Photo AP/ESPN.com

-$-

Rams at Cleveland mini-preview

The Rams kick off preseason in Cleveland tonight. The game will air locally on KTVI at 7:00. NFL Network replays will be at 6 am Saturday morning and 11 pm Monday night (all times Central).

Usually we can expect the starters to play about a quarter in the first preseason game. Sam Bradford played two series in last year's preseason opener. Some offensive linemen may get extended work tonight. The Rams want to get Rodger Saffold additional reps at right tackle. Chris Williams is expected to start at LG and could see additional time there because the Rams want to look at Shelley Smith at RG behind Harvey Dahl.

The far-from-official injury list for tonight:
- Sammy Brown out, calf
- Jermelle Cudjo out, foot
- Matt Daniels out, knee. Precautionary, as he has been in practices since Monday.
- Terrance Ganaway out, leg. Injured at end of practice Tuesday.
- Matt Giordano out, calf
- Andrew Helmick out, hamstring
- Lance Kendricks out, knee
- Jabara Williams out, hamstring

Nick Johnson (hamstring) and Al Lapuaho (hand) returned to practice since the last update here so the guess here is that they can play. Sounds like Kendall Langford is OK and can play. Zac Stacy was out of practice Monday and Tuesday with a leg injury but is not on the list of players expected out tonight.

Reports from Browns camp say the offense has been struggling, and Trent Richardson is out for tonight's game, so conditions are ideal for the starting Ram defense to shine. The matchup between Robert Quinn and Joe Thomas could tell us a lot. The Ram offense did not practice much against 3-4  alignments, but half their regular season schedule will be played against 3-4 defenses, so they'd better be ready for it. (By my count, 49ers twice, Big Dead twice, Dallas, New Orleans, Houston, Indy).

The Rams' cloudy RB situation only gets cloudier with the Stacy and Ganaway injuries, but then again, Benny Cunningham, welcome to your big chance to steal a job!

I'll try to have the recap up on ramview.com by Friday night. Yeah, I know, nothing like a quick turnaround. Also, there probably won't be any more RamView reports from training camp this year. Can't do Saturday's due to prior commitments, and that's the last one that had much chance of fitting into my schedule. Sorry; this isn't the worst Rams blog on the web for nothing.

Enjoy the game and everybody stay healthy.

-$-

Rookie free agent profile: Andrew Helmick, WR, Lindenwood

Andrew Helmick 5'10" 194
WR, Lindenwood
Twitter handle: @ahelmick15

Rankings: NFLDraftScout: 138th-ranked WR, #922 player overall, free-agent grade.
Scouts Inc: 221st-ranked WR, rated as a free agent. Grade: 30, borderline draft prospect.

Biography/honors:
2012: Started 11 of 12 games. 66 receptions for 1,363 yards (20.7 ypc) and 14 TDs. 4 200-yard games, 6 games over 100 yards. 4 rushes for 25 yards (6.2 ypc) and a TD. Averaged 19.9 yards on 16 kickoff returns, 14.1 yards on 7 punt returns. Threw one incomplete pass. Holds school records for career receptions, receiving yards and receiving TDs.
2011: Started all 11 games. 56 receptions for 901 yards (16.1 ypc) and 12 TDs. 11 of his TD catches covered 20 yards or more. 4 100-yard games and two 3-TD games. 5 rushes for 51 yards (10.2 ypc). Averaged 32.4 yards on 11 kickoff returns with a 100-yard TD. Also completed one pass for 9 yards in 2 attempts.
2010: Played in 11 games. 20 receptions for 436 (21.9 ypc) and 6 TDs, 12 rushes for 27 yards (2.3 ypc).
2009: Played in nine games. 11 receptions for 127 yards (11.5 ypc), 7 rushes for 88 yards (12.6 ypc) and a TD.

Major: physical education.

Injuries: none reported.

Pro day results: (NFL Combine WR averages in parentheses)
4.45 40 (WRs at the Combine averaged 4.51. Andrew has run a 4.34)
1.60 10-yard split
33.5” vertical jump (34.5”)
9'8" broad jump (10'1")
7.15 3-cone drill (Tied slowest time at Combine. Average was 6.91)
4.26 20-yard shuttle (4.26)
15 bench press (13) 

Positives: Good acceleration and straight-line speed, lethal for his level of competition. Shows speed to get open deep and tracks deep ball well over his shoulder. Shows quickness to avoid getting jammed at the line. Shows some ability to win jump balls. Sells his routes well enough and is explosive out of his breaks. Good hands and feet, good footwork on sideline. Pretty elusive after the catch and changes directions well. Good strength and ability to break tackles for his size. Some experience returning kickoffs and punts. Competes hard, always gives his best effort. Browns and Falcons both had him in their rookie minicamps.

Negatives: Tight-hipped, lacks elite flexibility and change of direction, evidenced by his 3-cone time. Probably limited to slot receiver in the pros but is not one of those Danny Amendola types who will get separation with his short-area quickness and route-running and he will be challenged to get off press coverage. Level of competition close to laughable judging from his YouTube highlights, most of the opposing safeties make Craig Dahl look like a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer.

Compares to: Amendola. Hey, Andrew said it, not me. His workout numbers were pretty similar to Stedman Bailey's Combine numbers.

Fun Facts: The Rams have scrimmaged at Lindenwood a couple of times in past training camps. It's the second-oldest college west of the Mississippi, behind SLU. The Lions have played NCAA Division II football only since 2011, and have already been in a bowl game. The Mineral Water Bowl. Yes, the Mineral Water Bowl, played in Excelsior Springs, Mo. The Lions lost this year's game 41-17 to Winona State, which is named for its home city of Winona, Minnesota, not any living actress or country music singer.

RamView: Andrew raised the odds I would have put on him originally by feasting on slack zone coverage and making a ton of catches early in camp. As a local kid, he's quickly become a fan favorite. He's going to miss most of training camp due to a hamstring injury, though, which is going to make it tough for him to prove he can get off an NFL-quality jam, or prove a better punt/kick returner option than Nick Johnson, who seems his main competition for a practice squad spot. He has flashed the tools and gotten noticed; the question now is whether a very hot start will be enough.

Chance of making team: 35%.

Sources: NFLDraftScout, ESPN.com, Lindenwood University athletics, NFLDraftZone, YouTube

Photo: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Rams preseason games on NFL Network

Courtesy of Pete Dougherty at the Albany Times-Union, here are the dates and times for NFL Network's replays of the Rams' games this preseason:

(Times are Central)

Saturday, August 10 - Rams at Cleveland, 6 a.m.

Sunday, August 18 - Green Bay at Rams, 3 p.m.

Sunday, August 25 - Rams @ Denver, 2 a.m.
This game will be nationally broadcast on CBS Saturday 8/24 at 7 p.m.

Friday, August 30 - Baltimore @ Rams, noon

These times are just for the first airing of each game. NFL Network may repeat any or all of them. Check your viewer guides as necessary.

The entire 65-game NFL Network schedule for 2013 is up now at the Preseason Challenge blog. The only source for this advance schedule I have ever been able to find is Dougherty's blog at timesunion.com. Rather than hope he never retires, if you know any other places that reliably publish this schedule in advance, please let me know. It certainly would be nice if freaking NFL Network did it themselves. Just a printable schedule of the air times of all the preseason live games and replays. It's 2013, is that so much to ask?

-$-

RamView, 8/2: Short notes

* RamView is OUT for the Rams FanFest and scrimmage tomorrow. Can't make it there, sorry.

* Additions to yesterday's injury list: Matt Giordano and Zach Potter, both unspecified. They along with everyone else on yesterday's list missed practice Thursday night. Matt Daniels and Lance Kendricks have been working on the side, so they are getting fairly close to returning to full participation.

FanFest injury update: Potter returned to action. He had been out for personal and hamstring reasons. Kendall Langford left practice early Thursday and sat out Friday, but participated Saturday. Giordano is out due to a calf injury and may not be available for Thursday night's game in Cleveland. None of the rest of the last injury list practiced Saturday.

Roster count remains at 89. The Rams website lists 88 but doesn't have Justin Veltung listed yet.

* Just when I started to wonder, Cody Davis has started getting snaps with the second-string defense.

-$-

RamView, 8/1: Injury and RFA odds update

St. Louis Rams

Here's how the Rams stand injury-wise heading into Thursday evening's 5:30 practice. The annual training camp hamstring epidemic has begun:

* Nick Johnson sat out practice Wednesday due to a hamstring injury. Assuming his status is day-to-day.

* Jabara Williams also sat out practice Wednesday due to a hamstring injury. Also figuring he's day-to-day for now.

* A hamstring injury also has Andrew Helmick out; he'll probably miss the first three preseason games based on vague estimates reported so far.

* The latest injured rookie free agent is DT Al Lapuaho, out Wednesday due to a hand injury. I would think that's day-to-day.

* There has been optimism that Matt Daniels (ACL) will be ready to return to the field soon. I'd guess there's a fair chance of seeing him at the Dome practice on Saturday, hopefully sooner.

* Jermelle Cudjo (foot) was only supposed to miss a week when news of his injury originally came out, so I'll put him on "any day now" status like Daniels.

* Lance Kendricks (knee) isn't expected back for 2-3 weeks. More guessing, I'll target him for the third preseason game.


* I'll probably report these for the last time - rookie free agents out for the season: WR C.J. Akins (Achilles), LB Philip Steward (Achilles), OT Braden Brown (back), G Kevin Saia (foot).

* Sammy Brown hasn't practiced since I believe Friday due to a calf injury. That's been a while, so I'd call his availability for practice at the Dome Saturday questionable.

Also questionable for practice at the Dome Saturday: RamView, unfortunately. I'll be lucky enough to get home tonight, as, ironically, my car is on the way down for the count due to the heater core going bad. In August.

* With a week of practice in the books, let's re-check the odds I put on the rookie free agents I got profiles done for. All barely-founded speculation, of course:
- Sean Hooey (25%): improved over this past weekend from what I saw. I think his chances are improving. Have to see him in pads to know better. Right now I think he's practice squad.
- Daren Bates (20%): quiet camp, going to need to hear some special teams noise from him. Chances declining.
- Terrell Brown (1%): good call since he got cut before training camp.
- Benny Cunningham (55%): seems to have a good shot at beating out Terrance Ganaway, so I'll leave his odds there even though he won't need to be "redshirted" like I originally guessed.
- Robert Steeples (35%): has flashed, but his competition's also been very good. Think he's PS right now.
- Cannon Smith (20%): cut before training camp, so now 0%.
- Kevin Saia (20%): injured reserve. I think he could have hung in there a while otherwise.
- Andre Martin (30%): quiet camp, also looking for special teams noise from him. I think Steeples is the best of the RFA DBs in camp. Not sure if anyone else makes the roster or PS.
- Garrett Goebel (10%): upgrade him to 25%. Cudjo injury has improved his chances.
- Phillip Steward (70%): injured reserve. Never practiced.
- Brett Baer (5%): hasn't looked bad but isn't making this team.
- Emory Blake (45%): downgrade to 20%. I like how he plays but his competition is better than I thought it was. Austin Pettis doesn't appear to be in any jeopardy and Andrew Helmick's put together a good case for a spot somewhere. I'd put Helmick at 35% right now, though I never would have had him that high before camp started.
- Gerald Rivers (5%): upgrade him to 35%. I really underestimated a couple of the guys who didn't play as college seniors. Reports on Rivers have been good, and he's certainly putting pressure on Sammy Brown's ailing calf.
- Eric Stevens (10%): blocking's going to have to improve.
- Braden Brown (45%): injured reserve. Never practiced.
- Jonathan Stewart (40%): downgrade to 20%. Steward's injury should have created an opportunity for him, but somebody else is climbing the depth chart faster, and Will Witherspoon also creates a roster spot problem for Jonathan.
- Cody Davis (60%): hasn't been bad, hasn't been as strong as I thought he'd be, either. Matt Giordano's signing drops his odds. Has to shine on special teams. Could be in trouble otherwise depending on how well Matt Daniels comes back. Downgrade to 40%.
- Philip Lutzenkirchen (45%): I've been sold on the guy since I first laid eyes on him Saturday. Practice squad at worst if he can block.
- Ray Ray Armstrong (10%): my biggest miss to be sure. Armstrong has been the strongest of the rookie free agents so far and has been promoted to second-string. Upgrade him to 75%. Looks like he's making the 53-man roster to me; can't see how he doesn't at least make practice squad.

Next year, I take those college safeties who played as glorified linebackers more seriously. Also guys who missed their final season as long as they're exceptional athletes.

-$-