Per Jim Thomas and Howard Balzer tweets:
The Rams have signed WR Mark Clayton and DT Marlon Favorite.
CB Jerome Murphy has been placed on injured reserve. His season is over.
CB Marquis Johnson goes on PUP. Wait a minute, wasn't he already there? I'll have to wait for the full story on that. I think it makes him eligible to come back after week 6.
Favorite was on the Rams practice squad for about a week early in the Spagnuolo era. I can't say I expect him to make a major run at a main roster position. He just spent the last month in Philadelphia's training camp, so I'm thinking brain dump.
I'm NOT going back and re-editing my ill-fated Road to 53 post from this morning. Again, I think Favorite's just going to be an in-and-out. And actually, at this second, we don't know if they haven't just signed Clayton so they can PUP him and bring him back later in the season. That's probably what they'll have to do. That gives them more wiggle room to figure out where they are with guys like Austin Pettis.
I'll give Tim Atchison the roster spot I had been holding for Murphy, and bump Chase Reynolds up to the PS slot I had Atchison in. I also had Johnson in a PS slot and have no idea who to put there now. I'll say Jeremy McGee.
-$-
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Wide receiver: resume the chaos
Jim Thomas has just tweeted that the Rams have re-signed Mark Clayton.
Talk about a last-second curveball. Initial thoughts, since that's all I have time for:
- Danario Alexander is either doomed or they're going to find a way to stash him on IR. How many injured WRs do you want to keep on your active roster, anyway? Clayton recovering, but not chronically injured > DX's recurring knee problem.
- Chances just shot up that the Rams might try to move Austin Pettis to the practice squad.
- Mardy Gilyard and Dominique Curry should have a fierce battle on special teams tomorrow night.
The Rams have to cut a player to bring Clayton back but Thomas hasn't reported that move yet. I doubt it will be a wide receiver; most of the other positions have a player or two that could be cut without interfering with tomorrow night's game plan much.
-$-
Talk about a last-second curveball. Initial thoughts, since that's all I have time for:
- Danario Alexander is either doomed or they're going to find a way to stash him on IR. How many injured WRs do you want to keep on your active roster, anyway? Clayton recovering, but not chronically injured > DX's recurring knee problem.
- Chances just shot up that the Rams might try to move Austin Pettis to the practice squad.
- Mardy Gilyard and Dominique Curry should have a fierce battle on special teams tomorrow night.
The Rams have to cut a player to bring Clayton back but Thomas hasn't reported that move yet. I doubt it will be a wide receiver; most of the other positions have a player or two that could be cut without interfering with tomorrow night's game plan much.
-$-
Quick injury report, 8/31
James Laurinaitis and Al Harris returned to practice yesterday. Laurinaitis will be a game-time decision tomorrow night.
Fred Robbins, Drew Miller and Keith Toston were all limited practice participants.
Michael Ohihurtmyknee isn't even traveling to Jacksonville tomorrow night. That's probably a good idea. He'd probably hurt himself getting off the plane or adjusting his seat or something.
-$-
Fred Robbins, Drew Miller and Keith Toston were all limited practice participants.
Michael Ohihurtmyknee isn't even traveling to Jacksonville tomorrow night. That's probably a good idea. He'd probably hurt himself getting off the plane or adjusting his seat or something.
-$-
The road to 53, 8/31
The road to 53 necessarily takes its route through the road to 80. Now that the Rams have completed their first round of roster cuts, it's time to guess again how their roster may shape up when it's been trimmed down to its final size:
QB (2): no change. Bradford and Feeley to main roster, Lewis to PS (1).
RB (4): no change. Jackson, Cadillac, Norwood and Britt Miller to main roster. Keith Toston picked a hell of a bad time to get injured.
PRACTICE SQUAD: BEN GUIDUGLI (2). Rams need to make this happen. If not for my irrational Guidugli fandom, then because they could stand to stash some depth at FB/TE, especially as well as he's played.
TE (3): Kendricks, Ohihurtmyknee, and Onobun to the main roster. I believe Billy Bajema's a cut now. On one hand, you could keep him as insurance against the perpetually injured Ohihurtmyknee; on the other, Miller could probably step in at blocking TE if needed.
OL (8): no change. Saffold, Bell, Jason Brown, Harvey Dahl, Smith, Goldberg, Foster and Ojinnaka to the main roster. Steve Spagnuolo is pretty insistent about only wanting to keep eight. Hank Fraley better have a monster game in Jacksonville, while Drew Miller's ill-timed injury seems to have done him in.
PS: Ryan McKee (3), Kevin Hughes (4). I don't think Miller is eligible for PS any more. I also bumped Randall Hunt for Hughes, figuring a tackle is more valuable than a guard. Sorry, all you guards out there.
Specialists (3): Donnie Jones, Josh Brown, Jake McQuaide. Dibs on "Jake McQuaide" as the name of the main character if I ever write a noire '50s detective novel.
DL (9): Long, Hall, Quinn, Sims, Selvie at DE; Robbins, Bannan, Muir, Gary Gibson at DT. Gibson's been ahead of Darell Dorell Scott on the depth chart the whole time they've both been on the team. Selvie's winning DE5 51%-49% over C.J. Ah You right now, since I assume he's cheaper, and I've never considered Ah You a good run defender.
PS: Damario Ambrose (5). A mild upset, but he's a prototype Spagnuolo DE.
LB (7): Laurinaitis, Poppinga, Leber, Kehl, Chamberlain, Jabara Williams, Josh Hull. Kehl impressed me last week in Kansas City, plus they like him on special teams. Zach Diles has had a mighty struggle up the depth chart, and right now, Hull is their best backup to Laurinaitis, whose pectoreal injury is worth insuring. Disappointing as it is for me to call it, I think Diles is more of a miss now than a hit.
DB (10): CB: Bartell, Fletcher, Al Harris, Justin King, Jerome Murphy.
S: Mikell, Stewart, Craig Dahl, Jermale Hines, Jonathan Nelson.
My mind still very subject to change on these. DBs picked up roster spots I originally had at TE and DL. I've seen the point, a good one, made frequently that Murphy doesn't need to be IR'ed, that he's due to come back the Rams' bye week. Tim Atchison could still win a job in Jacksonville imo, but he had some bad moments in Kansas City, so I put Justin King back in. Rookie safeties Hines and Nelson replace James Butler. There's really little point having him on the roster blocking players on the way up.
Practice squad: Atchison (6), Marquis Johnson (7). Note: I have little understanding whatsoever of the practice squad eligibility rules; Johnson may not be eligible. Mike Sando had a post regarding PS eligibility last year but I haven't seen this year's version.
And for the big finish:
WR (7): Amendola, Brandon Gibson, Sims-Walker, Salas, Pettis, Avery, Curry.
Danario Alexander is definitely on the outside looking in after a one-catch, three-yard game in Kansas City, and, his knees. Curry, imo, is a better pick to be an impact special teams player than Mardy Gilyard, so I'll continue to leave Gilyard out. It certainly is a close call, though.
PS: Greg Mathews (8).
Obviously tomorrow night's game can make a big difference for several or more players. Sam Bradford will be in flip-flops by the second quarter, but the game will still merit watching.
-$-
QB (2): no change. Bradford and Feeley to main roster, Lewis to PS (1).
RB (4): no change. Jackson, Cadillac, Norwood and Britt Miller to main roster. Keith Toston picked a hell of a bad time to get injured.
PRACTICE SQUAD: BEN GUIDUGLI (2). Rams need to make this happen. If not for my irrational Guidugli fandom, then because they could stand to stash some depth at FB/TE, especially as well as he's played.
TE (3): Kendricks, Ohihurtmyknee, and Onobun to the main roster. I believe Billy Bajema's a cut now. On one hand, you could keep him as insurance against the perpetually injured Ohihurtmyknee; on the other, Miller could probably step in at blocking TE if needed.
OL (8): no change. Saffold, Bell, Jason Brown, Harvey Dahl, Smith, Goldberg, Foster and Ojinnaka to the main roster. Steve Spagnuolo is pretty insistent about only wanting to keep eight. Hank Fraley better have a monster game in Jacksonville, while Drew Miller's ill-timed injury seems to have done him in.
PS: Ryan McKee (3), Kevin Hughes (4). I don't think Miller is eligible for PS any more. I also bumped Randall Hunt for Hughes, figuring a tackle is more valuable than a guard. Sorry, all you guards out there.
Specialists (3): Donnie Jones, Josh Brown, Jake McQuaide. Dibs on "Jake McQuaide" as the name of the main character if I ever write a noire '50s detective novel.
DL (9): Long, Hall, Quinn, Sims, Selvie at DE; Robbins, Bannan, Muir, Gary Gibson at DT. Gibson's been ahead of Darell Dorell Scott on the depth chart the whole time they've both been on the team. Selvie's winning DE5 51%-49% over C.J. Ah You right now, since I assume he's cheaper, and I've never considered Ah You a good run defender.
PS: Damario Ambrose (5). A mild upset, but he's a prototype Spagnuolo DE.
LB (7): Laurinaitis, Poppinga, Leber, Kehl, Chamberlain, Jabara Williams, Josh Hull. Kehl impressed me last week in Kansas City, plus they like him on special teams. Zach Diles has had a mighty struggle up the depth chart, and right now, Hull is their best backup to Laurinaitis, whose pectoreal injury is worth insuring. Disappointing as it is for me to call it, I think Diles is more of a miss now than a hit.
DB (10): CB: Bartell, Fletcher, Al Harris, Justin King, Jerome Murphy.
S: Mikell, Stewart, Craig Dahl, Jermale Hines, Jonathan Nelson.
My mind still very subject to change on these. DBs picked up roster spots I originally had at TE and DL. I've seen the point, a good one, made frequently that Murphy doesn't need to be IR'ed, that he's due to come back the Rams' bye week. Tim Atchison could still win a job in Jacksonville imo, but he had some bad moments in Kansas City, so I put Justin King back in. Rookie safeties Hines and Nelson replace James Butler. There's really little point having him on the roster blocking players on the way up.
Practice squad: Atchison (6), Marquis Johnson (7). Note: I have little understanding whatsoever of the practice squad eligibility rules; Johnson may not be eligible. Mike Sando had a post regarding PS eligibility last year but I haven't seen this year's version.
And for the big finish:
WR (7): Amendola, Brandon Gibson, Sims-Walker, Salas, Pettis, Avery, Curry.
Danario Alexander is definitely on the outside looking in after a one-catch, three-yard game in Kansas City, and, his knees. Curry, imo, is a better pick to be an impact special teams player than Mardy Gilyard, so I'll continue to leave Gilyard out. It certainly is a close call, though.
PS: Greg Mathews (8).
Obviously tomorrow night's game can make a big difference for several or more players. Sam Bradford will be in flip-flops by the second quarter, but the game will still merit watching.
-$-
Andrew Hawkins bouncing back
Andrew Hawkins was one of the first players the Rams cut in training camp this year. You can't even say he got a "cup of coffee" here in St. Louis. It was more like a shot glass. Hawkins showed hands of glue in receiving drills, but when he got a tryout at returning punts at the end of practice, he muffed nearly every single one. The Rams let him go after one day. One practice. Hawkins had been on two championship teams in the CFL, but his NFL dream looked like it was abruptly over. He'd been in NFL minicamps since 2008; he even tried to win a Cowboys training camp invite on the reality show 4th and Long (he was runner-up). He had to be running out of chances.
Luckily for Hawkins, his story didn't end here. He'd tried out in Cincinnati before coming to the Rams, and Marvin Lewis had coached his brother Artrell, so it was only natural for the Bengals to put a claim in on Hawkins when they saw his name hit the waiver wire. As the end of this post on the Bengals' website reports, Hawkins' second act this summer is going a lot better than his first. He's kept working hard, hasn't quit, and he's impressed the Bengals' special teams coach.
I'd like to think Rams fans helped Hawkins along on his journey. A couple hundred of us watched him muff one punt after another back on the 30th of July, and we could feel and see his dream slipping away from him. When he finally caught one, he got a cheer from the fans. Not the jeer he'd probably have gotten in New York or Philadelphia, this was the kind of cheer you'd give your kids or your kid brother to encourage them not to quit. Well, whether it had anything to do with us or not, Hawkins didn't quit.
We'll be glued to the Rams' efforts in Jacksonville tomorrow night, but it'll also be a big night for Hawkins and a thousand players like him around the league. The last chance to impress the coaches and make an NFL roster, possibly the last chance they'll ever get to fulfill that dream.
Tomorrow night in Indianapolis, the Bengals are going to have Andrew Hawkins back to return punts. Go get 'em, kid.
-$-
Luckily for Hawkins, his story didn't end here. He'd tried out in Cincinnati before coming to the Rams, and Marvin Lewis had coached his brother Artrell, so it was only natural for the Bengals to put a claim in on Hawkins when they saw his name hit the waiver wire. As the end of this post on the Bengals' website reports, Hawkins' second act this summer is going a lot better than his first. He's kept working hard, hasn't quit, and he's impressed the Bengals' special teams coach.
I'd like to think Rams fans helped Hawkins along on his journey. A couple hundred of us watched him muff one punt after another back on the 30th of July, and we could feel and see his dream slipping away from him. When he finally caught one, he got a cheer from the fans. Not the jeer he'd probably have gotten in New York or Philadelphia, this was the kind of cheer you'd give your kids or your kid brother to encourage them not to quit. Well, whether it had anything to do with us or not, Hawkins didn't quit.
We'll be glued to the Rams' efforts in Jacksonville tomorrow night, but it'll also be a big night for Hawkins and a thousand players like him around the league. The last chance to impress the coaches and make an NFL roster, possibly the last chance they'll ever get to fulfill that dream.
Tomorrow night in Indianapolis, the Bengals are going to have Andrew Hawkins back to return punts. Go get 'em, kid.
-$-
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Rams waive three
The Rams are down to the 80-man roster limit. All three players released today were waived injured:
DB Mikail Baker
DT Jermelle Cudjo
DB Dionte Dinkins
Baker was the first of the Rams' three seventh-round draft picks this year.
Wow, I went a whole 3 for 9 predicting the first round of cuts. I should be able to top that after Thursday night's game; the Rams have to cut 27 additional players by Saturday.
-$-
DB Mikail Baker
DT Jermelle Cudjo
DB Dionte Dinkins
Baker was the first of the Rams' three seventh-round draft picks this year.
Wow, I went a whole 3 for 9 predicting the first round of cuts. I should be able to top that after Thursday night's game; the Rams have to cut 27 additional players by Saturday.
-$-
Rams report, 8/30
* Injury list as of the end of practice Monday:
- Al Harris is the only new player on the list, due to swelling in his knee. Day-to-day.
Repeaters:
- Mikail Baker, hamstring of DEATH. Was reported at one time as a knee injury, but that was likely a typo. It's been a hamstring injury all training camp.
- Jermelle Cudjo, back
- Dionte Dinkins, high ankle sprain, out 2-4 weeks
- Marquis Johnson, knee/shoulder, on PUP list
- James Laurinaitis, pectoreal. Starting to worry about this one. Day-to-day.
- Drew Miller, ankle
- Jerome Murphy, broken ankle, out for season
- Michael Ohihurtmyknee, calf strain, out at least another week.
- Fred Robbins, back. Really starting to worry about this one.
- Keith Toston, quad
Practiced Monday, coming off the injury list:
Brandon Gibson
Ben Leber
* No word yet on the rest of the Rams' moves today to get down to the 80-man roster limit.
Carolina, though, has cut Chris Massey, just a few days after signing him.
-$-
- Al Harris is the only new player on the list, due to swelling in his knee. Day-to-day.
Repeaters:
- Mikail Baker, hamstring of DEATH. Was reported at one time as a knee injury, but that was likely a typo. It's been a hamstring injury all training camp.
- Jermelle Cudjo, back
- Dionte Dinkins, high ankle sprain, out 2-4 weeks
- Marquis Johnson, knee/shoulder, on PUP list
- James Laurinaitis, pectoreal. Starting to worry about this one. Day-to-day.
- Drew Miller, ankle
- Jerome Murphy, broken ankle, out for season
- Michael Ohihurtmyknee, calf strain, out at least another week.
- Fred Robbins, back. Really starting to worry about this one.
- Keith Toston, quad
Practiced Monday, coming off the injury list:
Brandon Gibson
Ben Leber
* No word yet on the rest of the Rams' moves today to get down to the 80-man roster limit.
Carolina, though, has cut Chris Massey, just a few days after signing him.
-$-
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