Rams Offseason

Needs

1. Offensive Tackle- The Rams (as it stands) have two decent tackles but when you take a deeper look you see that Orlando Pace is towards the end of his career and has constant injury problems and Alex Barron (while having all of the skills) has major head problems. They need to address this position and replace them with a high level player.

2. MLB- The Rams have decided to move Will Witherspoon back to his best position, WLB. Witherspoon can play at a pro-bowl level their but that now opens a hole again in the middle. The Rams have not had a MLB since Fletcher and will most likely address that through free agency or high in the draft.

3. Strong Safety- The Rams just announced that Corey Chavous has been cut from the team and that leaves another hole on the defense. The Rams could go after James Butler (SS, Giants) who has experience with new Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo but look for them to try and get a younger cheaper one through the draft.

4. Center- The Rams desperately need a center to lead this pitiful offensive line. The Rams had Nic Leckey and Brett Romberg man the position last year but neither are long term options for the team. Romberg would be a good enough backup but should not be starting for them.

5. Cornerback- The Rams are filled with a ton of small, fast, non-tacklers on their roster. Steve Spagnuolo had a bunch of 6’0”s on his team in New York so the Rams will need to address this problem. The Rams could try and address their lack of depth through free agency and try to grab a 2nd or 3rd corner in the draft.

6. Wide Receiver- The Rams in the past few years went from this being the strongest part of their team to one of the most inexperienced. They have some nice players in place but it is likely that Torry Holt has played his last game as a Ram and that they will need to add another wideout through the draft. Michael Crabtree could be a serious consideration.

7. Defensive End- In Spag’s defense, defensive end may be one of the most important positions on the field. The Rams do have a young Chris Long but after that they have an old Leonard Little, an old James Hall and Victor Adeyanju. The Rams need to add more speed and versatility to the position to make this defense work. Now do the Rams go out and be aggressive in free agency and try to grab a Julius Peppers? I doubt that, but look for Spags to find his hidden gem in the middle rounds of the draft.

8. Quarterback- Marc Bulger has left the building… well sort of. He pretty much left his head out of the game last year and looked totally disinterested in anything that was happening. The Rams are stuck with him though for a couple more years but look for them to try and add a veteran through free agency and to draft one as well.

9. SLB- The Rams missed Brandon Chillar more than they thought they would and Quinton Culberson was just not ready to be thrust into the starting position. The Rams will probably try to address this position through free agency since it is a fairly decent year in that category but they could also be overwhelmed by a certain Aaron Curry (SLB/MLB, Wake Forest).

10. Running Back/Fullback- Steven Jackson seems to go down at least once a year so the games that he is not there have been penciled in as an automatic loss (I must point out the ones he has been in the last two years have also been automatic losses but that is a different story). When Jackson is in the game, the Rams are a team with a plan; when he isn’t they looked lost. Also, the Rams need a lead blocker to help clear those holes for Jackson (you know, the way Madison Hedgecock did in Jackson best year to date).

11. Defensive Tackle- Not as important as all of the other positions but the Rams will most likely cut Laroi Glover and Claude Wroten so that leaves them with two DTs on the roster (Adam Carriker and Clifton Ryan). The Rams will most likely address this position both in free agency and through the draft.

Analysis

The Rams are going to have to realize that they are in no position to try and pull an Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins esc turn around. They just do not have enough pieces in place(their depth is atrocious) and they will most like hurt that depth even more by cutting/trading veterans who eat up too much of the cap as it stands now (i.e. Torry Holt, Orlando Pace, etc.). The Rams last year were one of the oldest teams in the league and performed like one of the youngest; they had no discipline what so ever.

There will be some major turnover this offseason and there are only a handful of players that I can guarantee to be safe from anything. The Rams are going towards a youth movement and it could be a rough first year but it is finally easier to trust the people working down at Rams Park. The Rams have hired people that know what they are doing so don’t expect anymore totally useless signings/re-signings. The Rams will no longer be the GSOT but instead a defensive oriented grind them out type team (think NFC East football).

The Rams are going to have to perform a series of precise and crucial cuts to this team to get it in the proper position to sign some free agents and also to be able to sign their own players (OJ Atogwe and Ron Bartell) along with the money they will need to sign their draftees. Billy Devaney and Kevin Demoff will really have to do a fantastic job to get this organization back on track and in good cap standing.

Cuts

• Corey Chavous (SS)
• Pisa Tinoisamoa (WLB)
• Laroi Glover (DT)
• Trent Green (QB)
• Claude Wroten (DT)
• Dante Hall (WR)

Signings

• Bart Scott (LB, Baltimore)
• Leigh Bodden (CB, Detroit)
• Rocky Bernard (DT, Seattle)
• J.J. Arrington (RB, Arizona)

Draft

Before the [very] mock draft, it needs to be explained that the Rams need to go after football players… not measureables. They need guys that will want to be a part of this rebuilding process and if they can do this, the turn around will happen sooner rather than later. So look for no disputed draft picks in regard to character issues and more towards guys that are willing to put the time on the field and in the meetings to be better.


1. Jason Smith (OT, Baylor) – The Rams grab the best pure athlete at the Offensive Tackle position in Jason Smith (personally, the best overall as well). He has quick feet which allows for him to get back into his stance and also is better run blocker than people give him credit for. Smith would come in and start at RT from day one and give the Rams some much needed “will to play”.

The Rams have been hurt so much over the last few years by the dumb mental mistakes of none other than Alex Barron. If they can get good smart play out of Smith, then they will be happy after his first year in the league because then he would most likely move to the left side to replace Pace and would be a mainstay on the line for a long time.

2. Alex Mack (C, California) – The Rams have not really had a true center in quite sometime. Sure, they had Andy McCollum but he was originally an OG so even he was out of position. They had the unsuccessful (which I could have told you before they tried it) experiment of Nic Leckey and that led to Brett Romberg playing the last couple of weeks.

Alex Mack is the best pure center in this draft and (like Smith) would come in and start from Day 1. He would give the Rams the intelligence they need at the center position and the line would immediately be better because of it. He has good push and feet and should be able to handle the speedier inside guys that he would see from the Seahawks and Cardinals. He is also strong enough to handle the bigger NT in the 49ers 3-4 defense.

3. Patrick Chung (SS, Oregon) – Corey Chavous was not the answer in St. Louis and they need to infuse some young talent to the position. Again, this is a position where the Rams have been at a loss for several years (ever since Archuleta left). Chung is a big hitter that can also handle his duties in coverage.

Chung would be a nice compliment to Atogwe since he can make the open field tackle and also “mark his turf” with the big hits against opposing teams daring to go over the middle. Chung would immediately start for this Rams team (I know, I am saying that a lot so far, but that just says how bad they have been).

4. Matt Shaughnessy (DE, Wisconsin) – This is the first pick where the player would not actually start right away. Shaughnessy would be more for situational pass rushing duties but that is fine because the Rams need to generate some type of pressure, no matter what form it comes in. Shaughnessy reminds me of a Jason Taylor type that, even though tall, long and extremely skinny, can eventually be an every down edge rusher.

The Rams need to find ways to get to the QB this year for their defense to work and that means they go after situational guys instead of trying to find that one amazing guy right away (Julius Peppers, Mario Williams type). If the Rams can get that type of player, the defense in the STL will look better than in years past.

5. Curtis Painter (QB, Purdue) – Marc Bulger has lost his edge, his will to play, his fire, his balls pretty much. He doesn’t seem to care anymore. Maybe Spags can light a fire under him but it needs to happen this year because if it doesn’t, he won’t be a Ram much longer. In this new Rams offense (West Coast), it will be more QB friendly so that could help (more short, quick passes)

Painter, when you first see him, seems like he should go in the first 2 rounds. But, that is the problem, people actually saw him this year because he was awful in that disappointing senior year (can you say déjà vu, Kyle Orton). Painter has the skills to make all of the throws (accurately I might add). He (in my opinion) could be like a Eli Manning or Marc Bulger (of old that is) and not be the main guy but be able to distribute all over.

6. Domonique Johnson (CB, Jackson St.) – The Rams need to get bigger and more athletic at the cornerback position. They (in no particular order) have Tye Hill (5’9”), Ricky Manning Jr. (5’9”), Jonathon Wade (5’10”) and Jason Craft (5’10”). None big corners or physical enough for Spags defense (Manning is pretty physical but I doubt he sticks).

The point is the Rams need to get bigger all over but especially at corner. Johnson is a big (6’1”) and fast (rumored to run 4.38) and would be a nice project to fit into the Rams defense. The Rams already have Justin King (who could be really good in my opinion). If the Rams could have a rotation of Bartell, Bodden, King, and Johnson they would be good to go (because, they are good in man-to-man).

7. Asaph Schwapp (FB, Notre Dame) – The Rams, unbeknown to anyone, released their starting FB two seasons ago and have no been the same running team since. Madison Hedgecock went on to do bigger and better things (lead block for the Giants, who just happened to find their running game and win the Super Bowl).

The Rams could either draft a guy or try to steal a guy like Leonard Weaver from Seattle. I doubt that the Seahawks let Weaver slip away though so count on the Rams to try to grab somebody in the 7th (remember, the Rams will most likely get compensatory picks in the 7th). Schwapp is a big, space eating full back that will not do anything fancy (like catching balls or running) but he can lay a lick on somebody for sure.

Hey man, great job on this list. Great writing on your part, i wish that we could talk some more about the rams. Im starting to wonder what our team would be like if we drafted Michael Crabtree. Ill post my rams mock soon

1st. Michael Crabtree: WR will become a need when we realese Holt
2nd: Mack, now we address oline
3rd: Rhett Bomar: Qb of the future
4th: William Moore SS

Thank you for the kind words... And yes, we need to have more discussion about the Rams on this board... Once we edge towards Feb. 27, I am sure it will pick up

One of the keys to how this off-season unfolds will be determined by Torry Holt and Orlando Pace (do we trade them? do we release them? do we restructure their contracts?). Once those are answered, it will be much easier to predict and foresee what happens.

Antonio Pittman has a lot of potential at RB so I think we could stick with him as our #2 HB. He has looked very good at times. Right now I think we'd be better off going for an interior OL in FA and not signing Rocky Bernard as Fili Moala and Sen'Derrick Marks will be there in the 2nd.(likely) And if not, Myron Pryor should be there in the 3rd. I like all 3 of those DTs.

And lets not forget about my boy Leonard...he did a solid job filling in for SJax with 2 bum arms and imagine him when healthey in a eagles like offensive system, i think he will do a cracker jack job

To answer both replies:

Mr.Knowitall... I think if the Rams go after a guy like Jason Brown (C, Baltimore), then ok. If they go after a guy like Matt Birk (C, Minnesota), I say pass. The Rams need to get younger and have people in the prime or beginning of their career, not ones at the end. I also like the three DTs that you mentioned but I don't think I would draft one in the 2nd.

Ramsdraft... Not a huge fan as BL as #2 or as #1 FB but I think his proper role would be (and this is a new kind of concept) a change of pace FB. If you get a big guy in here that only blocks, then you can sub in Leonard who is not a RB in my mind. He can though be versatile in the passing game (screens and such) in the WCO from the FB position.

Agreed. I am not too much of a Leonard fan either as a RB. And I'd be fine with Jason Brown and personally I really like Moala as a 2nd round pick especially with Spags ability with super talented DTs. If any remember, CDS had Moala as a top 5 or 10 player at the start of this season but questions about his motor and effort have dropped him way down. Another guy to consider if he falls to our pick is Michael Johnson in the 2nd. Great prospect, my favorite DE in this draft. He could give us that amazing athlete on the other side of the line from the all around excellent player in Long.

I agree that Michael Johnson intriques me as well... He has the athletic ability to be a very good pass rusher in this league but it always scares me when a player does not always translate that ability onto the field... with that said though I think if he were there at the top of the 2nd, the Rams would have to be very tempted to grab him

Actually it did start to come out last season at GT but I agree he has the potential for so much more and Spags seems to know how to bring out the potential on DEs.

I have a feeling Rak is going to dominate the combine... I say he'll be a top 7 pick at the least.

IMO, Michael Johnson is the most OVER Rated player in the draft, he will get drafted high, BUT WILL NOT translate well into the league. TAKE MY WORD ON IT!