Monitoring Rams' Final Position Battles/Wagoner

Monitoring Rams’ final position battles
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/11008/monitoring-rams-final-position-battles

EARTH CITY, Mo. — Only the St. Louis Rams know exactly how many players they plan to keep at each position. Therein lies the difficulty in attempting to project a 53-man roster.

But that doesn’t mean we can’t take a quick spin around the roster and offer a look at some of the decisions the Rams might have to make when Saturday’s 4 p.m. ET final cuts arrive.

For the players listed here, the opportunity to make a strong closing argument comes Thursday night against Miami in the preseason finale.

Quarterback: The question here is whether the Rams will keep two or three. Austin Davis is probably locked in as the second quarterback, at least until or if the Rams find a veteran option they prefer after the available signal-callers crystallize. Rookie Garrett Gilbert hasn’t done much in preseason and would stick mostly because the Rams wouldn’t want to be short in the event of an injury. But they could probably get Gilbert through to the practice squad with relative ease.

Running back: There are three locked in here, leaving two questions: will the Rams keep four or five? And if not, who wins between Chase Reynolds and Trey Watts? Reynolds is a core special teams player but Watts is working on that part of his game and is a better, more versatile contributor to the offense. Keep an eye on Watts against the Dolphins.

Tight end: The Rams will probably keep four here and it’s no secret the battle likely comes down to blocking specialist Justice Cunningham vs. pass catcher Alex Bayer. This is truly a “pick your flavor” situation. Cunningham might have a slight edge because his blocking can also translate to special teams but a big performance from Bayer against Miami might make it tough to allow him to leave.

Offensive line: It’s not unusual for the Rams to keep as many as 10 here, however, it doesn’t look like there are that many worthy this year. The Rams have more positional versatility with guys who will make the team, which might mean they only keep eight or nine. There are probably seven spots accounted for at this point. The battle for the final spots will likely come down to picking one or two from a group that includes Brandon Washington, Travis Bond, Mike Person and Sean Hooey. They also must figure out what to do with Barrett Jones, who is out with a back injury and doesn’t have a timetable for return.

Defensive end: This one is well documented. The Rams will keep nine, perhaps even 10 though nine seems more likely. It’s Michael Sam vs. Ethan Westbrooks. It’s hard to envision a scenario in which Westbrooks doesn’t make the team, especially given his versatility. Sam has been more productive as a pass-rusher in preseason games but doesn’t have the ability to move along the line. One thing to keep an eye on in Miami is whether current backups Eugene Sims and William Hayes play. Sims hasn’t practiced this week and Hayes still hasn’t played in a preseason game. If those injuries are a little more extensive, maybe it opens the door for both Sam and Westbrooks.

Linebacker: There are five in solid shape here but the Rams don’t really have a sixth who has stood out. Phillip Steward has played a lot on special teams and that could be a sign he’s well positioned, but don’t be surprised if the Rams go searching for a sixth linebacker on the waiver wire. Aaron Hill, Lawrence Wilson and Etienne Sabino will get one more shot to prove they’re worthy.

Cornerback: With starter Trumaine Johnson expected to miss four-to-six weeks with a sprained MCL, the Rams will likely have to keep an extra body here behind Janoris Jenkins, Lamarcus Joyner, Brandon McGee and E.J. Gaines. That leaves a fight amongst Marcus Roberson, Greg Reid and Darren Woodard for a potential sixth spot. Roberson is the best in coverage, Reid the best tackler and Woodard something of a happy medium. Keep an eye outside the hashes in the second half Thursday night.