NFL chat with Jim Thomas (selections)

from NFL chat with Jim Thomas

http://sports.live.stltoday.com/Event/NFL_chat_with_Jim_Thomas_65?Page=2

Last year, I made it to the first weekend of Rams camp and Rams home opener. But planning no trips out there this year

I believe the playoff drought continues in 2017. I think the offensive line should be better, with the addition of Whitworth. I’d like to think that Gurley will bounce back. But there are too many unproven parts at wide receiver, tight end, and quarterback. Not sure about the defense, either, with the switch to the 3-4.

Trumane Johnson is a pretty good player, who I think played with more confidence and more aggressiveness last season. I think other teams started throwing away from him last year. I think he likes playing in California (believe he’s from northern Cal.) but I think we’re talking about $9 million plus per year to keep him. Just the cost of doing business these days in the NFL

I am intrigued by McVay. Based on last year, I don’t see the magic in Goff. But we’ll see. He’s got plenty of coaches around him with experience working with QBs, which wasn’t the case with the last staff. I think Goff would really have to struggle this year for the Rams to give up on him so early.

I think everyone assumes [that if Cousins does not stay in Washington] he would join Shanahan in San Francisco. I put Cousins in that Flacco, Smith area. Good to very good, but not quite elite. You certainly could do worse but is he that transformational quarterback? Probably not. But there’s probably only a half-dozen true franchise style QBs in the league at any one time. It’s one thing to say you can do better. But then you actually have to go out and find someone who’s better. Not so easy. I think that’s where Washington is at with Cousins.

Don’t know if it was merely a coincidence, but almost all of Saffold’s injuries seemed to occur while playing left tackle. The Rams’ thought Saffold’s strength and mobility could be best used at guard. The Rams’ now-former line coach, Paul Boudreau, once told me they liked Saffold best at guard, followed by left tackle, and then right tackle third.

Demoff is riding high at the moment – and has never been more powerful in the organization – after helping to steer the team out of St. Louis and into the land of milk & honey, and greater profits.

I’ve heard of some owners who realize that Kroenke may not have what it takes to run a franchise that’s capable of winning consistently.

The Rams and the league would’ve been better served had they just said something to this effect to St. Louis: “We have a chance to make a lot of money and build a palace of a stadium in LA, so you better wow us with a proposal are we’re leaving St. Louis.” Instead, we got this charade of focus groups, town hall meetings, relocation guidelines. I think the NFL could make this go away if they simply wrote a check for say $20 million. That would cover the $17 million that the St. Louis people say they lost in their failed stadium bid, and then some. It’s a drop in the bucket for the NFL, but maybe they don’t want to set that precedent.

Players are eligible for the 10-member practice squad if they don’t have an accrued season on an NFL roster. An accrued season is when a player is on the active roster for six regular-season games. So yes, if you played in a game last year, but were not on the active roster for six regular-season games, you’re practice squad eligible. ALSO: you can have 2 exceptions to this rule on the 10-man practice squad and keep two players with no more than two accrued seasons.