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May 2, 2015 at 7:01 pm #23771
znModeratorSt. Louis Rams draft wrap-up
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/18131/st-louis-rams-draft-wrap-up
EARTH CITY, MO. — A wrap-up of the St. Louis Rams’ draft.
Best move: Fully committing to an offensive identity. Whether or not you agree with Rams coach Jeff Fisher’s offensive philosophy doesn’t really matter much at this point. Fisher has long since made it clear that he wants to run the ball and run it a lot. Some would argue that it’s an antiquated way to approach the game and that argument has some merit. But at least Fisher and Co. have finally devoted themselves to being good at it by investing heavily in seeing that philosophy through. They spent their first seven picks on offense, including four offensive linemen and a potential star at running back. The simple act of having a clear direction is an upgrade for this offense.
Riskiest move: Taking running back Todd Gurley with the No. 10 selection. There’s little doubt that Gurley is a top-10 talent, even as a running back in a quarterback-driven league. But Gurley is coming off a torn left anterior cruciate ligament and nobody knows exactly when he’s going to be ready to play again. Plenty of players have recovered from ACLs and gone on to long and prosperous careers, but the risk factor for a running back who is constantly taking hits is much higher. I absolutely understand why the Rams took Gurley because he gives them the potential game-changing back to make Jeff Fisher’s offense what it wants to be, but if he never fully returns to form, it will be a costly miss.
Most surprising move: Opting for Sean Mannion over other quarterback options. It was clear the Rams had interest in Mannion and signals from the organization were that — depending on who you ask — he was favored by some, and Garrett Grayson and Bryce Petty were by others. There had been a lot of buzz connecting the Rams and Petty, but the Rams went for Mannion with Petty on the board when the team picked at No. 89 in the third round. The reason? Mannion offered a combination of physical tools and pro-style experience that boosted him above the rest. It’s not a major surprise the Rams went with Mannion, but, really, the Rams didn’t offer many surprises in this draft at all.
File it away: Looking for this year’s late-round sleeper who might have a chance to surprise like cornerback E.J. Gaines did? Try seventh-round defensive end Martin Ifedi. Ifedi is 6-foot-3, 275 pounds. He managed to set Memphis’ career sack record (22.5) and finished with 36 tackles for loss despite being slowed by a knee injury. That isn’t to say Ifedi will be able to produce right away but given a year or two, he might develop into a useful piece of the defensive line.
My take: This was mostly a meat and potatoes draft in which the Rams devoted all of their most valuable resources to an offense that needed it. The offensive line received much-needed reinforcements and a potential star running back could help the running game finally take off. Aside from Gurley, there’s not much sizzle here but the Rams at least did the right thing by picking a path and sticking with it for the entirety of the draft. Thumbs up
May 2, 2015 at 7:24 pm #23773znModeratorRams’ war-room drama reveals team on a familiar track
By Michael Silver
EARTH CITY, Mo. — At certain uncomfortable junctures throughout his 20-year career as an NFL head coach, Jeff Fisher has had to adapt to circumstance, reshaping his offense as a pass-heavy attack, or one that takes advantage of a quarterback’s mobility.
Yet the times when Fisher’s teams have been most effective — the times when the man with the sublime ‘stache has been most at peace with his situation — have coincided with the presence of an elite, eminently productive running back. When Fisher coached the Titans to Super Bowl XXXIV, and later to the 2002 AFC Championship Game, the ultra-physical Eddie George was the offensive focal point. Tennessee’s romp to the 2008 AFC South title, meanwhile, was fueled by the emergence of rookie speedster Chris Johnson.
And Friday night, for the first time in the three years and three months that have passed since Fisher took over as the St. Louis Rams’ coach and top football decision-maker, he exuded a deep-seated satisfaction impossible to ignore — that of a man who feels his team will play football the way he prefers it, with no ambiguity about its mission.
As he sat in his office following the second day of the 2015 NFL Draft, leaning back in a cushy chair while sipping a glass of bold red wine, Fisher didn’t shy away from statements that might sound like hyperbole to some: Former Georgia star Todd Gurley, the swift and powerful runner he’d taken 10th overall in Thursday night’s first round, is “a once-every-10-year back” who, along with the upgrades made to the offensive line in Rounds 2 (former Wisconsin tackle Rob Havenstein) and 3 (ex-Louisville guard Jamon Brown), will change the Rams’ offensive identity.
“We’re trying to become more physical on offense,” Fisher said. “We did that today. We got two guys who are gonna go downfield and finish blocks — and clear space for that guy we got last night to do what he does. It’s not complicated: Hand it off, run play-action passes, get the ball out quickly, keep your defense off the field.”
Or, as secondary coach and former collision-happy NFL safety Chuck Cecil had put it about 20 minutes earlier: “We’re gonna be going old-school on ’em.”
Fisher has, along with general manager Les Snead, already assembled an aggressive defense — led by a star-studded stable of pass rushers and run-lane-cloggers up front. The coach believes he now has a suitably relentless offense to go with it. With a new quarterback in Nick Foles, acquired in a March trade with the Philadelphia Eagles for injury-prone passer Sam Bradford, Fisher isn’t looking for big fantasy numbers or cutting-edge passing concepts. Rather, he and newly promoted offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti, who replaced Brian Schottenheimer after the 2014 season, will be quite comfortable handing the rock to Gurley and letting him grind his way down the field.
On paper, the Rams are bucking a trend. As the NFL becomes increasingly pass-centric, teams consistently unearth short-term answers at running back from later rounds and productive veterans struggle to get lucrative, long-term contracts, the Death of the Marquee Running Back has become a trendy talking point. In fairness, it’s not just talk: No running back was selected in the first round of the 2013 or 2014 drafts, with Gurley and Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon (who went 15th overall to the Chargers) breaking the ignominious streak on Thursday.
Going all-in with Gurley, who tore his ACL last November, could be construed as a gamble. When I interviewed the newest Rams runner Friday on NFL Network, he expressed confidence in his recovery, and his new bosses obviously feel similarly. Fisher and Snead locked in on him as their top target midway through April and sweated out the draft’s first nine picks before happily pouncing.
A couple of weeks before the draft, in an act that was part superstition and part subterfuge, Fisher moved Gurley’s player card well below his actual slot on the draft board in the team’s war room, placing him in the second-round range. “At that point,” Fisher said, “(our interest in him) was on a need-to-know basis.”
That set up quite the draft-room scene Thursday: After the Giants selected Miami guard Ereck Flowers with the ninth overall pick, Fisher instructed Sean Gustus, the area scout who’d given the initial grade on Gurley, to put the magnetic card “where it really belongs” on the draft board.
Gustus, Fisher recalled, “tried to stick it on the ceiling,” as the scouts, coaches and other team officials in his midst broke out in celebratory laughter.
St. Louis Rams’ 2015 NFL DraftRound 1, Pick 10 (10): Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia
Round 2, Pick 25 (57): Rob Havenstein, OT, Wisconsin
Round 3, Pick 8 (72): Jamon Brown, OT, Louisville
Round 3, Pick 25 (89): Sean Mannion, QB, Oregon St.
Round 4, Pick 20 (119): Andrew Donnal, OT, Iowa
Round 6, Pick 25 (201): Bud Sasser, WR, Missouri
Round 6, Pick 39 (215): Cody Wichmann, G, Fresno St.
Round 7, Pick 7 (224): Bryce Hager, ILB, Baylor
Round 7, Pick 10 (227): Martin Ifedi, DE, Memphis
Predictably, there were no dissenters. Snead, who’d been speaking glowingly about Gurley since the runner’s true freshman season, put it thusly: “When you’d pick out a game and watch his film, it was like watching a highlight reel. He just kept doing special things, play after play.”
Said Fisher: “If it weren’t for the injury, he probably wouldn’t be a Ram. Because in everybody’s opinion, he was a top two or three pick. When they say running backs don’t have value anymore, that’s not the case when it’s a once-every-10-year back. That was the consensus in the building, and it was basically the consensus around the league.”
For all of the Rams’ rich history at the position — which includes Hall of Famers Eric Dickerson, Jerome Bettis and Marshall Faulk, as well as another current St. Louis scout, Lawrence McCutcheon, who got especially fired up in the war room as Gurley’s card was pulled — they haven’t ranked in the top half of the NFL in rushing yardage for the past 15 years. Tre Mason, selected in the third round last year, showed promise as a rookie, which will allow Fisher the luxury of easing Gurley back from his injury. Mason projects as the clear No. 2 behind Gurley; third-year pro Zac Stac was traded — he had requested the move — to the New York Jets on Saturday.
There was plenty of drama in the war room Friday night, as the Rams — who had a cluster of offensive linemen stacked in the second-round range and were thus open to trading down — fielded a fast and furious barrage of trade offers for their second-round pick (41st overall).
For five-and-a-half minutes, the room resembled a Jerry Lewis-sponsored telethon, with president Kevin Demoff, Snead and Fisher fielding simultaneous calls from teams making offers — and in some cases, ringing back with sweetened trade proposals.
“I’ve never seen (a war room) quite that crazy,” Fisher said later.
The Chiefs, Eagles, Texans, Steelers and Panthers all offered trade-down prospects, and the Cowboys called to gauge the market before bowing out. With four-and-a-half minutes on the clock, Fisher chose the Panthers’ deal. The Rams got Carolina’s second-round pick (57th overall), along with selections in the third and sixth round, and hoped one of the linemen they liked would last another 16 spots.
Mission accomplished: Four of the linemen the Rams coveted were there for the taking when the Rams went on the clock at 57, and after much back-and-forth at the board (with offensive line coach Paul Boudreau and assistant line coach Andy Dickerson joining Fisher, Snead and Demoff in the discussion), it was decided Havenstein would be the choice.
“We got a road-grader, boys,” Fisher announced triumphantly. “A big-ass road grader.”
Or maybe they hadn’t: With a phone at his ear, Demoff informed Fisher that the Buccaneers were offering a trade prospect in which the Rams would move down eight spots (receiving the first pick of the third round) and swap a sixth-round pick for Tampa Bay’s fourth-rounder. After a quick discussion, Fisher decided to take the deal.
Moments later, Demoff called the Bucs back, only to learn that they had chosen to rescind the offer.
Gesturing toward Boudreau, Fisher said, “OK, this guy can exhale now. Get him a glass of wine.”
To the delight of Fisher and Boudreau, Brown — another of the linemen being discussed as the possible second-round choice — was still there when the team’s third-round selection (72nd overall) rolled around. (And the Rams — who later took ex-Oregon State quarterback Sean Mannion with the third-round pick acquired from the Panthers — weren’t done beefing up the line; they selected former Iowa tackle Andrew Donnal in the fourth round and ex-Fresno State guard Cody Wichmann in the sixth round Saturday.)
On Friday night, as he rocked back and forth in the chair behind his desk, Fisher was the emblem of serenity and satisfaction. After three seasons in which the Rams have shown occasional promise but lacked consistency — and were unable to overcome the damage inflicted by season-ending knee injuries to Bradford — Fisher has heard the noise that he is in a win-or-else situation for 2015.
Logic suggests this is in fact the case: Fisher’s teams have gone 7-8-1, 7-9 and 6-10 since he arrived in St. Louis, and with a possible move to Los Angeles looming, there’s a lot of uncertainty about the future.
Fisher, however, isn’t carrying himself like a coach worried about his job security.
“I think this reflects a stability in the organization,” he said of Gurley’s selection. “You know, we’re not impatient. We’re going to bring him along and make sure he’s ready to go and then hand him that little brown thing a bunch.”
For this coach, at this moment, nothing could be more fulfilling.
May 2, 2015 at 11:51 pm #23803
JackPMillerParticipantThese are just my opinions
1. Todd Gurley RB Georgia – Will be on the roster, but may sit out for awhile until his knee is 100%
2. Rob Havenstein OT Wisconsin – expect him to make the roster, and suit up
3a. Jamon Brown OT/OG Louisville – expect him to make the roster, and suit up
3b.Sean Mannion QB Oregon State – expect him to make the roster, and suit up, will take over number 3, as Davis and Keenum will compete to make roster.
4. Andrew Donnal OT Iowa – expect him to make roster, but may not suit up unless there are injuries.
6a. Bud Sasser WR Missouri – may make roster, but will have to show he can play special teams. More likely he will be on the practice squad
6b. Cody Wichmann OG Fresno State – probably see him practice squad
7a. Bryce Hager ILB Baylor – probably see him on the practice squad
7b. Martin Ifedi DE Memphis – probably see him on the practice squad
May 3, 2015 at 7:36 am #23807znModeratorFisher deviates from script, focuses on Rams’ offense in draft
By Howard Balzer
To say the 2015 draft was an unusual one for Rams coach Jeff Fisher would be an understatement of gargantuan proportions.
Fisher has been at this head coaching gig since 1995, and only once before did his team open the draft with a succession of more than one offensive player. Yes, this was the third time in four years with the Rams that the draft began with an offensive selection. But in each of those years, the choices of wide receiver Tavon Austin in 2013 and tackle Greg Robinson in 2014 were followed by two defensive players.
In 16 years at the helm of the Tennessee Titans (formerly the Houston Oilers), only seven times was offense the choice in the first round. And only in 2006 did the draft begin with two offensive players: quarterback Vince Young and running back LenDale White.
The offensive onslaught at this year’s draft began with the eye-opening selection of running back Todd Gurley at 10th overall and didn’t stop until Baylor linebacker Bryce Hager was picked in the seventh round (224th overall) with a choice St. Louis had acquired from the Jets for running back Zac Stacy.
In between, six other offensive players were picked, including four offensive linemen, Oregon State quarterback Sean Mannion and Mizzou wide receiver Bud Sasser.
Certainly, the strategy was fueled by the need to give assistant coach Paul Boudreau some (hopefully) able and (definitely) experienced bodies for his offensive line. That was achieved, at least on paper, with the addition of four linemen in the second (Wisconsin tackle Rob Havenstein, 42 starts), third (Louisville tackle, but projected guard, Jamon Brown, 40 starts), fourth (Iowa tackle Andrew Donnal, 16 starts) and sixth (Fresno State guard Cody Wichmann, 50 starts) rounds. Those four linemen combined for 148 starts in their college careers.
Donnal’s starts were limited because after becoming a starter in his sophomore season, he suffered a torn ACL (yes, that injury again) in his third start, but he came back a year later and participated in every game — he just didn’t start. Last season, however, he started all 13 games at right tackle.
In the three previous drafts, the Rams selected a total of six offensive linemen, but only two in the first four rounds: Robinson in 2014 and center Barrett Jones in the fourth round of the 2013 draft. Jones is expected to compete for the starting job with Demetrius Rhaney, a seventh-round pick last year who spent the season on injured reserve, and Tim Barnes.
The other two choices were tackle Mitchell Van Dyk (seventh round, 2014), who is currently on the Steelers’ roster, and guard Rokevious Watkins (fifth round, 2012), who has eaten his way out of the NFL.
General manager Les Snead says that the Rams “studied the OL as hard as any position this year,” and notes that the average round in which guards and right tackles were drafted is 3.6.
“It was not hard at all,” responded Fisher when asked if it was tough to stick with offense for so long. “Every team is different. Every situation is different. Every draft is different. But we clearly entered this draft collectively feeling that we were going to come away with some solid offensive linemen. We feel good about it.”
Beyond that, the results of this year’s draft became an illustrative primer in how Fisher wants this team to truly reflect the image and style he desires.
His Titans became a force in the NFL with Eddie George running behind a large and physical offensive line. From 1999 through 2003, Tennessee and St. Louis tied for the most regular-season wins in the league. It was no secret why.
Now, with the addition of a healthy Gurley running behind a huge line, Fisher hopes to begin duplicating those halcyon days in Nashville.
Just check out the linemen added in the draft since a year ago: Robinson (6-5, 332), Havenstein (6-7, 321), Brown (6-4, 323), Donnal (6-6, 313) and Wichmann (6-6, 315). Also added to the group is this year’s unrestricted free-agent signing of Garrett Reynolds (6-7, 305), who has experience playing for Boudreau in Atlanta.
“We’ve got two big, strong, physical players that extend plays, that finish plays, that go downfield,” Fisher said after Day 2. “They’re mauler-types. They’re very, very aggressive, so they’re going to fit our style.”
It wasn’t surprising then, to hear Donnal describe himself.
“I view myself as a blue-collar grinder,” he said. “I’m a guy that’s going to come out and work my ass off every day to be the best that I can possibly be. I thoroughly enjoy just playing football, being an offensive lineman and moving the guy from point A to point B against his will. Protecting the quarterback and mauling inside. There’s nothing better.”
“It’s been a long time coming, particularly because of the needs,” Fisher said of this year’s haul. “After Todd, our focus went to the big guys. All of them finish; that’s the thing we really like. They’re downfield, they’re pushing people over piles, they’re aggressive and they’re finishing. As (Rams GM) Les (Snead) said about Cody, ‘If you’re somewhere in the vicinity, he’s gonna hit you.’ There’s some contact involved, and that’s the mindset that we need to carry forward. But it’s also not something that we have to teach; it’s the way they play right now.”
Fisher took exception when it was suggested that he and Snead drafted a glut of linemen with the hopes that at least a few would work out.
“We didn’t throw darts,” he said. “We think these guys can play. Now, we’ll have a much better idea once we get them in here, but we feel they all can come in and contribute. They are durable, they’re smart, they’re well coached and they’re going to fit in.
“We’re building this team for the future and I think we’re establishing an identity right now.”
There’s no need to expand on what that identity means. What’s in question is where that “future” will be. But that’s a discussion for another day.
May 3, 2015 at 7:56 am #23810
DakParticipantLooks like when the Rams go back to L.A., they’ll be bringing Ground Chuck back with them.
May 3, 2015 at 3:26 pm #23877
wvParticipantPretty clear summary
of a team identity?“We’re trying to become more physical on offense,” Fisher said. “We did that today. We got two guys who are gonna go downfield and finish blocks — and clear space for that guy we got last night to do what he does. It’s not complicated: Hand it off, run play-action passes, get the ball out quickly, keep your defense off the field.”
Or, as secondary coach and former collision-happy NFL safety Chuck Cecil had put it about 20 minutes earlier: “We’re gonna be going old-school on ‘em.”w
vMay 3, 2015 at 8:59 pm #23931znModerator
St. Louis Rams – TeamReportThe Sports Xchange
on May 3, 2015 @ 3:40 PM
http://www.globalpost.com/article/6536854/2015/05/03/st-louis-rams-teamreport
NFL Team Report – St. Louis Rams – INSIDE SLANT
St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher loves running backs. When his Tennessee Titans advanced to the Super Bowl in 1999, it was with Eddie George, the 14th overall choice in the 1996 draft. In eight seasons with Houston and Tennessee, George rushed for 10,009 yards and 64 touchdowns.
After George, it was Chris Johnson, who rushed for 2,006 yards for Fisher in 2009.
Thus, it really wasn’t that much of a surprise when the Rams gambled heavily Thursday night, selecting Georgia running back Todd Gurley with the 10th overall choice in the draft. It surely fits Fisher’s philosophy.
While Fisher didn’t want to compare Gurley to George, who rushed for 10,009 yards and 64 touchdowns in eight seasons with Houston and Tennessee, he did say of Gurley, “He’s special, but they’re different. They have different running styles. But when the career is all said and done, he can be that guy.”
George also believes that. He texted Fisher after the pick, writing, “Congratulations. Great pick.”
Gurley becomes the seventh running back on the Rams’ roster and marks the fourth consecutive year the Rams have selected a runner in the draft: Isaiah Pead in the second round in 2012, Zac Stacy in the fifth round in 2013 and Tre Mason in the third round last year.
Taking the immensely talented Gurley is a risk because he is rehabbing from a torn ACL in his left knee suffered in the fourth quarter of the Bulldogs’ Nov. 15 game against Auburn. That game was his first one after returning from a four-game suspension for accepting more than $3,000 for autographed memorabilia.
The Rams were present at Gurley’s medical recheck on April 18 at Indianapolis, and Fisher said, “His rehab is coming along fine. We don’t know when he’s gonna be on the field competitively, but we do know he’s not having any issues right now and the docs say he’s ahead of schedule.”
Gurley, who said he was surprised to be selected by the Rams and didn’t visit the team in recent weeks, also echoed Fisher’s sentiment, saying, “There is no timetable. I know I have a lot of work to do. But opening day is a realistic goal.”
Said Fisher, when asked if Gurley could be playing at the beginning of the regular season, “There’s always that possibility, but we’re not going to be specific as to when. I will tell you this: we’re not going to rush it. We may be a little on the conservative side. This is our running back of the future, so it makes no sense to subject him, to put him in a bad situation sooner than we have to. We’ve got outstanding backs on our roster and he’s going to add to that group. When that happens we don’t know, but he’s going to be the running back of the future for a number of years.”
Still, there was significant discussion among the Rams’ hierarchy about the wisdom of adding another player with a torn ACL history, especially considering the injuries suffered in successive years by quarterback Sam Bradford and tackle Jake Long. Both are no longer Rams. Pead missed the 2014 season, also with a torn ACL.
But, they believed it was worth the risk to acquire a talent like Gurley. Fisher admitted the ACL issues have “been a concern of ours. But every situation is different. We don’t have reservations about him getting back to full speed and 100 percent. That’s not going to be an issue with him.”
Snead said the Rams only had a chance at Gurley because of the injury. “It was a bonus to be sitting there at 10 and get him,” Snead said. “It was a consensus that he’s a player that helps everybody: our defense, he helps our offense, our offensive line, our receivers, our quarterback. That’s the pick in a nutshell.”
Added Fisher, “A talent like him comes along once in a great while. His body of work speaks for itself. The athletic ability, the strength, the explosion, the acceleration, the instincts he has as a runner. He also has great hands out of the backfield. He’s that complete back. We have a good group; we really like our group in the room, but this is an opportunity that we could not pass up.”
Last season, the 6-foot-1, 226-pound Gurley rushed for 911 yards on 123 attempts (7.4 per rush) and nine touchdowns in just six games. In his Georgia career, he totaled 3,285 yards and 36 touchdowns, averaging 6.4 yards per carry.
The pick of Gurley came after the Washington Redskins selected Iowa tackle/guard Brandon Scherff fifth overall and the New York Giants picked Miami tackle Ereck Flowers one choice in front of the Rams. Three picks after the Rams, the New Orleans Saints chose Stanford tackle Andrus Peat.
Conventional wisdom had the Rams selecting a lineman in the first round, but Fisher went against the grain. That prompted an obvious question to Fisher and Snead: “Who’s going to block for him?”
To which Snead said, “They did make this thing a three-day event. We have to live through Friday and Saturday, so we’ll see if we can help improve that position there. We’ll still let the board guide us, but … we’re well aware.”
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NFL Team Report – St. Louis Rams – NOTES, QUOTES
–After selecting running back Todd Gurley in the first round of the draft, the Rams’ game plan entering Day 2 was to upgrade their offensive line and add a quarterback. They were able to do that with the choice of two offensive linemen and quarterback Sean Mannion thanks to a trade with Carolina that provided them with an extra third-round pick.
The Rams moved from 41 to 57 in the third round, and were confident doing that because, as head coach Jeff Fisher said, “At that point, our group (of targets) was large. It was good. We felt like we had a chance just to trade out. Really looking at the group, we also thought the three was probably a little more important than a four and a five.”
Trade talks were occurring with as many as five teams, but a lesser move down would have yielded just a fourth- or fifth-round choice. By making the deal with the Panthers, the Rams received not only the third-round choice, but also one in the sixth round.
They added tackles Rob Havenstein with the second-round pick and Jamon Brown with the first third-rounder, but Brown is likely headed for right guard. Havenstein will compete for a starting job at right tackle.
“He is ready to play,” general manager Les Snead said of Havenstein. “(He) started a ton of games – never missed any. They run the ball well up there. He’s just a guy that knows his strengths and weaknesses and how to use them.”
Describing Havenstein and Brown, Fisher said, “We’ve got two big, strong, physical players that extend plays, that finish plays, that go downfield. They’re mauler-type. They’re very, very aggressive, so they’re going to fit our style.
“We’re building this team for the future and I think we’re establishing an identity right now.”
The Rams then followed up on the third day by picking Iowa tackle Andrew Donnal in the fourth round and Fresno State guard Cody Wichmann in the sixth round.
Donnal is yet another Rams pick that suffered a torn ACL although his was during the 2012 season. He had played in the first four games of the season and then became a starter at right guard. Early in that third start, he tore the ACL, but was able to come back to play in the season opener the next season. He didn’t start at all in 2013, but played at both guard and tackle.
Last season, he started all 13 games at right tackle, and rarely missed a snap.
Donnal also fits what the Rams were looking for in their linemen. After being asked to describe himself, he said, “I view myself as a blue-collar grinder. I’m a guy that’s going to come out and work my ass off every day to be the best that I can possibly be. I thoroughly enjoy juts playing football, being an offensive lineman and moving the guy from point A to point B against his will. Protecting the quarterback and mauling inside. There’s nothing better.”
As Fisher said of the draft haul, “It’s been a long time coming, particularly because of the needs. After Todd, our focus went to the big guys. All of them finish; that’s the thing we really like. They’re downfield, they’re pushing people over piles, they’re aggressive and they’re finishing. As Les (general manager Les Snead) said about Cody, ‘If you’re somewhere in the vicinity, he’s gonna hit you.’ There’s some contact involved, and that’s the mindset that we need to carry forward. But it’s also not something that we have to teach; it’s the way they play right now.”
When it was suggested that the Rams made as many choices as they did on the line hoping that some work out, Fisher took exception to that notion.
“We didn’t throw darts now,” he said. “We think these guys can play. Now, we’ll have a much better idea once we get them in here, but we feel they all can come in and contribute. They are durable, they’re smart, they’re well-coached and they’re going to fit in.
“We’re building this team for the future and I think we’re establishing an identity right now.”
Despite the selection of four offensive linemen among their nine picks, Fisher said they remain interested in re-signing unrestricted free agent right tackle Joe Barksdale, their starter last year who thought his value in the market was much higher than reality.
–Mannion ended up being the fourth quarterback selected in the draft after Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota and Garrett Grayson. He was one of several quarterbacks the Rams worked out in the week before the draft, and Snead said that private session was “what solidified him for us.”
Fisher cited Mannion’s “understanding of terminology, of defenses, decision-making. We sent some information, let him study the night before. We talked about it the next day and he had it down. He’s exceptionally smart. Again, I think the thing that I was most impressed with was his ability to make every throw; the different touches, the deep balls, the shorter throws and then the footwork. I thought his footwork in the pocket and getting out of the pocket was much better than I saw on tape. He had a great Pro Day and he had a great workout for us.”
Draft analysts said Mannion’s weakness was his slow feet and delivery. Mannion knew it and worked on those things with quarterbacks coach Jordan Palmer, the brother of Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer.
Mannion said, “I know one thing that I really tried to focus on after the end of my season was really sharpening up my footwork and really cleaning that stuff up and I felt like I was able to kind of show that at the Senior Bowl and at the combine and at my Pro Day. A lot of it was really positive feedback about how they’d seen I made improvements in those areas.”
Asked if improving his footwork helped speeding up his release, Mannion said, “I definitely think so. I think footwork is something that can help a lot of areas of your game. Obviously, quickening my release is something that I had been wanting to do. I think focusing on my footwork and always throwing from the same base in the pocket can really speed up my delivery and get the ball out very fast.”
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NFL Team Report – St. Louis Rams – STRATEGY AND PERSONNELA closer look at the Rams’ nine picks:
–Round 1/10 – Todd Gurley, RB, 6-1, 222, Georgia
The Rams believe he is a transcendent back that will help make their entire team better. The only question in the short term is when he will be available to play as he recovers from a torn ACL. Gurley’s explosiveness and big-play ability will go a long way toward improving the Rams’ offense.
–Round 2/57 – Rob Havenstein, T, 6-7, 321, Wisconsin
Tied a school record with 54 games played, starting 42 and the final 41 at right tackle over the last three seasons. He helped lead the way for three 1,000-yard rushers: Montee Ball, Melvin Gordon and James White, three of the top five rushers in Wisconsin history. Projects to be a right tackle for the Rams.
–Round 3/72 – Jamon Brown, G/T, 6-4, 323, Louisville
Started 39 games over the last three seasons, playing right tackle in 2012 and left tackle the last two years. Brown went to Louisville as a defensive lineman, but made the switch to the offensive line during his freshman season. He started one game at guard that season. Expect to begin his Rams career as a guard.
–Round 3/89 – Sean Mannion, QB, 6-6, 229, Oregon State
The Pac-12’s all-time leading passer, Mannion has excellent size and football smarts. He worked hard during pre-draft workouts to improve his footwork and delivery, so it will be important to see if he reverts to bad habits.
–Round 4/119 – Andrew Donnal, T, 6-6, 313, Iowa
A 2012 torn ACL just when he became a starter as a sophomore sabotaged his 2013 season and kept him from becoming a fulltime starter until last year when he started all 13 games at right tackle. A self-described “blue-collar grinder,” Donnal added, “I thoroughly enjoy just playing football, being an offensive lineman and moving the guy from point A to point B against his will. Protecting the quarterback and mauling inside; there’s nothing better.”
–Round 6/201 – Bud Sasser, WR, 6-2, 210, Missouri
A very productive receiver that doesn’t have great speed, but runs good routes and is able to go up and get the ball. Showed that he is a willing blocker.
–Round 6/215 – Cody Wichmann, G, 6-6, 315, Fresno State
Another lineman that plays hard all the time and was called a “self-made guy” by general manager Les Snead. He started 50 games in college, and as head coach Jeff Fisher said, “If someone is in the vicinity, he’s going to hit them.”
–Round 7/224 – Bryce Hager, LB, 6-1, 234, Baylor
Hager’s father Britt played nine seasons in the NFL, including his final year in 1997 with the Rams. Head coach Jeff Fisher was Philadelphia’s defensive coordinator in 1989 when he was selected by the Eagles in the third round of the draft. Hager played six seasons for the Eagles and his next two with Denver. Fisher said Bryce is similar to his father in being a “sideline-to sideline” player that plays fast and urgent. Led Baylor last season with 114 tackles in 13 games.
–Round 7/227 – Martin Ifedi, DE, 6-3, 275, Memphis
Ended his college career as the school’s all-time leader with 22.5 sacks and also compiled 36 tackles for loss. That sacks total ranked sixth among active NCAA FBS players. A sprained MCL cost him four games at the beginning of the 2014 season, but still had 9.5 sacks in nine games played. Rams defensive line coach Mike Waufle is said to be high on him and likes his upside.
PERSONNEL TRACKER
FRANCHISE PLAYER: None.
TRANSITION PLAYER: None.
UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS
–T Joe Barksdale has been durable and solid manning the right side of the offensive line. The Rams want him back, and is still available after not getting the money he expected.
–DT Alex Carrington was part of the rotation last season. He can be competitive, but the Rams won’t go very high to re-sign him.
–LB Will Herring contributed on special teams and was one of the older players on the roster. Head coach Jeff Fisher values special teams, so he might return on a minimum deal.
–G Davin Joseph was up and down during the 2014 season, but was better than anyone else the Rams had. He is not expected to be re-signed.
RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS: None.
EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS FREE AGENTS: None.
PLAYERS RE-SIGNED
–C Tim Barnes: Not tendered as RFA; $710,017/1 yr, $50,017 RB.
–WR Kenny Britt: $9.15M/2 yrs, $2.55M guaranteed.
–QB Austin Davis: RFA tendered at $1.542M with no compensation; $1.542M/1 yr.
–TE Cory Harkey: RFA tendered at $1.542M with no compensation; $1.542M/1 yr.
–TE Lance Kendricks: UFA; $18.5M/4 yrs, $10M guaranteed/$4M RB 2015/$1.25M RB 2016.
–S Rodney McLeod: RFA tendered at $2.356M with second-round pick as compensation); $2.365M/1 yr.
–RB Chase Reynolds: ERFA; $585,000/1 yr.
–G Brandon Washington: ERFA; $585,000/1 yr.
PLAYERS ACQUIRED
–LB Akeem Ayers: UFA Patriots; $6M/2 yrs, $2.75M guaranteed.
–DT Nick Fairley: UFA Lions; $5M/1 yr; $1.5M guaranteed.
–QB Nick Foles (trade Eagles).
–QB Case Keenum (trade Texans).
–T/G Garrett Reynolds: UFA Lions; $2.2M/2 yrs, $249,999 RB guaranteed.
PLAYERS LOST
–QB Sam Bradford (traded Eagles).
–QB Shaun Hill: UFA Vikings; $6.5M/2 yrs, $3M guaranteed.
–DT Kendall Langford (released).
–T Jake Long (released/failed physical).
–T/G Mike Person: UFA Falcons; $3.35M/3 yrs, $500,000 SB.
–RB Zac Stacy (traded Jets).
May 3, 2015 at 9:06 pm #23932
AgamemnonParticipantThis is the best roster the Rams have had since 1999. It isn’t quite the star power, but the overall complete roster is quite good. imo
Maybe it is more like the 1999 Titans roster. 😉
AgamemnonMay 4, 2015 at 7:46 am #23955znModeratorCertainly, the strategy was fueled by the need to give assistant coach Paul Boudreau some (hopefully) able and (definitely) experienced bodies for his offensive line.
I just think Boudreau had a big hand in making all of these selections.
May 4, 2015 at 1:18 pm #23976wvParticipantNice article by Silver. Dunno if itz already posted.
Excerpt below. See link.http://www.nfl.com/draft/story/0ap3000000490845/article/my-2015-nfl-draft-war-room-adventures-different-yet-the-same
My 2015 NFL Draft war room adventures: Different yet the sameBy Michael Silver
EARTH CITY, Mo. — The cluster of remaining draft cards magnetically affixed to the St. Louis Rams’ draft board Friday night formed the shape of a partial football helmet, with so many offensive linemen sharing the same, second-round rating that some of their cards spilled over into other columns. And given that the Rams were closing in on their second-round selection and were, in fact, planning to pick an offensive lineman, coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead had a decision to make — one which, in essence, had been resolved by the many months’ worth of work that had preceded the 2015 NFL Draft.
As Fisher, Snead and COO Kevin Demoff huddled in the team’s crowded war room to affirm their strategy, assistant secondary coach Brandon Fisher gestured toward his father and explained, “He’s thinking ‘trade down,’ because the board is talking to us. If you have a bunch of players who you basically rate the same, and you’re happy to get any one of them, then moving down is the smart play.”
If trading down was the call, seldom had a message rung so loudly and clearly in real time. About five seconds after the Rams were on the clock for the 41st overall selection, the Kansas City Chiefs called with an offer — and five other teams followed suit shortly thereafter. After a furious, five-and-a-half minute stretch of constant communication, Fisher, Snead and Demoff finalized a deal with the Carolina Panthers, moving down 16 spots in the second round while snagging extra picks in the third and sixth rounds.
As it turned out, the Rams would get linemen from the aforementioned cluster in the second and third rounds — and would reinforce a lesson in effective war-room strategy.
Despite all of the over-amplified analysis that precedes the draft, and the ridiculously premature proclamations of success and failure which immediately follow it, the ultimate purpose of these player selections should not be to curry media and fan approval. For the people in the business of building a winning football team, affection and emotion are often the enemies. Over the long haul, cold-hearted calculation and pragmatism typically yield much more fruitful results.
“People fall in love in the second round,” Snead told me a few minutes after the trade-down frenzy, as he and Fisher rebooted and waited to see which players would still be on the board when the 57th pick arrived. “If you’re not in love, you’re in the driver’s seat. Last year, we fell in love with (defensive back Lamarcus) Joyner, and we gave up a ‘5’ to move up to get him. This year, we were able to go the other way.”
While the 2014 selection of Joyner in the second round carried an entertaining subtext that concerned Fisher one-upping the franchise that formerly employed him, there’s a compelling sense of satisfaction that comes from allowing the draft board to guide your decisions. Doing so isn’t as easy as it sounds, for the prolonged, intensified nature of the scouting process inevitably leads to attachment — and the compressed time frame between picks lends itself to frantic, hair-trigger decisions.
“It’s hard not to fall in love if you’re passionate about players and the draft,” Indianapolis Colts general manager Ryan Grigson conceded Sunday. “But if that player comes off early, you better shake it off and hit the reset button in a hurry in that room, so you don’t miss out on the next-best opportunity for your organization.”
Having spent time in the Rams’ war room in three of the last four drafts, and after having been afforded an up-close-and-personal view of the Jacksonville Jaguars’ draft room during Thursday night’s first round, I’ve acquired a greater appreciation of how difficult it is to block out the noise (sometimes even literal noise, from within the room itself) and remain businesslike and pragmatic during the process.
I know this because there have been times, after hearing coaches and personnel executives laud a particular prospect in the months preceding the actual event, when even I have felt emotionally invested in that prospect joining a team in question. When it doesn’t happen — or, when making it happen turns out not to be the most logical play — moving on and letting go isn’t always easy.
This is especially true for first-time general managers, many of whom must fight off the natural tendency to try to swing for the fences, when sometimes opposite-field singles are the smart play.
“That’s why you have player personnel directors and college (scouting) directors — to give voices of reason and perspective,” San Diego Chargers general manager Tom Telesco said, a day after presiding over his third draft.
And it’s also why, during a seemingly endless succession of meetings, pro-day visits, private workouts and other pre-draft preparation, mapping out as many scenarios as possible is an advisable approach.
“You put in the work, and at some point you decide who ranks where, and you try to stay true to that,” Jags owner Shad Khan explained a couple of hours before Thursday’s first round commenced. “Dave (Caldwell, the Jags’ third-year GM) is really good about going over different possibilities, and trying to play them out, so that we’re as prepared as we possibly can be if things come up and suddenly we’re on the clock.”
Picking third on Thursday, and with quarterbacks Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota almost certain to be selected first and second, Caldwell — who’d used the third overall selection a year ago on quarterback Blake Bortles — knew he’d have a chance to draft the top player on his board, versatile pass rusher Dante Fowler Jr. Having decided there were four other players he regarded as potential difference-makers of the same magnitude (defensive tackle Leonard Williams, receivers Amari Cooper and Kevin White and defensive end Vic Beasley), Caldwell was willing to listen if a team picking fourth through seventh sought to move up and swap first-round picks.
Ideally, Caldwell hoped, one of those teams’ general managers would reach out, putting him in a position of perceived power. “It’s definitely better if you’re not the one to call first,” Caldwell told me Wednesday night, “but at this point, I feel like if they were going to call, there would have been some groundwork done already. When I was in Atlanta, Thomas (Dimitroff, the Falcons’ GM) talked to Cleveland about potentially trading up (in the 2011 draft) weeks in advance — and that made it a smoother process on draft night, when he moved up and got Julio Jones.”
Caldwell was right — none of the teams holding picks four through seven (the Raiders, Redskins, Jets and Bears) called on Thursday, so he bit the bullet and contacted each of their general managers, to no avail. That made picking Fowler an easy and obvious endeavor, but even after he placed the call to the gaudily attired player and provoked a hearty round of applause in the Jags’ war room, he started preparing for the next scenario.
In addition to securing a potential game-changer as an edge rusher, coach Gus Bradley really wanted a running back. Had either of the top two backs on the Jags’ draft board, Todd Gurley or Melvin Gordon, still been around after the 20th overall selection, Caldwell was prepared to try to move up to grab one, packing Jacksonville’s second-round pick (36th overall) with other selections. The price, he believed, might come as cheap as a third-round pick, possibly even next year’s.
However, the Rams grabbed Gurley with the 10th pick, and Telesco traded up to get Gordon five spots later, meaning Caldwell could relax for the rest of the round. As an eclectic mix of music livened up the war room, with selections ranging from Eazy-E’s “Boyz-n-the-Hood” to the Grateful Dead’s “Sugar Magnolia” to Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train” (Caldwell got some stares after deadpanning, “I Love AC/DC!” during the first notes of the latter track), he watched the final picks play out.
By round’s end, four players ranked at the top of his board, and he said he felt equally comfortable picking any of them. Given that the Jags held the fourth pick of the second round, they were in a great spot.
“But we really gotta get (T.J.) Yeldon if he’s there,” Bradley said, referring to the former Alabama running back.
“We’ll see,” Caldwell said — perhaps trying to preclude the possibility of his intentions being leaked to outsiders, or possibly firming up the don’t-fall-in-love philosophy that he, too, espouses.
“Options are good,” Caldwell later explained. “It gives you a lot of flexibility. It allows you to take advantage of a trade opportunity, too.”
And sure enough, a few minutes after the first round’s conclusion, Snead (whom Caldwell succeeded as Dimitroff’s right-hand man in Atlanta) called to offer a deal: The 41st overall selection and running back Zac Stacy, in exchange for the Jags’ 36th pick. Stacy, made expendable by the selection of Gurley, had a productive rookie campaign in 2013 before being pushed into a lesser role last season.
“You’re the guy who’s always in the Rams’ war room,” Caldwell said to me, laughing. “How much do they really like Zac Stacy — and do you think they’d do it for Tre Mason?”
Most likely, Caldwell was just having fun at my expense. I got the sense that he was open to trading down, though not for Stacy — and also that, if Yeldon was gone by the time the Jags got on the clock, he’d be even more receptive to dealing the pick.
The next night, while monitoring the situation from inside the Rams’ war room, I wasn’t surprised when the Jags turned in the card for Yeldon.
Happy coach, happy life.
The draft is far from an exact science, and I resolutely believe that people in my business — and a growing number of consumers — tend to exaggerate its importance and pontificate prematurely. Personally, while I’m not averse to evaluating a given team’s draft process (i.e. “They wanted to reshape the secondary, and they aggressively made moves to go get the players they targeted …”), I have a longstanding rule against instant-draft analysis, and I ignore anyone else’s (with the exception of professional talent evaluators whose opinions I trust).
Yet the more time I spend in draft rooms, the greater the respect I develop for the general managers and coaches who stay true to their core philosophies, even — and especially — in the heat of the moment.
Late Thursday night, Grigson chose Miami wide receiver Phillip Dorsett with the 29th overall selection, provoking an immediate chorus of ridicule and dissent on social media, blogs and other platforms. Critics complained that the swift, diminutive Dorsett merely gave the Colts a second helping of T.Y. Hilton, their leading receiver from 2014, and that the pick had done nothing to shore up Indy’s biggest weaknesses, such as a defensive unit which surrendered 45 points to the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game.
Since I tend to be a strong advocate of Grigson’s body of work, I started texting some of the talent evaluators around the league I respect most to solicit their opinions, and also asked some people in the Jags’ war room.
The replies I got were overwhelmingly positive about the pick: “Grand slam!!!” was one scout’s response.
I also texted Colts owner Jim Irsay, the man whose opinion of Grigson’s pick will ultimately matter most. Granted, Irsay wasn’t likely to express displeasure in the wake of the selection, but he could easily have chosen not to reply, or to say something generic and let the situation play out for itself.
Instead, he sent a voice memo, which I received well after midnight, after getting off the phone with the NFL’s after-hours travel department to book a flight to St. Louis.
The message lasted more than a minute, and the excitement in Irsay’s voice was palatable and infectious. He said a lot of glowing things about Dorsett, and he insisted that the pick had been an easy one. Seven words in particular stayed with me.
May 4, 2015 at 1:59 pm #23981znModeratorNice article by Silver. Dunno if itz already posted.
He actually has 2 (including yours), both here in this thread. Interestin stuff.
May 5, 2015 at 9:58 am #24108znModeratorTodd McShay’s best picks
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/18255/morning-ram-blings-todd-mcshays-best-picks
EARTH CITY, Mo. — The St. Louis Rams selected nine players in this year’s NFL draft, and though it’s way too early to judge any of the lot, it’s never too early to offer an opinion on the player or players you think might help the team the most in the short and long term.
That’s exactly what ESPN NFL draft analyst Todd McShay has done with his “favorite” picks from the 2015 draft. Some teams had late-round choices drawing the most praise from McShay, while others had their best picks double as their first picks.
That was the case for the St. Louis Rams, as McShay liked their choice of running back Todd Gurley at No. 10 overall the most.
McShay believes that Gurley is one of the best overall talents in the draft and said some teams considered him one of the three or so best players in the class. That’s the same thinking the Rams had and the reason he was ranked near the top of their draft board.
May 5, 2015 at 8:08 pm #24151znModeratorfrom off the net
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FYI- Irrespective of what you hear them say post-draft, Flowers was their pick if he was still on the board at 10.
Bruce Allen & co messed them up when he took Sherff at 4 instead of Leonard Williams, which lead to the Giants picking Flowers instead of Sherff.
Don’t get me wrong, they love Gurley….and I happen to think there is a lot to love. As I’ve said for years it’s Coach’s team and this is what he does. It does makes you wonder what they would have done in the second round after drafting an instant starter at RT in round 1.
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