from 3 good things, 3 bad things for each NFC West team

from NFC West offseason exit interview: 3 good things, 3 bad things for each team

The Cardinals look like the team to beat in a division that just added Chip Kelly and Jared Goff

John Breech

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/nfc-west-offseason-exit-interview-3-good-things-3-bad-things-for-each-team/

Los Angeles Rams

Three positives

1. They might actually have a quarterback

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Generally, trading up to land a quarterback in the first round of the NFL Draft is a horrible idea. If you need proof, just consider that Johnny Manziel, Tim Tebow, Mark Sanchez and Ryan Leaf were all picked after a team traded up to get them in the first round of their respective drafts.
That being said, you can’t fault the Rams for going after Jared Goff, especially since they haven’t had anything that even slightly resembles a capable quarterback since Kurt Warner left town 13 years ago.
If the Goff pick pays off, it will almost make up for all the games that Rams fans had to sit through over the past 12 seasons where Sam Bradford, A.J. Feeley, Kellen Clemens, Shaun Hill, Nick Foles, Case Keenum, Marc Bulger, Jamie Martin, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Gus Frerotte or Brock Berlin, Kyle Boller or Keith Null was the starting quarterback. Almost makes up for it.

2. They’re finally in Los Angeles
If you’ve ever made a big move in your life, then you know that it’s not easy. Whatever you experienced, multiply that by 100 and that’s what the Rams had to go through. Not only did the team have to move computers, whirlpools and 1 million pounds of equipment, but the Rams also had to worry about getting each and every player situated in Southern California. The move didn’t happen overnight either. As a matter of fact, the Rams didn’t move out of St. Louis until March, which was a full two months after the NFL approved the team’s move to L.A.
Now that the Rams are officially in Los Angeles, several headaches should go away. The coaching staff won’t be getting blitzed with relocation questions and players won’t have to worry anymore about where they’re going to live next year.

3. They dumped some people they needed to dump
Ending a long-term relationship is never easy. Just ask the Rams, who were forced to make some tough decisions this offseason. Three of those tough decisions were made on the same day (Feb. 19) when the team decided to cut ties with Chris Long, James Laurinaitis and Jared Cook.
The cuts probably weren’t easy to make, but the Rams were almost certainly in a much better mood after they saw how much money they saved. The three cuts shaved roughly $23 million off the 2016 salary cap. If the Rams knew what to do what the kind of salary cap savings, this story would have a happy ending, but the team didn’t really fill any holes during free agency.

Three negatives

1. They might have given up too much to land their quarterback
The downside of giving up everything to land the No. 1 pick in the draft is that if it doesn’t work, then you just mortgaged your future. If Jared Goff somehow turns into a flop, then the Rams might end up being worse than they’ve been over the past 10 years, which is saying a lot because the Rams have been pretty bad.
The Rams had a front row seat to a similar trade in 2012 when the Redskins traded with them so they could land Robert Griffin III. Four years later, Griffin is no longer in Washington and neither is the coach who drafted him. As a matter of fact, the last six times a team has traded up in the first round to land a quarterback, the pick hasn’t panned out (Mark Sanchez, Josh Freeman, Tim Tebow, Blaine Gabbert, RG3, Manziel).
On the other hand, the Rams could join the 1984 Patriots and the 1978 Oilers and make some NFL history. Before 2016, those were the only two teams ever to have traded up from a spot 15th or lower to land the No. 1 pick. The trade worked out in both cases: Both the Oilers and Patriots were in the AFC title game within two years.
Unfortunately for the Rams though, neither team drafted a quarterback. The Patriots selected a receiver (Irving Fryar), while the Oilers selected a running back (Earl Campbell).

2. Nick Foles decides he doesn’t want to attend OTAs
If Nick Foles’ goal this offseason is to make things as awkward as possible for the Rams, then he’s probably going to succeed. In an ideal world, Foles would show up at OTAs with a smile on his face and help out Jard Goff. Instead, Foles has turned himself into a headline because he’s decided to skip OTAs out of protest.
To be fair, Foles has no obligation to show up to OTAs — they’re voluntary — but it’s still a bad look. The Rams just gave him a two-year, $24.5 million contract that included $13.8 million in guaranteed money. If someone gives you that kind of dough, the least you can do is not cause them a headache, and make no mistake, Foles being a no-show is headache for the Rams whether they’ll admit it or not.

3. They lost half of their secondary and there’s some legal issues for half of the half that stayed
After three years together, the Rams secondary has officially been broken up. The unit of Rodney McLeod, Janoris Jenkins, T.J. McDonald and Trumaine Johnson had basically started every game together in the Rams secondary since 2013, but that won’t happen anymore now that Jenkins (Giants) and McLeod (Eagles) both dipped out of town and headed for the NFC East.
Both players received huge contracts with their new teams and letting them walk might have made financial sense, but that doesn’t hide the fact that there’s now a gaping hole in the Rams secondary. That gaping hole could bust open even more if McDonald gets suspended by the NFL. The Rams safety was charged with a non-alcoholic DUI after an arrest on May 10.