Mike Sando chat, Rams & NFC west comments only

Chat with Mike Sando

http://espn.go.com/sportsnation/chat/_/id/51031/nfl-insider-mike-sando

Sando I got the Rams at 12-4 right now. 49ers are in disarray, Cards run defense is dead, and the Seahawks have the Madden curse. The NFC West is the Rams to lose.

SANDO: This confirms the Rams did indeed begin serving beer at training camp this summer! Look, I think the Rams have potential to break the .500 barrier, but I’ll be surprised if they get to double-digit wins, or if they win the division. That would just be an outstanding season.

With the losses the Cardinals have suffered, has the door been opened for the Rams to ascend to the 3rd spot in the NFC West pre-season bluster rankings? The way some pundits put it out there, Rams/Cards fans shouldn’t even bother following their teams this year since it’s already been determined that no one on the face of this earth can ever challange the all-mighty 49er/Seahawks.

SANDO: Yeah, I think there is a decent chance the Rams will overtake the Cardinals this season. There is some thought that Arizona caught several teams at the right time last season in going 10-6. They got Tampa Bay when the Bucs were in disarray. They got Carolina before the Panthers really put it together. They played Atlanta in the one season recently when Atlanta was horrible. They got a spiraling Texans team. They got the Texans when Jake Locker was out. I don’t know if that is entirely fair. We could poke holes in any team’s schedule. But those things come into my mind when projecting for Arizona this season. Winning 10 was great, but I expect fewer Ws for that team this season, lowering the bar for St. Louis to clear.

I haven’t heard that much about Donald out of the Stl (though there’s plenty of news out of there). Is that Dline going to be as beastly as many think it will?

SANDO: I do think it is going to be that beastly. The one guy I’m interested in seeing is Michael Brockers. Donald got some pub in the OTAs and minicamps. Quinn is Quinn. Long is established. Brockers was a first-round pick who unfortunately got hurt in the preseason of his rookie year. Seems like he should be more of a force than he has been, at least consistency wise.

Watching Manziel’s coaching tape, how can anybody even pretend this guy is close? I would argue he will never be ready before I clamor to see him play this ENTIRE season.

SANDO: I think you could watch the games through the view finder on a VHS camcorder and still see that Johnny Manziel has a ways to go before being ready. And I know what I’m talking about. I’ve got a 1986 RCA camcorder in storage somewhere.

Bigger loss for the Cards, Dockett or Washington? From what I’ve heard from Cards fans, the Dockett loss stings more to an extent because he was an emotional leader on that defense.

SANDO: I think the emotional leader angle tends to be overrated. I’d rather have Daryl Washington than Darnell Dockett at this point. To me, it’s the cumulative losses that are troubling. Dansby leaves, Minter doesn’t really step up initially, Washington is out, Dockett is out, Mathieu is still working his way back.

Do you think Kaep can step up and improve his decision making this year? he has the tools to do it and it would be nice to finally quiet all those Alex Smith Lovers out there!

SANDO: I think Alex Smith will have a tougher year because he’ll have to face the NFC West, and his line might not be as good this season, and his weapons in the passing game are not great. On Colin Kaepernick, I do think he can improve in that area if he focuses on it. He has the physical ability and he works hard and he has a very good TD-INT ratio overall, and now he has greater depth at receiver.