Wagoner mailbag, 4/9-10 … parts 1 & 2

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  • April 9, 2016 at 11:29 am #41681
    zn
    Moderator

    It’s safe to expect more of the Rams in prime time in 2016

    Nick Wagoner

    http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/28242/safe-to-expect-more-of-the-rams-in-prime-time-in-2016

    The offseason is here for the Los Angeles Rams and now that we know where they’ll be playing their home games for the long term, things have settled down enough to spend our weekends answering a few of your Twitter questions.

    As always, you can find me on Twitter @nwagoner. Fire away with any Rams-related questions you might have. Please use the hashtag #RamsMail so I can see them.

    On to your questions.
    Matt Wroten ‎@Hazmatt415
    Q: In anticipation of the 2016 schedule release, what odds would you give the Rams receiving a Sunday Night Football game

    @nwagoner: For those wondering, the NFL schedule release for the regular season should come at some point in the next couple of weeks. This is a good question because Sunday night generally has been reserved for the biggest game of the week (or at least one of them), which is why the Rams have hardly ever played in them. In fact, in this current incarnation of the Sunday night game beginning in 2006, the Rams have played on Sunday night just once (with the NFC West on the line in 2010). That’s tied with Cleveland, Tampa Bay, Oakland and Buffalo for the fewest appearances of all NFL teams.

    With the Rams coming off another losing season, it’s hard to imagine the NFL views them as worthy of a Sunday night game this season. But this isn’t a normal season. Clearly, the NFL views the Rams moving back to Los Angeles as a big story — and rightfully so. The Rams are the featured team on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” and will be playing a primetime game in the opening week of the preseason on ESPN.

    So that begs the question of whether the NFL would sacrifice its usual criteria for a Sunday night game (two successful teams) in favor of an interesting story. I’d classify it as possible since the NFL is so happy to be back in the country’s second largest market. And even if the Rams don’t end up on Sunday night, I’d be surprised if they don’t get a game or two on Monday Night Football in addition to the usual Thursday night appearance.

    WineGuyDavid ‎@WineguydavidCom
    @nwagoner Hey Nick, I sort of hope the #LARams move down and get more picks. Do you think they will? We still need a lot of help.

    @nwagoner: As always with the Rams, you can’t rule out anything when it comes to draft trades. They have been very active in making deals both up and down the board under Jeff Fisher and Les Snead. I do think it’s possible that moving down could end up being the best move for them. If they can’t get in position to get one of the top two quarterbacks or they don’t believe in either one enough to give up a big haul to get them, then a move down would make a lot of sense.

    Picking at No. 15 seems to offer a lot of value, especially for teams in the market for defensive help, especially on the line. While it wouldn’t hurt the Rams to add a cornerback or defensive lineman, it also wouldn’t help their ailing offense. Likewise, it doesn’t seem that the receivers or quarterbacks available at that spot necessarily would be worthwhile value as opposed to moving down, getting another pick or two and potentially getting a player of similar ability.

    Of course, you still have to find a trade partner and I’m not sure who that would be at this point. But if they could move down a little bit, pick up an extra choice or two and still land some offensive help in, say, the mid 20s, that would be a logical approach given their needs and the relative value at those positions in this draft.

    April 9, 2016 at 5:48 pm #41688
    Agamemnon
    Moderator

    I can see the Rams wanting more picks in this deep but light at the top draft. They need to keep drafting players to replace the players they lose in free agency. But, still, I think the draft shapes up for the Rams to take the best available QB at 15. Even though I like Mannion a lot, I think you have to let the landscape of the draft determine your choices. Just like last year was a good year to get OLine, this year is a good year to take a QB. imo

    Agamemnon

    April 9, 2016 at 7:42 pm #41692
    PA Ram
    Participant
    Agamemnon wrote:

    I can see the Rams wanting more picks in this deep but light at the top draft. They need to keep drafting players to replace the players they lose in free agency. But, still, I think the draft shapes up for the Rams to take the best available QB at 15. Even though I like Mannion a lot, I think you have to let the landscape of the draft determine your choices. Just like last year was a good year to get OLine, this year is a good year to take a QB.

    Well–if they DO take a QB (not my first choice) I hope it’s one that falls to them. Don’t give anything away to go get one.

    "Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. " Philip K. Dick

    April 10, 2016 at 9:38 am #41706
    Agamemnon
    Moderator

    Exploring Rams’ running back options behind Todd Gurley
    Apr 7, 2016

    Nick WagonerESPN Staff Writer

    http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/28245/exploring-rams-running-back-options-behind-todd-gurley

    The offseason is here for the Los Angeles Rams and now that we know where they’ll be playing their home games for the long-term, things have settled down enough to spend our weekends answering a few of your Twitter questions.

    As always, you can find me on Twitter @nwagoner and fire away with any Rams-related questions you might have. Please use hashtag #RamsMail so I can see them.

    On to your questions.

    @nwagoner: While the Rams listed Tre Mason as the No. 2 back behind Todd Gurley for most of last season, the snaps and playing time would tell a different story. Benny Cunningham is the true backup to Gurley after he played 261 snaps to Mason’s 176. Yes, Mason had more carries (75-37) but Cunningham had 26 receptions to Mason’s 18. Cunningham also averaged 3.78 yards per carry to Mason’s 2.76. Overall, it wasn’t a good year for Mason on the field or off of it, where he was deactivated for a game for missing the team bus to the airport. Obviously, Mason hasn’t helped his cause this offseason, either. So he still has some proving to do to ensure he has a place on the roster. But Cunningham will be back and with Gurley entrenched as the primary ball carrier, it’s probably safe to expect that Cunningham will primarily work on third down and passing situations where his receiving and blocking abilities can best be put to use. Beyond that, I’d expect Malcolm Brown, who got a look in the season finale, to have a chance to push for a roster spot and more carries in his second season. We also can’t definitively rule out the chances that the Rams would look for more depth at the position later in the draft or in undrafted free agency.

    @nwagoner: At last month’s owners meetings, Rams coach Jeff Fisher said he expected all of the injured players to be able to participate at some level during OTAs and heading into training camp. That would include Saffold and McDonald, both of whom I asked about directly. Saffold has already been working out at the team’s makeshift facility in Oxnard and looks to be ready to go sooner than later though the Rams could still take some precautions with him to make sure he’s ready for training camp. As for Barron, I don’t know what the Rams plan to call him but it’s a safe bet that he’s going to be playing on the weak side as a linebacker. Maybe they’ll call him a weak side safety on the depth chart but he’s essentially a linebacker now unless the Rams make some drastic changes during the draft and reshuffle things again.

    Agamemnon

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