grading/assessing Rams off-season so far (starts with Whitlock/Schlereth debate)

Jason Whitlock explains why the Rams are showing signs of arrogance this offseason

https://www.foxsports.com/watch/speak-for-yourself/video/1196303427521

JASON WHITLOCK:

All right, listen. I don’t– I don’t mind taking a potshot at Sean McVay. He’s a kid. He deserves it. This is arrogance.

This is your first year as a head coach, having all this success, and being toast of the league, and you think it’s easy. Bring anybody here. I can coach them– Peters, Talib, Ndamukong Suh. Oh, Odell Beckham, Jr., is on the trade block? Let’s trade for him, too.

I’m Sean McVay. I’ve reinvented coaching. I can take on every problem child in the league. Just throw me talent, throw me talent, and I’ll make it work

There’s a quote today that he said, you know, no trade is off the table, as long as it’s an upgrade in talent. And what I don’t hear one ounce of concern for is chemistry, and chemistry being a big part of a team. And, so, he believes he can make the chemistry, because he’s the head coach and he’s the smartest guy in the room.

And I’ve got Wade Phillips backing me up. So Rae Carruth, O.J. Simpson, you guys come play here, too. I can take it all on. I’m Sean McVay. This is arrogance.

Mark Schlereth

– Yeah. You know what’s interesting about that? I always said this, when I was playing, is, you think the egos are big in the locker room? Walk upstairs to the coaches’ offices, right? There’s not one coach doesn’t believe, under my expert tutelage, I can take this guy and I can change him and I can make him the player that he needs to be, because the talent is what gets us, you know. It makes us wide-eyed.

And I will tell you this about talent. It’s character that drives talent towards greatness. It’s never the opposite. Talent doesn’t drive character, character drives talent. And if you don’t have the proper character, I don’t care how much talent you have.

Now, every team needs a few touch guys. You got to have a few crazies, right? I mean, it’s just the way it is. Because those guys can play.

But you’ve got– there’s a point of diminishing returns. When you put too many of those guys in that cauldron, you know, that thing bubbles over and becomes a real mess for everybody. And then you can’t clean it up. So that would be my biggest concern.

How many guys can you put with– on your roster that have those issues? Right now, on defense, you’ve got three guys that you’re going to have to manage and manage well. And, you know, can you do it?

I don’t know that you can do it. But I know one thing about coaches. They believe, you give me the talent, man, I can make anybody work in my system.

Danny Kanell

– I love these moves. I think they’re a calculated risk from the Rams. I think they’re getting incredible talent. I think the Suh deal makes a ton of sense because you’re getting a player who, to me, I don’t– I don’t care about all the issues when he’s kicking guys, and he’s grabbing quarterbacks by the throat.

I mean, your boy over here wasn’t a choirboy when he was playing, all right? Like– like, Stink had a reputation of his own. I think you get a player who’s going to want to prove himself. He’s going to play harder then. Because, to me, he quit on the Miami Dolphins.

No, but let’s say a one-year deal, though.

JASON WHITLOCK: That’s what they said about the Dolphins.

Danny Kanell

– But he got– he got guaranteed big– guaranteed money with the Dolphins, and longer term guarantees. For a one-year deal, I think he’s going to go out there and he’s going to play hard. Aqib Talib, he wanted to go play for Wade Phillips. He said, two teams I’ll go to. So I feel, like, pretty confident that Wade Phillips will be able to rein him in.

Marcus Peters, the one guy I’m kind of like, well, what’s going on. Like, I don’t know. Like, you had some serious issues, a little bit goofy, you know. He’s throwing flags and getting kicked out of games. Maybe it was just a bad fit with Andy Reid in Kansas City.

I think what they did is, they looked around the NFC. They looked at getting bounced in the first round. They looked in their division.

And they saw, hey, we’ve got to face Russell Wilson, Jimmy Garoppolo, and, you know, whatever that Arizona is going to do. But, I think, they said, we’ve got to get better. And, I think, these are absolutely upgrades for the Rams.

JASON WHITLOCK:

There’s different ways to get better. You can develop the guys on your current roster. You can take care of your most productive player, Aaron Donald, who still doesn’t have a contract and isn’t happy. And, now, you’ve given $14 million– I know it’s just for one year– to Ndamukong Suh.

This reminds me, Mark, and I don’t know if you remember, the 1998 Kansas City Chiefs. In ’97, they went 13-3. Y’all took them out of the playoffs. And, I think, they came back and they signed Chester McLaughlin, and– the Ndamukong Suh of that generation.

And I was just convinced. Oh, my god, they’ve added Chester McLaughlin. This Chiefs team is going 16-0.

They can’t be scored on. They got Derrick Thomas. They got Wayne Simmons. They got James Hayes. They got all these great players– Hasty, and maybe it was Dale Carter, the other– they had this just incredible team.

Went 7-9 and Marty Schottenheimer got fired and humble, because Chester McLaughlin set a tone. He took plays off. He was undisciplined. He didn’t care about the scheme. He was a poison set off in the team.

Ndamukong Suh, I just don’t see the track record. And you already got Aaron Donald. Give Aaron Donald the money and I– he’d produce for him and whatever you gave– he can produce for two positions. I just think it’s a mistake.

Mark Schlereth

– Yeah, there’s no question that there is a boatload of talent here. And, if you can manage that talent– if Ndamukong Suh does what you said, that the problem–

Danny Kanell

– What do you think? Do you think–

Mark Schlereth

– I think Ndamukong Suh can flat-out play. I think he plays undisciplined football. And part of that could be, hey, I’ve got a lot of money and I’ve got to prove it, or I’ve got a lot of money and I don’t have anything to prove, you know. Whatever the case may be.

But, when you look at him, you know, he’ll be– supposed to be in the B-Gap. He’ll be pushed out beyond the C-Gap and create huge running lanes. The thing is for him is, if he does not lead the league in sacks from the interior, then there’s something wrong. Because he is going to get singled. And one thing Wayne– Wade Phillips will do, does a great job of picking one dude and say, go get– we’re going to attack this dude.

Aaron Donald– you know as well as I do, Aaron Donald is going to get double-teamed every single play, because, I think, he’s the best player in the National Football League. And so Suh should be incredibly productive. And if he’s not, then that’s on him.

JASON WHITLOCK: He’ll be–

– I think it’s going to be boom or bust.

JASON WHITLOCK: He’ll be hurt and he’ll miss at least six games.[

• This topic was modified 6 years, 9 months ago by zn.