I’m assuming that they restructured his deal. I’ll be interested to see how that all works out. I’ve never been a big Austin fan, but he’s not without some value. It would be great if he could rediscover his punt return mojo. That said, Cooper turned out to be pretty special in that department. I wonder if they plan to use Cooper more in the offensive game plan and give Austin another chance to return punts.

Here’s what Drew Boylhart has to say about Settle. Interesting that he mentions the Rams in his “Bottom Line” section:

http://www.thehuddlereport.com/archive/2018profiles/Tim.Settle.htm

STRENGTHS
Tim is a powerful, athletic, quick twitch athlete in a boy’s body. He comes off the line gaining leverage and quickness that most offensive lineman at the college level struggle to deal with. His size and bulk make it very hard to control him and when Tim uses good, smart techniques it is near impossible for an offensive lineman to handle him one on one. Tim can play in a 1gap or 2gap system and in spite of his size and girth can play multiple positions on your defensive line. In fact if he plays on the outside and has more open space and his hand usage and foot quickness along with his strength gives him the advantage over less athletic offensive tackles. Tim is a disrupter and will give you some sacks and tackles behind the line of scrimmage from the nose tackle or defensive tackle position. If you decide to play him outside in a 3/4 defense I’m convinced he could be even more disruptive and have double digit sack totals. Tim is the type of player that offensive coordinators will have to account for when setting up game plans and offensive line blocking schemes. He can be as impacting as Rams Aaron Darnold.

CONCERNS
Tim has to keep his weight down or he will eat himself off the field. As he matures Tim should gain the mental and physical stamina needed to play his position at the next level if he controls his weight and becomes more of a student of evaluating his opponent’s strengths and weakness. Tim’s work ethic will be the key to him improving at the next level.

BOTTOM LINE
This kid explodes off the line at the snap of the ball. He can be a bigger version of Aaron Darnold but at this point in his development he lacks the maturity and football IQ that Aaron has and that is to be expected. The reason Aaron is so impacting is that he knows his strength and weakness and he understands mentally how to set up his opponent. Aaron also has excellent mental and physical stamina so when the 4 quarter comes around Aaron is still exploding off the line of scrimmage into very tired offensive lineman. Tim has to gain this mental and physical strength and stamina and if he does the sky’s the limit on his ability to impact. My guess is after the combine Tim will be moving up everyone’s draft boards and he could very easily be selected in the 1st round but everything will depend on Tim’s workouts and interviews. He’s the question; will a team select Tim in the 1st round? I think a playoff team with a strong group of defensive lineman like the Eagles and Patriots would be very smart to select Tim in the first round but like I said as far as some other teams like the Rams or Titans or Bills it will come down to his interviews and workouts and how mature they believe Tim is. Otherwise look at Rob’s board to get a feeling about his status in this draft. Tim has the potential to be a first round draft pick because he has first round talent but remember it takes more than talent to play in the NFL.

I’m happy that they kept him. I don’t know what other good nickel CBs are paid so I can’t comment on that aspect of this signing. I just know that he’ll be on the field a lot so I’m glad that he’s still a Ram. I’m starting to wonder about Webster’s future with the Rams though. Assuming that he comes back is he going to be happy being a back up?

Oh well. I’d have preferred that the Rams found a way to keep him, but it appears that maybe this offseason is all about retooling the defense. That’s not to say that I think they’ll do nothing to fix the offense. I hope that this means a third round compensatory pick in 2019.

So, if Austin is in fact in his way out the door that’s two holes WR. Of course, the Rams could opt to carry one less WR on their roster. Perhaps they’re going to gamble on Reynolds progressing. This doesn’t sound like a top heavy draft at WR. I’ve seen mocks that don’t have a WR coming off the board until the late teens. So there could be decent WRs to choose from at 23. I don’t think that their will be any WRs that have Watkins skill set, however. I’d prefer the Rams find an OLB/edge rusher or a LT of the future though.

Short term, it seems like there is no way the Rams offense doesn’t take a step backwards this season, but with the future money that the Rams might have to spend to keep guys like Donald, Goff and Gurley I can see why they’d pass on giving Watkins $16 million/year. Although, I’m not much for following the cap so maybe they could have found a way to make that all happen.

Just your typical run-of-the-mill offseason-before-the-league-year-starts-week for the Rams. *yawn*

Grits was one of the first posters I ever read on a Rams message board. He was one passionate Rams fan.

Zooey wrote:

Arguments about abortion or guns are never really about abortion or guns. They are about people’s identities.

I find that’s true about many arguments. That doesn’t reduce their importance in my mind.

I think he’ll improve, but I also won’t be surprised if the offense as a whole takes a step back next season and as a result people start asking “what’s wrong with Goff?” However, in the long term I think he turns into a top tier QB.

zn wrote:

Meanwhile all the societies that DID control those weapons do not have the shootings we do.

Yes, I’m always saddened when ardent supporters of the second amendment dismiss or explain that fact away. The shear number of gun related deaths that are experienced down there absolutely frighten me.

YAY!

I kept expecting to see Keith Null’s name pop up. His debut vs. the Titans seemed terrible at the time, but not as bad as the debuts on that list.

LT would be my hope too. If that’s going to turn into a reach at 23 than I’d be hoping for a pass rusher off of the edge, CB or a TE. If there is a worthy center available I’d be good with that, but good centers can often be found later. I think there are lots of places where the Rams can be upgraded though. Often a good interior LB can be had in the late first round. I would be ok with finding a more traditional LB to replace Barron if a worthy LT wasn’t available when the Rams pick.

Clutch drive, but not what I’d call a comeback either.

That video makes me feel all happy inside.

Also, my oldest daughter was born after the Rams last playoff appearance. I’m glad that I no longer have to consider her as a possible reason for the Rams inability to make the postseason.