Zooey wrote:

Gaines was pretty good in his final season with the Rams. I don’t know how he fared in Buffalo this year, or if he was a poor fit for Wade, but that makes the loss of Watkins a bit more painful.

gaines did well in buffalo. but he was a bad fit for wade’s defense.

still hurts though. the longer and longer watkins is gone the more it hurts – mainly because there’s no second round pick this year. would have been good for picking an edge rusher or offensive lineman. or even a tight end.

thinking about it. i agree with those who say the rams should focus on development and forget about obj. mainly because of the draft capital needed to pull it off and the dent it would put on the salary cap. i think kupp can get a lot better. no, he’ll never provide the same things obj can. that guy can pretty much do it all. so it’ll be more about putting complimentary pieces together. i think reynolds has promise. tight ends too. draft another tight end this year and develop them.

at some point you gotta just develop players. unless the nfl wants to do away with a salary cap. then spend away by all means.

https://www.cincyjungle.com/2018/3/23/17141072/james-daniels-scouting-report-bengals-replacement-russell-bodine-nfl-draft-2018

here’s another report on daniels
https://www.revengeofthebirds.com/2018/2/9/16994122/2018-nfl-draft-prospect-james-daniels-iowa

Iowa – Junior
6’3’’, 295 Pounds
Strongest offensive line class in quite a bit of time, and I’m totally okay with saying that. You could legitimately see nine offensive linemen go in the first two rounds of this draft. A surprise entry for the draft, James Daniels is coming from Iowa, which has a history of producing talented lineman. I would love his pedigree.

Strengths: James Daniels versatility is unbelievable, playing both guard positions and center with the ability to succeed at all of those positions. Plays the run game like a mauler and seems to read a blitz in time. Not one to get bull-rushed, and athletic enough to play the next level of the defense. Athleticism is off the charts, as he has lower body strength that would squat a car. If you need an immediate plug-and-play guard, James Daniels can be that guy, and seems unselfish about communication.

Weaknesses: When climbing to the next level, James Daniels seems to struggle against fast linebackers. Extends his arms too much, so much so that he seems to have one holding call a game. That has more to do with the technical part of the game, tends to overthink on passing plays, and typically plays bullish when he needs to pull.

Cardinals Summary: I was impressed with A.Q. Shipley, but at some point, you need to have a permanent mainstay at center. You don’t even have to play him at center, as he could be a right guard for us, and probably still play at a consistent level. Overall, my type of lineman who’s tenacious with his run blocking.

Projected: Late 1st-2nd Round
Stats: None
Pro Comparison: Jason Kelce – Philadelphia Eagles

http://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/la-sp-rams-gurley-beckham-20180329-story.html

Todd Gurley says it would be ‘awesome’ if the Rams were to add Odell Beckham Jr.

By GARY KLEIN
MAR 29, 2018 | 11:00 PM

The reigning NFL offensive player of the year played for the league’s highest-scoring team and led the league in touchdowns.

But Rams running back Todd Gurley said Thursday night that there was plenty of room in the offense for more playmakers.

Like receiver Odell Beckham Jr.?

Beckham, the New York Giants star, has been linked to the Rams since news broke this week that the Giants were shopping — or at least testing the market — for a playmaker seeking a mega-extension as he enters the final year of his rookie contract.

Gurley knows Beckham.

“Oh yeah, that’s my guy,” Gurley said at the Sunset Marquis Hotel in West Hollywood, where he took part in an event hosted by Roc Nation, his representation firm.

Like coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead, Gurley appeared wary of saying too much about a player on another team.

But when told that McVay spoke this week about how Beckham, hypothetically, might fit into a high-powered offense that features Gurley and quarterback Jared Goff, Gurley agreed with McVay’s assessment that there are always enough snaps to keep everyone happy.

“There’s always enough snaps,” Gurley, speaking hypothetically, said with a broad grin. “There’s always enough snaps.

“If we had him, man, it would be awesome. I’d be happy, Goff will be happy, coach McVay will be happy, [owner Stan] Kroenke, the whole team would be.”

The New York Daily News, citing an unnamed source, reported this week that Beckham had told “a couple” of Rams players that he “wants in.”

Asked whether Beckham has expressed interest to him about coming to L.A., Gurley smiled.

“Hmm, I don’t want to say all that,” he said. “That’s my boy.”

Gurley then joined Lakers rookie Josh Hart and musical artist Normani in the “Off Script CEO Connect” event, which gave the trio an opportunity to introduce themselves to brand executives.

Gurley has endorsement deals with Nike and Gatorade among others.

“He knows what it takes to be great on the field and he’s also matured and hit his stride,” Michael Yormark, Roc Nation’s president and chief of branding and strategy, said of Gurley, adding, “He understands the landscape and he understands what the expectations are, and he probably also has a better feel for what he wants to become on the field and off the field.”

The hotel where the event was held is located less than three miles from the Hollywood Boulevard location where Gurley participated in a photo shoot for an NFL sportswear advertising campaign two years ago.

At the time, Gurley was coming off a 2015 season that earned him the NFL offensive rookie of the year award. His profile was expected to grow with the Rams’ return to Los Angeles from St. Louis.

But Gurley struggled in 2016.

The Rams fired coach Jeff Fisher with three games left in the season, finished 4-12 and ranked as the league’s worst offense for the second year in a row.

The hiring of the offense-minded McVay changed everything.

Tackle Andrew Whit-worth and center John Sullivan solidified the offensive line. Goff developed into a top-10 passer. Receivers Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp and Sammy Watkins were reliable targets.

And Gurley reemerged with one of the most productive seasons in Rams history.

He rushed for 1,305 yards and 13 touchdowns and caught a team-best 64 passes for 788 yards and six touchdowns.

The Rams won the NFC West but lost to Atlanta in the wild-card round of the playoffs.

They appear poised to take the next step after recently adding Pro Bowl cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib and Pro Bowl defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh.

“I love it, man,” Gurley said of his new teammates. “That’s like motivation for everybody.

“Since they’ve been signing, I’m like starting to work out twice a day because it’s a good opportunity this year.

“It looks great on paper but it doesn’t mean anything if you don’t get anything done during the season.”

wv wrote:

I dunno about the Oline or the Passing game.

thinking more and more rams need to draft a left tackle at 23. really want a guy like landry, but left tackle would be the smart move.

nah. pass.

i was already against it when the giants asking price went to two first rounders.

zn wrote:

Rodger Saffold@Rodger_Saffold
We got @NdamukongSuh congrats man! OTAs gonna get real! Lol #MOBSQUAD #LARams

will he even show up for ota’s???

http://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/la-sp-rams-sean-mcvay-20180327-story.html

How would a player such as Beckham hypothetically fit into the Rams offense?

“Hypothetically, I think a player of his caliber can kind of really do everything,” McVay said.

Asked, hypothetically, how he felt about trading a first-round pick or using other options to acquire a targeted player, McVay replied with what sounded like a not-so-veiled recruiting pitch.

“One of the things that being able to play in such a unique environment and atmosphere like L.A., it provides an opportunity to take advantage of that,” he said, “and that’s something we want to be proactive about.”

PA Ram wrote:

Maybe they find a way to run the ball to the outside or run screens or move the quarterback around or whatever.

yeah. they need to find some edge defenders. right now it’s a second year unknown and a complete unknown…

makes me nervous.

if. and only if a guy like marcus davenport fell to them at #23, would i take an edge rusher.

he’s a bigger guy. had sack production. but also lots of tfls which tells me he’s pretty good in run support. although he did all that playing for a smaller school. still. he’s got size and power and speed. his agility drills are not the best. but he’s got length and power and speed.

if they can draft left tackle in the first round. then you take an edge rusher with the third.

guys who could be available are ogbonnia okoronkwo, lorenzo carter, dorance armstrong, josh sweat, kemoko turay…

or they could go tight end… i wouldn’t mind tight end actually. after all the time spent fixing the dline and secondary. the rams could really use an upgrade at that position. probably the biggest weakness on offense is tight end.

and then you have 2 fourth rounders.

i’m curious as to how they approach the draft. several different ways they could go.

worst case scenario. this unit can’t stop the run. and the lack of quality edge rushers stunts the pass rush.

the run defense. i don’t know. i hope suh can play nose.

i wonder what there ultimate plan is for and edge rusher. they can’t be done yet.

Zooey wrote:

And a Show it will be, for better or worse.

expectations are so high at this point…

just making the playoffs would be a letdown at this point.

now all eyes focus on goff…. i think he’ll be alright.

demarcus ware was on nfl network talking about how it might work with suh on this defense. said a lot of stuff i didn’t quite understand. thinks he would alternate between 5 tech and 6 tech. while brockers would alternate between 5 tech and 0 tech.

like i said i don’t quite understand it. i know brockers played 5 tech last year. 0 tech is nose tackle.

6 technique is over the tight end apparently?

anyway. he speculates that he would provide pressure from the outside and the outside linebackers could line up inside and get pressure that way??? i think that’d be reserved for passing downs. doesn’t sound like a base defense to me.

dunno. i’m probably messing it all up. it was over my head.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 4 months ago by InvaderRam.