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PA Ram wrote:
I sure hope this isn’t in the playbook for the Rams today.Unless it goes the other way.
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By all means. If Fitzgerald drops it and Mcdonald picks it up and take it to the house, than I am all for it.
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. " Philip K. Dick
I’m finding some weird non-Ram stuff so I thought I’d post it together but maybe the title should have been non-ram stuff but football related. In any case. Howie Long may have sewn metal into his jersey which tends to make “holding” more difficult.
Howie Long Says Jersey Claim ‘Out Of Left Field’
Hall of Fame defensive end Howie Long said he was befuddled by the auction of what is described as a game-used jersey of his with “metal pebbles” sewn underneath the jersey numbers.
After being alerted about the auction and reading the description, Long said the idea that he had something under his numbers was “so out of left field. It’s just bizarre.”
Heritage Auctions says in its description of the jersey that Howie Long or the Raiders could have customized it “to rough up the fingers of opposing offensive linemen.”
The auction house, Heritage Auctions, in its description of a jersey that was sold Friday night for $3,585, wrote that Long or the Raiders could have customized the jersey “to rough up the fingers of opposing offensive linemen.”“We will suggest that Howie Long may have broke the rules a bit in this instance,” the description read.
“It’s just all so ridiculous,” Long responded, adding skepticism to the story and the alleged custom tailoring by asking why, if something was sharp under the jersey, the jersey itself wasn’t torn.
“I’ve authenticated more than 10,000 jerseys, and I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Troy Kinunen, president, chief executive and lead authenticator for Mears, a bat and jersey authentication company that backed the validity of the jersey.
The auction company says the jersey, believed to have been worn during Long’s rookie season in 1981, is from the collection of the late John Kindler. Kindler, whose son Ian consigned the jerseys for the auction, obtained them from the 1970s and ’80s by befriending equipment managers as well as team and school officials.
Kinunen said his company is confident that not only is this Long’s jersey and that it was game-used, but the wear suggests that it was used for at least one season. Kinunen also said that the company made sure that 75 was the only number ever sewn into that particular jersey, as forgers frequently try to take random jerseys from a time period and replace the number with the number of the most valuable player. Kinunen also said the jersey showed no sign of after-the-fact tampering, that the insertion of the objects was part of the original fabrication of the jersey by the equipment managers.
The Raiders did not make Bob Romanski, the current equipment manager who was working under his father, Dick, at the time with the team, available for comment.
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. " Philip K. Dick
PA Ram wrote:
The Austin Davis experiment has begun. May as well finish it. We know that Hill is NOT the future. We know(realistically) he won’t get them to a Superbowl this year.I get that argument but I don’t think it’s realistic. I am much more of a “win now” guy and I think off-season determinations are for the off-season. I think the best thing for Davis’s improvement is to sit and watch for a while and work on sharpening the aspects of his game that he CAN work on, in the off-season.
I am going to tease you.
If they do it your way? I can see the pep speeches now: “Team, give it your best and give it your all. Scoff at injuries, play in pain, throw yourself into it heart body and soul. Give it all of your blood sweat and tears. And here’s why–the staff is in the process of determining whether or not the qb is a future back-up. So…go Rams!”
The stuff dreams are made of.
They didn’t throw a first-round pick at Davis and they aren’t in this awkward position where they have to stick by him or admit that the pick was wasted.
I prefer win-now stuff.
Then again, twice now Davis was making the same kinds of mistakes and not running the offense the way it should be–which btw a lot of the sacks are on HIM not the OL–and twice now they straightened him out for at least a game or 2.
So I don’t know what the reality is.
I just prefer win now. I think “win now” has a way of taking care of things.
But they DID win–even with his worst performance. And I don’t think you’d pin their 5 losses on Austin Davis.
Winning is always the most important thing, but who has any idea that Hill gives the Rams the better shot of winning? And if Hill comes in and stinks? How is a QB carousel good for anything?
Also–there is short and long term thinking, and while players may be invested in the here and now–coaches are long term thinkers as well as short term thinkers.
Look–even if they win two more games this year because of Hill–how does that help them next year?
This team shows no carryover from one year to the next. Next year is a whole new thing. There will be changes.
I’m just suggesting that staying with Davis right now(short of him having a big regression or complete meltdown) offers more long term benefits than tossing in Hill to win a game or two and I’m only saying that because, as I asked in my last post: What is his ceiling?
That’s where I sit in all of this.
If the coaching staff believes he has hit his ceiling and this is it, fine–move on.
If not–continue the experiment a while longer.
I believe that the things Davis needs to learn are probably best learned in starting reps during practice and game experience.
And if you pull the plug too soon and Hill does no better, that tells the team you’re lost.
So–while I am critical of Davis–I would be patient for now.
Believe me, the thought of pulling him crossed my mind yesterday. Looking back, I’m glad they didn’t.
Going forward, we’ll see.
None of this is carved in stone. Everything is subject to change.
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. " Philip K. Dick
Here’s the important question regarding Davis:
Has he hit his ceiling?
If what you see is what you get then the Rams are far from set at the QB position and need to address it next year.
If not—then how long does he get to learn, to grow, to get better and fix his flaws?
In my mind, realistically, the Rams aren’t going anywhere this year, whether it’s Hill OR Davis or even Keenum. The Austin Davis experiment has begun. May as well finish it. We know that Hill is NOT the future. We know(realistically) he won’t get them to a Superbowl this year.
They may as well be certain of where Davis’s ceiling is.
If he continues to crack under pressure–if he shows no sign of keeping his head during a blitz, can’t pick up reads, continues to run and “jump-throw” the ball into interceptions and just doesn’t seem to be able to elevate above the bad habits, move along.
But if he shows some progress here and there maybe just let it ride.
One play where I did notice a difference was the check down to Cunningham when he was under pressure. I thought–“yes”–that’s what you need to do.
The Rams would need to win at least 7 of the next 8 to have a CHANCE at the post season.
For now, I’d prefer to let Davis play and KNOW what you have next year. If nothing else you’re evaluating him for a back-up role and if he surprises…maybe more.
Yesterday was, for sure, his worst game. It’s no more fair to judge him on his worst game than it is his best one.
He has to show he can handle pressure–keep a cool head.
That’s his audition for now.
Let’s see how he handles the role.
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. " Philip K. Dick
