JackPMiller wrote:

Who says they will be going after players from Denver? What about other teams? I heard the Rams and CB Sam Shields are supposed to meet. He played in Green Bay.

No one says it. I was just looking at their UFAs and speculating.

I just think they could use one or 2 of those Denver guys, if they’re all healthy now.

Worth noting:

Trade: Rams deal LB Alec Ogletree to Giants

By Bill Barnwell

Defensive coordinator Wade Phillips has helped develop unheralded inside linebackers such as Todd Davis and Brandon Marshall in years past, so the Rams might be able to get by without big-money players on the interior.

from: https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/03/08/free-agency-players-teams-league-trend-mmqb-notebook

ALBERT BREER

The Rams trading Alec Ogletree just five months after giving him a four-year, $42.75 million deal isn’t Los Angeles saying he can’t play. He wasn’t always the most consistent player, but this is more about the value that Wade Phillips puts in inside linebackers in his defense. As it’s set up, resources are better allocated in perimeter players—edge-rushing outside linebackers and corners. So maybe a change of scenery, and back to a 4-3, will help Ogletree.

And if it does, the Giants just fixed a hole that’s been there on their roster forever. Some teams don’t value off-ball linebackers at the level that Ogeltree is being compensated. But new Giants GM Dave Gettleman does, and his willingness to pay both Luke Kuechly and Thomas Davis in Carolina is proof positive of that.

…

wv wrote:

So can they sign Donald, Joyner AND Tru?

I’d be a lot less nervous about this if they kept Tru.

w
v

With the new cap space from Quinn and Tree and presumably also Tavon…yes IMO they can sign those 3 AND Watkins if they can reach a reasonable deal with him.

But I don’t see this as an issue of being less nervous.

With Peters, Joyner, J.Johnson, and signing Robey-Coleman as the nickel, plus either keeping Tru or drafting someone good…it’s not a matter of not being nervous…it’s beyond that, since with those guys they would instead have one of the best secondaries in the league.

…

…

Zooey wrote:

I am stunned. I saw this on my phone earlier, and couldn’t get here until now. You guys aren’t helping me. I need some explanation.

Tree isn’t my favorite player. He wasn’t going into my Ring of Fame. But he seemed decent. And I saw some upside still, since he was just moved to MLB.

So…I have faith in Wade. I think he knows what he is doing. Tree doesn’t fit his scheme. Okay. But…

The Rams run a 3-4.

And right now, I’m not sure they even have 4 LBs on the roster. WTF? Quinn’s gone, and AO is gone now. And Barwin is a FA, and there is talk of not keeping Barron.

Where are we now?

I mean…we have about a dozen picks in the 4th round now. Is the LB draft pool especially deep so that there will be 6 or 8 starters available in the 4th?

This move surprised me. But…uh…these guys have a track record of knowing what they are doing, so I will just sit here and wait for the next spectacle. I guess.

They do have some LBs though I don’t know how many of them are viable starters. The first that jump to mind are Longeacre (who needs to be signed), Littleton and Ebukam. Carlos Thompson gets some buzz. Their roster actually lists–without Quinn or Tree or Barwin–7 LBs. If they remake the entire starting LB corps, as apparently they are, that means they have to add guys of course but there’s some talent on hand, too.

Scheme fits, cap space and the Rams’ departure from Alec Ogletree

Alden Gonzalez

http://www.espn.com/blog/los-angeles-rams/post/_/id/37920/scheme-fits-salary-cap-space-and-the-rams-departure-from-alec-ogletree

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Rams had already made enough trades that the general public had basically become desensitized to their offseason movement. But this latest one sent shock waves through the industry.

Alec Ogletree, a lynchpin in the Rams’ locker room, was dealt to the New York Giants on Wednesday, less than five months after signing a four-year, $42 million extension. The return was draft picks — a fourth- and a sixth-round pick in 2018, with next year’s seventh-rounder going to the Giants — and more salary cap space, which harkens back to the trade that sent outside linebacker Robert Quinn to the Miami Dolphins only five days earlier.

Ogletree, like Quinn, wasn’t an ideal fit in Wade Phillips’ 3-4 scheme, which is why Ogletree, like Quinn, was deemed better off somewhere else, giving the Rams additional salary-cap flexibility and draft capital they can use elsewhere. The Rams are now approaching $50 million in salary cap space — $3 million more will come off the books when they inevitably part ways with Tavon Austin — and have accumulated 10 picks for the upcoming draft.

The extra money can go toward retaining their own free agents — namely, wide receiver Sammy Watkins and cornerback Trumaine Johnson, whom they have expressed interest in retaining — and aligning the defense to Phillips’ vision. But the Ogletree trade can be boiled down to two essential, albeit vastly different, factors.

The Rams need to limit the amount of players who make significant money because of what is coming. Aaron Donald is awaiting an extension that would make him the game’s highest-paid defensive player, preferably by a wide margin. But Todd Gurley is only one year behind him, and Jared Goff is only one year behind him. Soon, those three could absorb up to a third of their salary cap space. The Rams must plan accordingly.

They’re not satisfied with their defense, particularly their run defense. The Rams gave up the 12th-fewest points and generated the fifth-most turnovers, but they gave up the fifth-most rushing yards. And a lot of their struggles could be traced to players who weren’t scheme fits, Quinn and Ogletree among them. They’re trying to get the defense on par with the offense. It sounds crazy given the recent history of this franchise, but it’s the new reality.

The Ogletree trade means it’s a good chance that inside linebacker Mark Barron, a potential cap casualty, will stay. The Rams have promising young players who are next in line. Cory Littleton can replace Ogletree, Matt Longacre can replace Quinn and Samson Ebukam, last year’s fourth-round pick, can replace Connor Barwin, who is slated to become an unrestricted free agent. Phillips has a history of making unheralded linebackers rich, including former sixth-round pick Danny Trevathan.

But the Rams still need serious linebacker help from the outside, not to mention potential replacements at nose tackle, center and slot corner.

Ogletree, the 30th overall pick out of Georgia in 2013, was a converted safety who eventually transitioned to middle linebacker and blossomed into a leader. In 67 career starts, he racked up 501 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 6 interceptions, 43 passes defended, 12 forced fumbles and 2 touchdowns. But Pro Football Focus graded him 76th among 86 qualified linebackers last season, making his upcoming price tag unsuitable.

Ogletree would’ve been a week away from unrestricted free agency had the Rams not locked him up in October. His departure would’ve probably netted a fourth-round compensatory pick in 2019, which means the Ogletree extension — like the Austin extension — didn’t provide any real benefit.

Now it’s all about what the Rams do with the empty space

Trade: Rams deal LB Alec Ogletree to Giants

By Bill Barnwell

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/22680603/2018-nfl-free-agency-grades-big-trades-signings-moves-offseason-bill-barnwell

Grade for Rams: C+
Grade for Giants: C

The Giants were loathe to spend money on coverage linebackers under the reign of general manager Jerry Reese, who never adequately replaced Antonio Pierce in the middle of the field after the playoff hero finished his career in 2009. Draft picks like Jonathan Goff and a bevy of free agents — everyone from Jon Beason to J.T. Thomas — couldn’t stay healthy or play effective football. With Dave Gettleman coming over from a Panthers organization that built its defense around Thomas Davis and Luke Kuechly, it’s no surprise that he might want to address inside linebacker this offseason.

Ogletree is certainly the most likely candidate to succeed the Giants have brought in since Pierce, but it’s hard to argue that the former Georgia star is likely to return value. The 26-year-old is a stud athlete, but he hasn’t been able to turn those measurables into significant production since 2014. Ogletree forced 10 fumbles over his first two seasons, but he has only been responsible for two strips over the three ensuing years. He made tackles on 16.1 percent of Los Angeles’ run plays last season, a rate which was 60th in the league among players with 200 run snaps or more.

The problem is that Ogletree plays a position the league really doesn’t seem to value with significant contracts. The Rams signed Ogletree to a four-year, $42.8 million extension last October, and the Giants will essentially have Ogletree on a four-year, $38-million deal with $10 million guaranteed, all coming this season. That’s not in line with what better players have gotten in free agency; Dont’a Hightower, for one, got four years and $35.5 million to stay with the Patriots last offseason. Useful players like Zach Brown, who is back in the market this year, had to settle for a one-year pact. It’s difficult to believe Ogletree would have got this much if he were a free agent.

The Rams free up cap space as part of this deal, which marks the second expensive defender they’ve dealt away in a week after trading Robert Quinn to the Dolphins. It now seems more likely that they’ll hang on to fellow linebacker Mark Barron, who seemed like a plausible cap casualty. L.A. will have $6.5 million in dead money on their cap for Ogletree this year, but with $47.3 million in space, they can use the savings to bring back Sammy Watkins, who would otherwise be an unrestricted free agent. Defensive coordinator Wade Phillips has helped develop unheralded inside linebackers like Todd Davis and Brandon Marshall in years past, so the Rams might be able to get by without big money players on the interior.

Gettleman gives up fourth- and sixth-round picks to the Rams, who send a 2019 seventh-rounder back as part of the deal. The Giants have the second pick in the fourth round (No. 102) and the third-to-last selection in that round (pick 135) as a compensatory chit. There’s a big difference between the two selections, obviously, but either pick would represent a victory for the Rams.

Alden Gonzalez@Alden_Gonzalez
Some insight into the Rams’ thinking on trading Alec Ogletree: They believe last year’s defense had a lot of 4-3 players who didn’t necessarily fit into Wade Phillips’ 3-4 scheme, Ogletree (and Robert Quinn, dealt to the Dolphins) among them. Signing Ogletree to an extension gave them down-the-road flexibility at that time, which they have now used to recoup draft picks.

The Alec Ogletree void for the Rams will come mostly in their locker room, which is why some players have expressed shock, even anger, through social media. Ogletree, a captain the last two years, had blossomed into a key emotional leader for them.

The Alec Ogletree trade to the Giants means there’s a pretty solid chance that ILB Mark Barron, a potential cap casualty, stays. The savings on Ogletree can be used on the Rams’ own free agents — namely, WR Sammy Watkins and CB Trumaine Johnson — and on remaking their defense to fit Wade Phillips’ scheme. In a larger sense, it’s about creating room for potential extensions with Aaron Donald, Todd Gurley and Jared Goff, who are each a year apart.

—

Rams' offseason needs/desires, in no particular order …

* Watkins
* Johnson
* C
* NT/DE
* ILB
* Slot CB
* OLB
* OLB

That, in addition to figuring out a long-term deal with Aaron Donald and, potentially, Lamarcus Joyner. Spotrac has them at $47 in cap space, plus 10 picks.

— Alden Gonzalez (@Alden_Gonzalez) March 7, 2018

RamUK wrote:

Rams ‘frustrated’ with Ogletree’s run support
Per Rappaport

==

Ian Rapoport@RapSheet
The #Rams are trading LB Alec Ogletree to the #Giants for 2 draft picks, source said. He was offered to the #Chiefs, too, but they declined. @AdamSchefter on it first.

snowman wrote:

We trade a starting LB who recently signed a 5-year contract for a couple of picks?

Kind of strange, yeah.

Anyway in 2018 clearing out AO means they have dead money on him for 6.4 M and save 5.2 M.

I would say rignt now that that’s not enough savings to make this look like a slamdunk move.

/…

Adam Schefter@AdamSchefter
The final four teams expected to be vying for free-agent quarterback Kirk Cousins are the Broncos, Cardinals, Jets and Vikings, per league sources.

Robert Klemko@RobertKlemko
Writing a story on the ways teams gather info about prospects from other prospects. Rams GM Les Snead recalled multiple OL prospects in 2014 saying of Aaron Donald, “I wish he hadn’t been at the Senior Bowl too, because now I’m not gonna get drafted.”

Alden Gonzalez@Alden_Gonzalez
McVay said “it’ll be fun” competing against the 49ers under Jimmy Garoppolo, but he’s still mindful about the Seahawks. “A lot of people forget that with two games left, we’re really playing them almost for the division. Seattle is still a force to be reckoned with.”

Matt Barrows@mattbarrows
In 2011, the #49ers’ 10-man draft that began with Aldon Smith and Colin Kaepernick, in part, earned Trent Baalke exec. of the year. Last season, only Daniel Kilgore (fifth), Colin Jones (6th) and Mike Person (7th) played a snap.

Albert Breer@AlbertBreer
It’ll be hard for the Steelers and Le’Veon Bell to do a deal. Why? B/c Bell playing out tag will lead to either …

1) Getting $14.54M this year AND free agency next year.
2) Getting $35.48M over the next 2 years (2 tags).

Steelers basically have to beat those outcomes.