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znModeratorthe best hands in the NFL draft
znModeratoralyoshamucci wrote
Drafting 2 TEs? I know we’ll “get” two … but I’m thinking it may be post draft.
The talent is crazy at the position this year and I’m not seeing 35 TEs getting drafted …
Some guys aren’t even getting mentioned and when I run through simulations there are always TEs available…i think the rams need a tight end more than a wideout. i think there’s more talent at that position than is being given credit for. tight end, on the other hand, is a bigger question mark. notice i say bigger. cuz ultimately they’re both question marks, but i think tight end is the bigger one.
it’s evan engram for me. hodges if engram isn’t available. the talent is super crazy there this year. i’d say howard, but i mean we gotta be realistic here.
I think it’s inevitable. McVay used TEs to good effect in Washington as a coordinator and before that was a TE coach. I bet it’s the same as with Fisher–Fisher the DB then DB coach was good at drafting them. McVay could work out the same way with TEs.
znModeratorbut if goff isn’t good, then mcvay won’t look quite as smart. getting nervous now.
I dunno. If Goff doesn’t pan out, then, it just means McVay will be with the Rams for a much longer time than Goff will.
BTW Cousins is a FA in 2018. He has been tagged twice, and can’t be tagged again.
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April 2, 2017 at 5:09 pm in reply to: distance on small scales in physics & the "ultraviolet catastrophe" #66933znModeratorznModeratorfrom old article: Cooley, Redskins rave about Sean McVay
Jan 11, 2014
John Keim
ESPNhttp://www.espn.com/blog/washington-redskins/post/_/id/4777/cooley-redskins-rave-about-sean-mcvay
…players would be happy if McVay is elevated to offensive coordinator for new coach Jay Gruden. Though Gruden said he will interview other candidates, McVay still is considered the likely new choice. He’s young, only 27, but he also has impressed players because of his knowledge of the offense. Gruden said he will call the plays, so that could make it easier for a young coach such as McVay to ease into an expanded role.
“His ability to digest a game plan and give it to his players in a streamlined manner allows us to digest us efficiently making sure to emphasize details that are important,” Paulsen said. “Every week he’d try to call plays without looking at the sheet. He knows what everyone has to do on the field. He approached it like an offensive coordinator. That’s advantageous to a player. He knows every detail the same way Kyle [Shanahan] used to know the details. He has that big-picture mindset that helps out.”
Former Redskins tight end Chris Cooley played one and a half seasons under McVay.
“He had the highest understanding of an offense of any position coach I’ve ever been around,” Cooley said. “We’d go back and forth in meetings on scheme, why and how. There was always an answer. I love that in a coach.
“Two years ago I said if anyone becomes a head coach on this staff it would be Sean McVay.”
Players at other positions echoed what Paulsen and Cooley said. The tight ends often worked with the linemen in practice because they needed to be in tandem with their blocking.
“The relationships he has with players and what he gets out of a player with both effort and production on the field by not being a screamer,” Redskins guard Kory Lichtensteiger said. “He’s a guy you can relate to. He has a lot of shared characteristics with hard-working players. Players can see if a guy knows what he’s talking about and he goes about it the right way getting that type of effort out of his players.”
znModeratoralyoshamucci wrote:
Drafting 2 TEs? I know we’ll “get” two … but I’m thinking it may be post draft.
The talent is crazy at the position this year and I’m not seeing 35 TEs getting drafted …
Some guys aren’t even getting mentioned and when I run through simulations there are always TEs available…znModeratorA note on McVay and drafting receivers
If you read around in the things McVay has said about the draft and the combine, you can see he was heavily in on the process of selecting players when he was the coordinator for Washington. Not that it came down to him but he was involved.
Well with McV as the coordinator from 2014-6, they drafted 4 receivers. 2 didn’t amount to anything but they were taken after the 4th round.
One was injured but still has high expectations (Josh Doctson, 1st round 2016).
The other was 2015 4th rounder Jamison Crowder, who contributed immediately as a rookie (2015: 78 trgts, 59 catches, 75.6%, for 604 yards and 2 TDs).
So McVay has already been involved drafting receivers, and two of the picks look good–one has promise in spite of an injury, and the other came through.
April 2, 2017 at 12:45 am in reply to: Case Keenum Signed a 1 year $2 million contract with Minnesota #66908znModeratorReynolds and Thomas.
I think it’s a case of them just not being signed anywhere. I don’t think the Rams intend to keep them.
Rams free to sign elsewhere: Britt, Cunningham, Keenum, McDonald, Quick, Reynolds, Thomas, Zuerlein.
— Rich Hammond (@Rich_Hammond) March 9, 2017
znModeratorTrump voters fear diversity? Well-not all do. At least not in my neck of the woods. Most people I know who own their own business voted for the guy for one simple reason: they think he will lower their corporate tax rate and allow them to either buy more toys or expand their business. None of them appear to have any negative attitudes toward other ethnic groups. Their votes were simply -in their mind-a matter of economics. If they could use a diverse population in their own businesses they would-and from what I see-they have. But then again they are fairly well educated and would be considered “upper class”-whatever that means.
And I’m sure that’s all true. Ar the same time, I happen to know people who fit the description in that article too, and that personal knowledge combined with real research supports what the writers are saying.
In fact it is a widely researched and very grounded fact.
Nothing in what you say undermines it, either. It’s just that different groups voted for him with different motives and views. It can be (and in fact is) both things. One thing does not exclude the other.
The individuals you know aside. Which would only represent one small aspect of all this.
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April 1, 2017 at 8:20 pm in reply to: distance on small scales in physics & the "ultraviolet catastrophe" #66895znModeratorThat’s a good vid ag. I found #2 but I can’t find numbers 3-5.
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znModeratorLink: https://www.thenation.com/article/fear-of-diversity-made-people-more-likely-to-vote-trump/
It’s a fascinating debate and will continue IMO.
We find that opinions about how increasing racial diversity will affect American society had much more impact on support for Trump during the 2016 election compared to support for the Republican candidates in the two previous presidential elections. We also find that individuals with high levels of racial resentment were more likely to switch from Obama to Trump, but those with low racial resentment and more positive views about rising diversity voted for Romney but not Trump.
In short, our analysis indicates that Donald Trump successfully leveraged existing resentment towards African Americans in combination with emerging fears of increased racial diversity in America to reshape the presidential electorate, strongly attracting nativists towards Trump and pushing some more affluent and highly educated people with more cosmopolitan views to support Hillary Clinton. Racial identity and attitudes have further displaced class as the central battleground of American politics.
Though on this bit: Racial identity and attitudes have further displaced class as the central battleground of American politics.
I don’t think one “displaces” the other, since the 2 are completely tied together. I think the emphasis can shift from time to time but the dynamic is, they are bound together.
Which is why the same author says this: pushing some more affluent and highly educated people with more cosmopolitan views to support Hillary. In that statement class/race are intersecting. But since the authors don’t directly discuss that intersection it just shows up their essay in spotty ways.
znModeratorStealYoGurley wrote:
Joyner will fill the role TJ Ward had in Denver. Ward was probably the most versatile piece in Wade’s defense the last 2 years. He was one of the main reasons Wade was able to play so much base 3-4 because Ward could come down in the box, cover in the slot, blitz, and even play LB. He lined up everywhere; single high, as a split safety, nickle LB, in the box, and slot corner. Ward is only 2 inches taller and 6 pounds heavier, so the size difference is not that great.
Joyner plays with the same aggressiveness and has similar position versatility playing LB and Nickel last year to go along with extensive experience at safety at Florida State. Mo is constantly improving and is a bigger faster version of Wade’s Denver SS, Darian Stewart. I like the mix we have at safety.
znModeratorChris Long: “I have a lot left”
Michael David Smith
Chris Long: “I have a lot left”
Last year Chris Long was cut by the Rams in a move that signaled the end could be near for the veteran defensive end. Now he has a Super Bowl ring from his year with the Patriots and a new contract with the Eagles, and he says he’s nowhere near the end.
“I feel like I have a lot left, I really do,” Long said today in Philadelphia. “There was a time when I was injured and playing really bad and cut, rightfully so, that I wasn’t sure what my future in football was. But I was really lucky to take that step and for Coach [Bill] Belichick to take a chance on me, and I found out that I still had a lot in the tank. I didn’t miss a practice, I didn’t miss a game last year, and that was something that I was very proud of, and was able to play and I think at a pretty high level.”
Long said the defense in Philadelphia is a lot like the scheme he played in with the Rams, and he knows he can be a good fit.
“If you watch what I did in St. Louis for eight years, that was more like what we do here,” he said. “So schematically there’s a big difference. I’m just lucky to find a place that I think I can at least compete to try to have a role.”
The 32-year-old Long sounds confident he has a few more good years left in him.
znModeratorznModeratorpoplarbluffman aka thehammer wrote:
every year around 150 wr’s are brought to camp with 32 being drafted and 14 going top 100
avg is ONLY 5 will become above avg starters per pff basically used the top 30 or score of 80
last 9 years 33 1st rd picks with only 9 becoming above avg startersonly 6 players drafted since 2004 after rd 4 are ranked above above avg starters
only 5 udfa above avg starters teams bring in an avg of 120 udfa a year….do the math
less then 1 in 3 1st rd picks work out…the draft is looking for the common traits of the 5 that will succeed…almost all of the udfa guys are very quick, smallish slot guys since 2008 40 wr’s drafted in 2nd rd 3 made the list
forget the combine workouts they mean nothing…zero value in prediction future success. I do see intelligence, work ethic, passion for the game and having a large ego as common traits ..which is why Dede Westbrook made my list
if you just use receptions(not pff scores) maybe 6/7 wr’s will make it.
https://www.profootballfocus.com/nfl-draft-wr-rankings/
want to add love this year wr’s..if avg is around 5 I would expect 7 to be above avg starters
good list of the top 28 wr’s i disagree on a few of the rankings but pretty close to mine…which 6 are worth drafting…
Mike Williams, Dede Westbrook, Cory Davis, Carlos Henderson, Isaiah Ford, Taywan Taylor,r with Zay Jones, Cooper Kupp, Noah Brown, Jamari Staples, Jehu Chesson and Autin Carr close to making my list
*
Does anyone envision Evan Engram as a WR rather than TE? …not sure if the definition matters…h back or wr…a D coordinators worst nightmare…just so damn explosive you can move him around looking for mismatches…
Evan Engram named a top performer from the Senior Bowl by NFL Network’s Mike Mayock..when I look at the names who might be there at #37 Engram sits atop that list
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March 31, 2017 at 5:15 pm in reply to: Dolphins sign McDonald…& McD says bye & thanx to Rams nation #66875znModeratorThank You. pic.twitter.com/cs9Ue3XX2i
— TJ McDonald (@tmcdonaldjr) March 31, 2017
znModeratorOld vid but worth a look IMO
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znModeratorTimes Says Devin Nunes’ Secret Sources for Trump-Friendly Intel Were Trump Administration Officials
The New York Times is reporting that two Trump administation officials helped House Intelligence Committee chairman Devin Nunes access material which allegedly revealed that the names of Trump associates may have been inappropriately disclosed in intelligence reports after being caught up in incidental U.S. surveillance of foreign officials.
In a move that now seems bizarre, Nunes subsequently announced his discovery of that information—and briefed Donald Trump on it—without mentioning that he had obtained it at a meeting on White House grounds. (The point of Nunes’ announcement seems to have been to push the administration-friendly idea that Obama officials’ leaks of classified information regarding Trump and Russia are a more troubling problem than whatever contact the Trump campaign may have had with Russian officials.)
From the Times:
Several current American officials identified the White House officials as Ezra Cohen-Watnick, the senior director for intelligence at the National Security Council, and Michael Ellis, a lawyer who works on national security issues at the White House Counsel’s Office and formerly worked on the staff of the House Intelligence Committee …
Mr. Cohen-Watnick is a former Defense Intelligence Agency official who was originally brought to the White House by Michael T. Flynn, the former national security adviser. The officials said that earlier this month, shortly after Mr. Trump wrote on Twitter about being wiretapped on the orders of President Barack Obama, Mr. Cohen-Watnick began reviewing highly classified reports detailing the intercepted communications of foreign officials.
The backgrounds of the men identified do not undercut the appearance that Nunes’ ostensibly independent investigation is being conducted with the intention of helping the White House politically. Ellis is a former Nunes staffer, while Politico reported earlier this month that Trump’s political advisers intervened to overrule national security adviser H.R. McMaster when McMaster asked to move Cohen-Watnick to a different job.Nunes had reportedly refused to tell even the other members of the House Intelligence Committee who had given him the information he saw at the White House and denied to Bloomberg’s Eli Lake that his source had been a “White House staffer,” telling him instead that he had been aided by an “intelligence official.” After being asked on March 23 whether anyone at the White House had given Nunes access to the classified documents, Trump press secretary Sean Spicer dodged the question by pointing out that Nunes had later briefed Trump on the matter. “I don’t know why he would come up to brief the president on something that we gave him,” he said. “That doesn’t really seem to make a ton of sense.”
==
2 White House Officials Helped Give Nunes Intelligence Reports
By MATTHEW ROSENBERG, MAGGIE HABERMAN and ADAM GOLDMANMARCH 30, 2017
link: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/30/us/politics/devin-nunes-intelligence-reports.html
WASHINGTON — A pair of White House officials helped provide Representative Devin Nunes of California, a Republican and the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, with the intelligence reports that showed that President Trump and his associates were incidentally swept up in foreign surveillance by American spy agencies.
The revelation on Thursday that White House officials disclosed the reports, which Mr. Nunes then discussed with Mr. Trump, is likely to fuel criticism that the intelligence chairman has been too eager to do the bidding of the Trump administration while his committee is supposed to be conducting an independent investigation of Russia’s meddling in the presidential election.
It is the latest twist of a bizarre Washington drama that began after dark on March 21, when Mr. Nunes got a call from a person he has described only as a source. The call came as he was riding across town in an Uber car, and he quickly diverted to the White House. The next day, Mr. Nunes gave a hastily arranged news conference before going to brief Mr. Trump on what he had learned the night before from — as it turns out — White House officials.
The chain of events — and who helped provide the intelligence to Mr. Nunes — was detailed to The New York Times by four American officials.
Since disclosing the existence of the intelligence reports, Mr. Nunes has refused to identify his sources, saying he needed to protect them so others would feel safe going to the committee with sensitive information. In his public comments, he has described his sources as whistle-blowers trying to expose wrongdoing at great risk to themselves.
That does not appear to be the case. Several current American officials identified the White House officials as Ezra Cohen-Watnick, the senior director for intelligence at the National Security Council, and Michael Ellis, a lawyer who works on national security issues at the White House Counsel’s Office and was previously counsel to Mr. Nunes’s committee. Though neither has been accused of breaking any laws, they do appear to have sought to use intelligence to advance the political goals of the Trump administration.
Sean Spicer, the White House spokesman, refused to confirm or deny at his daily briefing that Mr. Ellis and Mr. Cohen-Watnick were Mr. Nunes’s sources. The administration’s concern was the substance of the intelligence reports, not how they ended up in Mr. Nunes’s hands, Mr. Spicer said.
The “obsession with who talked to whom, and when, is not the answer,” Mr. Spicer said. “It should be the substance.”
Jack Langer, a spokesman for Mr. Nunes, said in a statement, “As he’s stated many times, Chairman Nunes will not confirm or deny speculation about his source’s identity, and he will not respond to speculation from anonymous sources.”
Mr. Cohen-Watnick, 30, is a former Defense Intelligence Agency official who served on the Trump transition team and was originally brought to the White House by Michael T. Flynn, the former national security adviser.
He was nearly pushed out of his job this month by Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster, who replaced Mr. Flynn as national security adviser, but survived after the intervention of Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law, and Stephen K. Bannon, Mr. Trump’s chief strategist.
The officials who detailed the newly disclosed White House role said that this month, shortly after Mr. Trump claimed on Twitter that he was wiretapped during the campaign on the orders of President Barack Obama, Mr. Cohen-Watnick began reviewing highly classified reports detailing the intercepted communications of foreign officials.
There were conflicting accounts of what prompted Mr. Cohen-Watnick to dig into the intelligence. One official with direct knowledge of the events said Mr. Cohen-Watnick began combing through intelligence reports this month in an effort to find evidence that would justify Mr. Trump’s Twitter posts about wiretapping.
But another person who was briefed on the events said Mr. Cohen-Watnick came upon the information as he was reviewing how widely intelligence reports on intercepts were shared within the American spy agencies. He then alerted the N.S.C. general counsel, but the official said Mr. Cohen-Watnick was not the person who showed the reports to Mr. Nunes.
That person and a third official said it was then Mr. Ellis who allowed Mr. Nunes to view the material.
The intelligence reports consisted primarily of ambassadors and other foreign officials talking about how they were trying to develop contacts within Mr. Trump’s family and inner circle before his inauguration, officials said.
The officials all spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe the intelligence and to avoid angering Mr. Cohen-Watnick and Mr. Ellis. Officials say Mr. Cohen-Watnick has been reviewing the reports from his fourth-floor office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, where the National Security Council is based.
The officials’ description of the intelligence is in line with Mr. Nunes’s characterization of the material, which he said was not related to the Russia investigations when he first disclosed its existence.
According to Mr. Nunes, who served on the Trump transition team, he met his source on the grounds of the White House. He said he needed a secure location where people with security clearances could legally view classified information, though such facilities could also be found in the Capitol building and at other locations across Washington.
The next day, Mr. Nunes gave a news briefing at the Capitol and then returned to the White House to brief Mr. Trump on the information before telling other committee members about what he had reviewed. His actions have fueled criticism that the committee, under his leadership, is unable to conduct a serious, independent investigation.
On Thursday, Representative Adam B. Schiff of California, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said he needed clarification on whether White House officials had pursued “a circuitous route” to feed Mr. Nunes the materials so he could then hand them to Mr. Trump.
“If that was designed to hide the origin of the materials, that raises profound questions about just what the White House is doing that need to be answered,” he said. He later said he accepted an invitation on Thursday to review the same materials that Mr. Nunes had seen.
Yet even before Thursday, the view among Democrats and even some Republicans was that Mr. Nunes was given access to the intelligence reports to divert attention from the investigations into Russian meddling, and to bolster Mr. Trump’s debunked claims of having been wiretapped.
On both counts, Mr. Nunes appears to have succeeded: The House inquiry into Russian meddling that he is leading has descended into a sideshow since he disclosed the information, and the administration has portrayed his information as vindicating the president’s wiretapping claims.
Yet Mr. Nunes has dismissed Democratic calls to step aside. Instead, he has canceled all committee hearings for now, stalling his own investigation, which opened last week with a hearing during which James B. Comey, the director of the F.B.I., publicly disclosed that the bureau’s investigation into Russian meddling included an examination of any evidence that Trump associates had colluded in the effort.
The chaotic situation prompted the leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee, which is running its own investigation, to bluntly state on Wednesday that their work had nothing to do with the House inquiry. And television news programs have been dominated by arguments about whether the incidental intelligence gathering of Mr. Trump and his associates was the real issue, or simply a distraction from the Russia investigations.
Mr. Nunes has acknowledged that the incidental intelligence gathering on Trump associates last year was not necessarily unlawful, and that it was not specifically directed at Mr. Trump or people close to him. American intelligence agencies typically monitor foreign officials of allied and hostile countries, and they routinely sweep up communications linked to Americans who may be taking part in the conversation or are being spoken about.
The real issue, Mr. Nunes has said, was that he could figure out the identities of Trump associates from reading reports about intercepted communications that were shared among Obama administration officials with top security clearances.
He said some Trump associates were also identified by name in the reports. Normally, intelligence agencies mask the identities of American citizens who are incidentally present in intercepted communications, though knowledgeable readers can often figure out the identities in context.
znModerator’d much rather have bowser or watt. but they might be first rounders by now.
How many 1st rounders do you reckon there are in this draft?
Hopefully…37.
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znModeratorthey’re both physical. they can both cover. plus you can send them on blitzes. i feel confident in both of them in run support.
I have to echo that.
That was my automatic feeling when I first heard that they would be the 2 guys at safety.
Potentially better than McLeod & McDonald, which was itself better than the previous good Rams safety duo of…um…Lyle & Wright? And maybe Joyner & Alexander is better than L & W.
In short, I wax enthusiastic.
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znModeratorznModeratorfrom Quality Over Quantity: Rams Most Improved in NFC West
By Nate Bain
Bleacher Report’s Most Improved Team in Each NFL Division After Early Free Agency
Through the first big wave of free agency, Bleacher Report has named the Los Angeles Rams the offseason’s most improved team in the NFC West division.
The Rams kickstarted their 2017 by hiring a new head coach in Sean McVay. The NFL’s youngest head coach quickly recruited defensive coordinator Wade Phillips (Broncos) and offensive coordinator Matt LeFleur (Falcons) to join him in L.A.
McVay’s first order of business was improving the offense and bringing in a veteran presence to the locker room.
The Rams didn’t necessarily make huge waves in free agency, and they didn’t sign as many outside free agents as the divisional-rival San Francisco 49ers. But … The Rams providedm QB Jared Goff with an experienced new left tackle in Andrew Whitworth, who’s coming off back-to-back Pro Bowl seasons in Cincinnati. They also replaced top receiver Kenny Britt with the younger Robert Woods, who at least gives them more ceiling space at that position.
These free agency moves give fans in Los Angeles a reason to smile heading into April’s NFL Draft. The Rams first selection will come at No. 37 in the second round on Friday, April 28. The Rams are currently the only NFC West team without a first round draft pick.
znModeratorcanuckramsfans wrote:
I think we will be stuck with TruJo….all NFL GMs realize the plethora of CB roster-help available in this 2017 Draft, so why mortgage the farm for a 6th year vet who gets dinged-up every year it seems. I am of the mind that we HAVE TO improve our Pass Rush for 2017, and who knows how Robert Quinn (and his back!) will respond to playing standing up as an Edge OLB??? We need to ensure good pressure on opposing QBs AS IT WILL MASK DEFICIENCIES IN OUR DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD!! That’s why I want McKinley at #37….because we don’t know if Quinn will be Von Miller, or Dennis Miller.
Rd/ #….PLAYER NAME…..SCHOOL….POS……………….COMMENTS
2/37….Takkarist McKinley….UCLA………OLB…I think his shoulder surgery will make this local SoCal 1st Rounder fall to us.
3/69….Gerald Everett………S.Alabama….TE….Agree with you that Jared Goff needs productive targets like young Everett!
4/112..Rasul Douglas………W.Virginia…..CB….Like TruJo (& Clancy Williams!) a CB with some length (& real potential).
4/141..Dede Westbrook….Oklahoma…..WR….If Goff throws enough TDs to Westbrook, Dede will change his name to TeeDee!
5/149..Kyle Fuller…………….Baylor……..OC….It’s a need& Fuller s/b there in 5th. If not, OT J.Davenport from Bucknell for value
6/189..Ben Gedeon…………Michigan…….ILB…We’re thin@LB & you just know a Jim Harbaugh-coached player will be tough.
6/206..Hunter Dimick………Utah……………DE…This Ute stud was a Combine snub to be sure. Hope he lasts to #206. Value!!
7/234..De’Veon Smith……..Michigan…….RB….A 225lbs Harbaugh product to, as you said…back-up Todd Franchise GurleyznModeratorMike Flynn Offers to Testify in Exchange for Immunity
Former national security adviser tells FBI, the House and Senate intelligence committees he’s willing to be interviewed in exchange for deal, officials sayhttps://www.wsj.com/articles/mike-flynn-offers-to-testify-in-exchange-for-immunity-1490912959
WASHINGTON—Mike Flynn, President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser, has told the Federal Bureau of Investigation and congressional officials investigating the Trump campaign’s potential ties to Russia that he is willing to be interviewed in exchange for a grant of immunity from prosecution, according to officials with knowledge of the matter.
As an adviser to Mr. Trump’s presidential campaign, and later one of Mr. Trump’s top aides in the White House, Mr. Flynn was privy to some of the most sensitive foreign-policy deliberations of the new administration and was directly involved in discussions about the possible lifting of sanctions on Russia imposed by the Obama administration.
He has made the offer to the FBI and the House and Senate intelligence committees through his lawyer but has so far found no takers, the officials said.
Mr. Flynn’s attorney, Robert Kelner, declined to comment.
It wasn’t clear if Mr. Flynn had offered to talk about specific aspects of his time working for Mr. Trump, but the fact that he was seeking immunity suggested Mr. Flynn feels he may be in legal jeopardy following his brief stint as the national security adviser, one official said.
Mr. Flynn was forced to resign after acknowledging that he misled White House officials about the nature of his phone conversations with the Russian ambassador to the U.S. during the presidential transition.
Mr. Flynn’s communications with the Russian ambassador, Sergei Kislyak, have been scrutinized by the FBI, which is examining whether Trump campaign personnel colluded with Russian officials who are alleged to have interfered with the presidential election, according to current and former U.S. officials. Russia has denied the allegations.
Democratic lawmakers have requested a copy of the security-clearance form that Mr. Flynn was required to file before joining Mr. Trump in the White House, to see if he disclosed sources of foreign income.
And they have asked the Defense Department to investigate whether Mr. Flynn, a retired Army general, violated the Constitution’s emoluments clause by accepting money from RT, which U.S. intelligence officials say is part of a state-funded media apparatus.
znModeratorWildflecken wrote:
Everywhere Kromer has been hired the offensive line has improved. Have watched a lot of video on Kromers coached offensive lines.
Runs a lot of inside/outside zone with man/power blocking techniques (power gap). Rams had some success with these run blocking concepts in 2015 under Cignetti. Far from the true zone (Shanahan concept) the Rams installed last season with horrific results (was shocked they went true zone after some success with 2015 approach, but the pass pro was a huge issue in 2015 so assume addition of Goff is what drove decision. Did not want Goff to take the beating Foles did.)
Will be interesting to see what Kromer can do with the existing talent and of course the addition of Whitworth certainly won’t hurt as it all starts at LOT.
Some are legitimately concerned about DT’s/DL’s getting under Hav’s pads at OG but he has a good anchor for a large man. Do not see him beat often other than speed rush, struggled with the edge. Tenacious run blocker at Wisconsin.
Leonard Davis was 6’6″ and transitioned to ROG in Dallas after signing as a FA for quite a hefty contract at the time. A high draft pick who flopped at LOT with Arizona. Went on to make 3 consecutive pro bowls. While I understand the height comment it is more about the players attributes. Hav is tenacious run blocker and imo could benefit by moving to the “phone booth”. Lateral movement at ROT was an issue, struggled in 2016 against speed rush. However initial step/quickness is sufficient at OG. Hav does not get beat on bull rush often. Rams have to fix the blocking on the right side for any hopes of success. Grob COULD develop into a dominant ROT in the mold of a Loadholt, but issue is not athleticism.
Actually smart move by McVay/Kromer. ROT’s are much easier to find in both draft and FA, if Grob does not develop. Saffold also looked very good at ROT last camp. Yes preseason but one of the bright spots of last camp was ability to run to the right. Think Kromer has an emergency plan for 2017 if Grob proves not to be the answer.
http://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/la-sp-rams-les-snead-20170328-story.html
McVay also has said that other interior linemen would be trained at the position, so versatile Andrew Donnal is among those who possibly could make the transition.Seen a lot of chatter about Pocic being the Center Rams are interested in. One reason I have heard is he projects as able to play other positions along line in addition to center versus a prospect like Elfein who is limited to Center. I realize the benefit of having versatile lineman who you can plug into multiple spots, but love the nastiness of an Elfein even if limited to center only. Sometimes you need a talent who is a high performer at one position versus an adequate talent at multiple positions.
In terms of guard conversions with guys already on the roster, it very well could be a open competition between Wich, Donnal, Brown etc.. Donnal was the one lineman who showed improvement in 2016 from rookie campaign. Donnal had a great college coach in Ferentz. Donnal is also a gym rat, could be the hardest worker of the 3. Evidently they going with the 6’7″ Hav at ROG so if indeed they do put Donnal at C with Whitworth at LOT well would need to research this but could have tallest line in league? Donnal is technically sound, and certainly more athletic than Wichmann. Barnes was often late to second level. Donnal may not be? This could work. Look at the eerily similar comparisons below in both Ethan Pocic’s and Andrew Donnal’s draft profiles. Both are 6’6″ and Pocic is the Center paving the way for Leonard Fournette this past season at LSU.
Donnal was on a trajectory early in his college career to be the LOT under Ferentz. His injury and Brandon Scherff altered Ferentz’s decision. However he was still very highly regarded by Ferentz and when thrown in as the LOT last season I think you see why. Whitworth could be huge in Donnal’s development. We will see, but his future IMO is at OT. A decision to transition Donnal to Center would shock me, but I would never count out a prior lineman coached by Ferentz. You seen how technically sound he was last season.
This season is in all likelihood the last shot for both Donnal and Wichman. With no relocation to alter their offseason plans, hopefully they are both working towards making the NFL a long term venture for themselves.
With the relocation don’t know how much you can weight 2016. Anxious to see how much work Wichmann has been putting in this offseason. How much of Wichmann’s decline was due to true zone used last season. Was getting the best push of the 3 at OG in 2015. In 2015 right side of Hav/Wichmann was springing Gurley often
znModeratorMcDonald eventually had DUI dismissed, pleaded no contest to reckless driving. Sentenced to probation, comm. service and counseling program. https://t.co/hB08rpk4jA
— Rich Hammond (@Rich_Hammond) March 29, 2017
March 30, 2017 at 1:24 pm in reply to: Breer: Why NFL Coaches Want More Offseason Time With Players #66845znModeratorCoaches want to talk about future changes to offseason program
Darin Gantt
Coaches want to talk about future changes to offseason program
Ever since the last collective bargaining agreement cut deeply into the amount of time coaches have with players in the offseason, coaches have been grumbling.
But now, a few of them are doing something they hope will be more productive that just yelling about kids these days and how it used to be better back in their day.
According to Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com, a group of four coaches (Ravens coach John Harbaugh, Bengals coach Marvin Lewis, Saints coach Sean Payton and Panthers coach Ron Rivera) met with a group of league officials to discuss possible future adjustment to the work rules.
In the last CBA, offseason programs went from 14 weeks to nine, and only five of those weeks can include on-field work. Two-a-days during training camp went away, and contact during OTAs was limited. Coaches see a direct correlation to the lack of chances to develop players and declining play (while the league keeps telling us games have never been closer or better). And players are now forced to hire outside trainers to get themselves ready for seasons.
“We’ve had guys ask, How come we can’t work out with you guys?” Rivera said. “Those are the rules. We have guys that have to hire people to work them out. We can’t. So they’re spending their money on people working with them, as opposed to working with us. That’s just the way it is.”
Of course, it’s one thing for coaches and the league to talk about ways to add back to offseason programs. Getting players to go along with it will have to be collectively bargained in 2020, and that’s going to require more than just them thinking it’s a good idea.
It’s going to take trust, and after the last round of negotiations between the league and the NFLPA, that’s hardly a given.
“I understand all the politics behind it. There’s more than meets the eye, but it’s not American, it’s not common sense, it’s not right,” Harbaugh said. “The league has been great so far, the PA has been great, and I think in the next CBA it’ll get adjusted, I hope in a good way. If we can get past the bickering and the taking of sides—it’s not a poker game here, we’re not hoarding chips.
“Why don’t we just sit down and say, what’s good for everyone involved here? It’d probably take about an hour to figure the whole thing out, if everybody put agendas aside.”
It sounds so simple when he says it like that. But it’s rarely that simple, and that’s why they’re starting years in advance.
znModeratorMcDonald and Johnson are not the same person, but two entirely different people, who actually have different names to help tell them apart.
Oh don’t be taken in by that.
March 30, 2017 at 12:51 am in reply to: McVay on many things (articles & vids & audio & a LONG transcript) #66838znModeratorCoach McVay is Rams’ new kid on the block
Jim Thomas
PHOENIX • Sean McVay isn’t bothered by the age jokes. They have come from all directions, even from people he has hired on his Los Angeles Rams coaching staff.
Such as grizzled defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, who sent out this zinger via Twitter in early February: “Rams have the only staff with DC on Medicare and HC in Daycare.”
Phillips will be 70 before the Rams start training camp. McVay was 30 when the Rams hired him to replace Jeff Fisher, making him the youngest head coach in modern NFL history. He since has turned 31.
Age alone makes McVay more contemporary than authority figure to his players. Free-agent pickup Andrew Whitworth, the offensive tackle signed from the Cincinnati Bengals, is four years his elder.
It has led to some interesting dialogue, such as when McVay met with Western Kentucky offensive lineman Forrest Lamp at the NFL Scouting Combine this offseason.
McVay to Lamp: “Do you have some gel in that hair?”
Lamp to McVay: “No, it stands up like that.”
Lamp, again to McVay: “I can tell you’ve got some gel in your hair.”
Hard to imagine Dick Vermeil having that conversation, with say, Adam Timmerman, isn’t it?
McVay tries to play along.
About a week before the combine, he spoke to a group of about three dozen people that included the board of directors at California Lutheran University. (That is where the Rams have their year-round practice facility.)
“As surprised as you might be, I am not a student at ‘Cal Lu,’ “ McVay told them.
McVay is less than 10 years removed from attending Miami (Ohio) University.
He was in high school the last time the Rams finished a season with a winning record.
And now, he’s being asked to lead the franchise out of its long funk, one that has included 13 consecutive non-winning seasons and a 4-12 record in 2016 that got Fisher fired before the end of the year.
When NFL head coaches gathered Monday for their “team” photo, an annual tradition at the league’s March owners meetings, no one told him to go sit at the kids’ table. As the saying goes in the NFL coaching fraternity, he’s one of the 32.
As he gathered with the 31 other coaches for the photo, McVay conceded to a bit of a “fanboy” attack.
“This experience, being around these guys, is probably the first time it’s set in,” McVay said. “Where you realize what a unique deal and what a humbling and really cool experience it is to be around these other 31 coaches. It’s definitely something that you’ll cherish.
“You don’t want to be kind of a fan. But in a lot of ways, you have so much respect for this game that I’m a fan of a lot of these coaches.”
McVay also has been a sponge. Every chance he’s had at these meetings, McVay has tried to connect with his fellow head coaches, picking their brains for any advice on what lies ahead.
“What’s been cool is sitting down with Dan Quinn, and talking to Mike Tomlin and Sean Payton (Tuesday),” McVay said Wednesday at the NFL coaches breakfast. “Reconnecting with Kyle (Shanahan).”
Other than the roughly month-long break from mid June to mid July, this is one of the most relaxed weeks of the year for NFL head coaches. The grind of the season is well behind them, the heavy lifting of free agency finished, the draft still a few weeks off.
Even so, McVay has been impressed that the coaches have been willing to impart some wisdom.
He has talked to offensive-minded coaches such as Payton of New Orleans and Adam Gase of Miami about balancing play-calling with head-coaching duties. He has talked to Quinn, of Atlanta, about how to handle those first team meetings.
The consistent message McVay has received is make sure you’re true to what you and your coaching staff truly believes in when establishing your identity to the team.
In short, be yourself.
The reaction around the league has been mixed to McVay’s hiring. Not surprisingly, some roll their eyes because of his inexperience. In that sense, the layout at the coaches breakfast provided an interesting optic.
Less than 10 feet away from a table where McVay sat surrounded by reporters was a table where Arizona coach Bruce Arians held court with another set of scribes.
Arians, now 64, didn’t become an NFL head coach until age 60. He had 38 years of coaching experience, including three separate stints as an NFL offensive coordinator, when the Cardinals hired him.
McVay got a job right out of college as an entry level coaching assistant on Jon Gruden’s last Tampa Bay staff, in 2008. From the classroom at Miami (Ohio) as a student to an NFL coaching staff — it just doesn’t happen that way.
Except for one season (2009) spent with the Florida Tuskers of the short-lived United Football League under Jim Haslett, McVay has been in the NFL ever since. And now he’s a head coach.
To those who question whether he has enough experience for this job, McVay shrugs and says, “I think it’s natural. Because you are aware of how fortunate you are to be in this role in such a short amount of time.”
After three years as offensive coordinator in Washington, the last two of which he called plays for coach Jay Gruden — Jon’s brother — the Rams are hoping McVay can revive what has been the league’s worst offense two years running. And get 2016 No. 1 draft pick Jared Goff going at quarterback.
He does have proven veteran coordinators in Phillips, on defense, and John Fassel, on special teams, to aid in the transition.
That will help.
And there are some observers, particularly those familiar with the Grudens, who think there’s something special about McVay.
We’ll find out soon enough.
March 29, 2017 at 10:29 pm in reply to: McVay on many things (articles & vids & audio & a LONG transcript) #66837znModerator -
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