MORE OF THE SAME.

Charlie N Andy ‏@HowToBeADad 30s Seriously. I’ve never seen anything like @Guardians before. #GuardiansPremiere

wv wrote:

What do you DO?

Plumb mad dog mean……

PA Ram wrote:

I didn’t mean to sound like I was trying to “boil it down to one play”. I just have a lousy memory for specific plays. That one stood out to me. Not seeming to know what to do with Tavon Austin, going away from the run when it’s working–having Fisher have to basically decide they were going back to the run when the pass happy stuff was a total failure, an inability to adjust in games. Does Shotty impress me? Not particularly. Is it ALL his fault? No.

See I don;t think it was they didn’t know what to do with Austin. I think it was that Austin couldn’t do anything (he says his head was reeling at that point). I think they just deliberately held him back. They went away from the run because it DIDN’T work–Richardson was not a feature back and got injured in game 1 on top of it. The Rams from what I have seen are quite good at adjusting in games…in fact, when Martz did Rams broadcasts in 2012 as a color commentator, he had high praise for their offensive adjustments.

Honestly, the way I always see it, most complaints about coordinators are really about personnel and execution. That’s certainly the case for the 1st 4 games in 2013. To me that was all execution and personnel issues. Givens had regressed, Amendola and Gibson were gone (and both were 4 year vets), Quick was still getting mental blocks in games, Austin was spinning, Richardson couldn’t run, even Long had a couple of bad games, and the defense was bad at that point and kept putting them in holes. Defenses figured out Cook immediately yet no one else could take advantage of the extra attention he drew. Now when you can’t run and defenses know it, your WRs are not stepping up yet or are regressing, and your defense is putting you in a hole…what do you do?

You end up looking the way Luck did when the Rams played the Colts, is what you do.

I expect them to run the same offense this year they did in 2012 with Jackson plus in 2013 with Stacy and Bradford (to me it’s the same offense, basically)…but with more mature personnel and better execution.

AND….given all that…my bet is, you (PA) and TSRF still feel the same way. Right? So we need to see the season to see. Fair enough if so.

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laram wrote:

I’ve written about the OC until I’m blue in the face, no need for more from me.

But, not everyone here reads the herd. So, not everyone will know what you mean.

Nudge nudge.

Unfathomable

Been listening to mike and mike this morning and they keep talking about weather or not Sam is good enough opposed to what ever view dungy may have. my thing is this. There is a difference in being “undersized” and not being “good enough” you dont get co dpoy especially in the sec for no reason. Wasnt he projected a 3rd or 4th round pick before he came out? Im not on either side of this “gay” argument personally im not gay but i dont have a problem with somebody being gay. That’s thier choice. I guess what im getting at is if dungy said this because he is anti gay personally and wouldnt take sam on that belief instead of what he could potentially do. isnt that thinking as a coach potentially bad for a team? letting personal view’s get in the way of what may be best for the team? Shouldnt a coach be more open minded. Just because Sam is the first dosent mean he is gonna be the last… Id rather have the publicity of having a gay guy on a/our team then micheal vick and his dog fighting. ( i used vick as an example because they were talking on their about how dungy said he would of been his “mentor” and took him to qb a his team if he were still coaching.)

• This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by zn.

Tony Dungy: I wouldn’t have taken Michael Sam

Michael David Smith

http://m.nbcsports.com/content/tony-dungy-i-wouldn%E2%80%99t-have-taken-michael-sam

Former Colts and Buccaneers head coach and current NBC analyst Tony Dungy says that if he were still an NFL head coach, he wouldn’t have drafted Michael Sam, who became the first openly gay player in league history when the Rams selected him in May.

“I wouldn’t have taken him,’’ Dungy told the Tampa Tribune. “Not because I don’t believe Michael Sam should have a chance to play, but I wouldn’t want to deal with all of it. It’s not going to be totally smooth . . . things will happen.’’

What Dungy is expressing publicly is similar to what some coaches and general managers have said privately, in anonymous quotes in stories about Sam before the draft. But Dungy is the highest-profile person in the NFL world to put his name behind the viewpoint that Sam would cause a distraction and would be more trouble than he’s worth.

Dungy’s comments therefore serve as a reminder that the Rams deserve credit for not allowing the concerns about distractions to keep them
from picking Sam. We don’t know how many teams passed on Sam because he’s gay and how many teams passed on Sam because they simply didn’t think he was a good enough player, but we do know that the Rams were the team that ended Sam’s fall late in the seventh round of the draft. Whether Sam pans out as a player or not, the Rams made history by making the NFL more inclusive.

And that’s where Dungy’s comments become troubling. If everyone refused to hire minorities because it could cause a distraction, no minority group would ever make any progress. Dungy has praised the late Chuck Noll for adding Dungy to the Steelers’ coaching staff in 1981, at a time when most NFL teams didn’t have any African-American assistant coaches. What if Noll had declined to hire Dungy because he worried that some of the white assistant coaches would have a problem with a black colleague?

Dungy may be right when he says “things will happen” because the Rams have an openly gay player on their roster, but those things aren’t Sam’s fault. And those things shouldn’t prevent any NFL team from drafting an openly gay player.

TSRF wrote:

I’m not thrilled with Schott, but I’m hoping continuity is going to do wonders for Mr. Bradford. I’ve never been a fan of the WCO that substitutes the short passing game for a running game, so I watched the first few games last year in horror. I really liked the emergence of the power running attack, and look forward to more of the same (and much less spread) this year.

See, I think that was personnel. I think Richardson could not run and they were making up for it. I don’t think that’s Schott. If Richardson couldn’t run he couldn’t run.

And to be honest, I don’t think they did anything different (in principle) with Stacy than they did with Jackson for all of 2012.

First 4 games of 2013, from that POV, are an aberration. They don’t reveal anything. Except that Richardson couldn’t run.

laram wrote:

No that’s not what I’m saying, Bradford has better arm talent, but they all present certain challenges.

I would be happy to be proven wrong.

Very happy.

I think he has more than arm talent. We just have to agree to disagree on him for a spell, LA, until we see how it all comes together. My bet is, he will be what he has been under Fisher when they had both a more or less intact OL and a running threat–which is, a good qb who also has a great play action game (which they know how to take advantage of). Your bet is, he’s Sanchez with an arm. (Kidding. I doubt you’re saying that.)

Meanwhile in this thread…toss in a few cents about Schott, why dontcha.

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Diminutive Austin ready to give Rams more

By R.B. FALLSTROM

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/diminutive-austin-ready-rams-more-185952425–nfl.html

ST. LOUIS (AP) — This time last year, diminutive Tavon Austin could brag about never missing a practice, let alone a game.

After a rookie season that featured a handful of brilliant highs mixed with stretches of low productivity and three weeks of downtime at the end with a high ankle sprain, the St. Louis Rams wide receiver came clean. Especially early on, the playbook had him bamboozled.

”I didn’t really know what was going on,” Austin said. ”Everything looked like Spanish and sounded like Spanish to me.”

Entering Year 2, the eighth overall pick of the 2013 draft realizes there’s more to the job than simply outrunning defenders. He’s comfortable with a system that’s undergone only minor tweaks, and better prepared to bedevil opposing coordinators.

”I understand the plays, the depth, the routes, the splits and everything,” Austin said. ”I just feel good that I can make some plays. Definitely, the game’s slowed down for me.”

Having Sam Bradford calling signals can only help, even if Austin’s memorable 310-yard, three-TD game at Indianapolis came on tosses from backup Kellen Clemens a couple weeks after Bradford’s season-ending knee injury.

Austin’s overall numbers were somewhat pedestrian: 40 catches with a 10.5-yard average and six total TDs.

Though the Rams (7-9) never envisioned the 5-foot-8, 176-pound Austin as an every-down threat, they know there’s plenty of untapped talent.

Here are some things to know about the Rams:

SAM’S TOWN: Coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead deserve kudos for making the Rams the first NFL team to draft an openly gay player. And for not making it a big deal.

Michael Sam had an individual media session in addition to spending time on the podium with the rest of the later-round draft picks, but that’s the last time the Rams made a concession to celebrity status.

The Oprah Winfrey Network’s Sam documentary was shut down after collecting one day of footage. Players welcomed the former SEC co-defensive player of the year into the fold, many of them pointing out sexual orientation has never been a big deal.

Now, it’s up to Sam to win a roster spot as a lowly seventh-rounder on a team that has one of the NFL’s best pass rushers. Fisher had the guts to take him and also has the guts to cut him loose.

BRADFORD’S STAR: While the first overall pick of the 2010 draft rehabbed from knee surgery, job security was never a concern. Well before the draft, the Rams assured Bradford he was the unquestioned starter and that rumors they might take Johnny Manziel had no basis.

Bradford was eased back into the mix during OTAs and anticipates he’ll be ready for the preseason opener. He’s coming off a nice half-season, finishing with 14 touchdown passes and four interceptions, and at 26 is a seasoned hand counted on to guide one of the NFL’s youngest teams.

WILLIAMS FACTOR: Gregg Williams was Fisher’s original pick as defensive coordinator in 2012. Reunited with a long-time friend, the one-time villain of the Saints’ bounty program is appreciative of the second chance. He seems as feisty as ever and has relentlessly prodded a unit that has underachieved despite being loaded with top picks and free agents.

At least after the fact, players seem to appreciate the instantaneous feedback. Williams definitely made an impression on rookies during OTAs.

”If he gets on me, I’m obviously not doing my job,” said defensive back Lamarcus Joyner, a second-round pick who’ll provide immediate help for a secondary that struggled last season. ”I need that. I don’t want this guy mad at me.”

JOB LISTING: Fifth-round pick Zac Stacy just missed 1,000 yards after cracking the lineup in Week 5. He’ll have to earn the carries again. Tre Mason, a Heisman finalist and third-rounder who ran behind Greg Robinson for Auburn’s national title runner-up team, will push for playing time.

”Oh, absolutely there’s going to be competition,” Stacy said.

Mason is far from content being a change-of-pace back, Fisher’s initial designation.

”Not sure how it starts out, and you never know what can happen,” Mason said. ”I’m the type of guy who’s hands-on.”

THROWBACK TIME: Throughout the season, the Rams will recognize the 15-year anniversary of the ”Greatest Show on Turf” Super Bowl title team that held off Fisher’s Titans, 23-16. Remembrances will be less bittersweet if Year 3 under Fisher can be that long-awaited breakthrough.

The Rams have a pair of seven-win seasons so far, a major step forward from the franchise’s darker days. They’ll try to honor that ’99 team with their first winning record since 2003.

Rams camp preview: Five positions to watch

Nate Latsch

http://stl.scout.com/2/1423197.html

ST. LOUIS — The Rams get back to work later this week with the beginning of training camp, so we are taking a look at some things to keep an eye on at Rams Park.
We’ve looked at five veterans to watch and five rookies to watch and now here are five position battles to watch during training camp.

WIDE RECEIVER

The wide receiver group doesn’t look like it will have much intrigue in terms of who is likely to make the roster at the start of the regular season.

It would be a surprise if Chris Givens, Tavon Austin, Austin Pettis, Brian Quick and Kenny Britt weren’t on the roster coming out of camp, with Stedman Bailey suspended for the first four weeks and not taking a roster spot for the season opener.

But which of those players emerge as the starters and go-to guys will be interesting to watch throughout camp.

The only new player is Britt, but he’s the most intriguing as a young veteran with the physical tools to make a big impact. What will we see from Austin in his second season and from Givens and Quick in their third? Can Pettis become a bigger contributor?

There are plenty of questions with this group.

LINEBACKER

James Laurinaitis and Alec Ogletree are starters.

The Rams re-signed Jo-Lonn Dunbar to man the third linebacker spot, but his recent arrest in Miami may open the door for special teams standout Ray Ray Armstrong to take a step forward in his second season.

NICKEL CORNERBACK

The Rams traded up in the second round of the draft to select Lamarcus Joyner to be a nickel cornerback, but in OTAs it was Brandon McGee who saw most of the action at that spot with the starting defense.

McGee didn’t make much of an impact as a rookie in 2013 but earned some praise from Jeff Fisher for his improvement during OTAs.

The Rams are going into training camp with two third-year players, Janoris Jenkins and Trumaine Johnson, set as starters at cornerback. But behind those guys will be youngsters like McGee, Joyner, E.J. Gaines and undrafted guys like Greg Reid and Marcus Roberson.

There will be plenty of opportunities for the young players to step up.

SAFETY

There was plenty of talk about the Rams going after a safety early in the draft but a run on the position late in the first round may have taken some of their top targets off the board.

The Rams grabbed St. Louis native Maurice Alexander in the fourth round but the rookie safety wasn’t able to get out on the field and show what he could do during OTAS because of a knee issue.

T.J. McDonald and Rodney McLeod’s starting safety spots are probably safe going into training camp, but if Alexander can get up to speed quickly with the defense he’ll have a chance to earn some playing time.

THIRD QUARTERBACK

When the Rams took Garrett Gilbert in the sixth round, he became the first quarterback drafted by the team since Sam Bradford was the No. 1 overall pick in 2010. But that doesn’t mean the SMU product is guaranteed a roster spot coming out of training camp.

Gilbert will battle with Austin Davis for the No. 3 quarterback position but will also have to prove that he is worthy of a roster spot.

The Rams only had one quarterback, Kellen Clemens, on the roster last season when Bradford went down with his knee injury. Then they had to scramble to add Davis and veteran Brady Quinn, but neither appeared in a game for St. Louis in 2013.

If Gilbert doesn’t show enough in training camp, the Rams could cut him and try to add him to the practice squad after clearing waivers.

stlramz

about 3 years ago got some guy that was totally polite: “yes sir, I will cancel you right away”. uh, thanks . . .’anything else we can do for you?” uh, no.

had to call back later and get another person who agreed with me that a customer since 1995 should not have been treated like this etc .etc. and the free stuff starts rolling in. free ST, free upgrades, free packages.

I always wondered if I got some guy on their first day because this never happened before or since.

(admittedly allied) thoughts from a different poster on a similar topic:

===

SOKA

…those dropped balls last year hurt Shotty just like it hurt SB. [and some say] Shotty has to dial up something new when the run does not work.
Well, nobody is able to do that against NFC West defenses. So I think those are unreasonable expectations. Shotty is supposed to take SB, Cook, Givens, TA, Quick and Bailey and do what McCarthy has been unable to do with Rodgers and a stable of great receivers for over three years and five tries against SF?

Its easy to say he is part of the problem, but what OC do you feel can do better against NFC West defenses?

…I don’t think it is on Shotty to score 7 more a game, he improved the ppg even with missing SB for nine games, shouldn’t we be able to get 7 more a game just by having SB along with a more experienced TA, Cook having another camp with SB along with Givens, Bailey, Quick and Kendricks?

Isn’t consistency and chemistry what we have been saying SB needed and he would be fine instead of the turnstile OC’s, receivers etc.?

Unless we have a boatload of injuries, I would expect SB to improve our ppg over KC even with the same play calling? And if there are a boat load of injuries, then how can you put it on the OC and use that same reasoning for why SB may underperform expectations.

I am completely confident in SB and the receivers so long as we have a running game. Without it, no OC succeeds against NFC West defenses. But we can not ask SB to throw a lot when the running game is not working against NFC West defenses because nobody makes it work with any success. Not even certain HOF QB’s or historically great offenses.

The key is to remain committed to the run even if you are only getting one yard a carry because you cant throw over 50% and expect to beat those defenses. I liken it to the old Steelers/Baltimore games where both sides would go three or six and out six or seven times in a row.

If you “have” to throw against SEA, SF or AZ then you pretty much insured a loss. Like NO did with us, Fisher stated when he saw Payton keeping Graham and Sproles in to block during the first quarter he knew they would win.

If SF, SEA or AZ are forcing you to throw in the first quarter then they know they have you where they want you.