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  • August 20, 2014 at 9:46 pm in reply to: Jimi twitter reports, 8/20 #4471
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    Rams have brought in a high school team to simulate crowd noise…not sure where the team is from #ramscamp

    –

    Yes, that was a Ferguson school.

    —

    Fisher:

    http://theramshuddle.com/topic/fisher-820-transcript/

    On today’s practice and the added participation from high school football players from Ferguson, Mo.)
    “It was quite a day, as a matter of fact. We finished up training camp and obviously what better way could we finish up than to invite some special guests to practice today. We were brainstorming last night in light of everything that’s going on and we wanted to do something and things just fell into place. We had a lot of people work real hard to put this together and we’re fortunate that we can provide an opportunity for these young high school athletes to get away. Imagine that they were trying to get ready for games this week and they were having to practice in a park and not being able to practice at the facility at their high school. There’s no better game than high school football and we didn’t want them to be denied of this opportunity. So we invited them over as our guests and it looks like they had a lot of fun. They participated in practice in the one drill simulating crowd noise and we had a bunch of mistakes, so I wouldn’t say they were close to Seattle, but pretty close.”

    August 20, 2014 at 4:53 pm in reply to: Rams waive Pead/Pead clears waivers, now on IR #4462
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    Nick Wagoner ‏@nwagoner
    …if he clears waivers could be brought back and placed on injured reserve.

    Rick Smith ‏@RickSmith1956
    not could be…will be

    Nick Wagoner ‏@nwagoner 31m
    “@RickSmith1956: @nwagoner not could be…will be” <— Pead’s agent.

    August 20, 2014 at 1:21 pm in reply to: CoachO Camp Report 8/19/14 + follow-up #4456
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    Some follow-up (ongoing)

    ==========

    ….CoachO

    [The OL:]…IMO, based on what I have watched for the past 4 weeks, is they will more than likely keep 10:

    Long, Robinson, Wells, Saffold, Barksdale, Barnes, Joseph, Person, Bond, and depending what they decide to do with Jones, either him, or Hooey.

    Van Dyk could be cut outright, or put on the Pracitice Squad. Rhaney will either be put on IR, or PS.

    Washington’s days are numbered IMO.

    Saffold looks fine, and I would guess he will be back at full participation if not later this week, then definitely first part of next week.

    *

    [CBs]…Jenkins, Johnson, Joyner, Gaines, McGee and Woodard…not that I necessarily agree, but in terms of reps when they are all healthy, that is how they stack up

    I don’t see the UDFA CBs for example, as being anything more than Practice Squad candidates.

    Roberson has shown to have good cover skills, but lacks the overall game to be considered anyone who is going to help out THIS YEAR. Reid has come on of late, and has shown a physical side, has made a few plays, but overall lacks consistent cover skills. His best chance to contribute THIS YEAR is to take advantage of the opening in the KR role, and thus far he hasn’t shown to be even close to his former production in that area.

    Woodard needs to be on the field to show he has developed. The problem with that is, when he was on the field early on in camp, he didn’t show much of anything.

    *

    [Daniels]…needs to stay on the field the rest of the Preseason, and show he still belongs. If he can, I think they would prefer to keep him as a 5th Safety, than reach to keep a 6th CB. He is included on too many ST, when compared to Reid or Roberson.

    *

    [The Nickel]…Keep in mind, Gaines will most likely be in that mix rather than having McLeod step up into one of the slot positions. Leaving McLeod as one of the two deep safeties.

    August 20, 2014 at 10:46 am in reply to: how many WRs/TEs have to step up to have a solid passing attack #4450
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    wv wrote:

    zn wrote:

    wv wrote:
    Well it would be nice if someone on this team
    besides Quinn,
    drew a double-team.

    w
    v

    “What are your favorite kinds of apples.”
    “I like valencia oranges.”

    a

    Anyway, think about it though–how many teams in NFL history had 2 guys who drew double teams?

    I think with virtually every great defense, if you replaced one guy from the DL, it wouldn’t be as good. (The “as” is important there.) Sapp? Greene? Page? Kirksey?

    Well, Quinn is the onliest player on this team who regularly draws a double-team
    I think. Maybe Cook from time to time.

    But I’d like to see a WR on this team emerge to the point where
    he draws a double-team.

    w
    v

    Ah I get it. I misread. I thought you just changed the subject to defense.

    Yes it would be nice if they had a deadly receiver other teams were forced to double up. Last year they didn’t even have receivers who could take advantage when someone else was doubled up.

    Their dynamic on offense is this–every defense they play has to think they need to defend the run.

    The Rams don’t even need to gain running yards in those conditions, as long as the defense is adjusting to play run.

    That’s why to me the GB game the other day when Bradford was in, and the Carolina game last year when Bradford was still in, look the same.

    Defense focuses on the run and as a result there are cracks left open in the pass D. Bradford can take advantage.

    They were doing that last year with receivers who aren’t as good as this year. (Including a lot of the same players…who it looks like have upped themselves a notch through growth and experience.)

    So if they could do it last year, and the receivers as a group were not as good as this year? Ergo, ipso factum curly est, it means that they ought to be better at that same dynamic this year.

    And, at the same time, having a double-team drawing WR would make it even better. Granted.

    August 20, 2014 at 10:06 am in reply to: Fisher, 8/19 – transcript & vid #4448
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    Fisher, vid

    http://www.stlouisrams.com/videos/videos/Fisher-Weve-got-a-good-group/e775288c-8b00-4301-a256-4406c195b608

    August 20, 2014 at 9:32 am in reply to: how many WRs/TEs have to step up to have a solid passing attack #4447
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    wv wrote:

    Well it would be nice if someone on this team
    besides Quinn,
    drew a double-team.

    w
    v

    “What are your favorite kinds of apples.”
    “I like valencia oranges.”

    a

    Anyway, think about it though–how many teams in NFL history had 2 guys who drew double teams?

    I think with virtually every great defense, if you replaced one guy from the DL, it wouldn’t be as good. (The “as” is important there.) Sapp? Greene? Page? Kirksey?

    August 19, 2014 at 10:27 pm in reply to: Williams happy to wait for season to unveil his defense? #4428
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    wv wrote:

    If i’m not mistaken he ran for about a million yards last time.

    w
    v

    A million is an exaggeration.

    Adrian Peterson v. St.Louis, 2012: 24 carries 812,000 yards 1 TD long run: continues to this day

    August 19, 2014 at 8:57 pm in reply to: 101, 8/19 – Sando; Aaron Donald; Eric Edholm; Marc Lillibridge #4423
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    Donald came out of high school benching 415.

    August 19, 2014 at 8:25 pm in reply to: 101, 8/19 – Sando; Aaron Donald; Eric Edholm; Marc Lillibridge #4419
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    Defensive tackle Aaron Donald sits down with Randy, D’Marco and Brad after Rams’ warm practice

    ===

    Mike Sando reads the panic meter regarding the 49ers


    August 19, 2014 at 7:37 pm in reply to: Ferguson #4415
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    ‘When They Don’t Know Who You Are, All You Are Is Black’

    Bears defensive end David Bass, who grew up in St. Louis County, says harassment and racial profiling are a way of life for young African-American men in Ferguson and places like it

    http://mmqb.si.com/2014/08/16/nfl-player-david-bass-ferguson-racial-profiling/

    CHICAGO — Last season there were just under 30 NFL players who graduated from Missouri high schools. Five of them hail from St. Louis, including Pro Bowl safety Jairus Byrd and 2013 defensive rookie of the year Sheldon Richardson. And one of those five, Bears defensive end David Bass, grew up six miles away from the neighborhood where Michael Brown was shot and killed by a police officer, flash-boiling long simmering tensions between local law enforcement and the predominantly black community.

    Bass, who was drafted by the Raiders in the seventh round a year ago, watched the drama of mass protests, arrests and looting unfold on his Instagram feed. There were local rappers laying down police diss tracks, photos of looted stores and news of friends being arrested as police in riot gear combed the city in the days following the killing. A graduate of Missouri Western with a degree in criminal justice, Bass seemed to The MMQB well suited to discuss the relationship between the people of Ferguson and its police force.

    “First of all,” says Bass, who grew up in University City, “St. Louis isn’t that big. When people say Ferguson, Missouri, we don’t really think of it like that. It’s St. Louis. As a community Ferguson isn’t a bad place to grow up. It’s not the east side, with the gang violence and the killing. Ferguson used to be all white, but blacks from all over town started moving out of poorer neighborhoods into north county areas like Ferguson. There’s a lot of diversity now, with white and black people living side by side. The police stayed white, though.”

    According to recent survey data, 22% of Ferguson residents live below the poverty line. Bass, who grew up just to the south, on the other side of I-70, was raised alongside a younger brother by a single mom—his father died when he was seven. As a teenager he learned to fear the police after an incident at The Loop, a popular cluster of shops and restaurants in his hometown.

    “People don’t trust the police where I’m from. They’re hated,” Bass says. “I was 15 and one of my best friends had just got a car from his mom, a white Lincoln, and he picked up my brother and I to go to The Loop. When we parked there were police behind us, and next thing you know, there are about 10 police cars surrounding us. They’re screaming, ‘Stay in the car! Keep your hands up! Hand over your IDs.’ People are starting to gather to watch. They took 45 minutes searching the car while we sat on the sidewalk.

    “Finally, they said three black males robbed a store in The Loop and drove away in the same model car. Tell me this: If we robbed the store, why would we go back and park in The Loop?”

    Bass majored in criminal justice at Missouri Western and aspired to become a crime scene investigator if football didn’t work out. Instead he became the first MWSU football player invited to the NFL combine a year ago. The Bears signed him after he was waived by Oakland on Aug. 31, and he played 12 games for Chicago. With his rookie earnings he bought a black Dodge Durango and drove it between Chicago and St. Louis during breaks. He says the police harassment has intensified in adulthood.

    “When I go home I get pulled over just because,” Bass says, “and they’ll say, ‘We’re doing random checks,’ which is against the law. Or they say, there was a theft and the getaway car was like my black Durango. When they don’t know who you are, all you are is black. They don’t know that I graduated from college, or that I’m in the NFL. But when they find that out, they want to stop and have a conversation.”

    When I go home I get pulled over just because. It’s about the way they look at you, the way they talk to you. Like you don’t matter.

    Bass recounts an incident from just before minicamp in June at a St. Louis nightclub. He, his girlfriend, brother, cousin and a friend were out in Ballpark Village, near Busch Stadium, with plans to enter the club. Three of them went in, but the cousin was turned away upon entrance by a white bouncer without explanation. Protests from Bass’s girlfriend and brother led to her being forcibly pushed out. Bass and his friend were about to gain admittance through another entrance when a manager emerged to tell him that his friend wasn’t welcome. Bass says the friend was told by a manager, “We don’t want your kind in here starting trouble.” Bass says he started receiving frantic texts from his girlfriend, and they met to share stories. They took the account of Bass’s girlfriend being pushed to police.

    “They took one look at us and took the club’s side,” he says.

    “It’s about the way they look at you, the way they talk to you. Like you don’t matter. Like you have nothing going for you in life.

    “I can’t sit here and justify Michael Brown’s actions, because I don’t know what he did leading up to his death. But I know that police cannot shoot unarmed men, and the reason you have the violent reaction from the community is the violent, aggressive and disrespectful way policing is done in the St. Louis area.”’

    There is, in every NFL locker room, an abundance of such stories. When black NFL players return to their hometowns driving and wearing the spoils of their new wealth, many profess to being targets of racial profiling. In Bass’s mind, that brand of harassment and those dehumanizing glares create the kind of blind rage and violent opportunism that we’ve seen in Ferguson, set off by one instance of alleged injustice. Ferguson was a gasoline-soaked woodpile before Michael Brown, just waiting for a spark.

    “I’m all for the peaceful demonstrations,” Bass says. “But a lot of our youth looted. They trashed the Quik Trip, Walmart, Target, Foot Locker. They’re robbing people like it’s a way out in this time of crisis, but it’s really a sign of weakness and impatience, and for a lot of people it justifies the way we’re being harassed and profiled.

    “As far as I can see, there’s no end to it.”

    August 19, 2014 at 6:33 pm in reply to: Williams happy to wait for season to unveil his defense? #4411
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    I know I’m in a minority on this, but I think people reassuring themselves that there is nothing to be concerned about are engaging in serious wish fulfillment.

    I just don’t think it’s time to be concerned. Not yet. They are far more interested in improving individual performances right now, and evaluating individual players. That means things like putting Hooey at LOT for the first time in his life, and also things like starting Donald at NT in place of Brockers when we know darn well that Donald will never play NT in the base defense in a real game.

    I just don’t think they’re working on team concepts yet.

    Is that a sound approach? Well apparently it has worked before, so who knows. In 2004 Wms turned Washington’s previously 25th ranked defense into the 3rd ranked defense. He had a lot of input into the Titans defense last year (I read up on that), and it went from 27th to 14th,

    But then all things are capable of not working after a while.

    So the debate is over what games 1 and 2 show us. And you get a mixed batch of reactions on that. The whole range.

    Speaking just for myself, I am withholding judgement, but I am also not worried. That just may be due to how I look at things, I admit.

    August 19, 2014 at 3:40 pm in reply to: vid/MMQB: Rams give tickets to Ferguson high school football teams for GB game #4406
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    Nick Wagoner discusses the decision by the St. Louis Rams to provide football players from Ferguson area high schools with tickets to a Rams preseason game.

    http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=11372730&categoryid=2459789

    August 19, 2014 at 2:58 pm in reply to: Green Bay game reactions #4404
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    After two games, I get the distinct impression that opposing defenses are going to make the Rams throw.

    This fits something I have been focused on. I’ve said for a while now, if you look at the games under Fisher, Bradford has played well on avg. when he has had BOTH a relatively healthy OL (ie. no more than a couple of usual replacements) AND a running threat. I never said “running game,” I said “threat,” because if you concentrate resources on taking away the Rams running game, it leaves things open for the pass.

    That was true of the Carolina game. They stopped Stacy but Bradford threw all over them. That was also true of the GB game. I saw that they were playing the run against the Rams, and Fisher said so too–they were pulling up a guy.

    The time that didn’t work was when Richardson was the RB. He was not a threat defenses had to worry about. You can defend the run against Richardson just with normal resources, so after teams saw that, they concentrated on taking away the big passing play, and there were no receivers who could beat that. Not last year anyway.

    So what you say will happen, HAS happened, IMO…we’ve seen it. When even a top defense like Carolina thinks run defense and limits rushing yards, they leave a crack open in pass defense, and even without a top namebrand receiver, Bradford could exploit it.

    I think this picture of them will hold up this season.

    What the Rams then did, of course, was intensify their investment in the run game by drafting Robinson. I think their goal is to pull people up, get them to think run threat, pass on them, PLUS run on them ANYWAY. a

    August 19, 2014 at 1:49 pm in reply to: vids: including Rams entire 2nd drive v. GB, & a couple of highlights #4398
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    This one is Rams exclusive highlights, and includes by far the best view of the Kendricks TD.

    http://www.stlouisrams.com/videos/videos/Relive-It—Rams-vs-Packers/3db381fd-39c9-4268-a37c-c0f18d1bbb21

    Another highlights vid, covers both teams

    http://www.stlouisrams.com/videos/videos/Rams_vs_Packers_Highlights/20154dc8-1d23-4584-8220-f4ccdc38812d

    August 19, 2014 at 10:52 am in reply to: Ferguson #4386
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    http://mmqb.si.com/2014/08/18/san-francisco-49ers-levis-stadium-debuts/5/

    5. I think you should watch The MMQB this week for reporting from riot-torn Ferguson, Mo., from our Robert Klemko. http://mmqb.si.com/2014/08/16/nfl-player-david-bass-ferguson-racial-profiling/ The reportage began with this story from the weekend about Chicago defensive lineman David Bass, who grew up in the area and discusses the racial profiling he felt he encountered there. Klemko was on site Saturday night and Sunday, and spent time with some of the key people in the drama, and some of the high school football players and coaches who are trying to make a normal life for themselves in the midst of the strife.

    6. I think if you’re wondering about the Rams’ involvement in the local story, wonder no more. Klemko has uncovered that the Rams provided tickets for high school players from the stricken area to the preseason game against Green Bay on Saturday. He filed this to me Sunday, and he’ll have more in a story on our site this week:

    Watching the violence over Michael Brown’s killing unfold in Ferguson last week, a Rams staffer thought of the high schoolers, specifically, the boys who are supposed to play in their first football game of the season this weekend. Rams manager of fan development & alumni relations Kyle Eversgerd put in a call to coaches at McCluer High, McCluer North and McCluer South; there would be 75 free tickets awaiting each team if they chose to come to Saturday’s preseason game at the Edward Jones Dome.

    “In light of everything going on it just kind of hit me,” says Eversgerd, whose job includes outreach with local high schools. “I can’t imagine with all that stuff going on, how tough it must be to practice. We were able to get them away from it all.”

    So as hundreds of protesters faced off with police on the now-infamous West Florissant Avenue on Saturday night in Ferguson, leaving a man critically wounded by gunfire just yards from the homes of area children, the boys from three local teams were at their first NFL game, watching Aaron Rodgers and Sam Bradford from the 400 level. Said McCluer coach Mario MacDonald, “Our kids are focused on this season, but I worry about them out here, to be honest.”

    At McCluer, MacDonald estimates more than 75% of his roster comes from single-parent homes, and most would not have been able to otherwise afford tickets that average about $100. The game was a welcome distraction; many McCluer players are angry with police and inclined to protest after Michael Brown’s shooting death here a week ago. On the bus ride to the game, players saw protesters on Florissant and started chanting, “Hands Up! Don’t Shoot!”

    Then they focused on football.

    “It was overwhelming to see the NFL live, for real,” said senior running back Henry Jones, “You saw how fast they played, and how they played together. I’ve been thinking about it ever since. I could actually see myself out there playing.”

    August 19, 2014 at 9:53 am in reply to: Green Bay game reactions #4384
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    BradfordtoBailey wrote:

    Regarding A. Donald ; I am not sure if it was an experiment, but they had Donald lined up between the Center and Left Guard on almost every play of the Packers first 2 drives. He essentially was playing Nose Tackle. He was being double teamed by the Center and LG on almost every play.

    To me this was “the catch” in all the game commentary. This seems to slide by unnoticed. But basically, the Rams put Donald in at Brockers NT spot. Everyone realizes of course that when Donald plays in real games, he is going to be the 3-tech drawing single coverage, not the NT.

    It’s as if they didn’t care how he got his reps, just put him in the mill and let him grind away, getting experience the hard way.

    Now not everybody knows the difference between a 3 tech and a nose tackle, though most do. Just to be clear, the way a defense like this lines up, one DT occupies both the center and a guard, and that frees up the other DT, the 3-tech, to line up over the other guard one on one. Normally you put your big strong guy at NT and your quick penetration guy at 3-tech. In the GB game, the Rams left Langford at 3-tech and just up and replaced Brockers’s NT spot with Donald, something he is just not suited for.

    So the little guy lays the bricks and the bigger guy, the hod carrier, hauls the bricks to him. In this case the smaller new kid replaced the hod carrier not the brick layer.

    It’s very interesting that they did that. I can’t forsee a single situation in the regular season where Donald would play NT on the base defense.

    .

    August 19, 2014 at 9:17 am in reply to: Has the light turned on for Quick?/PD #4380
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    nittany ram wrote:

    If Quick and Britt come through it will be SO huge for the Rams.

    I’m all aflutter with anticipation.

    Yeah it would be good to see.

    a

    August 19, 2014 at 2:44 am in reply to: Has the light turned on for Quick?/PD #4371
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    Well, I was a doubter.

    If he pulls it off and translates it all to real games, I will be happy to have been wrong.

    August 19, 2014 at 1:07 am in reply to: Tavon's plays were not spectactular Saturday but, they were solid #4360
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    GreatRamNTheSky wrote:

    if you want to believe that all the decisions made by Fisher and Snead are the right ones so be it.

    Grits

    That’s not what I believe. What I believe is that over their careers Hill is a better qb than Clemens. I caught some games with each one before they were Rams–Hill with the Lions and Clemens with New York. I am glad KC is having a nice stretch now, but we just disagree which is the better qb. Which is fine, people see things differently. So we should just agree to disagree on this one. 6

    Anyway on Austin–I expect big things from him this year and I expect he will line up all over the field and we will see things from him they are just never going to show in the pre-season.

    .

    August 18, 2014 at 9:47 pm in reply to: Cards have lost Dockett #4350
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    a

    Cardinals DT Darnell Dockett out for 2014 after tearing ACL in practice

    By John Breech | CBSSports.com
    August 18, 2014 9:10 pm ET

    http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/24666980/report-cardinals-dt-darnell-dockett-likely-out-for-2014-with-torn-acl

    The Arizona Cardinals lost a key cog in their defensive front on Monday when Darnell Dockett went down with a season-ending injury. The starting defensive tackle was carted off the field during practice with an injury that has been diagnosed as a torn ACL, the team announced.

    Dockett grabbed his right knee after suffering the injury during an 11-on-11 drill.

    The 33-year-old has been one of the most durable players in the NFL over the past decade. Since being drafted by Arizona in 2004, Dockett has only missed a total of two games over the past 10 seasons. Dockett has played in a 158 of 160 career regular season games with Arizona and started in 156 of those.

    The three-time Pro Bowler tallied 4.5 sacks last season, his highest total since 2010. Dockett’s play helped propel the Cardinals defense to a sixth overall NFL ranking in 2013.

    The injury to Dockett means backup Frostee Rucker will likely move into the starting lineup. Rucker played in all 16 games last season for Arizona, but only started one.

    August 18, 2014 at 8:10 pm in reply to: vid links: Westbrooks interview; Warner on the Rams/Packers game #4340
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    Westbrooks

    http://www.stlouisrams.com/videos/videos/One-on-One-with-Ethan-Westbrooks/beb43c2c-779a-4a45-9255-a7bfa77381a6

    August 18, 2014 at 5:12 pm in reply to: Demoff on KMOX/ Thomas on 920/Fisher on 101, recap with Savard & Farr #4333
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    Jim Thomas
    Monday, August 18, 2014

    Sam Bradford did not look all that bad besides one particular deep ball, have to be happy for the most part with the Rams QB, growing concern about the running game which is suppose to be the foundation of the offense, expecting to see the full first team offensive line this weekend in what is usually the ‘dress rehersal’ game, thoughts about the defense specifically a few players, one of the most intriguing individual battles is between Michael Sam and Ethan Westbrooks…idea that maybe roster spot intended for Isaiah Pead could open something up for Sam and Westbrooks…thought that the fans have not really bought in just yet but attendance really really down despite announced numbers, some jokes from out of town media about lack of fans showing up, wondering how the NFL views the lack of attendance correlating to general interest, if Rams were to at least indicate they will be here long term.

    JT starts at about 4:18 in

    August 18, 2014 at 4:44 pm in reply to: Rams need to make this next game real #4328
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    wv wrote:

    Well, for me, it gets down to one of my favorite quotations from the Coen Brothers. It’s from Raising Arizona: “There’s what’s right and there’s what’s right, and never the twain shall meet.”

    I dunno. I was thinking it was more like the Coen brothers remake
    of the story of Job
    w
    v

    A man doesn’t tell another man which Coen Brothers film he means to quote.

    Dammit, I mean, if a man knows anything, he knows which Coen brothers film he means to quote.

    August 18, 2014 at 2:49 pm in reply to: good launch for the chat room #4322
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    Bumped, cause, I am trying to stir up interest in the chat room.

    August 18, 2014 at 2:36 pm in reply to: from around the net: on the GB game (7) #4321
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    Bumped cause it’s now 7 and done.

    August 18, 2014 at 1:32 pm in reply to: Williams happy to wait for season to unveil his defense? #4316
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    snowman wrote:

    I don’t know why a coaching staff would wait until the regular season to play his defense for real. And Williams has been in coaching a long time, opposing teams know what he does on defense anyway.

    If we are doing something unique on defense, Williams should take it for a test drive in the preseason. See if it works. See if his players can execute it. Why wait until September to find out?

    But then, on the other side of it, yes Wms has been coaching a long time, and he thinks he can do it differently than we want him to. My bet is if he were wrong about how to approach it, he would have figured that out by now.

    I will say this. I have complained before that a Rams team was not in sync and not ready for the season. That was the McD offense in 2011. It was clear from the get-go that they were out of sync, not sure what they were doing, unconfidant, and just simply unprepared.

    August 18, 2014 at 1:25 pm in reply to: Rams need to make this next game real #4314
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    This team has talent and shows flashes. But it isn’t right yet. It isn’t clicking. It has not drawn itself together and made a statement that opponents need to pay attention to.

    Nor do I think they intend to do that, or even think it’s necessary in the summer.

    If they come out of the gate losing games we think they should have won, I will absolutely come around to that POV. Right now, my view is, they’re just not doing what we would like them to, they’re doing different things. At least in P-s games one and two.

    So all that’s happening now, I think, is that some of us are taking sides in the eternal yin-yang debate over pre-season and how to count it.

    Well, for me, it gets down to one of my favorite quotations from the Coen Brothers. It’s from Raising Arizona: “There’s what’s right and there’s what’s right, and never the twain shall meet.”

    August 18, 2014 at 10:20 am in reply to: Rams need to make this next game real #4306
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    rfl wrote:

    I don’t believe they can rely on just flipping the switch and suddenly competing when the season begins.

    But is that the only alternative?

    Seems to me that the normal way to approach preseason is to make a real showing of it in games 2 and 3, then turn game 4 into a glorified scrimmage.

    Fisher does not game plan games 1 and 2, and instead uses them to see players under certain conditions. Get some film on them.

    He then gameplans a little for game 3, and takes game 4 seriously–he uses it the way most teams use game 3.

    If all that’s true, and I think it is, then, we’re worrying over nothing.

    They intended all along to rehearse the starters more in game 3 and then use game 4 to do the same thing.

    Fisher on all this:

    This is the time you typically continue to evaluate the bottom half of your roster

    …that’s the one key thing that you look at, it’s the matchup, the 1-on-1 matchups and the athletic abilities as you’re evaluating the younger players.”

    there’s no urgency as far as that’s concerned. We look at it from an individual standpoint across the board and look at every player. Although you want to win games, it’s important, you want to play well and be productive and score points. I think the thing that’s most important is just the individual improvement

    …opening day in the National Football League is a lot different than preseason games from a standpoint of what you do.As long as, in our eyes, we’re continuing to do those things well on the practice field and we elect not to do those things in the game – there’s not a sense of urgency.

    Looks to me that, among other things, they’re trying to grade players and rank the best 53. (Which in turn allows them to decide whether they keep 5 safeties or 10 OL…that kind of thing…plus it helps them decide if a potential waiver pick-up is better than their 53rd player, etc.)

    An example of caring more about individual performance and improvement than team concepts:

    (On if he’s concerned about the run game)
    “Well we haven’t necessarily worked against those types of things we saw yesterday.”

    In fact they were willing to just see what happened with guys:

    “The young offensive line struggled in the fourth quarter. We move (T Sean) Hooey from right tackle to left tackle. He had not played in a game there before and he had his hands full. He graded out very well at right tackle when he was in the game. So, those are the kind of things that you look at.”

    They don’t just wait for week 1 to flip a switch. But they do approach pre-season game 2 differently from most teams. But then, the Fisher way is (and has been) to step it up in games 3 and 4 in terms of team concepts and gameplanning and so on.

    August 18, 2014 at 9:51 am in reply to: Rams need to make this next game real #4302
    Avatar photozn
    Moderator

    Rams actually looked good in their opener last year. They pulled out a come from behind win against a strong ARZ defense. That’s with ARz leading 24-13 at the end of the 3rd quarter.

    August 17, 2014 at 11:37 pm in reply to: Aaron Donald. Has been over hyped? #4288
    Avatar photozn
    Moderator
    TackleDummy wrote:

    FYI: I usually don’t read what you write.

    C’mon guys let’s keep it just a bit more civil. Fair enough? One mod (Mack) has already said something.

    The board rules: http://theramshuddle.com/topic/board-rules-policies/

    At this point, we have 2 different views of how to weigh the pre-season. That’s an eternal debate.

    j

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