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What the hell? I feel like the 10 year old who becomes depressed a half hour after opening the last Xmas present. I'm jones-ing for another big move even though I know it's unhealthy. Can someone just give me another hit of fantastic-but-somehow-possible trade rumor?

Debating trades that have already happened is like a glass half-full/empty exercise. I want to debate the rumor that we could trade next years 1st round and 3rd round pick for a one year rental of Jadeveon Clowney. You haven't heard that rumor? I just made it up. Make up your own and feed my addiction.

Puff, puff, give.

in the 3rd or 4th round? High motor guy, who fellow ROD member Jake Ellenbogan projects to be a James L. ILB type for a 3-4. What do you guys think?

Rams seem to have a lot of WRs on the roster. Does Tavon Austin re-emerge? Do we ever see Mike Thomas fulfill his potential? Does Josh Reynolds take the next step? Who is gone by opening day?

After the Cooks trade I think this thought is nice but dead at this point. Unless, god forbid, someone gets injured the Tavon show is all but gone.

https://theramswire.usatoday.com/20...stin-sean-mcvay-wide-receiver-offseason-2018/
By:Cameron DaSilva | 24 hours ago

When the Rams signed Tavon Austin to a four-year, $42 million extension in 2016, a lot of eyebrows were raised. He was coming off of his best season as a pro, hauling in 52 passes for 473 yards and five touchdowns, while also adding a career-high 434 yards rushing and four scores. And for the third straight year, he brought a punt return to the house, proving his value on special teams.

In hindsight, you can somewhat see why the Rams wanted to keep him around. However, upon further evaluation, extending him two years before he’d hit free agency was an unwise and costly decision.

Last season, he was essentially phased out of the offense altogether. He played a career-low 228 offensive snaps, totaling just 47 yards receiving on 13 catches. Austin did most of his damage as a running back, strangely enough, rushing for 270 yards on 59 attempts – the most in his career.

Now, the Rams have other plans for No. 11.

After experimenting with him in the backfield, the Rams want to evaluate him as a true receiver, rather than simply an offensive weapon.

“I think the thing for Tavon is, even just thinking back to a year ago when we first got here as a coaching staff, we wanted to be able to evaluate Tavon as a receiver,” McVay said on ESPN Los Angeles. “We know he can take handoffs out of the backfield. We know he can do all of the jet sweeps and screens. But we want to see Tavon go into an offseason healthy and give him an opportunity to compete at the wide receiver position and demonstrate if he can provide some value there, where we can utilize him whether in the slot or outside.”

The Rams made a major change at wide receiver this offseason by replacing Sammy Watkins with Brandin Cooks. They’re both speedy wideouts with the ability to make big plays downfield, which is something the Rams had hoped Austin could be. Will 2018 be the year he finally puts it all together as a wide receiver? It’s possible, but given Los Angeles’ depth at the position, it’s unlikely.

McVay and the Rams are going to take it one step at a time with Austin, allowing him to compete for a larger role this offseason.

“I think really the goal for Tavon is let’s see how you approach and attack an offseason where you’re healthy and let’s try to fully develop you as a receiver detached from the core, whether that’s in the slot or outside. We’ll take it one day at a time from there,” McVay said.

If the Rams can’t make it work with Austin, it won’t cost them much. He redid his deal this offseason to convert $3 million of his $8 million cap hit into incentives, so he’ll likely count just $5 million against the cap in 2018.

All of the RAMS picks, 3rd #87 (155pts), 4th #111 (72pts), 4th #135 (38pts), 4th #136 (37.5pts), 6th #176 (20.6pts), 6th #183 (17.8pts), 6th #194 (13.4pts), 6th #195 (13pts) all add up to 367.3 points on the draft value chart, equivalent of a 2nd round #53 - #54.

https://www.drafttek.com/NFL-Trade-Value-Chart.asp?RequestTeam=ne

Come on, everyone likes a good poll...

Bonsignore: Rams offseason moves are bold blend of action, reaction and improv


Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Brandin Cooks, right, speaks at a news conference with Rams general manager Les Snead, Thursday, April 5, 2018, at the Rams training facility in Thousand Oaks. (Photo by Michael Owen Baker)

By VINCENT BONSIGNORE | vbonsignore@scng.com | Daily News
PUBLISHED: April 5, 2018 at 5:48 pm | UPDATED: April 5, 2018 at 6:32 pm

The smile was hard to suppress as Les Snead rolled out the latest add on to the ambitious superstructure currently under construction at Rams headquarters. It was a mixture of satisfaction and awe and surprise. Kind of like a guy who reaches into the pocket of an old pair of jeans and pulls out a crumpled up lottery ticket he’d long forgotten about.

Only to realize there’s a thousand bucks waiting for him at the liquor store around the corner.

Oh, nice.

See, for all the admiration Snead and Rams coach Sean McVay had for dynamic wide receiver Brandin Cooks over the last couple of years, it wasn’t like Cooks was a legitimate part of the blueprint the two Rams architects drew up a few months ago as they plotted an offseason designed to lift their club another rung higher after last year’s breakthrough season. Seeing as Cooks was employed by the New England Patriots and all.

But then, neither were Marcus Peters or Aqib Talib or Ndamukong Suh, for that matter. None of whom were officially available this time two months ago.

Yet each is now a member of the Rams.

Hence, the satisfied smiles.

Life moves fast. The Rams, to their credit, are keeping up. And defying odds in the process.

Yes, they knew they needed to address the defensive backfield, especially with the lure of free agency beckoning either Trumaine Johnson or Lamarcus Joyner onto the open market. After all, Wade Phillips’ 3-4 defense requires lockdown cornerbacks suffocating opposing wide receivers to hum at optimal level, and Snead knew he’d have to figure out a way to get his veteran defensive coordinator the help he needed.

You knew you had to solidify that,” Snead said.

And certainly the interior of the defensive line needed a big, strong, sturdy force to help stop the run and create pass rush pressure alongside Aaron Donald and Michael Brockers.

Meanwhile, Sammy Watkins was a strong possibility to leave as a free agent, so it was only a matter of time before McVay asked for an adequate replacement. Watkins wasn’t all that in terms of big numbers last year, but the fear he put in the hearts of opposing defenses was a real factor in blowing open gaping holes for teammates like Todd Gurley and Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp. If Watkins left, as feared, an suitable replacement was a must.

“Les and our coaching staff and our personnel staff, we’ve had great dialogue in terms of how we wanted to fill that void,” McVay said.

Still, it’s one thing to want to fill every important hole during free agency, and quite another to actually pull it off.

Let alone with a package of Pro Bowl caliber players that, added to an already loaded young roster, would push the Rams to the upper echelon of the NFL.

That is, without blowing up their salary cap for the next five years or surrendering a bunch of premium draft picks for the foreseeable future.

In other words, you’re playing entirely too much fantasy football or Ultimate Team Madden to even contemplate the Rams drawing up some crazy plan in which players the caliber of Peters, Talib, Cooks and Suh were added within the span of a few weeks.

Maybe that’s why Snead was smiling so much on Thursday, as was McVay, his partner in crime, as they flanked Cooks during his introductory press conference in Thousand Oaks. The player they’ve coveted from afar for more than a year is shockingly now in their fold. And armed with enough money under the cap to secure the Stockton native long-term – along with Donald and Gurley and Jared Goff and Peters, for that matter – it looks like Cooks wants to call Los Angeles home for the foreseeable future.

“It’s a special opportunity to be closer to home, being on the West Coast, where the sun is shining every single day, you can’t complain about that,” Cooks said. “As far as making this home, absolutely I’d love to do that.”

And it’s why Snead and McVay will flash the same look of satisfaction on Friday when Suh gets unveiled to the media in L.A. Just as they did a couple weeks ago upon adding both Peters and Talib.

The both of them outta be locked up for the kind of heist they’ve pulled the last month or so adding star caliber talent to an already young, thriving roster. They didn’t just pull it off, they got away scott free.

And they did it in a way that dramatically improves the Rams in real time while leaving them perfectly situated salary cap wise to keep all their core players in the fold for the long term.

For that, a major tip of the cap goes to Tony Pastoors and Kevin Demoff, the co-managers of the Rams salary cap who went all Beautiful Mind on everyone to insure the Rams could fit everyone in the fold in 2018 while also leaving close to $100 million to work with under the cap next year, and even more in 2020.

“We have plenty of space of the next few years to lock up these guys for the long term and (keep) this core together,” Snead said. “And that’s the goal.”

Much to the chagrin of the rest of the NFL, which now has to deal with the emerging power rising in Los Angeles.

They did it by acting aggressively when surprising opportunities fell their way. Such as jumping at the chance to acquire a dominating young cornerback when the Kansas City Chiefs called asking if they had interest in Peters.

And by getting creative, even if it meant saying goodbye to valued veterans in order to create or preserve cap space to add players of greater need. As was the case in trading Alec Ogletree to pave the way for Talib.

They did it by being daring and diligent, even when the odds were stacked against them. Such as calling Suh’s agent to express interest in the veteran defensive tackle shortly after he was released by the Dolphins. Snead was upfront he wasn’t in position to offer the most money, and that he’d first need to talk to his bosses – Demoff and Rams owner Stan Kroenke – to get the OK to spend the kind of money required to reel Suh in.

But by making the call – in spite of the odds – he firmly planted the Rams on Suh’s radar.

And when the interest was reciprocated, Snead was soon calling on Demoff and Kroenke to pitch them on the idea of adding Suh.

The key question being, as Snead recalled: “Can we get a little more allowance this week?”

You got it, Kroenke replied, greenlighting a $14 million one-year offer to Suh.

And finally, they did it by being persistent. Even after the Saints traded Cooks to the Patriots last offseason, Snead stayed on the case, if only to monitor the Patriots’ willingness to trade Cooks. As did McVay, who used a chance encounter with Bill Belichick at a recent coaching clinic to express interest.

All of which paid off when the Patriots, unable to procure a long-term contract extension with Cooks, offered him to the Rams at the cost of their first-round pick and a sixth-rounder in 2018.

Life moves fast, as they say. The Rams, to their credit, are keeping up. Even if it means trashing a blueprint and drawing up a new one on the fly.

An even better one, at that.

[www.ocregister.com]

Right before I woke up this morning I had a terrible, short dream.

Rams were up 44-9 with 9 minutes left in the 3rd quarter. I don’t know who we were playing, I wanna say Jags, but could be wrong there. Anyway, it was a bubble screen type of play by them.

Donald runs over to make the takle and collides with Peters, who falls down into Brokers.

Donald was screaming about his knee, rolling around the field in agony, Peters couldn’t move because of a neck injury and Brokers was hobbling off the field.

I don’t know what I’m the hell kind of nonsince this was, but it seems very odd. May my dreams never come true! Lol

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Conor McGregor arrested after Media Press!!!
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So if any of you follow UFC Tony Fergueson broke his foot on April 1st and fight is this Saturday with Khabib. Now Khabib is probably my favorite fighter and not many people know who he is really compared to other fighters but one of my other favorite fights Max Holloway is stepping in on 6 days notice! That's the 145lb champion! This is going to be insane! Plus my babe Karolina is fighting so ofc she is going to win! haha Rose and Joanna's fight is going to be great as well!

I'm ready!!

Plus Conor added to it and got arrested for assault!

Crazy asf!

I don't know who to bet on but my heart says Khabib is still going to win but Max can knock out power fighting backwards and counter punching so going to be interesting.

Super Bowl odds have changed since the Rams traded for Cooks...

Updated as of March 4, 2018

ODDS TO WIN 2018-19 SUPER BOWL LIII (2/3/19)

Patriots 6/1
Rams 10/1
Vikings 10/1
Eagles 10/1

Packers 12/1
Steelers 12/1
49ers 14/1
Texans 16/1

Falcons 20/1
Jaguars 20/1
Chargers 20/1
Saints 20/1

Raiders 25/1
Cowboys 28/1
Seahawks 28/1

Ravens 33/1
Panthers 33/1
Broncos 33/1
Chiefs 33/1
Giants 33/1

Colts 40/1
Titans 40/1
Lions 50/1
Bucs 50/1
Redskins 66/1

Cardinals 80/1
Bears 80/1
Bengals 80/1
Browns 80/1

Dolphins 100/1
Bills 100/1
Jets 100/1


ODDS TO WIN 2018-19 AFC CHAMPIONSHIP

New England Patriots 11/4
Pittsburgh Steelers 6/1
Houston Texans 8/1
Jacksonville Jaguars 10/1
Los Angeles Chargers 10/1
Oakland Raiders 12/1
Denver Broncos 14/1
Baltimore Ravens 16/1
Kansas City Chiefs 16/1

Indianapolis Colts 20/1
Tennessee Titans 20/1
Cincinnati Bengals 40/1
Cleveland Browns 40/1
Buffalo Bills 50/1
Miami Dolphins 50/1
New York Jets 50/1


ODDS TO WIN 2018-19 NFC CHAMPIONSHIP

Los Angeles Rams 5/1
Philadelphia Eagles 5/1
Minnesota Vikings 6/1
Green Bay Packers 7/1
San Francisco 49ers 8/1
Atlanta Falcons 12/1
New Orleans Saints 12/1
Dallas Cowboys 16/1
Seattle Seahawks 16/1

Carolina Panthers 20/1
New York Giants 20/1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 25/1
Detroit Lions 28/1
Washington Redskins 33/1
Arizona Cardinals 50/1
Chicago Bears 50/1
http://www.vegasinsider.com/nfl/odds/futures/

Wont go into details but one of my friends I've known since high school died. He was 32. Hit by a car as he was crossing the cross walk. Died instantly. Haven't cried like this in years. Best of the best of us. 10x out of ten should of been me dying before him. He was a great guy. Woukd trade life with him in a heart beat. Venting sorry.

I've been looking for a reason to hate the whiners more and I think I found it. These fans are delusional!!! It's hilarious! I can't wait to shut them up!

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A couple of notes.... where is Suh? His got bumped to do with Cooks... weird.

Second, the Goff throwing with Cooks in the past story is false. Or at least, they say it is false lol.

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Including some TV pundits, for that matter.

Have you seen some of his highlights? Yeah, I know that they’re highlights, but still... They ARE real, not photoshopped.

I’m not seeing a one trick pony. I’m seeing a guy that gets open, has great hands, makes contested catches, goes up and gets jump balls, goes over the middle, demands coverage by opposing D, and has blazing speed.

Then I look at his production results and I really like what I see.

I think Cooks is “football smart”, too (if you catch my drift). McVay’s O requires “neck up” players, particularly at QB and WR.

So, I’m just gonna say it. For the first time, I think McVay can truly unleash the deep threat part of his O.

For whatever reason(s), he wasn’t really able to do it with Tavon or Watkins. I suspect that that’s why McVay was pining for a deep threat this offseason. Cooks fills that desire perfectly. I think our opponents this year are gonna get an unpleasant surprise come September.

I’m gonna give this trade a Hot Damn!

The Rams Are Taking a Win-Now Experiment to Its Limit

And a closer look at the team’s cap situation reveals it may not be jeopardizing its long-term strategy to do so

By Danny Kelly Apr 4, 2018

Me, when the Rams traded for Patriots receiver Brandin Cooks, the latest in a string of big-name acquisitions by the team: Man, the Rams are going to be so good and fun and exciting next year.

Also me, a few seconds later: This might be a complete disaster.

If it wasn’t already abundantly clear, the Rams are going all in this season to win the Super Bowl.

GM Les Snead and head coach Sean McVay have pushed all their chips forward, employing a ramped-up, über-audacious form of the roster-building strategy we’ve seen a few teams have success with over the past few years—spending aggressively to maximize the small championship window a good quarterback on a cheap rookie contract can create.

The Seahawks did it in 2013, when Russell Wilson’s $500,000 salary gave the team the chance to sign Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril, two keys to their eventual Super Bowl run.

And the Eagles did it last year, utilizing the surplus in cap space Carson Wentz’s rookie deal created to ink receivers Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith, running back LeGarrette Blount, nickel corner Patrick Robinson, and pass rusher Chris Long and, later, to trade for defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan and running back Jay Ajayi.

Oh, and it wouldn’t have been feasible to pay $7 million-plus in guaranteed money to Nick Foles, who became the Super Bowl MVP, had Wentz been making, say, $23 million-plus.

Jared Goff is set to count just $7.6 million against the cap next season, chump change compared to L.A.’s divisional rival signal-callers—Russell Wilson will count $23.7 million against the Seahawks’ cap, and the newly-extended Jimmy Garoppolo will eat up an astounding $37 million of San Francisco’s cap.

Goff’s contract represents a huge advantage over other potential contenders, too, with Matt Stafford ($26.5 million), Kirk Cousins ($25 million), Drew Brees ($24 million), Ben Roethlisberger ($23.2 million), Tom Brady ($22 million), Philip Rivers ($22 million), Matt Ryan ($21.6 million), Cam Newton ($21.5 million), and Aaron Rodgers ($20.5 million) all set to cost roughly triple Goff’s hit.

That discount at the quarterback position is a big reason the Rams came into the offseason with over $45 million in cap space (10th most in the league), giving them the flexibility to use the franchise tag on safety Lamarcus Joyner at $11.2 million, take on Aqib Talib’s $11 million contract, go out and sign Ndamukong Suh to a one-year, $14 million deal, and acquire Cooks’s $8.5 million deal in 2018.

That infusion of top-tier talent makes a Rams team that won 11 games and the NFC West last year look like one of the clear favorites in the conference in 2018. But L.A.’s hardly the first team to load up on big names—we all remember the 2011 Eagles “Dream Team” that, well, failed to live up to expectations—so let’s just get this out of the way and list all the reasons

L.A.’s experiment could go horribly awry; or why it’s time, Rams fans, in the immortal words of Samuel L. Jackson, to hold on to your butts.

First off, just about every one of the Rams’ new additions carries some risk. Newly acquired cornerback Marcus Peters was kicked off his college team in 2014 after multiple run-ins with the Husky coaching staff, and the Chiefs’ decision to move on from the young, elite player after only two years certainly doesn’t ease any maturity concerns.

The mercurial playmaker had a series of blowups last year in Kansas City, bickering with fans, with coaches, and with referees, eventually earning a one-game suspension from Andy Reid after he threw a penalty flag into the stands.

Opposite him, Talib has been the source of a few distractions throughout his career, too. He drew a disciplinary warning from the league after shooting himself in the leg prior to the 2016 season, and was ejected from a Broncos-Raiders matchup last November when he ripped Michael Crabtree’s chain off his neck … for a second time.

Meanwhile, Suh’s earned a reputation for dirty hits after the whistle—and will be playing at the nose tackle spot, a different role than he’s used to. Plus, unless the team signs Aaron Donald to a long-term extension before the season starts, Suh’s eight-figure salary could create some friction with the defending defensive player of the year (though Donald was reportedly in favor of the signing).

Donald unsuccessfully held out to try to get a new contract last fall, after all, and is still looking for a big-money deal and the security that provides.

As for Cooks, his elite production and talent are both undeniable, but if he ends up playing the Sammy Watkins role in the Rams offense—i.e., a field-stretching threat that was often utilized as a decoy to clear space underneath for Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp—the potential for discord is there.

The Saints dealt the former first-rounder to the Patriots last March after he became disgruntled with his role in the offense; one report stated that “Cooks [had] felt a growing frustration with his usage—mostly the idea that he is used too often as a clear-out receiver instead of as a primary option.

”Gulp. Add in a completely-expectable step down at the quarterback position going from two future Hall of Fame quarterbacks in Drew Brees and Tom Brady to Goff, and there’s always the chance that Cooks will be unhappy with his target share and/or role and cause issues internally.

All these factors are compounded by the fact the Rams are a prime regression candidate in what’s looking like an increasingly stacked NFC field. L.A. was incredibly lucky with injuries last year, finishing with fewer adjusted games lost than any other team in the past seven seasons, per Football Outsiders.

That isn’t likely to continue. And even with Cooks onboard, it wouldn’t be surprising if they struggle to maintain the offensive efficiency they showed last year.

Rich Hribar Twitter✔
@LordReebs
The Rams had the highest scoring rate per drive spike of the last decade. Nearly all of the other top-10 teams in that bucket all naturally declined a touch the following year. They can be very good and still step back in overall output.

But the upside of all these moves is that the major boost in overall talent gives the Rams the chance to take that regression to the mean and toss it on its head. They’ve put together what could be the best secondary in the league.

They’ve built what might be the most dominant duo of defensive tackles ever by pairing Suh with Donald. And by adding Cooks, a premier field-stretching deep threat, they’ve given last year’s top scoring offense the potential to get even better. There’s risk, sure, but the sky’s the limit for how good the Rams can be in 2018.

Long term, the loss of draft picks could create roster-depth issues a few years down the line—and the Rams’ first pick in this year’s draft is a third-rounder, no. 87 overall. But the concerns over the team’s upcoming deluge of big paydays is overwrought.

Joyner, Cooks, Donald, Suh, Peters, Talib, Goff, and Todd Gurley will all be due for new contracts over the next two years, but with a projected $80 million and change of cap space for the 2019 season, the Rams have an incredible amount of flexibility to decide whom to keep (or let leave) after this season.

L.A. has very few big-money commitments going out past next year, with left tackle Andrew Whitworth and defensive tackle Michael Brockers the only two players due to count north of $10 million against the cap in 2019. Plus, Goff’s the only player with more than $2 million in dead money—meaning the team can cut just about anyone it wants if it needs to shuffle the books around significantly.

That means the Rams can extend Donald, Cooks (which is reportedly the plan), and a few other key members of the nucleus—and still have plenty of room to spare for Goff and Gurley down the line.

Most importantly, though, is that outside of New England, so-called Super Bowl windows are short-lived. In a league that’s constructed to push teams back to 8-8 through the salary cap, schedule format, and draft order, it’s incredibly difficult for any club to get all its stars aligned in the form of a good quarterback, talented offensive stars, and a top-tier defense.

That’s what makes that four- or five-year period when a team has a quarterback on a rookie contract such a crucial time to act. Once that window’s gone, man, it’s not coming back anytime soon.

At the end of the day, I love what the Rams are doing. There’s no resting on laurels. There’s no feeling that what the team did last year was good enough.

Instead of the long-established draft-and-develop strategy for championship team-building, the Rams have thrown caution to the wind and brought in a bevy of outside talent, with the hopes that McVay and defensive coordinator Wade Phillips can manage the influx of big personalities.

They’re paying a premium up front for proven talent and production—skipping past the learning curve the draft-and-development tack brings—and giving themselves what they think is their best shot at a Lombardi Trophy before Goff gets paid the big bucks and the entire cap dynamic gets turned upside down.

For all the reasons listed above, things could end up going haywire in a hurry. But looking back on this in a few years, if all these bold offseason moves don’t end up helping L.A. win a Super Bowl, at least Rams fans will know Goff’s prime championship years weren’t wasted for a lack of trying, for a lack of creativity, or for a lack of daring.

https://www.theringer.com/nfl/2018/4/4/17199594/los-angeles-rams-brandin-cooks-offseason

So, I'm gonna tell you about the time I appeared to have gone completely insane, in a public place no less, to every one around me.

With less than 10 days till christmas I had done all my shopping, that office white elephant gift too. This was my day, no thats not it, it was OUR day. But it was just another dreary, god forsaken, damp, cold, effing gray day in the pacific northwest. But our boys had all ready set my heart alight, to the tune of 27 to Ain't Gonna Happen SeaHags.

Demolishing the puke green midget our Rams had the ball with time running out in the first half. Facing a 3rd and 20 I was sipping a beer reveling in the discontent sowed all around me while quietly thinking to my self, "Just run the ball, no need to get greedy, don't give 'em hope."

So the hand off was no surprise as the cool breeze blew on me straight off the Puget Sound. But what happened next....oh my lord....It's the Peter Pan happy thought of my life. I wanted all of you to experience that with me. So I made this little gem. Enjoy.


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The Rams FO use players such as Kayvon Webster, Jamon Brown, Ethan Westbrooks, Tavon Austin, Dominique Easley and possibly Mark Barron plus round 4 draft picks or later as combinations for trades to move into the 1st and second rounds of the draft.

We seem to have a surplus of players who could potentially start for other teams and multiple late round draft picks (4th round on) to make solid trades into the first and second round. An example: trade with Baltimore Ravens - Rams trade Ethan Westbrooks or Dominique Easley, and Kayvon Webster, Tavon Austin, a 6th and a 4th rounder for their 1st (#16) pick.

Another possible trade could be with Tampa Bay for their 2nd round (#38) pick - Rams trade Mark Barron and a 4th and 6th rounder. Snead is incredibly aggressive when it comes to trading on draft day, and I really think the Rams could move into the first and second round when the draft begins at the end of this month.

Maybe I’m just thinking too much about this, but it would be a great way to pick up some possible starting linebackers and offensive lineman that we will need in the next couple of years.

The last few weeks I have been gleaning every story bout the trades and FA signings the Rams have made. Admittedly, these "stories" are free because I'm cheap. I don't want to pay the "Insiders" price at ESPN, and I don't pay for any content that I can find at no cost.

You get what you pay for.

Even so, I have read stories produced by brick & mortar newspaper internet sites who have given in to twitter reporting. When I click on a story and see several twitter quotes Rapoport, Schefter, and others, I wonder why the journalist even bothered writing anything? Has journalism been reduced to compiling twitter posts from other reporters? It's easier friending "sources" for a twitter story that actually calling them even for a phone interview...let alone sitting down with them for an hour with questions. It just feels like as a society, we've moved the patio furniture to the living room. It's comfortable, cheap, and doesn't belong there. But it's really cheap and easy, so who has time to go to IKEA?

Lots of pages to threads of Brandin Cooks, but not much reflection of His history with Rams #2 QB Sean Mannion. Mannion and Cooks are very familiar with each other.

Cooks was Mannions main target at Oregon St. in"11, '12 and '13, Maninon to Cooks resulted in 226 recep for 3272 yds and 24 TD's.

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If video doesn't work-- youtube has it as " maannion to cooks Oregon state"
View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgYQvOHsyj0

Aaron Donald may be the best player in the game but I don't believe the Rams should be paying QB money to a DT. Now that we have Suh, he can replace Donald. We all know that Goff will eventually get big $ and if we want to be able to afford to keep Peters, Cooks, Gurley and perhaps Joyner and Suh, I think we need to trade Aaron Donald. If I were Les Snead, I'd give Cleveland a call and offer them Donald for pics 4, 33 and 35. With the # 4 pick, they could get Wade his pass rusher, Bradley Chubb or if they wanted, they could probably turn around and trade the # 4 pick to Buffalo for pics 12 and 22. Cleveland has the money to pay Donald and Gregg Williams would be doing cartwheels to pair Myles Garrett with Aaron Donald.

So, Snead basically said there's not much they can do now in FA and that they're basically done.

Where do we stand now guys with the draft fast approaching? What holes or places we need upgraded do we have?

Holes/Upgrades:

-Swing Offensive Tackle/future LT
-OLB (We probably need a third guy above Longacre and Ebukam regardless if he starts in front of them or behind them) Ideally, we'd uncover a pass-rush specialist in the draft
-ILB (Even with the addition of Wilson, I'd feel way more comfortable with one more guy for depth there or a gem in the draft to supplant Littleton)
-Backup QB (Mannion did not look great in limited time last season, an upgrade or competition there would be nice).
-OG/C (Bythe seems like he might be a spot starter at C but definitely doesn't seem like he can offer anything at G and not sure we have much depth at G as it is).
-Safety (I was about to write something here after losing Davis but we seem to have decent depth as it is).

3rd down RB: This actually feels like a real and true hole here. Brown is great but he's not a guy you'd necessarily send out on routes on 3rd down (and I'm not sure how his pass blocking is).

At the bear minimum, we will be able to fill out our depth in the draft, without any problems whatsoever. What we may not be able to do is find any future starters.

http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...gn-former-first-round-pick-robert-griffin-iii

Robert Griffin III signs with Ravens to be backup QB
Jamison Hensley

OWINGS MILLS, Md. -- The Baltimore Ravens have reached a one-year agreement with quarterback Robert Griffin III, providing an experienced backup to Joe Flacco.

The Ravens initially brought in Griffin to throw to receivers in a recent workout. That led to another meeting with team officials and eventually an agreement late Tuesday.

In announcing the deal, Ravens general manager Ozzie Newsome said that Griffin "had a real good workout" for the team last week.

Baltimore had expressed interest in Griffin last summer.

Other than Flacco, the only quarterback on the roster had been Josh Woodrum, who spent all of last season on the practice squad and has never thrown a regular-season pass. Ryan Mallett, the Ravens' backup the last two seasons, is an unrestricted free agent.

This doesn't preclude the Ravens from selecting a quarterback in this month's draft.

Griffin hasn't played since the 2016 season.

He was the second overall pick in the 2012 draft and counted on to be the franchise quarterback for the Washington Redskins. He made the Pro Bowl and All-Rookie team in 2012, but injuries derailed his career.

The Redskins cut him in 2016, and the Browns signed him to a two-year deal. Injuries limited him to five games with the Browns.