Johnson Eager to Keep DL as Rams' Strength

By Myles Simmons

If there is any one of the Rams new position coaches with plenty to smile about, it’s Bill Johnson. As the new defensive line coach, Johnson’s taking over the group largely considered the club’s best strength over the last few years.

As a longtime NFL defensive line coach, Johnson plans on having his experience only enhance what’s already in place.

“We’ve been evaluating these guys for the last number of days and they’re really fun to watch,” Johnson said in a recent interview with therams.com. “I feel like it’s a privilege to be able to work with these guys, and see if maybe some of this experience can help one or two of them. But I think it’s a strong nucleus of this football team and that’s what we plan on keeping it that way.”

Johnson is coming off an eight-year stint as New Orleans’ defensive line coach, where he — like offensive line coach Aaron Kromer — was part of the staff to win Super Bowl XLIV. Prior to that, he held the same position for the Broncos and Falcons, coaching with defensive coordinator Wade Phillips in Atlanta in 2002 and 2003. The familiarity with Phillips was part of what drew Johnson to join head coach Sean McVay’s staff in Los Angeles.

“Tn the NFL circles, you get to talk to a lot of people,” Johnson said. “And, obviously, Sean’s had a good reputation the last number of years and I sort of knew that he was on track. Age really doesn’t have anything to do with it. It’s knowledge and production — that’s the whole thing in this business.

And then Wade Phillips is a guy that I’ve worked with before, and that sure was a plus for me,” Johnson continued. “So I was excited about coming here with a brand new staff and all new people and start a new beginning.”

With Phillips as defensive coordinator, Johnson will have to help implement some changes to the front seven as L.A. moves to a 3-4 base defense. Johnson said his group will spend plenty of time working on fundamentals in order to prevent on-field errors.

“We’re going to make sure that with a new scheme — I think it’s going to be a multiple scheme, a pressure scheme, a scheme that’s going to fit a lot of these guys more than people think — is make sure they don’t make mistakes,” Johnson said.

One player Johnson is particularly excited to work with is defensive tackleAaron Donald. While he may have a bit of a different function in Phillips’ 3-4, the defensive coordinator has said eh will do his best to put Donald in as many one-on-one situations as possible. And with Donald’s considerable skill, he should fare just fine.

“He’s a one-of-a-kind-type guy,” Johnson said. “He’s very violent, very strong. You’ve got some natural ability. And instincts play a big part in this. Not only does he have athletic ability, he has tremendous instincts. And that’s a pretty good formula for a football player.”

But for Johnson, the best aspect of his new position with Los Angeles may not have much to do with what’s on the field. Johnson’s son, Billy, is entering his fifth year in the Rams’ personnel department. Now, the father-son duo will get to work alongside one another in the same organization.

“When he finished playing ‘ball at Georgia, he had an opportunity to go to New Orleans, but I thought it was good for us to separate and he go his direction,” Johnson said. “But it just so happens we ended up on the same team. So we’re going to take advantage of that.”

[www.therams.com]

http://www.therams.com/stadiumcam.html


There's not really much.. Maybe the mods can embed, but so far you can see some nice looking dirt! In a few months it'll look a lot cooler.

I have been starting to dig into free agency and the draft. Here is some of the things that I think that the Rams should do. This is not every player that we should sign or draft. This is just some of my ideas for what the Rams should do this upcoming offseason.

Off season

Resign Trumaine Johnson CB - Rams
Trumaine Johnson should be resigned. He is a #1 CB for this team and his play is great. He has injury concerns, but we need a big physical corner to play on an island by himself in Wade's defense. This is my priority for free agency.


Sign Desean Jackson WR - Redskins
Jackson is coming to LA with Sean. Jackson is from the area and the Golden Bears can team up. Jackson has something this team is lacking. He is a deep threat receiver and he is very special.


Sign Ronald Leary OG - Cowboys
Leary does not have a place in Dallas. Leary immediately comes in and is a starting guard for our offensive line.


Sign Matt Kalil OT - Vikings
Matt has potential. Have him come in and compete with Greg Robinson for that LT spot. Maybe with Matt coming to play in his old college stadium will bring back his glory days.


NFL Draft

Round Two Pick - Jourdan Lewis CB - Michigan
Jourdan is a very impressive CB. He is my favorite player in the draft. He is ultra competitive and he sticks with his receivers like glue. He does not allow any completions. Trumaine and Jourdan will be our two starting cornerbacks for years to come.


Round Three Pick - Chris Godwin WR Penn State
Chris is a very impressive wide receiver. He catches every ball that comes to him. He is a good route runner and he runs very physically. Godwin reminds me a whole lot of Boldin.


Round Four Pick - Kyle Fuller C Baylor
We really need to replace Tim Barnes. Fuller will come in and replace Barnes this season. He is a very good center that should open up some space for Gurley to run.


Round Five - Kenny Golladay WR NIU
Golladay is great value here. He is very tall at 6-4 and he is very fast. I think he can be developed into something special. He was extremely productive at NIU.


WR - Desean Jackson, Chris Godwin, Tavon Austin, Mike Thomas, Kenny Golladay
OL- Matt Kalil, Rodger Saffold, Kyle Fuller, Ronald Leary, Rob Havenstein
LT LG C RG RT
CB- Trumaine Johnson, Jourdan Lewis
FS- Lamarcus Joyner
SS- Maurice Alexander

The contestants have to create tailgating food for Rams home game.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...things-in-flux-with-sam-bradford-beyond-2017/

Rick Spielman: “Everything’s in flux” with Sam Bradford beyond 2017
Posted by Josh Alper on February 23, 2017

Getty Images

Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman said Thursday that the Vikings haven’t decided what they’ll do with running back Adrian Peterson and the same is true when it comes to quarterback Sam Bradford beyond the 2017 season.

Bradford is entering the final year of his contract and the uncertainty about Teddy Bridgewater’s health means that the Vikings will be picking up the $18 million cap hit. The Vikings traded first- and fourth-round picks for him following Bridgewater’s severe knee injury last summer, something Spielman said that he’d do “over in a second” given the position the Vikings were in.

He was less committal about what the team was thinking about for 2018. Spielman included Bradford among players whose contracts needed to be addressed, but gave no indication about the team’s plans.

“Everything’s in flux right now,” Spielman said, via Tom Pelissero of USA Today. “So, I’ll just leave it at that.”

Spielman said “everybody’s hoping” Bridgewater can play again, but that the quarterback hasn’t done any football drills at this point in his recovery. His progress in the coming months will likely play a role in any decision about Bradford’s future, although it will be hard to give up the bird in the hand should the Vikings find their way back to a winning record in 2017.

Downtown Rams Draft Profile: Colorado FS Tedric Thompson

http://www.downtownrams.com/single-...ams-Draft-Profile-Colorado-FS-Tedric-Thompson

Our new massive series here at Downtown Rams will give you players that catch our eye. We will bring you bring you draft prospects, see where their fit is with the Rams and of course give you a player comparison.

Who is the 6-foot-1, 205 pound FS Tedric Thompson?
A big part of that lethal Colorado Buffaloes secondary, Thompson is the pure meaning of the term ball-hawk. Thompson had himself 13 career interceptions and 26 pass breakups, he by all accounts may have been college football's best cover safety over the last couple of years. Thompson has the ball skills that could make him standout immediately on an NFL football field. A man that doesn't have the crazy measurables by any stretch, makes up for it with his hard work and determination. It's worth noting this kid thought about quitting football due to his concussion, but he has continued to work hard and instill himself as one of the best players in the Pac 12 conference.


Strengths
Good size
Above average leaping ability
Ball skills so good, he looks like a WR high pointing the ball at times
High motor
Solid speed
Quicker than fast
Extremely reactionary
Strong, fluid athlete
Playmaker with the ball in his hands


Weaknesses
Lacks NFL range
Doesn't believe in his one on one tackling ability at times and will throw himself aggressively at the ball carrier
Not much of a hard hitting tackler

How does he fit with the Rams?
Tedric Thompson would likely be a quality day one starter at free safety and allow Maurice Alexander to go into his natural spot at strong safety if the Rams let T.J. McDonald leave. The Rams in my personal opinion are missing a play-maker who can change the game in a second and that is Thompson. I see his fit as a guy who can come in and be the final piece to building this secondary up to where it needs to be. Thompson would be one of the bigger strong safeties the Rams have had in the past. Think of Rodney McLeod. Now, think of a FS who can cover. (You shouldn't be thinking of McLeod anymore). Now, think of one that can intercept passes like he's catching the ball as a receiver? Nope there is no one on the Rams that comes to mind, because the Rams do not have that type of player on their roster. Thompson would definitely be a fit.


Draft Grade
2nd round-4th round


Player Comparison
Darian Thompson

I think Tedric Thompson compares to another Thompson who just finished his rookie year. Darian Thompson and Tedric Thompson both had the college waves by storm when they dominated college teams by picking off tons of passes. Both Thompson's are cover guys that have the hands, ball skills and instincts to intercept a pass. Darian had a year full of injury and struggle but make no mistake he will be a good player. Give him time. With Tedric I think he might be the better Thompson of the two of them. Regardless it is, and will remain close.

http://m.therams.com/s/30854/409?itemUri=40892409/14310414141210341021414812265

Fans May Enter at www.therams.com/guessourgamesthrough Friday, March 31



The Los Angeles Rams are launching the Guess Our Games contest, giving fans a chance to win one million dollars for correctly guessing the Rams 2017 schedule. Fans may visit www.therams.com/guessourgames to enter the contest through Friday, March 31.

In order to be eligible to win, a participant must properly identify each of the 16 Rams 2017 regular season games by picking the correct week of the NFL season and the day of week for each of the eight home and away contests. In addition, the Bye Week must be correctly selected.

Participants must be at least 18 years old to enter and only California residents are eligible to win. The contest is limited to one entry per person and email address.

ENTER HERE: GUESS OUR GAMES

Los Angeles Rams 2017 Regular Season Opponents

Home
Arizona Cardinals*
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
New Orleans Saints
Philadelphia Eagles
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
Washington Redskins

Away
Arizona Cardinals
Dallas Cowboys
Jacksonville Jaguars
Minnesota Vikings
New York Giants
San Francisco 49ers
Seattle Seahawks
Tennessee Titans

*Game to be played in London at Twickenham Stadium

Peete Stays in L.A. to Coach RBs

Myles Simmons

After a 2016 season full of transition, running backs coach Skip Peete is glad to have the stability that will come in 2017. Peete is one of three coaches to be retained from Los Angeles’ 2016 staff, including special teams coordinator John Fassel and assistant offensive line coach Andy Dickerson.

Of course, there was plenty of uncertainty through the coaching change process — one that resolved in a positive way for Peete and his family.

“You’re in limbo. You don’t know,” Peete said Feb. 10. “When you do it a long time, you kind of go through those types of deals. And like I told my wife, I said, ‘Well, we’ll see what happens.’

“I think it’s a little bit more uncertain for my family than it was for me. ‘Are we going to have to move?’ ‘Daddy, do we have to go to another school?’ Those types of things,” Peete continued. “But I think the transition’s been good now.”

Peete has not previously worked with head coach Sean McVay. But with friends on the 2016 Washington staff, Peete kept up with the team and was familiar with the scheme McVay implemented.

“Some of the things they were doing in the play-action game and the run game were things that excited me,” Peete said. “And so, we had that kind of conversation.”

Much was made about the reported phone call McVay received from running back Todd Gurley endorsing Peete staying on to lead his room. While Peete did not address the address that directly in an interview with therams.com, he did say he’s developed a pretty good relationship with the 2015 AP Offensive Rookie of the Year.

The one thing that was interesting is when I first arrived, obviously there was a lot of change and things going on. So he was kind of a stand-off guy, kind of had a guard up,” Peete said. “But I think as time went on, we kind of built a bond where we kind of felt comfortable with one another. He felt he could say whatever he needed to say and get if off his chest.”

Clearly, Gurley’s numbers in 2016 were down substantially from his rookie season. Peete said there are many factors that led to Gurley’s sophomore campaign, and the coach sees ways for Gurley to get back to the gash runs that dazzled the league a season ago.

“Sometimes you look at the big picture and what produces that — I don’t know if there’s a true back in the entire league where you can just hand him the ball and they’re going to run 80 yards,” Peete said. “It’s a combination of everyone working together, wether it’s you and the runner being disciplined in your footwork, your course, your press, setting the defense to help the linemen, the tight ends, receivers all get in position to get their job done. And then that’s where you have naturally large and big gains.”

But there’s one particular aspect of Gurley’s game Peete would like to see improved to make the Georgia product a premier NFL running back.

“The biggest thing he and I talked about had nothing to do with the run game, though. It was more about the importance of a running back, in my opinion, in this league [to have] the ability to be a very dominant pass protector,” Peete said. “I think you as the runner as you step up to protect the quarterback — it’s very important that you physically do that in a manner where there’s no pressure in the framework of the pocket to where the quarterback can finish his throwing motion. And he and I had a lot of conversations about that.”

[www.therams.com]

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/h...boys-are-the-team-to-beat-in-the-nfc-in-2017/

The Cowboys surprised most in 2016 by capturing the NFC’s top seed behind exceptional performances from rookies Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott. In 2017 they won’t surprise anyone, and it won’t matter. Dallas is the team to beat in the NFC.

This is more than a little premature; after all, NFL free agency will drastically alter the NFL landscape, and the Cowboys are proof about the difference the draft can make on a team’s immediate production.

It’s also very easy to look at the Cowboys and see a team with a huge window that just opened up. Adding Prescott and Elliott behind an offensive line anchored by an absurdly youthful group of studs -- Tyron Smith (26), Zach Martin (26), Travis Frederick (25) and La’el Collins (23) aren’t even in their primes yet -- completely flipped the script of how we believed this team would approach each season.

Jerry Jones was mortgaging the future for one last run with Tony Romo virtually every year and then he struck gold in the draft and set up the Cowboys for the long haul. The Cowboys should have a five-year Super Bowl window with this core of offensive players.

On the other hand, ask someone like Dan Marino how long a window in the NFL really lasts. In his second season in the NFL, Marino threw for more 5,084 yards and 48 touchdowns, leading Miami to the title game. The Dolphins would lose to the 49ers but surely they’d be back a few more times with their 23-year-old quarterback winging it around. Marino would never appear in another Super Bowl.

It’s a cautionary tale worth remembering, but one that might not really apply for Dallas, a team positioned to be the best in the NFC this year. Let’s examine why.

The offense is loaded for the long haul

The age and talent on offense for the Cowboys heading into 2017 is just incredible. Elliott is a top-five running back after just his first season. Despite a slow start, he led the league in rushing (1,631 yards), even though he also sat during Week 17.

He is fast, strong, an underrated catcher, a tremendous blocker and if he gets in the open field he is going to leave you hanging.


Elliott basically patented the “I’m more athletic than you” hurdle in his rookie season.


The only real concern for Elliott is the wear and tear of a long rookie season. He also led the NFL in carries (322) and the NFL has not been kind to running backs who blow past an admittedly arbitrary 300-carry number.

The Cowboys’ willingness to run Zeke like that in the regular season made their decision to limit his playoff carries (22, when he was averaging 5.7 yards per carry against the Packers’ nickel defense) even more surprising. Finding talented backups to lessen his regular-season load is a must to keep him healthy for the long haul and the future.

On the offensive line, there’s little change coming. Ronald Leary is a free agent and, at age 27, will probably find plenty of interested suitors on the market. The Cowboys thought about dealing Leary before the season for defensive help but held off -- and when Collins went down with a toe injury, they were bailed out in a big way. Doug Free (33) is the only lineman over 27 and has one more year left on his deal. The Cowboys need to continue finding depth in the draft and injury regression could be a concern, but by and large there is no reason to expect the offensive line to struggle in 2017.

If the line holds up its end of the bargain, there’s a trickle-down effect on the rest of the offense.

No sophomore slumps

It’s not unreasonable to be concerned with Prescott taking a step back. He was phenomenal for a quarterback, and not just a rookie quarterback. Prescott broke Tom Brady’s record for consecutive completions to start the season without an interception. Every step of the way, he managed to shrug off critics and step up his game in critical spots.

Even though he made plenty of rookie mistakes, Prescott showed a knack for recovering from them and pulling off clutch plays in big spots .

Nothing was too big for either Prescott or Elliott. Teams will have more time to adjust to the Cowboys’ offensive approach and could potentially limit Prescott. But if the Cowboys are doing what they want to do -- establish the run behind the offensive line with a healthy, dominant Elliott -- then good luck thinking about how to slow down the passing game.

None of this even mentions Dez Bryant. Bryant is still just 28 years old and he looked like his old dominant self for the second half of the season. He averaged five catches, 73 yards and a score in his final seven games (not counting Week 17 when the starters barely played).

A full season of dominant Dez should keep Dak from dropping off too much.

Room to improve the defense

The good news for the Cowboys is the limited losses on offense. Leary, Terrance Williams, Darren McFadden, Brice Butlerand Gavin Escobar are the most notable names leaving on that side of the ball.

Defensively it gets a little tougher. Even though Brandon Carr and Morris Claiborne-- both acquired in 2012 during a hyper-aggressive offseason for Dallas -- never lived up to expectations, they are still starting bodies. Barry Church and J.J. Wilcox are free agents as well.

So there’s a lot of work to do. Good news: The Cowboys restructured several contracts to get underneath the projected cap. Bad news: They’re not too far under the projection . Releasing Romo will clear either $5.1 million or $12 million depending on whether Dallas designates him a post-June 1 cut (they could still trade him, but a release seems most likely).

After a Romo cut (post-June 1), Dallas would be at $151.8 million. Add in $5.3 million for the draft and the Cowboys are looking at about $10 million in cap space to work with in free agency. That’s sub-optimal.

That Jaylon Smith pick in the second round looks a lot more prudent right now, doesn’t it? Smith, a linebacker, won’t be playing in the secondary but he could be a “bonus” defensive addition.

The cornerbacks available in free agency actually represent a pretty strong class and there’s ample talent in the draft as well. So Dallas can retool on the fly.

Let’s not forget that the defense wasn’t great to begin with in 2016 either. The Cowboys were a below-average team on defense, but just barely -- Football Outsiders had them at 17th in defensive DVOA for 2016. Not every team is going to be loaded on both sides of the ball, and Dallas showed in 2016 it was capable of providing a defense that is better than the personnel (thanks Rod Marinelli) while also managing to have the offense assist said defense. Clock-chewing drives are your friend.

This is all a very friendly reminder not to judge any offseason moves before we see how they play out in the regular season. The Cowboys were widely expected to be in trouble at quarterback when Romo went down. We saw how that worked out.

The division isn’t drastically improving

The NFC East got a LOT better in 2016. Philadelphia was a frisky seven-win team. The Giants won double-digit games to make the playoffs. The Redskins should have joined them except Kirk Cousins laid a couple eggs late.

But is it getting better again this year?

The Redskins might lose some critical offensive pieces in free agency (Desean Jackson, Pierre Garcon). Washington is going to spend half of the offseason trying to figure out whether Cousins is going to get a new contract. There’s a lot of potential loss in the front seven and the Redskins will need some strong work this offseason to make it a better group heading into next season.

The Eagles will have Carson Wentz in his second year, but there are worries about his mechanics and he’s still lacking in terms of weapons. Jordan Matthews, Nelson Agholor and Dorial Green-Beckham do not look like the answer. Zach Ertz was really good down the stretch but he needs to be more consistent. Philly really needs Lane Johnson to stay on the field.

The defense could be facing some turnover with expected cuts (Connor Barwin) and rumored trades (Mychal Kendricks). Every year is a roster roller coaster with Philadelphia.

The Giants outperformed their roster and Eli Manning didn’t look like himself last year. Odell Beckham got criticized for being on a boat, but he and Sterling Shepard are a strong point on this offense. The running game is not -- Adrian Peterson is perhaps in play, but is he a fit with how many three-wideout and shotgun sets they run? Jason Pierre-Paulcould be leaving in free agency, although that unit should still be dangerous because the secondary is one of the best in the league thanks to Janoris Jenkins, Landon Collins and Eli Apple. Losing a presence up front won’t help the back end however.

The East just doesn’t feel as wide open as it usually does this time of year. There’s a lot of ballgame left, but the Cowboys should be considered the frontrunners.

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/h...boys-are-the-team-to-beat-in-the-nfc-in-2017/

Downtown Rams Draft Profile: Fordham TE Phazahn Odom

http://www.downtownrams.com/single-...wn-Rams-Draft-Profile-Fordham-TE-Phazahn-Odom

Our new massive series here at Downtown Rams will give you players that catch our eye. We will bring you bring you draft prospects, see where their fit is with the Rams and of course give you a player comparison.

Who is the 6-foot-8, 250 pound TE Phazahn Odom?

He is a physical specimen who would be considered a project at the next level. Phazahn Odom is just the type of TE a team that wants to go vertical would want. With Odom, you see his raw talent and the potential to be a Julius Thomas type of player. Obviously the lack of competition is a concern and how raw of a TE he is but as a late round pick Odom fits the bill.


Strengths:
Tremendous size
Solid hands
Solid speed and acceleration
Versatility
Above average leaping ability
Ability to high point the ball
Above average blocker
Has the ability to re-adjust himself and contort his body in mid-air to make the catch
Creates considerable separation
Flashes the ability to beat his man off the line of scrimmage more often than not

Weaknesses:
Could use some more weight to go with his 6-foot-8 frame
Competition was lacking
Below average route runner
Has trouble staying low while engaged with his man on a block
Catching technique is flawed (as Matt Waldman of the RSP Portfolio points out in the video)

How does he fit with the Rams?
He would seem to be another project that could help down the line if worked with. There is no doubt if Odom is willing to learn and his coaches are willing to work with him and teach him how to run routes and stay low on his blocks. Odom could become a good tight end in the NFL. With Lance Kendricks, Tyler Higbee and Temarrick Hemingway on the depth chart, Odom would have to work real hard to make the 53-man roster if drafted. It will depend on what the new coaches think of the TE's on the roster now. Perhaps Odom would be a great option to stash on your practice squad and mold him into a future match up nightmare.

Draft Grade
6th round-UDFA

Player Comparison
Fendi Onobun

I actually see a lot of similarities. The former Rams drafted project pick Fendi Onobun had the potential you see with Phazahn Odom. Onobun just had a hard time putting it all together. He showed flashes of disruptive potential, but eventually it was too much. Odom is actually two inches taller and a much better blocker than Onobun was. If I were to bet I would say Onobun's career is Odom's floor at the moment, he has a chance to be much better. Still, both projects one failed and the other one could succeed. Time will tell...

http://www.ourlads.com

Would be cool to see some of you guys enter this. Just saying

Let them eat cake! Obese men last 1 minute 30 seconds LONGER in the bedroom, study says

• Overweight men last 7.5 minutes in bed, compared to the 6 minute average
• This is thanks to a higher presence of estradiol, which inhibits the male orgasm
• Excess weight also heightens probability of stroke, heart disease and diabetes

By James Draper For Mailonline

PUBLISHED: 09:41 EST, 21 February 2017 | UPDATED: 09:42 EST, 21 February 2017

From diabetes to heart disease and a heightened risk of stroke, the dangers of carrying excess weight are well-documented.

But obesity may also have surprising benefits for men - especially when it comes to the bedroom.

Experts claim that those who have excess fat around their stomachs have better stamina during sex.

In fact, they last for one minute and 30 seconds more than their skinny counterparts, a study found.



Eat your heart out: Experts claim that those with an abundance of stomach fat and a higher BMI enjoy better stamina during sex

According to research conducted by Turkey's Erciyes University, there's a direct correlation between physical size and endurance.

The reason behind this is because overweight men have a higher presence of estradiol, a female sex hormone, which actually inhibits the male orgasm.

This result is similar to those provided by delay creams, which help suspend ejaculation by requiring more stimulus to climax.

Specifically, it adds a little longer onto a man's average for penetrative sex - with the duration being six minutes for most.



Waist size matters: The study also noted that patients with lifelong premature ejaculation also tended to be slimmer

The research, entitled Insight on pathogenesis of lifelong premature ejaculation: inverse relationship between lifelong premature ejaculation and obesity, also found a reverse pattern which seemed to substantiate their claims.

They noted how patients with lifelong premature ejaculation tended to be thinner - and that incident rates dropped as weight increased.

However, it seems that healthier eating works better for women.

A 2014 study at Santa Chiara Regional Hospital in Trento, Italy, found women eating apples daily had higher sex drives, increased arousal and more frequent orgasms than those rarely eating them.

The researchers said that chemicals called polyphenols — found in apples and most fruits — contribute to more oxygen-rich blood reaching the genitals during sex.



Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/a...-30-seconds-LONGER-bedroom.html#ixzz4ZRGVWayc

Rams need to replenish depth in their secondary

By Alden Gonzalez

From now until the start of free agency on March 7, we'll take a position-by-position look at the Los Angeles Rams in eight installments. The Rams -- coming off a 4-12 season that prompted the hiring of rookie head coach Sean McVay -- have about $40 million in cap space but do not have a first-round draft pick. They also have a lot of needs, all of which can feel a little overwhelming without breaking it down by section. We'll do that here. Next up: the secondary. (Previous: WR/TE, DL, OL, LB, RB, Q

Key returnees: CB E.J. Gaines, CB Lamarcus Joyner, S Maurice Alexander, S Cody Davis, CB Troy Hill, CB Mike Jordan, CB Blake Countess

Notable free agents: CB Trumaine Johnson, S T.J. McDonald

Top free agents available (for now): S Eric Berry, CB Stephon Gilmore, CB A.J. Bouye, S Tony Jefferson, S Barry Church, S Logan Ryan, CB Morris Claiborne

Key stat: The Rams had a 1.7 percent interception rate in 2016, the seventh-lowest mark in the NFL and their worst since 2009. Johnson had 13 interceptions from 2013 to '15, tied for fourth in the NFL, and a career-high seven in 2015. But he intercepted only one pass in 2016.

The depth in the Rams' secondary has eroded rather quickly. Last offseason, they lost primary cornerback Janoris Jenkins and free safetyRodney McLeod and replaced both internally. This offseason, their new primary cornerback, Johnson, and their stalwart strong safety, McDonald, are headed for unrestricted free agency. There's a chance -- though perhaps a slim one -- that either one will be franchised. But the likely scenario is that the Rams try to bring them back at fair market value, or if they can't then simply move on.

Joyner, only 5-foot-8 but pound-for-pound one of the game's toughest players, emerged as a solid slot corner in 2016. But Gaines, a promising rookie in 2014 who then missed all of 2015 with a serious foot injury, was graded 107th out of 112 qualified cornerbacks by Pro Football Focus. And the Rams didn't have much beyond that. Hill, Jordan and Countess, either undrafted or pushed aside by other teams, were next in line at cornerback. And Davis, primarily a special-teams contributor, was pressed into action when Alexander missed time at free safety.

Just as with the offensive line and the receiving corps, the Rams need to address their secondary this spring. They need to do it through free agency, a realm they haven't been very active in since Les Snead became general manager in 2012. And they need to do it through the draft, where they haven't taken a defensive back since 2014.

[www.espn.com]

That how he demonstrates he can be tough and discipline players the first time they try him will be key. Dude is known to be a players coach, but he's gotta draw a line and stick to it by making examples if necessary.

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I saw this on facebook today (It's a bit of a dated article but has resurfaced a lot lately) and thought it was a great message and everything so I thought I would share.


Original Source: http://usmclife.com/2016/09/former-nfl-athlete-starts-gym-help-wounded-warriors/


Former NFL athlete starts gym to help wounded warriors
By USMC Life|September 13th, 2016|News|0 Comments
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Fixing broken spirits: This former NFL player created a specialty gym to train and rehabilitate disabled veterans.

…”I’m walking in the boot prints of the men in front of me. Pushing off with my right foot. My left foot’s off the ground and kaboom — everything goes black from all the smoke and dirt flying in the air.” Brian, a Marine amputee featured in the video.





“I’ve had over 30 surgeries. I can’t even describe how much that stuff hurt. And you go and you tell them, “Hey, this still hurts.” And they’re like “Well, you’re abusing your meds”, and I’m like… “I’m going to go buy heroin.” ” — Brian, a Marine vet featured in film.

“The time when I stopped in that parking lot, he [Brian] was severely addicted to heroin. He just got out a second detox and was going to bed every single night with a pistol next to his body. He felt like he couldn’t be the Marine that he was when he left our country to go serve, he was broken. Completely broken, a place that I was familiar with.” — NFL retired athlete David Vobora.

Vobora had a a gym downtown and asked the Marine vet to work with him, even though he’d never trained an adaptive athlete.

The two worked out together every day for 3 months.

“After going there regularly, getting stronger, getting healthier, my body pain decreased tremendously. My confidence levels changed. It all became a lot more feasible… I can do this, this isn’t impossible.”

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http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.co...rsey-listed-as-worth-500000-on-police-report/

Tom Brady’s stolen jersey listed as worth $500,000 on police report
Posted by Mike Florio on February 21, 2017

Getty Images

As the hunt for Tom Brady’s Super Bowl LI jersey continues, the authorities have attached an official value to the item: $500,000.

That’s the number appearing on the police report posted on Twitter by James Palmer of NFL Media. And that matters for reasons beyond media coverage or hype; the value makes the crime a first degree felony under Texas law.

The number meshes with an estimate provided by Ken Goldin of Goldin Associates. As a practical matter, the item has limited value because anyone who buys it can’t display it without risk of the authorities seizing it.

The item remains missing, and the bigger issue could be that folks with access to NFL locker rooms have had sticky fingers for years when it comes to game-used memorabilia.

Regardless of whether Brady’s jersey is found, the NFL needs to beef up its efforts to secure property that, as Brady’s jersey demonstrates, can be extremely valuable.

Well, as it seems to be tradition, I'm going to follow @jrry32 's lead and make a draft of my own. Ready? Okay, here we go:

Cut:

Rodger Saffold
Tim Barnes
Lance Kendricks
Eugene Sims
Tre Mason

(All obvious. I wish them well in their future endeavors.)

Release:

Kenny Britt
Brian Quick
Ethan Westbrooks
Matt Longacre
T.J. McDonald
Case Keenum
Chase Reynolds
Cam Thomas

(Westbrooks and Longacre don't have a fit in our system. McDonald is replaced by Mo. Britt and Quick are let go to put in some new young blood in the wide receiver position. Keenum is replaced by Mannion. Chase Reynolds is pure special teams and easily replaceable, and Thomas is JAG.)

Re-sign:

Trumaine Johnson (5 years, 11.5 million per year.)
Benny Cunningham (3 years, 3 million per year.)
Greg Zuerlein (4 years, 3 million per year.)
Dominique Easley (RFA)
Louis Trinca-Pasat (ERFA)

(Tru signs a reasonable contract and we get a shutdown corner. Zuerlein has improved a ton and is worth a long-term deal. Cunningham is also a must-re-sign. Easley is on the opposite side of Donald, and LTP competes at nose tackle.)

Convert:

Lamarcus Joyner (CB - FS)

(Yeah, Joyner moves to free safety, which leaves strong safety to Alexander. It gives us a pair of hard-hitting safeties in the backfield, and opposing receivers will fear us.

Cody Wichmann (G - C)

(Wichmann switches to a new position where he can function with limited strength.)

Free Agency:

Pierre Garcon (three years, 6 million per year.)

Markus Wheaton (two years, 4 million per year.)

Stefan Wisniewski (two years, 2.5 million per year.)

Demarcus Ware (one year, four million.)

Ronald Leary (five years, 10 million per year.)

Logan Ryan (five years, 8 million per year.)

Manti Te'o (2 years, 3 million per year.)

(Stealing Logan Ryan from @jrry32 . I'm trying to make everything fit, so...yeah.)

Trades:

William Hayes to the New York Giants for 2017 sixth round pick.)

(Hayes simply doesn't fit our system anymore. He's a class act all the way, so I wish him well.)

Mark Barron, 2018 second round pick, and 2017 seventh round pick to the Cleveland Browns for their 2017 second round pick.

(Like the others, I wish Barron well, but his fit in Wade's system isn't the same as his fit in Williams' system. In return, we get a top pick in this year's class.)

Draft:

2 (Browns) - Forrest Lamp, C, Western Kentucky.

2 - T.J. Watt, OLB, Wisconsin.

3 - Tanoh Kpassagnon, DE, Villanova.

4 - Akhello Witherspoon, CB, Colorado.

4 (Comp.) - Amara Darboh, WR, Michigan.

5 - Ejuan Price, OLB, Pittsburgh.

6 - Jerry Ugokwe, OT, William & Mary.

6 (Giants) - Javancy Jones, ILB, Jackson State.

(Taking advice from others on where people are likely to go. Lamp is my favorite offensive lineman in this draft. Watt, Kpassagnon, Witherspoon, Price, and Jones are all likely to at least get snaps, if not outright start. Darboh falls because of his lack of top end athleticism, but he's going to be a solid number two wideout in this league. Ugokwe is from jrry's mock.)

Thoughts, critiques, comments, all are welcome.

I don't know... Garoppolo feels like fools gold to me. Cassel... Mallet... Just another Patriots QB destined to show his true colors outside of their organization?

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/h...-need-to-make-a-jimmy-garoppolo-trade-happen/

The only thing more aggravating than the Tony Romo rumors floating around the NFL this offseason are the Jimmy Garoppolo trade rumors. One minute he’s a sure bet to be traded, the next minute the Patriots might end up keeping him and all of a sudden there’s chatter he could fetch the top overall pick. Wild how that works!

The clear-cut leader in the Garoppolo sweepstakes is the team with the top-overall pick, the one and only Cleveland Browns, a quarterback-desperate team with a pile of picks available for negotiations.

Let’s look at what needs to happen in order for the Browns to acquire Garoppolo.

According to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com, the Patriots are going to require a first-round pick in exchange for Garoppolo. This jibes with what has been the general chatter for a while now. The Patriots want a first-rounder for their former second-round pick (with three years of investment in terms of training). The Browns have two of them, possessing the No. 1 overall pick and the No. 12 overall pick.

Cleveland also holds the No. 34 overall pick but apparently that’s not enough to make it work. (It should be, but that’s another argument.)

Cabot actually believes it might take MORE to get Garoppolo.

I believe it will take the No. 12 pick to acquire him, and possibly more. The trading window officially opens March 9, but unofficial talks will take place before then. If Belichick doesn’t receive a first-round offer right away, he can hang onto Garoppolo until draft day and try to drive up the price.

Draft day gets tricky, though. Let’s assume there are five teams who would realistically be willing to trade for Jimmy G: the Browns, the 49ers, the Bears, the Jetsand the Bills.

Let’s rule out Belichick trading Garoppolo in the divsion to the Jets or the Bills. Let’s also assume if he’s willing to send Garoppolo to either Buffalo or New York, both teams he plays twice a year, then it means he believes Garoppolo is going to flame out. Belichick isn’t handing the Jets or Bills a franchise quarterback regardless of the price.

So that leaves three teams. And this is where the leverage gets really tricky. Both the Bears and 49ers are going to be looking for long-term solutions at quarterback and both are expected to release their respective veteran starters (Jay Cutler and Colin Kaepernick).

But both teams are potential fits for other veterans. Tony Romo went to the same college (Eastern Illinois) as Bears GM Ryan Pace (which is also the same college Garoppolo went to!) and could be a fit in Chicago, although it’s a rebuilding team and he might not want to wait. Kyle Shanahan has previously coached Kirk Cousins and Cutler. Neither is guaranteed to be available come free agency, but both could be a fit for the 49ers if they want to go in a different direction than the top of the draft.

In other words, free agency is going to drastically dictate what happens with a Garoppolo trade. If the 49ers and Bears sign a veteran who can start (include Mike Glennon on that list, as well) then all of a sudden Belichick’s leverage with Cleveland could disappear.

This could also go in the total opposite direction. Cabot reports that Shanahan coveted Garoppolo coming out of Eastern Illinois when coaching the Browns in 2014, but Cleveland took Johnny Manziel. Whoops.

Kyle Shanahan, the new 49ers head coach, loved Garoppolo coming out of Eastern Illinois in 2014 when he was with Cleveland, but the Browns opted for Johnny Manziel instead.

Shanahan has the No. 2 and No. 34 overall picks and the second-most cap space in the NFL at almost $79 million. Quarterbacks love to play for Shanahan because of his QB-friendly scheme.

If San Francisco and Chicago don’t have an immediate or long-term answer at quarterback by the time the draft comes around, Belichick could be swimming in leverage with those teams. Cleveland might want to offer the No. 12 pick and he might be able to laugh about it, because he can threaten the Browns with San Francisco or Chicago trading their top pick.

This is all hypothetical, of course. The problem with giving up a top-five pick for Garoppolo is his contract. Both rookies and Garoppolo are unknown by default, but unlike a rookie, Garoppolo isn’t going to be on a cost-controlled contract for four years (plus a fifth-year option).

He’s going to play one season and then whoever acquires him will immediately be required to make a decision on an expensive, long-term contract. If he’s the guy, great. If he puts you in a position like the Redskins are in with Kirk Cousins, well, then you need to spend $45 million over the next two years to decide if he’s the right answer.

To sum up, if the Browns want to acquire Jimmy Garoppolo for a reasonable price and have him be the savior of Cleveland football, they need a bunch of other quarterback-needy teams go out in free agency and sign players, then have the Patriots take less than they normally would in a trade and then have Garoppolo agree to a long-term contract in Clevleand.

Rams' new O-line coach sees a young group he can work with

By Alden Gonzalez


THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. -- Aaron Kromer, the Los Angeles Rams' new offensive line coach, said he is "excited" about the group he will now oversee, which, on the surface, sounds odd. Kromer is inheriting a collection of offensive linemen who were nothing short of dreadful throughout the 2016 season. They couldn't open holes for their star running back, Todd Gurley, and they couldn't keep their franchise quarterback, Jared Goff, upright.

Not much to be excited about, unless you ask Kromer.

"The reason is the youth," Kromer said. "When you look at it, there’s not many offensive lines in the league that have second- and third-year players across the board, other than the center with five. It’s got to be one of the youngest groups in the league, and the backups are just as young."

Kromer mistakenly omitted Rodger Saffold, a seven-year veteran who might have been the Rams' best offensive lineman this past season. But besides that, he's right. Outside of Saffold and center Tim Barnes, an undrafted free agent from 2011, the Rams' offensive line is awfully young, a product of the seven draft picks used on the position from 2014 to '15.

That includes left tackle Greg Robinson (the second overall pick in 2014), right tackle Rob Havenstein (second round in 2015) and the three linemen who started at right guard this past season: Jamon Brown (third round in 2015), Cody Wichmann (sixth round in 2015) and Andrew Donnal (fourth round in 2015). Besides David Arkin, a fourth-round pick in 2011, all of the incumbent backups have completed no more than three NFL seasons, including Demetrius Rhaney (seventh round in 2014), Darrell Williams (undrafted in 2015) and Pace Murphy (undrafted in 2016).

Kromer believes he can still mold them.

"We've got work to do; we get that," Kromer said. "But I feel good watching the tape of individually their skills that they have and trying to put five guys together that can work together to have success. ... It's going to be a lot of hard work for them; it's going to be a lot of hard work for us. But I think the best quality a coach can have is to be able to teach and be a good communicator. We have to teach these guys exactly what we want and become repetitive with what we're looking for."


Kromer, who replaces longtime coach Paul Boudreau, has spent the last 16 years in the NFL, serving as a senior assistant, a running backs coach, an offensive coordinator, an interim head coach and, mostly, an offensive-line coach. Kromer coached offensive lines for the Raiders (2002 to '04), Buccaneers (2006 to '07), Saints (2009 to '12) and Bills (2015 to '16). During his four-year stint with the Saints, Kromer coached five offensive linemen who went to a combined 10 Pro Bowls. And over his last two years in Buffalo, the Bills led the NFL with 5.06 rushing yards per carry.

Behind the Rams' offensive line in 2016, Gurley averaged 3.18 rushing yards per carry, the second-worst rate in the NFL, and Goff was sacked an NFL-leading 25 times over his last six games.

The first step in turning the offensive line around is deciding what to do with Robinson, but Kromer isn't taking this job with any preconceived notions. He generally doesn't want outside opinions. He'd rather make determinations on his own, and he sees this as "a new start" for every Rams offensive lineman, free to make of it what they want.

"We all know that the whole line has to improve," Kromer said. "We all see that, and you see that on tape. But individually, I see skills, we see skills, in these guys, that if we can pull them together, and get them working together, which we see is possible, that we can get the group much better. It's just going to be a process. I don't know how long that process is going to take. Is it going to take a month, is it going to take a year, is it going to take two years? I don’t know that, and I don't know if we need to add somebody yet. I can’t answer that yet. But I do see individual skills in each one of these guys that should allow them to have success."

[www.espn.com]

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Anyone with any further insight on this man? Listening to his interview, seems like a smart and driven kid. Rams and Jets have checked in and would consider him at corner with a 6'2" 210 frame.

Could we just be doing some do diligence on him or could he be one of our potential fourth round picks??

I was bored, so I decided to throw out another take on a direction we could head this off-season. There are plenty of players who you've seen before because I like those players.

Cut
OG Rodger Saffold
HB Tre Mason
TE Lance Kendricks
DE Eugene Sims
C Tim Barnes

Re-sign
K Greg Zuerlein - 3 years $7.5 million
HB Benny Cunningham - 3 years $4.5 million
DT Dominique Easley - RFA Tender
DT Louis Trinca-Pasat - ERFA Tender
DE/OLB Matt Longacre - ERFA Tender

Free Agency - Big Money Acquisitions
Ronald Leary LG - 5 years $40 million

We need OL help. There were rumors that Dallas was trying to trade Leary before the season. With the injury to La'El Collins, Leary stepped back into his starting spot. He was also a starter on the dominant 2014 Cowboys OL. Leary is a mauling run blocker who has the versatility to play in either a ZBS or a PBS. He's also a quality pass protector. Either ways, he's a huge upgrade on what we have. Plus, he came up under Aaron Kromer's mentor, Bill Callahan.

Logan Ryan CB - 5 years $40 million

Coming off a strong 2015 season, Ryan got off to a rocky start in 2016 but finished with a bang. Ryan had a dominant second half of the season as the Patriots shifted him between the slot and the boundary. Ryan looked especially good when allowed to play press man coverage in the slot. Ryan is a physical CB who tackles well and has quality ball-skills. He's a versatile player who can play in the slot or outside at CB. He'll offer us a poorer man's version of Chris Harris.

DeSean Jackson WR - 3 years $24 million

Initially, I had some concerns about Jackson coming to LA because of his reported ties to gang members. However, it genuinely seems like McVay and Jackson have a very close relationship. With Jackson being from LA, I think he'd be willing to come here if we match his best offer. He definitely offers us a nice skill-set. He put up 1000+ yards in McVay's offense this year.

Brandon Carr CB - 3 years $22.5 million

Carr said he was pondering retirement after the Cowboys' playoff loss, but I don't believe it for a second. He loves football too much. He was just a guy venting after a tough loss. There are some here who don't like signing him, but I disagree with them. He's a perfect fit for the Aqib Talib role in Wade's scheme. Carr has always been at his best when allowed to get physical at the LOS and battle with bigger WRs. That's exactly how Wade will use him in his scheme.

Free Agency - Cheaper Signings
Ryan Groy C/OG - 4 years $16 million
Markus Wheaton WR - 2 years $8 million
Vance Walker DE/NT - 2 years $4 million
Jordan Mills OT/OG - 2 years $3 million
Sean Lissemore DE/NT - 2 years $2 million
Dwight Freeney OLB - 1 year $1 million

NFL Draft
Round 2 Pick #5 - T.J. Watt OLB Wisconsin
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Summary: Watt is probably my favorite prospect in this class. @A.J. Hicks posted a great breakdown of Watt's game in this forum. Watt has only played defense for two years at the college level but is already a very mentally polished prospect. He has great instincts on the field that allow him to find the ball and undermine the blocking scheme. As a pass rusher, Watt uses his length, powerful hands, balance, and elite flexibility to consistently put pressure on the OL across from him. At 6'5" 245, Watt is still growing into his frame and doesn't have a consistent power game yet. However, he has the growth potential to play around 260 and flashes the ability to develop a legitimate power game as he physically matures. This is a kid whose best football is ahead of him.

Round 3 Pick #5 - Ahkello Witherspoon CB Colorado
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Summary: Ahkello is one of my favorite under the radar prospects in this draft. He was one of the national leaders in passes defensed in 2016, and his coverage metrics when targeted were off the charts good. Ahkello is 6'2" 195 with outstanding ball-skills, tremendous quickness and hip flexion for his size, and the long speed needed to play outside the numbers in the NFL. Ahkello is one of the most physically talented players in this class. He's a tad raw in terms of technique, but he has gobs of upside at CB. Plus, he's a highly intelligent kid who has aspirations of becoming a doctor. We need more intelligent players. This kid has the potential to be one of the best CBs in the game. My one big complaint with him is that he doesn't like to come up and hit.

Round 4 Pick #5 - Ishmael Zamora WR Baylor
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Summary: Ishmael wasn't invited to the Combine because of the video of him beating his dog. He's a crummy person for doing that, but football isn't about putting together a team of choir boys. Declaring after his sophomore year, Zamora's production as a sophomore is nearly identical to Josh Gordon's production as a sophomore at Baylor. A former state champion hurdler, Zamora has the same sort of freakish attributes that made Josh Gordon such an effective NFL WR. Simply put, he's a 6'3" to 6'4" 220+ pound WR who can go up and get the ball, can run away from CBs, will run through tackles, and will come down with the ball in traffic. He's raw coming out of Baylor's system, but he has first round caliber physical talent.

Round 4 Comp Pick - Jonnu Smith TE Florida International
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Summary: Jonnu has the potential to be a Jordan Reed-like player in McVay's scheme. At 6'3" 245, Jonnu is undersized for an inline TE. However, he's a willing blocker with the strength to handle himself in the NFL. He won't be Gronkowski, but he won't be a total liability either. Where Jonnu truly shines is as a pass-catcher. Like Jordan Reed, he'll sometimes let passes into his body. However, Jonnu's hip flexibility and quickness make him potentially special. He moves and cuts like a WR. He can break tackles and create yardage after the catch too. He has a very high ceiling as a move TE.

Round 5 Pick #5 - Ejuan Price OLB Pittsburgh
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Summary: Price had injury issues early in his career. He's rebounded to post 42.5 TFLs and 24.5 sacks over the past two years. He's a really small guy at 5'11" 255, but he has serious explosiveness and quickness as a pass rusher. He's a really good fit as a 3-4 OLB. He has the athleticism to not be a liability in coverage while possessing the speed to be a dangerous pass rush specialist. He uses his natural leverage and explosive power well while rushing the power. If he can learn how to convert his speed to power, he could be a very dangerous NFL pass rusher. Dwight Freeney is a great mentor for this kid to have.

Round 6 Pick #5 - Jerry Ugokwe OT William & Mary
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Summary: I have not had a chance to evaluate Ugokwe myself, but I like what I've read from Lance Zierlein on him and seen in his interviews. Ugokwe is a 6'7" 315 pound OT with long arms who walked on at William & Mary and ended up starting 42 games. He's reportedly an intelligent, competitive, and coachable player with a mean streak. Zierlein's scouting report makes clear that Ugokwe is very raw but has the tools to develop into a starting OT. From everything I've seen, there are no questions that he has the right attitude to reward a team that is patient with him.

Round 6 Comp Pick - Joshua Holsey CB Auburn
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Summary: Holsey is another guy on my list of underrated CBs. This is such a deep and talented class that a guy like Holsey can go unnoticed. Holsey had two torn ACLs in his career, so that is a concern with him. However, he has exceptionally quick feet, the speed to run with WRs deep, loose hips, and good ball-skills. He can get a little grabby at times, but as we all know, some CBs use that to their advantage (*cough* Richard Sherman). Holsey is a CB who hides it well and uses it to his advantage. Holsey handled a number of top college WRs, including Mike Williams, during his senior season at Auburn.

Round 7 Pick #5 - Joey Ivie DE Florida
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Summary: Ivie is an underrated player in this class. He's a solid athlete with a relentless motor who has the ability to be a productive rotational interior DL at the NFL level. Ivie uses his hands well and does a nice job of stacking and shedding blocks in the run game. He's athletic enough to disrupt plays in the back-field and pressure QBs in the passing game. Ivie should be able to carve out a career as a rotational DL on an aggressive front like Wade's. He can provide depth at any spot along the 3-4 DL in Wade's scheme.

Projected Starters
QB: Jared Goff
HB: Todd Gurley
FB: Cory Harkey
XWR: Markus Wheaton vs. Ishmael Zamora vs. Mike Thomas
ZWR: DeSean Jackson
SLWR: Tavon Austin
TE: Tyler Higbee
LT: Greg Robinson
LG: Ronald Leary
C: Ryan Groy
RG: Jamon Brown vs. Jordan Mills
RT: Rob Havenstein

LDE: Michael Brockers
NT: Vance Walker
RDE: Aaron Donald
LOLB: T.J. Watt
LILB: Mark Barron
RILB: Alec Ogletree
ROLB: Robert Quinn
LCB: Brandon Carr
RCB: Ahkello Witherspoon
SLCB: Logan Ryan
FS: LaMarcus Joyner
SS: Maurice Alexander

K: Greg Zuerlein
P: Johnny Hekker
LS: Jake McQuaide
KR: Benny Cunningham
PR: Tavon Austin

Jake Ellenbogen's 2017 L.A. Rams Mock Draft 2.0

http://www.downtownrams.com/single-post/2017/02/20/Jake-Ellenbogens-2017-LA-Rams-Mock-Draft-20

The NFL combine and NFL free agency appears to be right around the corner. Since my last mock for the Rams was at the end of January and I have since watched more tape, looked over more free agents and have beginning to start having new thoughts. . .I felt it was best to put out another Mock draft pre-combine.

2nd Round (37th overall) - Ethan Pocic, C, LSU (6-foot-7, 302 lbs)

Here is a brand new face in my mock draft circle. Ethan Pocic is going to be a dynamic player. One thing you can see on tape is that he is a little bit more lean than a typical center, but he is going to be a force in the NFL. Pocic has it all, being a good athlete, with great technique, experience, leadership and I mean the list just goes on really.

The Rams no doubt have a giant gaping hole in the middle of their offensive line and whether you want to admit it or not Barnes has been terrible on the line. Until the Rams have a center they will not notice much of a difference on the offensive line. Pocic has the ability like former Ram pick Barrett Jones to play all over the line. However, Jones wasn't built the way Pocic is. Pocic is a day one starter and the question is how much weight can he put on to take more powerful interior defensive lineman, but still remain as agile and quick enough to get to the second level? Pocic is likely to fall to the top of the second round because he is a center and the Rams will need to pull the trigger if he's there.

Other options: Juju Smith-Schuster, WR, USC, Adoree Jackson, CB, USC, Forrest Lamp, OT/G, Western Kentucky

3rd Round (69th overall) - Chidobe Awuzie, CB, Colorado (6-foot-0, 205 lbs)

I stick by the fact the Rams should be targeting this guy. Chidobe Awuzie has been my biggest draft crush at the cornerback position since November. He is an absolute torment behind the line of scrimmage. He can make multiple plays at the next level as far as in coverage is concerned. However, the big thing I see with Awuzie is his ability to tackle in space and create disruption in the backfield. He had more than 10 tackles for a loss, as a cornerback that's just insane.

The Rams obviously need a cornerback and Awuzie is another guy who could step in right away and start. This would also be considered a huge steal for me because quite honestly I think he's a first-round talent. He may not be as flashy as the rest but if you really watch and break down tape there isn't much that anyone can do that Awuzie can't. This selection is likely penciled in for me until the draft. I am sold on Awuzie and all the combine can do is make it less likely he falls into the third round.

Other options: Zay Jones, WR, East Carolina, Taylor Moton, OT, Western Michigan, Pat Elflein, C, Ohio State

4th round (101st overall) - Roderick Johnson, OT, Florida State (6-foot-7, 311 lbs)

I really am starting to like Roderick Johnson as the future left tackle of the Los Angeles Rams. Hear me out, Johnson is going to have his up's and down's but I believe with Aaron Kromer now as the OL coach he can turn into a real good left tackle. He reminds me a lot of Morgan Moses who happened to be Sean McVay's right tackle in Washington. Johnson excels in run blocking, he does struggle in pass protection but he flashes the ability to be dominant if given the help and taught the right technique. Johnson looks the part of an NFL left tackle and he could become just that with a little help.

The Rams obviously are in a bind with the future so cloudy at LT, Kromer might want his own guy to work with in that spot. I originally was going to place Julie'n Davenport here but the fact is that while they both are somewhat of a project, Johnson has more to work with right away than Davenport.

Other options: Malachi Dupre, WR, LSU, Julie'n Davenport, OT, Bucknell, Lorenzo Jerome, S, St.Francis

4th round (Compensation pick) - Fish Smithson, FS, Kansas (5-foot-11, 201 lbs)

Another player I am sticking by is Fish Smithson from Kansas. I love his game, I love that he is an excellent tackler, with high football IQ and some serious ball skills. I feel as though it is imperative for the Rams to find their free safety and move Mo Alexander over to strong safety. Smithson would allow the Rams to do just that, the level of competition wasn't a problem and Smithson should be considered a hidden gem in this draft. Drafting Smithson would be like getting back Rodney McLeod, but overall a better tackler and better cover guy than McLeod.

Other options: Glen Antoine, NT, Idaho, Trey Hendrickson, DE, FAU, Cordrea Tankersley, CB, Clemson

5th round (151st overall) - James Conner, RB, Pittsburgh (6-foot-2, 235 lbs)

I absolutely love James Conner. He's a freight train and has some seriously deceptive speed and burst that will make defenses think twice. The Rams are likely to lose Benny Cunningham in free agency, but even if they don't one of the biggest problems last year for the Rams was the inability to score in the red zone and even more eye-opening their ability to punch it in at the goal line. Todd Gurley had a rough time doing that and call me crazy all you want, but I think the Rams should look for Conner as the Rams 2017 goal line back.

Conner for many who don't know or didn't read my piece on (which you can find here) overcame the battle of cancer and a broken leg. He did all that and then some by breaking the all-time touchdown record in ACC history. Conner on top of all that was widely respected among his teammates and was even named captain. Many think the Rams should take Joe Mixon, but I will take the guy who is a much better person and who has a chance to be a hell of a player and story on top of it. Give me Gurley, Conner, Brown and Green and I like the Rams backfield a lot.

Other options: Travin Dural, WR, LSU, Jon Toth, C, Kentucky, Donnel Pumphrey, RB, San Diego State

6th round (190th overall) - Joe Mathis, EDGE, Washington (6-foot-2, 255 lbs)

Another player I have my eyes set on for the Rams, Joe Mathis. I wrote about him here, if you didn't get a chance to check him out. He's one of my top EDGE rushers in this class. Why is he falling down to the sixth-round then you might be wondering? Well, Mathis unfortunately had this past season cut short due to a leg injury. Before his injury Washington's defense was generating an ungodly amount of pressures. Once Mathis was on the shelf that all changed.

The Rams recently switched to a 3-4 base defense with Wade Phillips taking over at the helm. Mathis would fit in right away (if healthy) as an OLB with Rober Quinn. The Rams may not realize it but with the switch to the 3-4 they will need a couple new faces to establish the defensive scheme change. Mathis is one of those players you will love if he ends up on your time but hate if he doesn't. Let's just hope the Rams go with this terrorizing menace, because you could find him on a rival squad for the next 10 years.

Other options: Davis Webb, QB, California, Josh Harvey-Clemons, S, Louisville, Jamari Staples, WR, Louisville

6th round (Compensation pick) - Jalen Robinette, WR, Air Force (6-foot-4, 215 lbs)

Here is a small-school prospect that made me take one look at his tape and think that there isn't really a need for an early-round WR. The Rams are likely going to sign Pierre Garcon and maybe Robert Woods this free agency, there isn't really a need with Tavon Austin, Pharoh Cooper, Paul McRoberts, Mike Thomas, Bradley Marquez and Nelson Spruce all being young WR's that need to just be developed. That's why I think Jalen Robinette is different and worth the pick here. Sure, he isn't the greatest route runner, doesn't have the blazing speed but Robinette has traits that could make him a premier WR at the next level. I honestly see the Patriots being all over this under-the-radar type of guy.

Robinette was mostly in a run-heavy offense at Air Force, because of this he is under-the-radar. He has size that makes NFL scouts salivate and uses that size well. He has extremely long arms and gigantic hands. This guy doesn't care who hits him, he will get right back up or better yet try to bounce off of the defender and fight for every yard. Basically Robinette is extremely raw and could use a year to learn NFL route trees, but in the sixth-round this is an obvious pick to make. By prioritizing a raw WR late in the draft, the Rams could go ahead and find their best players available and fill needs in the mid-portion of the draft. Remember this name, there is a chance he blows up the combine and flies up mine and everyone else's draft board.

Other options: Sam Rogers, FB, Virginia Tech, Darreus Rogers, WR, USC, Ezra Robinson, CB, Tennessee State

7th round (226th overall) - Jeremy Clark, CB, Michigan (6-foot-4, 206 lbs)

Cornerback is a big question mark in Los Angeles, while I already have the Rams addressing that need with Chidobe Awuzie. I still think grabbing a project CB couldn't hurt. Jeremy Clark was well coached at Michigan and unfortunately it didn't end up finishing the way he wanted it to. Clark tore his ACL in his final year and the NCAA denied his application for a sixth year of eligibility. Clark is a giant at 6-foot-4 which is an intriguing size for a CB.

There are many places the Rams can go to use their seventh-round pick, but Clark could be the best option with his five years of college, his age and his size. I see Clark as a Tharold Simon or Deshawn Shead type of CB. He just needs to be coached up but the freakish size and athleticism is there.

Other options: Daquan Holmes, DB, American International College, Phazahn Odom, TE, Fordham, Javancy Jones, EDGE, Jackson State

To read about the other NFC West teams click the link below.
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http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/pag...e-moves-nfc-west-team-make-2017-nfl-offseason

Five moves each NFC West team should make this offseason
Bill Barnwell/ESPN Staff Writer

Many NFL teams script their first 15 (or more) plays before a game starts to focus on getting a few fundamental concepts right. Whether they want to attack a particular defensive player or scheme, exploit a perceived weakness or simply drill down on the offensive elements they think are most critical to winning, they pay particularly close attention to the plays they'll start with on Sunday as they wrap up the week.

Likewise, organizations need to pay attention to the first few critical things they do during the 2017 offseason, as those might end up defining the year to come. Some teams have a lot to do before the new league year begins March 9, while others won't have to make critical calls until the first day of the NFL draft on April 27.

In this two-week series for ESPN, I'll be running through the first five things that should be running through each team's mind as it prepares for the 2017 offseason.

Let's get to the NFC West, where we have a near-dynasty, a team that unexpectedly fell apart last season and two teams that overhauled their coaching staffs in a hope to return to relevance ...

Los Angeles Rams

Jae C. Hong/AP Photo

1. Pick up Aaron Donald's fifth-year option. Send the paperwork in twice, just in case.

2. Re-sign Trumaine Johnson. Los Angeles probably regrets letting go of Janoris Jenkins, who had an excellent season with the Giants. The Rams can't afford to lose both Jenkins and Johnson, their other starting cornerback -- but keeping him won't be cheap.

The Rams already franchised Johnson a year ago, so a second consecutive franchise tag would take Johnson to $16.5 million, which would make him the second-most expensive cornerback in the league behind Josh Norman.

The Rams won't want to do that, and Johnson's representation will know as much. Jenkins received $39.7 million over the first three seasons of his new deal from the Giants, and Johnson's going to top that mark. New defensive coordinator Wade Phillips made his hay in Denver with a trio of great cornerbacks -- Aqib Talib, Chris Harris Jr. and Bradley Roby.

And while the Rams will try to develop Lamarcus Joyner and E.J. Gaines, neither has looked to be on Johnson's level. Even if it means letting free-agent safety T.J. McDonald leave town, the Rams probably need to commit to Johnson.

3. Try to gather compensatory picks. Rams general manager Les Snead doesn't have a lot of flexibility, given that his first- and third-round picks are on their way to Tennessee as part of the Jared Goff trade. The Rams weren't contenders last year, but they need to resist the urge to go after veteran free agents in the hope of a quick fix. They're going to need to rebuild around Goff with young talent.

To that end, the Rams probably need to avoid signing players who will infringe upon the formula for compensatory selections. They'll also want to let a few of their veterans leave, which means McDonald and Kenny Britt could hit the market.

Johnson would recoup the highest pick, likely a third-rounder, but McDonald and Britt should get the Rams started with extra selections in 2018.

4. Build an offensive line around Goff. Snead and his predecessors have spent more than a decade trying to construct some sort of protective bubble for their quarterbacks, but it hasn't worked. Some of the problems were Goff's fault, given how the first overall pick looked lost for most of his abbreviated rookie campaign.

The Cal product poasted a staggering 11.3 percent sack rate in 2016; that's the seventh-worst era-adjusted sack rate since 2000 for guys with 200 attempts or more. Case Keenum posted a far more plausible 6.3 percent sack rate.

The most notable failure on the line is 2014 second overall pick Greg Robinson, who has committed a league-high 35 penalties over the past three seasons and became a healthy scratch at points in 2016.

New coach Sean McVay might move Robinson off Goff's blindside, but that just leaves a crater at the line's most important position with no obvious replacement or path to one.

Realistically, the Rams are going to have to use their second-round pick on a lineman or shop in the bargain bin for offensive linemen who were cut by other teams. They should seriously consider Branden Albert if the Dolphins part ways with their starting left tackle.

Signing Albert, 32, doesn't exactly fit with Los Angeles' long-term timeline, but the Rams desperately need to create an infrastructure within which Goff can develop. They otherwise run the risk of turning Goff into the next Tim Couch or David Carr, quarterbacks who developed bad habits and lengthy injury histories while under fire at the beginning of their careers.

5. Be patient. Los Angeles is in a tough spot. It surely wants to develop a competitive team to attract fans in its new home, but the moves it has made haven't panned out. Goff was a mess as a rookie. Todd Gurley was wildly disappointing during his second season.

Tavon Austin's contract is horrific, one of the worst in football given his production. The Rams are stuck in a division with a dominant Seahawks team and a Cardinals squad which should be better in 2017. They feel years away from the playoffs.

Whatever the Rams do this offseason probably isn't going to make a huge difference, and that should be OK. Goff will be better as a sophomore. Gurley will break off more big runs in 2017. Austin might thrive in the Jamison Crowder role under McVay.

They still have a great defensive line, and in Phillips, they have arguably the best defensive coordinator in the league. Los Angeles will probably be better in 2017. That should be enough for now.

Why Rams' Scheme Change Won't Affect Aaron Donald/PFF

With Wade Phillips in as the Rams' new defensive coordinator, Sam Monson explores the impact of a defensive scheme change.

By SAM MONSON

Nothing causes hysteria and concern among a fanbase like a new coaching hire that brings with it the prospect of a change in defensive scheme up front.

This offseason, Wade Phillips was let go as defensive coordinator in Denver following the head-coaching change there, and was quickly snatched up by the Los Angeles Rams, replacing the departing Greg Williams in the same role. That means a switch in scheme for Los Angeles between 4-3 and 3-4 defensive fronts, which immediately raises questions about whether the Rams have the personnel for that change, and what it means for star defensive tackle, Aaron Donald, a player that has ranked first and second in PFF’s Top 101 player list over the past two years, respectively.

The answer to that last question: almost nothing.

In reality, there isn’t much distinction between 3-4 and 4-3 schemes today the way there once was.

When the 3-4 was first in vogue back in the 1990s, it was a two-gap system, where giant behemoths on the D-line played head-up over their blockers, defending the gap to either side of them and occupying space for the linebackers behind them to make plays uncontested. 4-3 defenses were typically one-gap schemes with smaller bodies up front that attacked gaps and won with penetration, while the 3-4 was a system where the linebackers, not the defensive linemen, were the stars, and the big bodies up front controlled multiple gaps without overcommitting to either one.

3-4 2-gap

Today’s 3-4 defenses are very different animals, and predominantly one-gap systems, just like the 4-3. The NFL is generally a one-gap league these days, and there is very little two-gapping deployed as the league has trended towards smaller, quicker players across the board. Gargantuan nose tackles of the past like Ted Washington, Gilbert Brown and Grady Jackson have been eased out in favor of more athletic players that can move down the line, rush the passer, and not just occupy space. Sub 300-pound defensive tackles are not uncommon, and you will even find 3-4 nose tackles that barely tip the scales at over 300 pounds.



The real driving force behind the adjustments in scheme is the passing game. The NFL is a passing league and now lives in nickel defense, not base. Most teams run with three wide receivers on offense instead of a fullback or second tight end, so defenses have countered with an extra defensive back. Last season, base 4-3 and 3-4 defenses combined (with just four defensive backs on the field) accounted for only 27 percent of defensive snaps, while nickel defense (five defensive backs) was at 55 percent, and dime (six defensive backs) another 10.

What used to be your every-down defense is now being used on average only a quarter of the time. Even if two teams have dramatically different base defensive alignments, they are in sub packages far more often, and those sub packages are much more uniform in structure. Base defenses can see significant differences in alignment, but while the 55 percent of snaps the league spends in nickel defense breaks down into a few different personnel groupings, most of them are essentially different ways of achieving the same alignment.



Whether you are a 3-4 or 4-3 base defense, moving to a nickel personnel grouping takes somebody out of the front-seven and adds a player to the secondary. When that happens, most teams deploy the remaining six players up front in more or less the same way because it is the most efficient way of accounting for every gap along the line.

The first guy to get sacrificed is the big nose tackle for 3-4 teams. Linemen that weigh 320-plus pounds may still be great run defenders, but they tend to offer little as pass-rushing threats. 4-3 teams typically lose one of their three linebackers, leaving both schemes with two edge defenders, two interior defenders and two off-the-ball linebackers to go along with their five defensive backs. The only difference is exactly how those edge defenders stand when they line up. Whether you’re a 3-4 or 4-3 base team, the alignment of the front four in nickel and dime defense tends to wind up the same, but is still differentiated by anachronistic position designations that no longer make sense as descriptive tools.

This image shows Denver’s defense under Wade Phillips and the Rams’ defense under Greg Williams from last year, superimposed into one image.



The teams were both facing near enough the same offensive formation, and they deployed their front four in identical gap alignments. The only difference between the two was that the player furthest to the right side playing on the edge was an outside linebacker for the Broncos (DeMarcus Ware) who rushed from a two-point stance, but for the Rams, that player was a defensive end that had his hand in the dirt (Eugene Sims).

Those players are listed at different positions on the roster, but have identical roles from the exact same alignment on the play in this situation. The distinction between linebacker and defensive end is far less meaningful in the world of nickel defense than that between edge defender, interior defender and off-the-ball linebacker, which is why the Pro-Bowl ballot will remain broken until it adopts that shift in player designation.

The difference in the stance of the edge defender between two-point and hand in the dirt may not even be a team-prescribed technique. There are teams in the league (the Patriots, being one) that allow their edge defenders to choose which they feel more comfortable with on any given play, effectively leaving the designation of that defensive front to one player’s whim each snap (if all you care about is how many players have their hand in the ground). As long as he is lined up in the right spot, those teams don’t care if he is in a two- or three-point stance, so the label of linebacker or defensive end is entirely meaningless and arbitrary for that player on that play.



The same thing is true for interior defenders, too. Aaron Donald is known as a 3-technique defensive tackle, or “under-tackle” in a 4-man defensive-line scheme. 3-technique is simply the name of the defensive-line technique that sees a player lined up over the outside shoulder of the guard, ready to attack the gap to his outside. Most pass-rushing defensive tackles primarily play in that specific technique, but so do most pass-rushing 3-4 defensive ends. Calais Campbell, in Arizona’s 3-4 scheme, plays more 3-technique than any other technique—and more than many defensive tackles—but is listed as a defensive end on the roster. Donald’s alignment distribution in 2016 almost exactly matches that of Denver’s defensive ends, Derek Wolfe and Jared Crick.

The defense that Wade Phillips runs does have some eccentricities compared to other systems in the league—they tend to stay in base defense longer than most teams and then leap straight to six defensive backs, bypassing the nickel packages of five DBs altogether. Even in base defense, though, it is very much like a 4-3 scheme from an alignment standpoint.

When looking at the alignment distribution of Wolfe against Donald last year, the only difference between the two is a small spike for Wolfe in the 4-technique spot, the technique that plays head up over the tackle (the original 3-4 two-gap style alignment we mentioned earlier). There will be plays where we see Donald lined up in this spot, but Wolfe played there less than half as often as he played in the 3-technique spot that Donald usually occupied, and even in that alignment, he is going to be tasked with shooting a gap and defeating that tackle with quickness and hand speed rather than trying to eat up space and two-gap either side of him. In Phillips’ scheme, it is more of a disguise measure than it is a statement of two-gapping intent.

We are going to see Aaron Donald and the rest of the Rams’ defense lining up in a new defensive front under Wade Phillips in 2017, but if you can look beyond how many players have their hand in the ground, operating from a three-point stance, you’ll see that the alignment of those players has changed little despite the shift from 4-3 to 3-4. That once was a seismic shift that required a complete retooling of your defensive personnel to make it work, but in today’s NFL, it’s just a different way to shuffle the same cards. Aaron Donald may now be labelled as a 3-4 defensive end, but he will be the same destructive force as an interior defender as he has been over the past couple of seasons.

[www.profootballfocus.com]