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It's a 2-for-3 Thursday at Rams Park
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_4abaf786-233d-5fa6-9e78-0a95d25db296.html
On a busy day at Rams Park, the Rams won two and lost one.
Offensive guard Rodger Saffold finally signed a contract — and yes, he signed it with the Rams. So did linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar.
But say good-bye to quarterback Kellen Clemens, who agreed to terms on a two-year deal with the San Diego Chargers.
Meanwhile, guards Davin Joseph (Tampa Bay) and Daryn Colledge (Arizona) completed free-agent visits Thursday but left without contracts. Both remain under consideration by the Rams, according to team officials.
Saffold’s Oakland ordeal resulted in a happy ending in St. Louis when he signed a five-year, $31.7 million deal late Thursday afternoon. There have been reports that $19.5 million of the contract is guaranteed; that’s not exactly right. It assumes a couple of roster bonuses are paid along the way. In any event, all guaranteed money comes in the first three years of the contract.
There is also $4 million of additional money that can be earned through incentives, so the contract can max out at nearly $36 million. In addition, Saffold can void the contract after the third and fourth years of the deal. It’s his option, but he must meet certain incentives to trigger the option clause.
The contract signed Thursday by Saffold was very similar to the last deal offered by the Rams on Saturday, with a few tweaks. That’s why the Rams and Saffold’s agents were able to move so quickly on a deal Wednesday night after the Oakland Raiders nullified their agreement by saying Saffold failed his physical.
A report on the San Francisco Chronicle website (SFGate.com) said the Raiders failed Saffold because of a torn labrum in his shoulder and that he needed immediate surgery. But Alan Herman, one of Saffold’s agents, told the Post-Dispatch on Wednesday night that Saffold was informed by a Raiders doctor that he had passed his physical.
Rams executive vice president Kevin Demoff reiterated to the Post-Dispatch on Thursday evening that the Rams saw nothing in Saffold’s medical records or physical examinations to make them think there was a problem with the shoulder.
As for the highly unlikely scenario of landing Saffold on the rebound — after he had agreed to a $42.5 million deal with Oakland, Demoff said, “The credit goes to Jeff (Fisher), Les (Snead), and the coaching staff for how they approached this when Rodger left (for Oakland). They all wished him well.”
In other words, they burned no bridges. So when the deal collapsed in Oakland, Saffold had no hard feelings for the Rams, and vice versa. As a result, the Rams were able to retain the services of Saffold, their oft-stated No. 1 free agent priority.
“Sometimes you catch a break,” Demoff said.
So Saffold is back as the team’s starting right guard, the position he played so well over the second half of 2013. The team has called an 11 a.m. press conference today to officially announce Saffold’s return.
Not long after leaving Rams Park on Thursday, Saffold sent out several messages of gratitude on his Twitter account. Among them:
_ “To #RamsNation fans I have always appreciated you all and the feedback has been tremendous! I must say I’m excited to be home and fight 4 u!”
_ ”Let it be known that I am all in for the Rams! I am excited to play ball here and I’m happy to be home! Let’s get a championship.”
Later Thursday evening, a couple of hours after the Saffold signing, Dunbar got into the act by signing a two-year deal worth up to $3.5 million. It was a tough 2013 season for Dunbar, who was suspended the first four games of the season for violating NFL policy on performance-enhancing drugs.
Once he returned to action, he had a reduced role compared to his 2012 season. In switching from weakside to strongside linebacker, he came off the field in the Rams’ nickel and dime packages which meant he was on the field only 35-40 percent of the time.
The fact that Gregg Williams is now the Rams’ defensive coordinator didn’t hurt Dunbar’s chances of staying, because during three of Dunbar’s four seasons in New Orleans Williams was his defensive coordinator.Dunbar is a feisty, aggressive, collision player. He adds an emotional spark to the defense, and to say he is well-liked by his teammates would be understatement. He’s the kind of player that helps breed team chemistry.With Dunbar now under contract, every member of the Rams’ starting front seven returns in 2014.
As for Clemens, his departure to San Diego seemed like it came out of the blue, but he had several teams interested, to the point where he was off the free-agent market in just three days. Not bad for a career backup. Obviously people around the league took notice of his work replacing the injured Sam Bradford over the final nine games.
The Rams were interested in re-signing him, but it would’ve been for only one year according to Clemens. With the extra year and extra money ($3 million total) from San Diego, Clemens gets at least the potential of a more security.
Clemens made $870,000 last season on a one-year deal.
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_4abaf786-233d-5fa6-9e78-0a95d25db296.html
On a busy day at Rams Park, the Rams won two and lost one.
Offensive guard Rodger Saffold finally signed a contract — and yes, he signed it with the Rams. So did linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar.
But say good-bye to quarterback Kellen Clemens, who agreed to terms on a two-year deal with the San Diego Chargers.
Meanwhile, guards Davin Joseph (Tampa Bay) and Daryn Colledge (Arizona) completed free-agent visits Thursday but left without contracts. Both remain under consideration by the Rams, according to team officials.
Saffold’s Oakland ordeal resulted in a happy ending in St. Louis when he signed a five-year, $31.7 million deal late Thursday afternoon. There have been reports that $19.5 million of the contract is guaranteed; that’s not exactly right. It assumes a couple of roster bonuses are paid along the way. In any event, all guaranteed money comes in the first three years of the contract.
There is also $4 million of additional money that can be earned through incentives, so the contract can max out at nearly $36 million. In addition, Saffold can void the contract after the third and fourth years of the deal. It’s his option, but he must meet certain incentives to trigger the option clause.
The contract signed Thursday by Saffold was very similar to the last deal offered by the Rams on Saturday, with a few tweaks. That’s why the Rams and Saffold’s agents were able to move so quickly on a deal Wednesday night after the Oakland Raiders nullified their agreement by saying Saffold failed his physical.
A report on the San Francisco Chronicle website (SFGate.com) said the Raiders failed Saffold because of a torn labrum in his shoulder and that he needed immediate surgery. But Alan Herman, one of Saffold’s agents, told the Post-Dispatch on Wednesday night that Saffold was informed by a Raiders doctor that he had passed his physical.
Rams executive vice president Kevin Demoff reiterated to the Post-Dispatch on Thursday evening that the Rams saw nothing in Saffold’s medical records or physical examinations to make them think there was a problem with the shoulder.
As for the highly unlikely scenario of landing Saffold on the rebound — after he had agreed to a $42.5 million deal with Oakland, Demoff said, “The credit goes to Jeff (Fisher), Les (Snead), and the coaching staff for how they approached this when Rodger left (for Oakland). They all wished him well.”
In other words, they burned no bridges. So when the deal collapsed in Oakland, Saffold had no hard feelings for the Rams, and vice versa. As a result, the Rams were able to retain the services of Saffold, their oft-stated No. 1 free agent priority.
“Sometimes you catch a break,” Demoff said.
So Saffold is back as the team’s starting right guard, the position he played so well over the second half of 2013. The team has called an 11 a.m. press conference today to officially announce Saffold’s return.
Not long after leaving Rams Park on Thursday, Saffold sent out several messages of gratitude on his Twitter account. Among them:
_ “To #RamsNation fans I have always appreciated you all and the feedback has been tremendous! I must say I’m excited to be home and fight 4 u!”
_ ”Let it be known that I am all in for the Rams! I am excited to play ball here and I’m happy to be home! Let’s get a championship.”
Later Thursday evening, a couple of hours after the Saffold signing, Dunbar got into the act by signing a two-year deal worth up to $3.5 million. It was a tough 2013 season for Dunbar, who was suspended the first four games of the season for violating NFL policy on performance-enhancing drugs.
Once he returned to action, he had a reduced role compared to his 2012 season. In switching from weakside to strongside linebacker, he came off the field in the Rams’ nickel and dime packages which meant he was on the field only 35-40 percent of the time.
The fact that Gregg Williams is now the Rams’ defensive coordinator didn’t hurt Dunbar’s chances of staying, because during three of Dunbar’s four seasons in New Orleans Williams was his defensive coordinator.Dunbar is a feisty, aggressive, collision player. He adds an emotional spark to the defense, and to say he is well-liked by his teammates would be understatement. He’s the kind of player that helps breed team chemistry.With Dunbar now under contract, every member of the Rams’ starting front seven returns in 2014.
As for Clemens, his departure to San Diego seemed like it came out of the blue, but he had several teams interested, to the point where he was off the free-agent market in just three days. Not bad for a career backup. Obviously people around the league took notice of his work replacing the injured Sam Bradford over the final nine games.
The Rams were interested in re-signing him, but it would’ve been for only one year according to Clemens. With the extra year and extra money ($3 million total) from San Diego, Clemens gets at least the potential of a more security.
Clemens made $870,000 last season on a one-year deal.
