Rams are loaded with excellent players at many positions, no doubt...

[Rams43]

However...

There are still upgrades at a number of positions needed to ensure a SB return, don’t you think?

I’m just talking starters here, mind you. And if a player isn’t under contract for ‘19 then I’m counting that as a hole.

In no particular order here are my Snead offseason requests:

C. Sully has been great but an upgrade is now needed.
LG. Extending Saffold is highly desirable if not an outright “must have”. Only question is his salary demands.
DL. Suh is a goner and won’t be extended, so this is a huge hole.
Edge rusher. TWO needed. Ebu is NOT the answer on one side. These two positions are critical to ‘19 success. Can’t be overstated, IMO.
MLB. Barron can’t be counted on for 16 games, anymore. Overpriced and only moderately effective when he does play. Big need here.
FS. Joyner is an obvious goner.

That’s it among starters, I think. I thought it would be a longer list when I started, tbh.

Now for the rest of the holes that are critical, although among non-starters.

Backup QB. I’m open to all suggestions here. FA, draft, or trade? Gotta do SOMETHING.
Backup RB. A genuine need since Kelly doesn’t seem to have McVay’s confidence. But either MB or JC should be just fine. Still, it’s a current “need”.
OL depth. Pending OL changes could really move this one up the priority ladder.

Somehow, some way the Ram brain trust must fill and hopefully upgrade those top 7 positions that I listed. Demoff must find the money, Snead must acquire the players, and McVay must coach ‘em up.

Last offseason was a good start. Can they finish the job thus offseason? If they do, then I see a return to the SB in our future. Both our O and our D would be virtually unstoppable.

One last thing, fwiw. If Snead can come up with two “very good” edge rushers then we are halfway home. They needn’t be elite, but they do need to be very good. That’s my single biggest item on my offseason wish list. Sigh...

 

[Merlin]

Edge rusher. TWO needed. Ebu is NOT the answer on one side. These two positions are critical to ‘19 success. Can’t be overstated, IMO.

I think your expectations for LOLB are a bit out of whack 43. Those types are often non-elite edge rushers, very few teams have the roster to stack both sides with a plus option. Ebu was extremely raw when he came in, but I think it can be argued that he warrants further look on the left side.

And when you look at depth we have Obo there as well who probably settles in moreso as a left side type than a blindside rusher. Or they can try him off ball at ILB, which is what I think they'll do if they don't go get a guy to pair with Littleton.

IMO if they can get a blindside edge rusher in this draft this defense will be transformed. So from my perspective the actual need is ONE edge rusher.

 

[Jacobarch]

I think your expectations for LOLB are a bit out of whack 43. Those types are often non-elite edge rushers, very few teams have the roster to stack both sides with a plus option. Ebu was extremely raw when he came in, but I think it can be argued that he warrants further look on the left side.

And when you look at depth we have Obo there as well who probably settles in moreso as a left side type than a blindside rusher. Or they can try him off ball at ILB, which is what I think they'll do if they don't go get a guy to pair with Littleton.

IMO if they can get a blindside edge rusher in this draft this defense will be transformed. So from my perspective the actual need is ONE edge rusher.

Didn't Ebu mostly Play on the Right side? Not the left? I know him and Fowler would sometimes swap spots but I seem to remember him playing mostly on the QB's blind side. And I disagree, when your only real pass rusher is a DT you'd need edge pressure no matter where it comes from. Teams kind of figured out how to stop donald later on in the season and we're gonna see more of that if our OLB's can't beat their 1v1's. Robert Quinn was sorely missed this season because of his pure passrush abilities. Yeah, he wasn't getting 19 sacks a season anymore but his 10+ sacks would have been very welcome this season vs. Ebu's 3 sacks lol.

 

[Rams43]

I think your expectations for LOLB are a bit out of whack 43. Those types are often non-elite edge rushers, very few teams have the roster to stack both sides with a plus option. Ebu was extremely raw when he came in, but I think it can be argued that he warrants further look on the left side.

And when you look at depth we have Obo there as well who probably settles in moreso as a left side type than a blindside rusher. Or they can try him off ball at ILB, which is what I think they'll do if they don't go get a guy to pair with Littleton.

IMO if they can get a blindside edge rusher in this draft this defense will be transformed. So from my perspective the actual need is ONE edge rusher.

Then we’ve got a rare disagreement here, Merlin.

You’re being far too kind to Ebu, IMO. Look at the tape. Then look at the stats. Other than that fabulous one-time career game against the Chiefs, Ebu has been very mediocre. Too easy for opposing teams to erase.

I was excited by the Obo pick, myself. But Wade never even let him sniff the field after returning from IR. Speaks volumes to me in terms of perceived future starting potential. Sorry, can’t hang my hopes there just yet.

Fowler at $8-9 million plus incentives sounds pretty fair to me. I would be okay with that.

But the bottom line is whether Snead can come up with 2 “very good” edge players as starters. Right now, technically, we don’t have any. Not proven ones, anyway. I don’t really give a damn what their names are. If Snead can do it, we are gonna be a defensive force and a nightmare for any O. If Snead can’t, then we will be forced to “settle” once again. And some of AD’s talent will be wasted in the process. Would be a damned shame.

 

[Merlin]

Didn't Ebu mostly Play on the Right side? Not the left?

He played both sides. But he shouldn't be on the right (blind) side facing the best pass blockers as his skills aren't suited for that. Which goes back to my point in that I have no problem with them penciling him vs Obo in on the left side provided they can go get a good ROLB. Fill that blindside rush in this defense and everything will change. Dramatically.

 

[Merlin]

But the bottom line is whether Snead can come up with 2 “very good” edge players as starters.

I could see Les making a move for a guy on the market. Hope not, but it's hard to blame him if he does that. Or maybe getting Fowler to sign for a shorter term deal, it's possible albeit unlikely.

But if that happens it isn't because the Rams think they need 2 edge starters. It will be because GMs try to avoid going into the draft with glaring holes, which is what we'll have at ROLB if they don't do anything pre-draft.

 

[Jacobarch]

He played both sides. But he shouldn't be on the right (blind) side facing the best pass blockers as his skills aren't suited for that. Which goes back to my point in that I have no problem with them penciling him vs Obo in on the left side provided they can go get a good ROLB. Fill that blindside rush in this defense and everything will change. Dramatically.

I'd be interested to see which side he played on more. From what I saw he played mostly on the Right side. I could be wrong but I don't think I am.
I'm all in on Fowler. The guy can play, he might not be the flashiest player in the league but he is good against the pass and run and showed up big in the playoffs. Either way we slice it up we're going to have some holes in our Dline and LB crew next year. I hope the Rams have a solid plan and throw a little bit of money at it in FA to players that FIT our scheme. I don't think Suh was a great fit TBH. He played well in the playoffs but you could see his age catching up with him during games. We need young talented blood in there.

 

[jrry32]

Ebukam isn't going anywhere. His job isn't to be a sackmaster. It's to be a versatile LB.

 

[Merlin]

I'd be interested to see which side he played on more. From what I saw he played mostly on the Right side. I could be wrong but I don't think I am.

Whether he played most on the right I don't know. But it doesn't really matter tbh as he's not a blindside rush type in terms of his skills. So if he did play mostly on the right side it would hurt his stats with him going up against the better pass pro at LT.

Either way for this discussion my point here is that if you fix ROLB then Ebu goes to the left side where his skills translate much better. Same would go for Obo who is similar in projecting to the left side, and we would look really, really good IMO and we'd have some competition on that side.

 

[FrantikRam]

Marqui Christian played a ton of snaps last year for Barron (mostly on 3rd downs). JFM played quite a bit. Hill and Shields played a lot, and it looks like Shields will be back most likely. The Rams also drafted Obo, Sebastian Joseph-Day - and kept all of those guys on the roster. Blake Countess is also a guy the coaching staff seems to like.

Need is a subjective term - Suh for example - was pretty underwhelming up until the playoffs. It's easy to imagine our defense being better with a young player stepping into his role (i.e. Joseph-Day).

OLB is a bigger concern - but Ebukam and Obo as our starters wouldn't shock me next year. I'd prefer to re-sign Fowler and if we do, we're set at OLB.

The biggest concern is ILB - and I hope we cut Barron and address this in the draft.

OL - Sullivan/Blythe/Havenstein have looked MUCH better under McVay - were these guys all diamonds waiting to be polished and just happened to break out under McVay? Not likely. Sullivan was "done", Blythe was cut by a Colts team with a terrible OL, and Hav was average - I do think we'll address the OL, but I have complete faith in McVay to roll out a good OL.

I guess what I'm saying is - I don't think we need to upgrade many positions at all to return to the Super Bowl - we need Goff to get better, for sure - but beyond that, I don't think we need a ton of upgrades. We were by far the most talented team last year if you remove the QB position and I think we will be again next year. I can see the argument for bringing back everyone on D, with how amazing they were in the playoffs - but that is unrealistic with the cap anyways.

 

[Ram65]

Then we’ve got a rare disagreement here, Merlin.

You’re being far too kind to Ebu, IMO. Look at the tape. Then look at the stats. Other than that fabulous one-time career game against the Chiefs, Ebu has been very mediocre. Too easy for opposing teams to erase.

I was excited by the Obo pick, myself. But Wade never even let him sniff the field after returning from IR. Speaks volumes to me in terms of perceived future starting potential. Sorry, can’t hang my hopes there just yet.

Fowler at $8-9 million plus incentives sounds pretty fair to me. I would be okay with that.

But the bottom line is whether Snead can come up with 2 “very good” edge players as starters. Right now, technically, we don’t have any. Not proven ones, anyway. I don’t really give a damn what their names are. If Snead can do it, we are gonna be a defensive force and a nightmare for any O. If Snead can’t, then we will be forced to “settle” once again. And some of AD’s talent will be wasted in the process. Would be a damned shame.

Seems high $$$$ for Fowler. He is average but, with upside. I want to keep him and hope Ebu and Obo can rotate and get some pressure at times.

 

[Rams43]

Marqui Christian played a ton of snaps last year for Barron (mostly on 3rd downs). JFM played quite a bit. Hill and Shields played a lot, and it looks like Shields will be back most likely. The Rams also drafted Obo, Sebastian Joseph-Day - and kept all of those guys on the roster. Blake Countess is also a guy the coaching staff seems to like.

Need is a subjective term - Suh for example - was pretty underwhelming up until the playoffs. It's easy to imagine our defense being better with a young player stepping into his role (i.e. Joseph-Day).

OLB is a bigger concern - but Ebukam and Obo as our starters wouldn't shock me next year. I'd prefer to re-sign Fowler and if we do, we're set at OLB.

The biggest concern is ILB - and I hope we cut Barron and address this in the draft.

OL - Sullivan/Blythe/Havenstein have looked MUCH better under McVay - were these guys all diamonds waiting to be polished and just happened to break out under McVay? Not likely. Sullivan was "done", Blythe was cut by a Colts team with a terrible OL, and Hav was average - I do think we'll address the OL, but I have complete faith in McVay to roll out a good OL.

I guess what I'm saying is - I don't think we need to upgrade many positions at all to return to the Super Bowl - we need Goff to get better, for sure - but beyond that, I don't think we need a ton of upgrades. We were by far the most talented team last year if you remove the QB position and I think we will be again next year. I can see the argument for bringing back everyone on D, with how amazing they were in the playoffs - but that is unrealistic with the cap anyways.

We see this differently, Frantik.

Ebu is just not good enough. Left side, right side, it doesn’t matter. He's largely ineffectual as a pass rusher and is constantly being washed out on running plays. The tape doesn’t lie.

Now, if Fowler is reasonably extended then that’s one side. But an Ebu upgrade would still be essential. Obo is an enigma at this point. Hasn’t had one NFL snap, which maybe speaks volumes, so he has to prove himself on the field. Problem is that we can’t gamble that he’s a capable starter at this point. In fact, we must assume the opposite. So, another quality starting edge will still be necessary. Trade, FA, or draft, I don’t care. But Snead’s gotta get it done.

I agree that an ILB is also a high priority. It just is. One must come from the outside, one way or another.

Add in a DLreplacement for Suh and a S replacement for Joyner and we’re pretty much set for our starting D. For ‘19, anyway. As in Top 5, I think.

 

[LARAMSinFeb.]

I would prioritize makeing sure our OL is solidified + some solid depth. After that I'd focus on acquiring a S, then a run-stopping MLB to play along side Cory, then an OLB, then a DL, all in that order. (Priority-wise.)

 

[Adi]

Joyners production can be duplicated by a player making alot less money.

I think they use that money and go after linebackers in free agency .

I was surprised when the rams tagged joyner because Wade's defenses seem to run just fine with mediocre safeties.

 

[dang]

I would prioritize makeing sure our OL is solidified + some solid depth. After that I'd focus on acquiring a S, then a run-stopping MLB to play along side Cory, then an OLB, then a DL, all in that order. (Priority-wise.)

100% agree on the OL. Keeping the OL as the best in the NFL is priority 1. In building the perfect beast - we need to improve at OC, keep Whit/Saffold at LG/LT for at least one more year and make sure we have an LT that can take the reins when Whit decides to retire.

Priority 2 in building the perfect beast is to make sure we improve at OLB/EDGE. I like Fowler but there are other options. Also add through the draft.

Priority 3 is getting an absolute stud at ILB - both run-stopping and middle pass coverage. This through FA.

 

[RamsOfCastamere]

Les has this. Remember, entering McVays first year when we had NO o line or WRs leading up to the draft and pretty training camp, and the next thing you know, we have Whitworth, Sullivan, Woods, Watkins and end up winning the division? And then the following season, I don't have time to list all of the Voodoo magic he did with the trades, salary cap shuffles and extensions. I am sleeping good this offseason with full confidence in Les.

 

[LesBaker]

Les has this. Remember, entering McVays first year when we had NO o line or WRs leading up to the draft and pretty training camp, and the next thing you know, we have Whitworth, Sullivan, Woods, Watkins and end up winning the division? And then the following season, I don't have time to list all of the Voodoo magic he did with the trades, salary cap shuffles and extensions. I am sleeping good this offseason with full confidence in Les.

I'm confident as well. And I think we will see things handled well between free agents and the draft.

And lets not forget Snead manages to pull talent out of street free agents every year too.

 

[fearsomefour]

Ebukam isn't going anywhere. His job isn't to be a sackmaster. It's to be a versatile LB.

I want more guys brought in but don't want to give up on Samson at this point. He has flashed some ability. I would like him to contain better for starters.

 

[CanadaRam]

Unless Whit retires, then there is a bigger hole.
I don't see Noteboom on the bench all of 2019. If Whit stays, I see him in one of the G roles.
On D, the big question is Will the Rams get anything in year 2 out of the 2018 draft class, I expect they will.

 

[…..]

Ebukam isn't going anywhere. His job isn't to be a sackmaster. It's to be a versatile LB.

Based on play, I actually feel better about our LB corps than I have in a long time. This doesn’t include edge rushing but that’s almost another type player.

Ebukam is only going to improve in this scheme and may be able to fill in at Barrons role.

Either way, I like the young pieces we have. We just need to augment them with the right fits.