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Rams focused on quality, not quantity
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_30635fec-71f4-5cb2-aae1-a3184ea708ec.html
The Rams head to their fourth NFL Scouting Combine under coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead with just a handful of draft picks and the realization that quality is more important than quantity this time around.
The bounty of picks that materialized from the “RGIII Trade” in 2012 all have been used. After trading fourth- and sixth-round selections to Tampa Bay for safety Mark Barron last October, the Rams have only five draft picks in 2015.
They are expected to receive another compensatory pick or two when those get awarded at the NFL owners’ meetings next month. Even so, the Rams have to make each pick count in 2015.
“Sometimes I think, especially with a young team, the first couple years you’re feeling it out,” Snead said.
That no longer is the case as Snead and Fisher prepare for their fourth season with the club.
“You’ve got a good feel now for who they are,” Snead said. “What our strengths are. What our weaknesses are. What players’ roles are. So it gets a little, probably, clearer to go, ‘Hey, we’ve got specific needs, let’s go address that.’”
Along those lines, the Rams will pay particular attention to the 15 quarterbacks and 52 offensive linemen scheduled to attend the Combine, which begins Tuesday and concludes Monday in Indianapolis.
Whether you view another quarterback as “competition” or having “options” — as Fisher framed it at different times over the past month-and-a-half — the Rams need some kind of counterpart to Sam Bradford.
On the offensive line, the Rams at a minimum need a guard. But depending on what the Rams decide to do with Scott Wells, and what happens with pending free agent Joe Barksdale, a center and an offensive tackle could be part of the wish list.
On his annual pre-Combine conference call, NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock offered some thoughts on both positions.
Mayock, as do many others, feel that Iowa’s Brandon Scherff is the best offensive lineman in the draft. Although Scherff played tackle in college, Mayock thinks his best position in the pros will be guard, likening him to this year’s version of Zack Martin.
Martin went from left tackle at Notre Dame to an All-Pro at right guard as a rookie for Dallas.
“When I look at Brandon Scherff, I see a similar example,” Mayock said. “Now, I see a bigger kid with longer arms, so that lends you to believe he could play outside more easily.
“And I believe he can play outside. However, I think his best position because of his power, his toughness, and his football sense is inside. I think he’s an All-Pro guard.”
That would be ideal for the Rams, who need an upgrade at right guard — at which Davin Joseph started most of last season. Scherff, 6 feet 5, 320 pounds, generally is considered a top 10 prospect, so it’s already debatable if he will be available when the Rams pick at No. 10.
In his first 18 full seasons as a head coach, Fisher didn’t take a single offensive lineman in the first round. It would be two in a row if they took one there this year after picking Auburn’s Greg Robinson No. 2 overall in 2014.
At quarterback, Mayock advises against trading up for the top two quarterbacks — Oregon’s Marcus Mariota and Florida State’s Jameis Winston.
“My gut tells me that trying to move up and take one of those quarterbacks is very risky,” Mayock said.
That’s because of questions about Mariota’s ability to adjust to a pro-style offense and Winston’s off-field issues.
That leaves about four other QBs worth considering in what by all accounts is a very thin quarterback class.
“You get to Bryce Petty (Baylor) and Brett Hundley (UCLA), both of whom probably have second-round talent,” Mayock said. “They both have good size, good arm strength.
“Hundley’s a good athlete; Petty’s a pretty good athlete. So there’s a lot to like about both of those kids.”
But by playing in spread offenses in college, they haven’t had to show the qualities needed to thrive as a pocket passer in the NFL.
“They don’t throw with anticipation,” Mayock said. “If the first look isn’t there, both of them are hesitant and indecisive, which leads to sacks and other problems. So you want to say they’re gonna need at least a redshirt year. ... But what they really need are live snaps. Not seven-on-seven snaps in practice.”
After those two, there’s Garrett Grayson of Colorado State, Sean Mannion of Oregon State, and really not much else.
At wide receiver, it shapes up as a pretty good class, but not as spectacular as the stellar Class of 2014, of which even Snead said, “I think there’ll be a “30 for 30” (ESPN program) on last year’s class of wide receivers.”
If Kenny Britt goes elsewhere in free agency, the Rams could be in the hunt at wide receiver. Similarly, if Lance Kendricks departs via free agency, the welcome mat could be out at tight end.
It’s considered a very good draft class at running back, and Fisher has drafted one in each of his three previous drafts. Does Fisher go there again, and perhaps cut ties with Isaiah Pead or even Zac Stacy?
So there will be a lot to look at for the Rams in Indianapolis, even with the relatively limited number of picks.
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_30635fec-71f4-5cb2-aae1-a3184ea708ec.html
The Rams head to their fourth NFL Scouting Combine under coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead with just a handful of draft picks and the realization that quality is more important than quantity this time around.
The bounty of picks that materialized from the “RGIII Trade” in 2012 all have been used. After trading fourth- and sixth-round selections to Tampa Bay for safety Mark Barron last October, the Rams have only five draft picks in 2015.
They are expected to receive another compensatory pick or two when those get awarded at the NFL owners’ meetings next month. Even so, the Rams have to make each pick count in 2015.
“Sometimes I think, especially with a young team, the first couple years you’re feeling it out,” Snead said.
That no longer is the case as Snead and Fisher prepare for their fourth season with the club.
“You’ve got a good feel now for who they are,” Snead said. “What our strengths are. What our weaknesses are. What players’ roles are. So it gets a little, probably, clearer to go, ‘Hey, we’ve got specific needs, let’s go address that.’”
Along those lines, the Rams will pay particular attention to the 15 quarterbacks and 52 offensive linemen scheduled to attend the Combine, which begins Tuesday and concludes Monday in Indianapolis.
Whether you view another quarterback as “competition” or having “options” — as Fisher framed it at different times over the past month-and-a-half — the Rams need some kind of counterpart to Sam Bradford.
On the offensive line, the Rams at a minimum need a guard. But depending on what the Rams decide to do with Scott Wells, and what happens with pending free agent Joe Barksdale, a center and an offensive tackle could be part of the wish list.
On his annual pre-Combine conference call, NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock offered some thoughts on both positions.
Mayock, as do many others, feel that Iowa’s Brandon Scherff is the best offensive lineman in the draft. Although Scherff played tackle in college, Mayock thinks his best position in the pros will be guard, likening him to this year’s version of Zack Martin.
Martin went from left tackle at Notre Dame to an All-Pro at right guard as a rookie for Dallas.
“When I look at Brandon Scherff, I see a similar example,” Mayock said. “Now, I see a bigger kid with longer arms, so that lends you to believe he could play outside more easily.
“And I believe he can play outside. However, I think his best position because of his power, his toughness, and his football sense is inside. I think he’s an All-Pro guard.”
That would be ideal for the Rams, who need an upgrade at right guard — at which Davin Joseph started most of last season. Scherff, 6 feet 5, 320 pounds, generally is considered a top 10 prospect, so it’s already debatable if he will be available when the Rams pick at No. 10.
In his first 18 full seasons as a head coach, Fisher didn’t take a single offensive lineman in the first round. It would be two in a row if they took one there this year after picking Auburn’s Greg Robinson No. 2 overall in 2014.
At quarterback, Mayock advises against trading up for the top two quarterbacks — Oregon’s Marcus Mariota and Florida State’s Jameis Winston.
“My gut tells me that trying to move up and take one of those quarterbacks is very risky,” Mayock said.
That’s because of questions about Mariota’s ability to adjust to a pro-style offense and Winston’s off-field issues.
That leaves about four other QBs worth considering in what by all accounts is a very thin quarterback class.
“You get to Bryce Petty (Baylor) and Brett Hundley (UCLA), both of whom probably have second-round talent,” Mayock said. “They both have good size, good arm strength.
“Hundley’s a good athlete; Petty’s a pretty good athlete. So there’s a lot to like about both of those kids.”
But by playing in spread offenses in college, they haven’t had to show the qualities needed to thrive as a pocket passer in the NFL.
“They don’t throw with anticipation,” Mayock said. “If the first look isn’t there, both of them are hesitant and indecisive, which leads to sacks and other problems. So you want to say they’re gonna need at least a redshirt year. ... But what they really need are live snaps. Not seven-on-seven snaps in practice.”
After those two, there’s Garrett Grayson of Colorado State, Sean Mannion of Oregon State, and really not much else.
At wide receiver, it shapes up as a pretty good class, but not as spectacular as the stellar Class of 2014, of which even Snead said, “I think there’ll be a “30 for 30” (ESPN program) on last year’s class of wide receivers.”
If Kenny Britt goes elsewhere in free agency, the Rams could be in the hunt at wide receiver. Similarly, if Lance Kendricks departs via free agency, the welcome mat could be out at tight end.
It’s considered a very good draft class at running back, and Fisher has drafted one in each of his three previous drafts. Does Fisher go there again, and perhaps cut ties with Isaiah Pead or even Zac Stacy?
So there will be a lot to look at for the Rams in Indianapolis, even with the relatively limited number of picks.
