Rams News Recap: March 19

[RamBill]

New QB Gives Rams Unfamiliar Hope –Sistrunk
Maybe former St. Louis Rams offensive lineman Orlando Pace has a direct line to the big man upstairs.

Gregg Cosell Talks WR Prospects –Audio

One-On-One with Rams CB E.J. Gaines –Video

There will be trades: Rams Among Teams Poised to Draft Marcus Mariota at No. 2 –LaCanfora
And the more the draft comes into play and the more quarterback-needy teams study the available talent, the more I become convinced that Marcus Mariota is going second overall.

Safe Bet that Rams Pick up Michael Brockers’ Option –Wagoner
After the St. Louis Rams signed defensive tackle Nick Fairley last week, some wondered what it might mean for Michael Brockers’ future in St. Louis.

A Look at How LB Akeem Ayers Fits the Rams –Wagoner
Upon signing with the St. Louis Rams late last week, linebacker Akeem Ayers headed back to his roots.

Rams’ Free-Agent Scorecard 1.0 –Wagoner
We are more than a week into free agency and under the old system, we’d be getting ready to dive into the second wave of signings.

Morning Ram-blings: Kroenke’s Grand Plan –Wagoner
Getting to know St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke is a difficult proposition unless you’re in his inner circle but ESPN the Magazine senior writer Dave Fleming did his best to offer some insight into Kroenke’s vision for Los Angeles on Wednesday.

Flashback: Les Snead talks about the selection of North Carolina OT Garrett Reynolds –Video

Rams Among Teams in pursuit of Marcus Mariota? LaCanfora Video

Bryce Petty talks Pro Day, Adjusting to NFL football & Pre-Draft Visits (Rams) –Audio

What Was Philly’s Reactions to the Bradford/Foles Trade? –Audio

 

[RamBill]

Morning Ram-blings: Bargain shopping
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/17208/morning-ram-blings-bargain-shopping

EARTH CITY, Mo. -- The St. Louis Rams' approach to free agency has taken a noticeable turn in the past couple of years. After two offseasons spent doling out big contracts to Scott Wells, Jake Long, Cortland Finnegan and others, the Rams have taken a more patient and budget-conscious approach.

A big part of that has been the bounty of draft picks they've used in recent seasons, allowing them to draft and develop. Of course, that hasn't yielded much in the way of wins but the Rams think it will pay off soon.

The Rams have been more active this year than they were a year ago. But the focus has remained on younger players who might not break the bank. ESPN NFL Insider Mike Sando revealed his list of the best bargains of the new league year earlier this week and the Rams popped up twice at Nos. 3 and 5 with quarterback Nick Foles and defensive tackle Nick Fairley, respectively.

Foles offers the Rams a healthier and more cost-effective alternative to Sam Bradford (who also appeared on the list) and Fairley has plenty of potential but comes on a one-year "prove it" deal.

Meanwhile, the Rams avoided overpaying for some of the top free agents and managed to avoid Sando's list of the 10 worst values on the market.

I.C.Y.M.I.

A roundup of Thursday's Rams stories appearing on ESPN.com. ... The Ram-blings opened the day with a look at David Fleming's piece on Stan Kroenke. ... With free agency more than a week old, we offered the tally of what's come and gone from St. Louis. ... We then examined how linebacker Akeem Ayers fits with the Rams. ... Finally, we closed the day with a look at the likelihood of the Rams exercising their fifth-year option on defensive tackle Michael Brockers.

Elsewhere:

Columnist Kevin Seifert has some common-sense rule changes for the NFL.

Mel Kiper Jr. re-drafts the 2009 NFL draft.

The free-agent wire has updates from all over the league.

At stltoday.com, the Missouri Senate passed a measure that would not allow Governor Jay Nixon to extend the bonds on the Edward Jones Dome for a new stadium.

Jim Thomas looks at some of the proposed NFL rule changes heading into next week's owners meetings.