Strang change this week to Rams 53 player roster

[BonifayRam]

OT's vs DB's ? Third week of the season & I thought some unusual changes to the make up of the 53 player roster took place. Rams added two additional Ol'ers ( 6-8 345 pounder Max Starks & 6-4 300 pounder Mike Persons) to an already heavy 10 player OL cadre. Subtraction in the area of the DB's ? Safety Matt Daniels & CB Quinton Pointer are elsewhere. So Rams go from 10 DB's to 8 and from 10 OLers to 12.

I sure have no issues with this just seems odd to me. Guess the healthy return of veteran Darian Stewart along with a healthy veteran Mat Giordano provides the needs Fisher desires currently. Going with four CB's is light but with safety Rod McLeod being the back up to Cortland Finnegan in the Nickle fills out nicely. I still recall the 2011 season & the shortage of healthy CB's ....guess I am still a little sensitive in that area.

I can not ever recall any previous Ram team ever having 12 Ol'ers on the 53 player roster. Not that I am complaining.

I believe Quinton Pointer is still eligible for the practice squad again because he was active for 6 games in 2012 but not active for any this season. Rams currently do not have a corner on the PS. if someone has better knowledge please let me know.

 

[DR RAM]

I don't remember ever having over 10. I liked Pointer, thought he could play on this team.

 

[RamsSince1969]

All I know is Sam has yet to get sacked.

 

[CGI_Ram]

Yeah, I'm a Pointer fan.

I hope he comes back. I'm with you, Boni. I have nightmares from that 2011 CB situation. A classic mismanagement of the roster.

Hmm? That's a strange level of offensive linemen.

 

[Memphis Ram]

12 Olinemen?
8 DBs?
5 RBs?
5 LBs?

Oh well, as long as special teams hasn't suffered.

 

[den-the-coach]

This is just because they are playing two games in a short period of time and wanted to ensure they had enough OL. Especially OT's because they really did not have a third tackle. Now I am surprised they released Pointer too, but he has not been active and they have been fine with four active CB's that last two weeks.

IMO they felt they needed to claim Person and Starks had a great workout and was more ready to step in than Person. In the end they will release most likely Person & Brandon Washington barring injury because IMO Starks will stick because of experience and either bring Pointer back or Darren Woodard unless they feel somebody is better out there and they will most likely need another roster spot for Dunbar as well.

 

[BonifayRam]

This is just because they are playing two games in a short period of time and wanted to ensure they had enough OL. Especially OT's because they really did not have a third tackle. Now I am surprised they released Pointer too, but he has not been active and they have been fine with four active CB's that last two weeks.

IMO they felt they needed to claim Person and Starks had a great workout and was more ready to step in than Person. In the end they will release most likely Person & Brandon Washington barring injury because IMO Starks will stick because of experience and either bring Pointer back or Darren Woodard unless they feel somebody is better out there and they will most likely need another roster spot for Dunbar as well.

Wondering just how bad that thigh injury was to Pointer ?? He sure played hard in pre season & proved to be a great gunner on ST's & a decent outside corner. But I am thinking that Pointer had a leg injury last yr early too & made him very slow when we saw him on the field in 2012. Pointer...he is a short small corner who is under 5-9 @ 185 pounds. Released CB Woodard is over two inches taller than Pointer. Another thing that had gone into helping Pointer make the 53 player roster was he could play safety. A month ago that was very important but things have changed now. Fisher has his two veteran safeties fully healthy that have been added to the safety cadre plus the young starters have survived the first two regular season games without any major trip ups. This Ram safety cadre are no longer a big concern as it was.

Your "great workout" comment rang a bell with my single brain cell....do we know if they worked both these OL'ers out @ Right OT primarily or combination of OL post as I would think? One would assume they would be looking to bring in a "Swinger" OT hoping to keep the current two OT's starting in the same posts.

We do know that 31 yr old bruiser Max Starks in the past has swung. But Max swinging left, as of late has him being highly impotent @ that OLT spot. Starks claim to fame came when he was the starting Right OT in the Steelers SB XL win but the following yr he was flipped to the left side to start in 2009. So he must be only considered to be primary Right OT IMO, with Barksdale flipping left if need-be.

Persons is a horse of a different color being limited in his 33 inch arms @ OLT. In college he was a very small OL'er too being under 6-4 & 297 pounds. Most all draft profiles do remark just how mean & tough he is certified to be & NOT prone to any injury that keeps him off the field & performing well. however .....have entered the standard clique "will have to move inside due to size & arm length". All projecting him @ Left OG post where the Rams have a half dozen other contacted OL'ers ready to step in. If Persons is not a OT candidate then yes I agree with you he would seem to be the likely OL'er to be waived. Persons could join OT Sean Hooey on the PS too.

I did hear Snead mention something about how TOUGH this Mike Persons kid is. Guess we can not use Tough & Saffold together in the same sentence now forever. Just seems like something ongoing in this OL cadre in the upper Ramville management offices that we just don't know yet. Me thinks something is brewing!

There is a serious deep scrapping of the bottom Offensive Linemen Barrel ongoing in the NFL GM offices, due to the injury epidemic to these OL'ers, mainly OT's throughout the NFL rosters currently. Snead's seems to have well-stocked his shelf's presently ahead of the NFL curve with what Boudreau thinks is worth refurbishing.

 

[albefree69]

BonifayRam thinking we're safer than we are:
Fisher has his two veteran safeties fully healthy that have been added to the safety cadre plus the young starters have survived the first two regular season games without any major trip ups. This Ram safety cadre are no longer a big concern as it was.

Safety is as big a concern to me now as it was before the regular season started. McLeod has not looked good. McD hasn't looked good either but at least he hasn't looked bad. Overall I'd say it's been a step down from last year and last year wasn't good at all.

Of course they're both rookies so I expect and hope for improvement. I hope it comes soon.

LB was another group I was concerned about but I think they're ahead of the safety group by quite a bit. I'm somewhat encouraged by their performance so far.

 

[BonifayRam]

BonifayRam thinking we're safer than we are:
Fisher has his two veteran safeties fully healthy that have been added to the safety cadre plus the young starters have survived the first two regular season games without any major trip ups. This Ram safety cadre are no longer a big concern as it was.

Safety is as big a concern to me now as it was before the regular season started. McLeod has not looked good. McD hasn't looked good either but at least he hasn't looked bad. Overall I'd say it's been a step down from last year and last year wasn't good at all.

Of course they're both rookies so I expect and hope for improvement. I hope it comes soon.

LB was another group I was concerned about but I think they're ahead of the safety group by quite a bit. I'm somewhat encouraged by their performance so far.

After watching the game last week with the ROD'mers in the chat room along with the many posts earlier about or pass defense..... I caught that many ROD'mers were saying that the reason for the cushion by the CB's were to make up for the play of the two new safeties.

I re-watched the game paying close attention to the OL on offense & the DB's on defense...I just do not bye into that current main line of thought that our safeties are a big concern in the secondary.

This week I have voiced my concerns right @ the problem I seen with my own eyes. That problem is not our two young starting safeties .....its our 50 million $$$ Corner Back! Sure those two first yr starting safeties could play better & they made some mistakes & there is certainly room for improvement! Butt Monkey nowhere close the crap laid all over the field by Cortland the last two games!

Tomorrow we should see how the young Ram veteran safety Darian Stewart comes to play back from two seasons worth of thigh/hamstring issues. I am mad about it but for two straight years injuries have greatly effected his career. He was the certified penciled in starter in 2012. DS lost his starting position the entire 2012 season to safety Craig Dahl that's awful resume line. That's coming off a excellent 13 started games in 2011. The same thing repeated itself this season where rookie TJ McDonald took his spot on the field.

If DS can remain healthy for the rest of the season albefree69, I see no reason for any major concerns now as for the 50 million dollar man I have some real reasons for concerns.

 

[albefree69]

BonifayRam putting it on the Finn:
After watching the game last week with the ROD'mers in the chat room along with the many posts earlier about or pass defense..... I caught that many ROD'mers were saying that the reason for the cushion by the CB's were to make up for the play of the two new safeties.

I re-watched the game paying close attention to the OL on offense & the DB's on defense...I just do not bye into that current main line of thought that our safeties are a big concern in the secondary.

This week I have voiced my concerns right @ the problem I seen with my own eyes. That problem is not our two young starting safeties .....its our 50 million $$$ Corner Back! Sure those two first yr starting safeties could play better & they made some mistakes & there is certainly room for improvement! Butt Monkey nowhere close the crap laid all over the field by Cortland the last two games!

I'm not falling for "we need to play like this because of our rookie safeties" either. Remember what Coach Venturi said (and I'm still having nightmares about it). According to the Coach this is Fishers style. It's how he likes to play D in the secondary.

As for Finn, I'm wondering how much of his crappy performance is on him. I don't think JJ or Finn do a good job at any kind of zone coverage. I know that Finn got beaten playing man too but that can happen to anyone, especially when going up against the top WRs. Mcleod was supposed to have his back and he blew it. Again.

As far as I'm concerned, we need to let our DBs sink or swim with the type of coverage that suits their game, press coverage.