Wagoner’s Chat Highlights
—I said last week I think it’s 60/40 that Saffold leaves. I don’t see any reason to change that. Ultimately, I just think he’s going to be too much of a commodity on the open market.
—In an ideal world, you keep Saffold to fill one spot and add one in the draft. As I said last week, keeping Saffold is no guarantee though. So logic says if they make an offer to him and he goes elsewhere, that money could go to another free agent option.
—Pick Watkins? You don’t have to convince me but my vote doesn’t count. I’m a big proponent of adding more weapons and trying to finally land that No. 1 receiver. If the Rams aren’t interested in Watkins early, it’s either because they don’t view him as that type of No. 1 WR guy or they are truly convinced they are set at the position.
—I think the improved defensive performance was a combination of things. My understanding is that Fisher didn’t “take over” the defense but was certainly more involved with it. Beyond that, I think that unit began to rally after losing Bradford knowing that it had to keep the team in games and some of the young players also started to settle in. As I wrote this week, adding Williams as DC makes plenty of sense on the football side. So long as he can still command the respect of his players — and he did that with the Titans last year — he makes the defense better, in my opinion.
—I wouldn’t expect much in the way of splashy free agent additions. The Rams will have some flexibility to add a piece or two but I question whether they will (or should) look to spend big in free agency. At some point, you have to spend your money on your own guys.
—I’m not one that believes that Williams coming on board necessarily changes how the team drafts. Now, could it change the TYPES of players the Rams are looking at? Absolutely. Could it put more of a premium on getting something? Sure. But you’d think that it wouldn’t alter the board much and the team will simply draft the best players available.
—I’ve made it clear that if indeed the Rams believe a guy like Clowney is that caliber of talent, they should take him. They need elite football players and if they just so happen to play the same position, so be it. The Rams will likely exercise their option on Robert Quinn which means they control him relatively cheap for the next two years so they wouldn’t need to do anything with Long for two more years if he’s still effective. Long is still a very good football player. So long as that’s the case, why not just have a monster group of defensive ends?
—There’s no reason for Bradford to restructure unless he gets an extension. Why would he do that? The Rams aren’t going to cut him.
—Sign Jarius Byrd? I’ll never say never but I’m not sure the Rams want to spend the kind of money required to get him on a safety.
—Ray Sherman is the receivers coach. He’s pretty well respected around the league and has a long track record of success with receivers. That said, your question is fair. The drop issues got better as the season went along but the lack of progress from guys like Chris Givens, in particular, is a bit alarming. I don’t think Torry Holt or Isaac Bruce want to come in and help on a full time basis but when those guys are around, the young receivers light up. Someone like that to help Sherman certainly wouldn’t hurt.
—Pick Johnny Football? Me personally? I think it’d be a lot of fun. But I don’t think there’s much, if any, chance that it happens.
—Rams Move By 2015? It would be a stretch to think the team could move in time for the start of the 2015 season. There’s a lot of red tape that has to be cut through for a move to happen. It’s an expensive and lengthy process. That said, a judge in Pasadena recently ruled that the Rose Bowl can be used as a temporary NFL stadium if need be. I know it’s easy to jump to conclusions right now but the reality is nobody really know what Stan Kroenke’s intentions are. Anything else is just guesswork at this point. As for the final part of your question, I’m sure the St. Louis fan base would be upset just as they were when the Cardinals left and Los Angeles was when the Rams left. Is there another way to feel?
—I’ve made it clear that I’m on board with picking a No. 1 WR so if you think Watkins or whoever is that type of guy, then why not take him? On the other side, if Clowney is the transcendent talent everyone seems to think he is (a big IF which requires much more study) then you can’t go wrong taking the elite football player.
—Sign a free agent WR? You could make the argument that a veteran receiver would be helpful given the youth of the position but that player would have to be worth taking valuable reps away from younger players. Regardless, if the Rams can fill a hole or two in free agency, it would help loosen up their draft to truly focus on adding talent regardless of position.
Read All Chat Highlights
—I said last week I think it’s 60/40 that Saffold leaves. I don’t see any reason to change that. Ultimately, I just think he’s going to be too much of a commodity on the open market.
—In an ideal world, you keep Saffold to fill one spot and add one in the draft. As I said last week, keeping Saffold is no guarantee though. So logic says if they make an offer to him and he goes elsewhere, that money could go to another free agent option.
—Pick Watkins? You don’t have to convince me but my vote doesn’t count. I’m a big proponent of adding more weapons and trying to finally land that No. 1 receiver. If the Rams aren’t interested in Watkins early, it’s either because they don’t view him as that type of No. 1 WR guy or they are truly convinced they are set at the position.
—I think the improved defensive performance was a combination of things. My understanding is that Fisher didn’t “take over” the defense but was certainly more involved with it. Beyond that, I think that unit began to rally after losing Bradford knowing that it had to keep the team in games and some of the young players also started to settle in. As I wrote this week, adding Williams as DC makes plenty of sense on the football side. So long as he can still command the respect of his players — and he did that with the Titans last year — he makes the defense better, in my opinion.
—I wouldn’t expect much in the way of splashy free agent additions. The Rams will have some flexibility to add a piece or two but I question whether they will (or should) look to spend big in free agency. At some point, you have to spend your money on your own guys.
—I’m not one that believes that Williams coming on board necessarily changes how the team drafts. Now, could it change the TYPES of players the Rams are looking at? Absolutely. Could it put more of a premium on getting something? Sure. But you’d think that it wouldn’t alter the board much and the team will simply draft the best players available.
—I’ve made it clear that if indeed the Rams believe a guy like Clowney is that caliber of talent, they should take him. They need elite football players and if they just so happen to play the same position, so be it. The Rams will likely exercise their option on Robert Quinn which means they control him relatively cheap for the next two years so they wouldn’t need to do anything with Long for two more years if he’s still effective. Long is still a very good football player. So long as that’s the case, why not just have a monster group of defensive ends?
—There’s no reason for Bradford to restructure unless he gets an extension. Why would he do that? The Rams aren’t going to cut him.
—Sign Jarius Byrd? I’ll never say never but I’m not sure the Rams want to spend the kind of money required to get him on a safety.
—Ray Sherman is the receivers coach. He’s pretty well respected around the league and has a long track record of success with receivers. That said, your question is fair. The drop issues got better as the season went along but the lack of progress from guys like Chris Givens, in particular, is a bit alarming. I don’t think Torry Holt or Isaac Bruce want to come in and help on a full time basis but when those guys are around, the young receivers light up. Someone like that to help Sherman certainly wouldn’t hurt.
—Pick Johnny Football? Me personally? I think it’d be a lot of fun. But I don’t think there’s much, if any, chance that it happens.
—Rams Move By 2015? It would be a stretch to think the team could move in time for the start of the 2015 season. There’s a lot of red tape that has to be cut through for a move to happen. It’s an expensive and lengthy process. That said, a judge in Pasadena recently ruled that the Rose Bowl can be used as a temporary NFL stadium if need be. I know it’s easy to jump to conclusions right now but the reality is nobody really know what Stan Kroenke’s intentions are. Anything else is just guesswork at this point. As for the final part of your question, I’m sure the St. Louis fan base would be upset just as they were when the Cardinals left and Los Angeles was when the Rams left. Is there another way to feel?
—I’ve made it clear that I’m on board with picking a No. 1 WR so if you think Watkins or whoever is that type of guy, then why not take him? On the other side, if Clowney is the transcendent talent everyone seems to think he is (a big IF which requires much more study) then you can’t go wrong taking the elite football player.
—Sign a free agent WR? You could make the argument that a veteran receiver would be helpful given the youth of the position but that player would have to be worth taking valuable reps away from younger players. Regardless, if the Rams can fill a hole or two in free agency, it would help loosen up their draft to truly focus on adding talent regardless of position.
Read All Chat Highlights