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Burwell: Nothing flashy, but Rams make right moves
• By BRYAN BURWELL
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colu...cle_4d13de2d-707d-5c1f-ab0b-9d69e2e7e46e.html
By the time he came down from the Rams Park war room Friday evening at the end of the second grueling night of his long NFL draft weekend, the stylish silk tie Jeff Fisher wore Thursday was gone, but the wry smile that curled under his bushy mustache was still there.
In pro football, the expectation levels of the draft are weighted heavily toward the first three rounds. Yes, you can find that rare and Hall-of-Fame worthy jewel plodding through the draft’s fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds Saturday afternoon. However, every NFL wise guy knows the back end of the draft is all about long shots, developmental projections and informed speculation.
But Thursday and Friday night, there isn’t a head coach, general manager or personnel wizard worth a lick who doesn’t believe you should be able to cull a harvest of potential Pro Bowlers, an immediate starter or two, or at the very least a handful of instant-impact talents out of the confusion of so many prospects and suspects on the draft board.
That’s why on Friday evening Fisher and general manager Les Snead were grinning so much. “It’s been, I don’t want to say easy,” said Fisher. “But it’s been good.” If their draft board is to be trusted — and the chattering class of draft gurus on ESPN and the NFL Network know what they’re talking about — the Rams exceeded expectations through the first three rounds. It wasn’t the flashiest first three rounds you’ll see. It won’t get stars-in-their-eyes fantasy-league geeks and purveyors of the superficial winds of public popularity all giggly.
But in the blur of the normal post-draft instant analysis, what Fisher and Snead have done so far just feels so … darned … substantial.
Now I know words like “substantial” don’t sound nearly as exciting or cool as the needle-moving titillation of a Johnny Freakin’ Football invasion. But since the Rams play in the black-and-blue world of the NFC West, not the glitz-fest world of social media, I think I’ll lean hard toward substantial.
The Rams got two extremely large violent men Thursday and came back in the second and third round Friday and landed two smaller men whose style leans heavily toward the rugged style that is mandatory to survival in their daunting division. By Friday evening, Fisher and Snead had just completed the real heavy lifting in this draft process, and by all accounts from the wise guys around the NFL, they didn’t necessarily do anything glamorous, but they did several things that could in a few short months prove to be quite spectacular anyway.
No one in NFL front offices get bonuses on draft night. But on evenings like this, you can secure the future of your franchise (and your career) if you turn out to be as smart as you feel once the TV lights go off. The work Fisher, Snead and the rest of the Rams personnel department just completed after the first three rounds should have provided the 2014 team with four players of immediate impact.
That’s how you get good in a hurry in this rugged and unforgiving NFC West. If No. 2 overall pick Greg Robinson is a starting guard or tackle blowing open holes on Sunday afternoons, if No. 13 overall pick Aaron Donald is a regular menace in the Rams’ wicked defensive front, rushing the passer on the inside or flying off the edge, then Fisher and Snead will still be smiling in October, November and December.
If second-round pick Lamarcus Joyner is, as Fisher referred to him on Friday “a plug-in, day one nickel back” and if third-round Auburn tailback and Mizzou killer Tre Mason becomes a new instant-impact weapon out of the backfield, then we’ll look back on the 2014 draft as the most significant acquisition of rookie talent in the Fisher-Snead era.
In private conversations over the course of the last month or so, Fisher and his coaches have come to that realization. If they nail this one, it’s a game-changing draft. If Robinson turns into the multi-Pro Bowl tackle that all the draft gurus predict — and Mason (1,816 yards rushing, 2,374 all-purpose yards, 23 TDs) cranks out the yardage as well as he did running behind his big bro Robinson — the Rams could end up with an immediately improved running game. A year ago, St. Louis ranked 19th in the league in rushing offense, 30th in offensive yards, 21st in total offense, 27th in passing yards, 26th in first downs. According to NFL.com, the Rams were tied for last in the NFL in negative plays from scrimmage inside the tackles (17 plays).
In the Rams’ offense, where it’s running back by committee, Mason will be the faster and more elusive companion to the power-running rookie duo from last season, Zac Stacy and Benny Cunningham. Fisher calls Mason “a change of pace back,” which means he will bring a speed element to the Rams’ backfield. Watch the tape on him and what you’ll see is a shifty back capable of bursting to the edge of any defense, a guy who can create a weapon as a receiver out of the backfield on wheel routes and screens.
With Stacy and Cunningham firmly rooted as the power elements in the running game, Mason’s presence is proof that the Rams have grown impatient with Isaiah Pead’s slow development as that speed back since he came to the Rams as a second-round pick two years ago.
The first three rounds did not produce the giddy fantasy-league excitement that some superficial fans might have hoped for. But if you’re rooted in the more traditional belief that life in the NFL is all about who can win the battle of physical strength and intimidating toughness, what the Rams have done so far ought to be enough to make you eager for real games this fall. Are they better now than last year? No one really knows. But let’s just say this: On paper, it sure looks more substantial.
• By BRYAN BURWELL
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colu...cle_4d13de2d-707d-5c1f-ab0b-9d69e2e7e46e.html
By the time he came down from the Rams Park war room Friday evening at the end of the second grueling night of his long NFL draft weekend, the stylish silk tie Jeff Fisher wore Thursday was gone, but the wry smile that curled under his bushy mustache was still there.
In pro football, the expectation levels of the draft are weighted heavily toward the first three rounds. Yes, you can find that rare and Hall-of-Fame worthy jewel plodding through the draft’s fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds Saturday afternoon. However, every NFL wise guy knows the back end of the draft is all about long shots, developmental projections and informed speculation.
But Thursday and Friday night, there isn’t a head coach, general manager or personnel wizard worth a lick who doesn’t believe you should be able to cull a harvest of potential Pro Bowlers, an immediate starter or two, or at the very least a handful of instant-impact talents out of the confusion of so many prospects and suspects on the draft board.
That’s why on Friday evening Fisher and general manager Les Snead were grinning so much. “It’s been, I don’t want to say easy,” said Fisher. “But it’s been good.” If their draft board is to be trusted — and the chattering class of draft gurus on ESPN and the NFL Network know what they’re talking about — the Rams exceeded expectations through the first three rounds. It wasn’t the flashiest first three rounds you’ll see. It won’t get stars-in-their-eyes fantasy-league geeks and purveyors of the superficial winds of public popularity all giggly.
But in the blur of the normal post-draft instant analysis, what Fisher and Snead have done so far just feels so … darned … substantial.
Now I know words like “substantial” don’t sound nearly as exciting or cool as the needle-moving titillation of a Johnny Freakin’ Football invasion. But since the Rams play in the black-and-blue world of the NFC West, not the glitz-fest world of social media, I think I’ll lean hard toward substantial.
The Rams got two extremely large violent men Thursday and came back in the second and third round Friday and landed two smaller men whose style leans heavily toward the rugged style that is mandatory to survival in their daunting division. By Friday evening, Fisher and Snead had just completed the real heavy lifting in this draft process, and by all accounts from the wise guys around the NFL, they didn’t necessarily do anything glamorous, but they did several things that could in a few short months prove to be quite spectacular anyway.
No one in NFL front offices get bonuses on draft night. But on evenings like this, you can secure the future of your franchise (and your career) if you turn out to be as smart as you feel once the TV lights go off. The work Fisher, Snead and the rest of the Rams personnel department just completed after the first three rounds should have provided the 2014 team with four players of immediate impact.
That’s how you get good in a hurry in this rugged and unforgiving NFC West. If No. 2 overall pick Greg Robinson is a starting guard or tackle blowing open holes on Sunday afternoons, if No. 13 overall pick Aaron Donald is a regular menace in the Rams’ wicked defensive front, rushing the passer on the inside or flying off the edge, then Fisher and Snead will still be smiling in October, November and December.
If second-round pick Lamarcus Joyner is, as Fisher referred to him on Friday “a plug-in, day one nickel back” and if third-round Auburn tailback and Mizzou killer Tre Mason becomes a new instant-impact weapon out of the backfield, then we’ll look back on the 2014 draft as the most significant acquisition of rookie talent in the Fisher-Snead era.
In private conversations over the course of the last month or so, Fisher and his coaches have come to that realization. If they nail this one, it’s a game-changing draft. If Robinson turns into the multi-Pro Bowl tackle that all the draft gurus predict — and Mason (1,816 yards rushing, 2,374 all-purpose yards, 23 TDs) cranks out the yardage as well as he did running behind his big bro Robinson — the Rams could end up with an immediately improved running game. A year ago, St. Louis ranked 19th in the league in rushing offense, 30th in offensive yards, 21st in total offense, 27th in passing yards, 26th in first downs. According to NFL.com, the Rams were tied for last in the NFL in negative plays from scrimmage inside the tackles (17 plays).
In the Rams’ offense, where it’s running back by committee, Mason will be the faster and more elusive companion to the power-running rookie duo from last season, Zac Stacy and Benny Cunningham. Fisher calls Mason “a change of pace back,” which means he will bring a speed element to the Rams’ backfield. Watch the tape on him and what you’ll see is a shifty back capable of bursting to the edge of any defense, a guy who can create a weapon as a receiver out of the backfield on wheel routes and screens.
With Stacy and Cunningham firmly rooted as the power elements in the running game, Mason’s presence is proof that the Rams have grown impatient with Isaiah Pead’s slow development as that speed back since he came to the Rams as a second-round pick two years ago.
The first three rounds did not produce the giddy fantasy-league excitement that some superficial fans might have hoped for. But if you’re rooted in the more traditional belief that life in the NFL is all about who can win the battle of physical strength and intimidating toughness, what the Rams have done so far ought to be enough to make you eager for real games this fall. Are they better now than last year? No one really knows. But let’s just say this: On paper, it sure looks more substantial.
