I don't think the Rams do much on the offensive line.

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Ram_Rally

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*Prepares to dodge thrown tomatoes*


Our offensive line was really poor last year and our team doubled down on the idea that they just needed time to grow. No matter where we put them this year (most metrics were high on them this year, Goff had the 10th highest average time in the pocket) they were average at worst. Blythe is the only expiring contract. Next is Corbett in 2022. I feel like Mcvay is much more likely to keep at least 3 starters on the line and maybe 4. Maybe we sign the best center on the market? But I don't think there will be much turnover until 2022 at the earliest.
 

jrry32

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Assuming Whitworth returns, I think you're right. We'll likely draft an OL highly or go after a mid-tier FA to replace Blythe. But I expect that Whit, Hav, Corbett, and Edwards are starting again next year. And they should. They're all above average or better starters at their positions.
 

Ram_Rally

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Assuming Whitworth returns, I think you're right. We'll likely draft an OL highly or go after a mid-tier FA to replace Blythe. But I expect that Whit, Hav, Corbett, and Edwards are starting again next year. And they should. They're all above average or better starters at their positions.
Exact same page. While I've got your attention, what do you think of kadarius toney?
 

jrry32

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Exact same page. While I've got your attention, what do you think of kadarius toney?

I love his game in the right scheme, but he's not for us. He's not a deep threat. He's a slot guy who is an absolute headache after the catch. He's explosive, agile, physical, strong, and has rare quick-twitch athleticism and contact balance, but he's not a burner in a straight-line. If you let him work the middle of the field and create separation with his quickness and fakes, he can do some real damage. The one big concern I have about him is up until this year, there were valid questions as to whether football or music (he's a good rapper) was his number one priority. He worked hard on his game this year, and it showed.

Assuming he continues to work hard on football, he can be a very effective slot WR on an offense that is willing to scheme him into favorable matchups. But we don't need another slot guy.
 

TexasRam

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Assuming Whitworth returns, I think you're right. We'll likely draft an OL highly or go after a mid-tier FA to replace Blythe. But I expect that Whit, Hav, Corbett, and Edwards are starting again next year. And they should. They're all above average or better starters at their positions.
Agreed. I think you plug the hole at center and can role with the other 4. But you can also heavily affect the pass protection by improving the run game with a TE or two that can really block and the new center.
 

Ram_Rally

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I love his game in the right scheme, but he's not for us. He's not a deep threat. He's a slot guy who is an absolute headache after the catch. He's explosive, agile, physical, strong, and has rare quick-twitch athleticism and contact balance, but he's not a burner in a straight-line. If you let him work the middle of the field and create separation with his quickness and fakes, he can do some real damage. The one big concern I have about him is up until this year, there were valid questions as to whether football or music (he's a good rapper) was his number one priority. He worked hard on his game this year, and it showed.

Assuming he continues to work hard on football, he can be a very effective slot WR on an offense that is willing to scheme him into favorable matchups. But we don't need another slot guy.
Damnit! I was loving his tape too. Thanks for the info as usual! Glad to have some gurus around.
 

Merlin

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Well you know if @jrry32 is right about Corbett playing the pivot that would be a windfall. But barring that we don't have a choice in the matter. Blythe is gone and they need a Center.

Signing a FA probably doesn't happen for the OL unless they can at a minimum trade Hav and move that money to the interior to fix it. So maybe they just accept it's a drafted position idk.

As far as the draft is concerned and provided they don't do anything crazy like trade Goff, it shouldn't be too hard to find a Center in round 3 or so. I'd draft BPA at our round 2 pick and take whoever slid that they love, then come back and address Center (unless Center is the guy who slid) in round 3.
 

jrry32

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Well you know if @jrry32 is right about Corbett playing the pivot that would be a windfall. But barring that we don't have a choice in the matter. Blythe is gone and they need a Center.

Signing a FA probably doesn't happen for the OL unless they can at a minimum trade Hav and move that money to the interior to fix it. So maybe they just accept it's a drafted position idk.

As far as the draft is concerned and provided they don't do anything crazy like trade Goff, it shouldn't be too hard to find a Center in round 3 or so. I'd draft BPA at our round 2 pick and take whoever slid that they love, then come back and address Center (unless Center is the guy who slid) in round 3.

I still say we should have Larry Warford on the phone right now. Obviously, we'll need to ensure he's in shape. But if he is, he's a Pro Bowl RG. Before he opted out, he was reportedly looking to get paid $7 million per year (likely on a one year deal). That's generally what we should offer him. Now, I know you're asking yourself how we can afford it. Here's how. We offer Warford a one year $7 million deal worth $10 million in "max value" (basically, $3 million with certain hard to achieve incentives). Here's how you structure the contract:
Year 1: $2 million base salary + $1.25 million signing bonus
Year 2: $0 base salary + $1.25 million signing bonus
Year 3: $0 base salary + $1.25 million signing bonus
Year 4: $0 base salary + $1.25 million signing bonus

Basically, Warford is only on our books for $3.25 million this year despite it being a 1 year $7 million deal. The future years are voided, so we end up having $3.75 million in dead money on the books next year if we don't re-sign Warford. With TV deals around the corner, the key for us right now to have our cake and eat it too is to simply push money into future years. Kick the can down the road. There will come a year where we have to dump a bunch of dead money, rebuild, and have a down year, but we can put that off for awhile.
 

Merlin

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I could see that type of move by Snead just to ensure we're not too weak at Center going into the draft. Long as it's cheap I'd be fine with it.

Prefer we just say fuck it and go get Scherff but I know that won't happen. I want a dominant line the kind that can string together good games vs top competition.
 

Shuie3225

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Well you know if @jrry32 is right about Corbett playing the pivot that would be a windfall. But barring that we don't have a choice in the matter. Blythe is gone and they need a Center.

Signing a FA probably doesn't happen for the OL unless they can at a minimum trade Hav and move that money to the interior to fix it. So maybe they just accept it's a drafted position idk.

As far as the draft is concerned and provided they don't do anything crazy like trade Goff, it shouldn't be too hard to find a Center in round 3 or so. I'd draft BPA at our round 2 pick and take whoever slid that they love, then come back and address Center (unless Center is the guy who slid) in round 3.

How long do you wait in the draft? We wanted Cushenberry in round 3 and didn't move up to ensure we got him...and the result is he goes 1 spot before us and we were forced to draft T Lewis. This draft people will still know we need a new center and will move accordingly.

I agree we keep 4 starters on the OL next year... so many people around here think one player will turn the OL into a top unit but it wont. It will be more or less average again, pretty similar to this season like I've been saying for weeks. And we know how Goff plays with an average OL. People that expect a rookie 2nd/3rd round center to come in and transform the OL into a top unit with 4 other starters not changing are lying to themselves. We have no elite OL talent and wont next year. Goff behind the same OL more or less will yield the same results. McVay knows this by now.
 

Merlin

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How long do you wait in the draft? We wanted Cushenberry in round 3 and didn't move up to ensure we got him...and the result is he goes 1 spot before us and we were forced to draft T Lewis. This draft people will still know we need a new center and will move accordingly.

I agree we keep 4 starters on the OL next year... so many people around here think one player will turn the OL into a top unit but it wont. It will be more or less average again, pretty similar to this season like I've been saying for weeks. And we know how Goff plays with an average OL. People that expect a rookie 2nd/3rd round center to come in and transform the OL into a top unit with 4 other starters not changing are lying to themselves. We have no elite OL talent and wont next year. Goff behind the same OL more or less will yield the same results. McVay knows this by now.
In the draft you have a small group of targets for a given position and where you think they'll go. That is adjusted for rosters of teams picking in that range (i.e. who are threats to take them) and you make a guess and go. Snead seems to know his way around pretty well. His aggressiveness isn't reckless it's based on him having a really good board and it's unlikely we'd be drafting so well without first round picks if that wasn't true.
 

Merlin

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I agree we keep 4 starters on the OL next year... so many people around here think one player will turn the OL into a top unit but it wont.
Missed this point. I'll just say that if you watch our last, oh let's say six games Blythe was beaten over and over and over. He was abused. Now if you remove him and install a good Center all of a sudden you would get some big gainers by the backs and the QB looks a lot more comfortable.

I mean there were plays where Akers almost pops one but oh wait there's a DL out of nowhere oh hey it's Blythe's dude. Or there's two WRs open down the middle and 17 on the right side for TDs vs Seattle but oh wait Blythe just allowed the NT to drive him into the QB.

And don't want to get into the QB here. Point is Blythe was fucking terrible man. I don't know how he was not benched. And the fact he wasn't tells me a lot about our depth.
 

Ramit

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Our offensive line was really poor last year and our team doubled down on the idea that they just needed time to grow. No matter where we put them this year (most metrics were high on them this year, Goff had the 10th highest average time in the pocket) they were average at worst. Blythe is the only expiring contract. Next is Corbett in 2022. I feel like Mcvay is much more likely to keep at least 3 starters on the line and maybe 4. Maybe we sign the best center on the market? But I don't think there will be much turnover until 2022 at the earliest.
Agreed.
 

jrry32

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I could see that type of move by Snead just to ensure we're not too weak at Center going into the draft. Long as it's cheap I'd be fine with it.

Prefer we just say fuck it and go get Scherff but I know that won't happen. I want a dominant line the kind that can string together good games vs top competition.

The challenge with Scherff is when you get a guy who is going to get big money and a long-term contract, it gets a lot harder to maintain flexibility. Yes, we can give Scherff a contract that puts very little money on the books in Year 1, but because of the guarantees that deal will have, it has the potential to really fuck us down the line. That all said, is there a scenario where we can sign a Brandon Scherff, Joe Thuney, Corey Linsley, or Taylor Moton? Yes. If Snead wants to do it, Demoff can structure a contract to make it happen. But if that player doesn't live up to his contract, it's not going to be fun for us.

I like the one year approach because it gives us greater flexibility. And Warford also won't cost us either of the comp picks we should receive for John Johnson and Leonard Floyd.
 

So Ram

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I still say we should have Larry Warford on the phone right now. Obviously, we'll need to ensure he's in shape. But if he is, he's a Pro Bowl RG. Before he opted out, he was reportedly looking to get paid $7 million per year (likely on a one year deal). That's generally what we should offer him. Now, I know you're asking yourself how we can afford it. Here's how. We offer Warford a one year $7 million deal worth $10 million in "max value" (basically, $3 million with certain hard to achieve incentives). Here's how you structure the contract:
Year 1: $2 million base salary + $1.25 million signing bonus
Year 2: $0 base salary + $1.25 million signing bonus
Year 3: $0 base salary + $1.25 million signing bonus
Year 4: $0 base salary + $1.25 million signing bonus

Basically, Warford is only on our books for $3.25 million this year despite it being a 1 year $7 million deal. The future years are voided, so we end up having $3.75 million in dead money on the books next year if we don't re-sign Warford. With TV deals around the corner, the key for us right now to have our cake and eat it too is to simply push money into future years. Kick the can down the road. There will come a year where we have to dump a bunch of dead money, rebuild, and have a down year, but we can put that off for awhile.

Just wondering.He plays center? Is he the guy Snisher wanted from Kentucky who was drafted by the Lions?Anyway just taking a guess.Obviously I don’t follow things like I used to though.

For some reason this Shelton Coleman guy seems like he might get a chance.I’m not a Brian Allen fan at All,but will be interesting if he gets cut!
 

jrry32

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Just wondering.He plays center? Is he the guy Snisher wanted from Kentucky who was drafted by the Lions?Anyway just taking a guess.Obviously I don’t follow things like I used to though.

For some reason this Shelton Coleman guy seems like he might get a chance.I’m not a Brian Allen fan at All,but will be interesting if he gets cut!

Nope. He's a Pro Bowl Guard. Yes, he is that guy.
 

So Ram

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Nope. He's a Pro Bowl Guard. Yes, he is that guy.

Oh yeah - Hated that draft by Snead. Why The Rams moved up to get a 5”8 tiny WR is beyond me.Plus Wolford was what The Rams needed.
I liked Ogletree because of the value.Les can sure move up & down the draft board with the best of them.

It goes back to missing out on Bobby Wagner as well.Even Desean Jackson was a guy I liked.So many mistakes.
McSnead does a better job drafting,especially not having a number 1 for how many years?
 

fanotodd

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How long do you wait in the draft? We wanted Cushenberry in round 3 and didn't move up to ensure we got him...and the result is he goes 1 spot before us and we were forced to draft T Lewis. This draft people will still know we need a new center and will move accordingly.

I agree we keep 4 starters on the OL next year... so many people around here think one player will turn the OL into a top unit but it wont. It will be more or less average again, pretty similar to this season like I've been saying for weeks. And we know how Goff plays with an average OL. People that expect a rookie 2nd/3rd round center to come in and transform the OL into a top unit with 4 other starters not changing are lying to themselves. We have no elite OL talent and wont next year. Goff behind the same OL more or less will yield the same results. McVay knows this by now.

Agree with your analysis, but if not now, when? A large section of this forum has been screaming to draft a Center for quite a long time.

No, that alone will probably not transform the entire OL, but by year 2 (if we pick the right guy) we might start seeing something significant. Every year there are 2-4 Centers who come in and start as rookies. It’s a nice piece to get handled.

I was never too impressed with either Edwards or Evans at Tackle, but Edwards is a potential star at LG and Evans is right there as a swing guard, possibly taking over at RG after Corbett departs.

That leaves the OT. Between Havs and Whitworth, they’ve both seen better days. No telling how much longer they can play up to their salaries. Noteboom does a decent job at LT, but we need more insurance. Bringing in another Tackle or two would be wise IMO.

Ok, so the OL is not stellar, but it CAN be improved. Our skill players can’t be our best blockers, too.
 

Memphis Ram

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If Whitworth doesn't retire, it wouldn't shock me to see the Rams come back with the same 5 starting OLinemen. And yes, that includes Blythe on another 1 year deal.

BTW, maybe he'll get better, but from what I read, the rookie center many called for in LSU's Cushenberry really struggled this year.
 

Elmgrovegnome

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Center and TE seem to be the starting point.

I thought fixing center as the top need would be realized once Sully and Blythe were exposed in 2018. I hope it is the actual plan this year. I have my doubts since it’s been glaring for the last two years and fixed with a band aid when surgery is required.