I'm proud/thankful McVay is HC/Snead GM

[Loyal]

We have learned that first round picks don't guarantee anything. We make our living in the 2nd and later rounds since McVay has gotten here. There is a fetish about acquiring first rounders and jealously keeping them. Sure, if you hit on one that dude is cheap for a couple of years, but that is no sure thing. IF that first round pick becomes Aaron Donald, then you probably pay the guy early because you want to keep him happy and avoid the mess of a hold out a year or two before the contract ends.

Ramsey is about a sure thing as you can get. Stafford is more of a question, but I am excited about the possibilities. I would rather take them than suck so badly that you earn a top first rounder. I hope we never get one of those again, unless a trade made it happen.

 

[So Ram]

I have to say, I'm proud and thankful that McVay is HC and Snead is GM.

There aren't many HCs or GMs I'd take over them, and I mean very few.

I think it all gets taken for granted how fast McVay turned this around, and how he continues to do more with in some cases less. And I think we take for granted the balls Snead has to make the bold move.

And with McVay, I like that the more he gets into this and more he matures as a coach he isn't afraid to cut the dead weight even as irrational it may seem. Him and Snead are both ballsy enough to admit mistake and move on.

I guess, I just wanted to start an threading showing appreciation for them, because I think we take it for granted.

Thank you McVay and Snead for all you do.

Les Snead has been amazing.He might not always get it RIGHT,but what Big Balls.
I look back at Basic NFL History & think there has not been Many GM’s like Les Snead?

There are at least 20 examples.I go back to the Bill Walsh days.Bill Belacheat. Al Davis was odd,but was a true radical.
Ozzie Newsome was one of the best GM’s in NFL history,but Les Snead really is creative.He is not afraid to think outside of the Box.

 

[OregonRamsFan]

All that "I blame myself" shit will transition out of his coachspeak at some point I guarantee it. It's already started but he's got a lot to learn so it might take another year or two.

Agreed. It’s really not a good idea to self-deprecate much as a leader. The team needs a leader it can believe in, not one that constantly takes the blame when others fail to execute.
Many will start to believe what he’s saying is true, including ownership. No offense made here to Sean McVay. I think he’s great. He will get even better.

 

[So Ram]

We have learned that first round picks don't guarantee anything. We make our living in the 2nd and later rounds since McVay has gotten here. There is a fetish about acquiring first rounders and jealously keeping them. Sure, if you hit on one that dude is cheap for a couple of years, but that is no sure thing. IF that first round pick becomes Aaron Donald, then you probably pay the guy early because you want to keep him happy and avoid the mess of a hold out a year or two before the contract ends.

Ramsey is about a sure thing as you can get. Stafford is more of a question, but I am excited about the possibilities. I would rather take them than suck so badly that you earn a top first rounder. I hope we never get one of those again, unless a trade made it happen.

Not a Stafford thread,but TRUST SEAN MCVAY. This is his doing & Les Snead making it Happen!! I’ll say Matt is in his Prime & will make The Rams better.The Price is PAID NOW!Stan wants a SuperBowl in his HOUSE.Whose HOUSE? The RAMS HOUSE!! Will see what Tampa does this SuperBowl? If they win? It will take Les Of The Hype out of it.

I was for trading the #2 pick.Wanted it to be The Trade that kept on GIVING.Just think if The Pick was still alive? Always wanted The Rams to sign RG111 as a Backup QB as well.That would have been The Best trade ever.

As it Ended up ? You take your pick?

Greg Robinson or Aaron Donald.

Now at what point do you resign or give up on a player? You look at the concept & McSnead made the right move.

 

[Merlin]

Agreed. It’s really not a good idea to self-deprecate much as a leader. The team needs a leader it can believe in, not one that constantly takes the blame when others fail to execute.
Many will start to believe what he’s saying is true, including ownership. No offense made here to Sean McVay. I think he’s great. He will get even better.

Yeah I see it the same way. He's learning. We hired the guy when he was 31. And since that time the dude has done nothing but deliver for us.

For me I remember the 80s and 90s the 9ers shitting on us and signing everyone in the universe and winning championships and then signing more players and their cap was a mess and it didn't matter. And over the years we had good teams but we never had the QB and we fell short for that reason. But we also were a cut below the 9ers in our coaching staff too.

This is why I'm so staunch in supporting McVay. The guy is that coach I always wanted so badly. The one who is cutting edge but also a great builder and to date the guy has delivered. He just needs to finish. Which is why this QB move was made and I'm all-in on it let's fuckin get it.

 

[12intheBox]

I like that he owns and deals with his mistakes instead of just floundering with them.

 

[OregonRamsFan]

Yeah I see it the same way. He's learning. We hired the guy when he was 31. And since that time the dude has done nothing but deliver for us.

For me I remember the 80s and 90s the 9ers shitting on us and signing everyone in the universe and winning championships and then signing more players and their cap was a mess and it didn't matter. And over the years we had good teams but we never had the QB and we fell short for that reason. But we also were a cut below the 9ers in our coaching staff too.

This is why I'm so staunch in supporting McVay. The guy is that coach I always wanted so badly. The one who is cutting edge but also a great builder and to date the guy has delivered. He just needs to finish. Which is why this QB move was made and I'm all-in on it let's fuckin get it.

Well said! Let’s Go!

 

[bwdenverram]

As much as I've seen people criticize McVay and Snead lately, I'm one to want to see continuity. Yeah, we can all question moves, game plans and the like, we are seeing very competitive football and I want to see what these football minds can do in the future.

Let's face it. We could have and HAVE done a lot worse in the past. I'm good with seeing what these guys can build. We've seen all too many quick triggers throughout the NFL and few have ever paid off.

It's fine to be critical, but let's not act like this last few years has been a torture from what we've experienced.

Some teams will catch a golden wildwind. I see us being in the hunt every year with this group.

Keep in mind also how many coordinators have been hired away from this young of a coach. It's unprecedented.

He will glean things from all of them and I feel be more rounded for it. Bellyfat wasn't who he is on his first go round. And cheating aside, you have to acknowledge his awareness on all phases of the game.

Keep this thing going and watch for true trends. We don't want to be the Browns, Chargers, Lions, etc... that always felt they could do better and didn't.

Amen brother. I don't always like or agree with some of the things they do or say. BUT, I know one stat that trumps all in my mind.
NOT ONE WINNING SEASON from 2004-2016. NOT FREAKING ONE. And you could say the same about the 90's until the SB team and run. This is the BEST duo we've had since Vermeil was coach. Think about how many 1st round picks during the above span that got us absolutely nowhere? We've had 4 consecutive winning years and we're complaining about 1st round picks and salary cap issues. Do you know the last time we had 4 consecutive winning seasons? 83-86...Let that marinate for a minute. I've been watching this team since 1980 and that is absolutely unreal to even think about. My GF (despite being a freaking Patriots fan) got to watch 19 (NINETEEN) consecutive winning season.

So think about this, it's highly unlikely we don't have another winning season next year. Shoot, I'd bet with Stafford the next 3 years.
If the words fire McVay and Snead have come out of your mouth at all then you need to reevaluate what you're saying. Outside of GSOT, which didn't last that long, this is likely the best run we will ever have (70's was the best so far). We have a front office and leadership that wants to WIN, period. Freak picks (didn't help us in the past) get the best players to get us there. Not to mention with a brand new, sick ass stadium, for the first time in almost two decades people WANT to come play in LA. Sorry, I've broken enough remotes over the years, it feels GREAT to know when the season starts we have an actual shot at the SB. How many years did we just say, I wonder what pick in the top 10 we'll have?

F-that noise. I love where we are at as an organization. When they make mistakes they correct them, whether we like the methods or not doesn't really matter as long as it works.

EDIT: BTW, I'm not saying we should give away all of our assets (draft picks) and I hope it doesn't completely bite us, but I do know sometimes when you have elite players you only have so much of a window and you have to do what you can to win now.

 

[Mackeyser]

Rams are willing to build a team without first-round draft picks
Posted by Mike Florio on February 1, 2021
Rams are willing to build a team without first-round draft picks - ProFootballTalk (nbcsports.com)

One of the most intriguing angles emerging from the trade that will send quarterback Matthew Stafford from the Lions to the Rams for quarterback Jared Goff, two first-round picks, and a third-round pick comes from the ongoing willingness of the Rams to surrender first-round picks.

The Stafford trade, as noted on Saturday night, means that the Rams will have gone without a first-round pick in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.

That’s too many first-round picks out the window for this trend to be regarded as a fluke. As some in the league are suggesting, the constant trading away of first-round picks at some point supports a conclusion that the Rams don’t want to expose themselves to criticism and accountability for making mistakes with those first-round picks.

In this specific case, the reluctance to use first-round picks possibly sprang from the aftermath of the trade that allowed Washington to acquire quarterback Robert Griffin III in 2012. The Rams flipped the second overall pick that year for the sixth overall selection, two future first-round picks, and a second round pick. The haul prompted G.M. Les Snead, who was hired just months before the RGIII trade, to boast that the team’s objective was to “build to dominate” with Washington’s picks.

They didn’t. Several years ago, the Washington Post looked at the aftermath of the RGIII trade. The Rams definitely did not “dominate” with those picks. From Michael Brockers to Janoris Jenkins to Isaiah Pead to Rokevious Watkins to Alec Ogletree to Stedman Bailey to Zac Stacy to Greg Robinson, those players didn’t become the nucleus of a contender.

The other first-round picks used by Snead and the Rams — with the exception of one — also didn’t pan out. Receiver Tavon Austin, the eighth overall pick in 2013, somehow earned a big-money extension. Both the draft status and the contract were mistakes. Running back Todd Gurley, the 10th pick in 2015, became the NFL’s offensive player of the year in 2017, but chronic knee issues hampered him down the stretch in 2018 and resulted in the Rams severing ties after 2019 — two seasons into a big-money extension.

Goff started strong, too. After three years, he made it to the Super Bowl and earned a market-value contract. He’s now gone (or, more accurately, will be gone on March 17), after the organization quickly soured on him.

The lone exception, of course, was defensive tackle Aaron Donald. Left on the board by the Lions — who were entering contract years with Ndamukong Suh and Nick Fairley and definitely had a need at the position — Donald has become one of the best defensive players in all of football, thanks to the lottery ticket the Rams scratched off to get him in 2014.

After trading up for Goff two years later, however, the Rams got out of the lottery ticket business, possibly because they otherwise had a pile of used tickets that did nothing to help the team get better.

It hasn’t kept the Rams from being relevant and competitive. It has, however, kept them from developing a group of young players who grow and develop and provide year-to-year consistency. That puts even more pressure on coach Sean McVay to craft a winner from the unique lump of clay that the offseason roster becomes, as veterans come and go and as new first-round picks don’t join the franchise as players who potentially can grow and thrive as long-term members of the organization.

Do I need to say it? Yeah, I do. Fuck Florio.

 

[Mackeyser]

Brandon Beane’s team building shows long-term vision in contrast to Los Angeles Rams
The Rams have been in win-now mode for a while, it seems.
By Matt Warren Feb 1, 2021
Opinion: Brandon Beane’s team building shows long-term vision in contrast to Los Angeles Rams - Buffalo Rumblings

Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane has traded NFL Draft picks plenty of times, including moving and acquiring multiple first-round picks. Sitting back and watching the Los Angeles Rams over the last few years and comparing it to Beane shows the contrast between building with first-rounders as opposed to surviving without them.

On Saturday, the Rams traded their next two first-round draft picks along with a third-rounder and young QB Jared Goff to the Detroit Lions in exchange for Matthew Stafford. While I truly commend them for having the intestinal fortitude to move on from their former first overall draft choice (most teams won’t admit that mistake until it’s too late), their recent track record in the first round is incredibly striking.

Since taking Goff in 2016, they haven’t made a first-round selection of any kind. They traded their 2017 first-rounder as part of the package to get Goff. They traded their 2018 pick for WR Brandin Cooks. They traded their 2019 first-round pick, 31 overall, for a second-and third-round selection. The 2020 and 2021 picks went to obtain cornerback Jalen Ramsey. Now their 2022 and 2023 picks were used to acquire Stafford.

By trading away so many top picks, you’re ensuring that you don’t have young, cheap talent at your disposal moving forward. Sure Ramsey is better than a first-round cornerback, but he is extremely more expensive than two first-round picks on their rookie deals.

In the trade for Stafford, they got back a 33-year-old quarterback with a few good years left in the tank but at a premium price. It’s a win-now move in a sea of win-now moves.

With a shrinking salary cap due to COVID-19, the Rams are pushing all their chips in the basket for the next two years. Kick the salary cap crunch down the road without having young talent developing into potential stars. Ride the arm of an aging quarterback while you still can and worry about the long-term effects later.


It’s a bold strategy but completely different than the one employed by Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane.

When the Bills traded up for their quarterback in 2018, they used their first-round pick and two second-round picks to get the job done on Josh Allen. That’s a lot on the line — second round picks are valuable — but the Bills had bullets in the chamber from earlier trades of Ronald Darby, Sammy Watkins, Tyrod Taylor, Cordy Glenn, and a move down in the 2017 first round. Then Beane traded up for LB Tremaine Edmunds using a third-round pick. He used five picks from the first three rounds to obtain two cornerstones of his vision; his franchise QB and stud middle linebacker. Allen was 21, Edmunds just 19.

With those two cemented in their roles (and young studs Tre’Davious White, Dion Dawkins, and Matt Milano from the year before), Beane could use the team’s cap space to build around them, adding receivers to help with Allen’s development and spending liberally on the defensive and offensive lines as well as the secondary. When the team needed an alpha receiver to get over the hump, they traded for a 26-year-old Stefon Diggs instead of drafting a rookie and expecting him to be a game-changer without training camp. Looking ahead, the team was set up to pay their young stars at roughly the same time veteran free agent signings were to come off the books.

The plan - not just a two-year plan like the one in Los Angeles, but a long-term plan - was to build the franchise for sustained success and multiple bites at the apple. Has COVID-19 and the constrained salary cap altered that plan? You bet. Buffalo is going to have to let good players go this offseason that they would have been able to retain under normal circumstances, but they are still under the cap right now.

The Rams are going to have to shed multiple players just to get under the cap in 2021. They won’t have the depth to weather injuries or declining returns from veterans. They barely squeaked into the playoffs in 2020 at the sixth spot and are betting that Stafford over Goff (and not much else) gives them a few more wins and makes them a championship contender.

Meanwhile, the Bills have their full complement of picks in 2021. They traded a fourth-rounder as part of the deal for Diggs but received a fifth-rounder for Zay Jones. They won’t have their original seventh-round selection, but received a seventh-round pick in exchange for Marshall Newhouse, a veteran they were going to cut two years ago.

Once again, Beane has bullets in the chamber to restock the shelves with talent. The Rams have one bullet in the arm of Matthew Stafford. It doesn’t mean the Bills will succeed and the Rams will fail, but it means the Rams have to be more accurate with their picks and the Bills have some

This article is wrong on a lot of points re: the Rams.
Biggest error is that we have to shed a lot of players. We don’t. Every player we’re losing we accounted for or can extend via restructuring of the big 4 contracts and extending Stafford.

Heck, we could even grab a top
FA IOL.

 

[Mackeyser]

What folks miss is that missing on a high 1st rounder can set an org back even more than a bad trade due to sunk cost fallacy and not wanting to admit a drafting mistake.

How much did Greg Robinson set this org back?

What could we have gotten in trade for the #2 pick in the draft? Probably a pro bowl starter.

I don’t think the Rams hate 1st rounders, but when faced with guaranteed upgrades at critical positions that are pro bowl caliber... a player in the hand is worth a bush full of picks...

 

[Reddog99]

I'm very thankful that we have McVay. He came in and like a light switch he brought this team/organization from darkness to light in 9 months. Brought a winning culture and has won 2x division titles, an NFC championship, a superbowl appearance, 4 winning seasons, playoff appearances 3 out of 4 years. He hasn't picked in the first round and yet hes done a great job drafting. Players and coaches want to come play/coach for the Rams now after all the years we couldn't get any FA players. He's also done a good job transitioning from great players like Gurley to Henderson/Akers. He brought in Staley that gave us the #1 defense.

Snead is ok but he's made some decisions that could/could've hurt us. I appreciate his aggressive approach with FA but he needs work on the contract part. A first round pick or two sometime might be nice as well. Im afraid Sneads decisions are going to cause us to lose him or worse McVay down the road. If all the decisions do blow up in his face I hope the FO drops him without McVay. Without Snead we will be fine. Without McVay it's back to the cellar.

 

[Cjcinec]

Love what McVay did for this team when he took it over in 2017. The offense was among the best in the NFL for two seasons. Defenses seemed to figure things out and maybe the addition of Stafford will be what’s needed to turn things around. I know McVay spent a couple of years making excuses and blaming himself for the play calls to protect Goff many times. I don’t think he will have to do that with Stafford. Hopefully in return Stafford can audible out of poor play calls and help him. Rams offense just doesn’t have an identity anymore. I’m hoping the 1 yard passes are a thing of the past and they use the tight end more in the passing game like they did to close 2019. In 2020 they went completely away from it. Just think that even someone who’s as knowledgeable as McVay is offensively he needs someone to check him when he’s wrong. Stafford has years of experience that could help him if his ego allows.

 

[jonny G]

I'm very proud and happy...Been a fan a long time and it was hard to get top players to come to play for the Rams...Whenever players were available you just knew the Rams would never get them because it wasn't an attractive team to come play for...Stafford wanted to come to the Rams he had plenty of choices...That speaks volumes of where the Rams are today..Great to be a fan these days !!

 

[Merlin]

One thing that occurred to me is that by building your team with high end veterans you are paying as your core and prioritizing them over picks you do get one benefit: your core are high end competitors who expect to win it all and drive that down the roster.

I mean look at this Goff situation. The last two years... Even if you mix in some of the logic behind the why he struggled and acknowledging that it wasn't all his fault, expecting guys like Ramsey and Donald and Kupp and Whit and on and on to look the other way for poor play is not realistic. These guys are fucking hungry. They smell that shit.

 

[tempests]

What folks miss is that missing on a high 1st rounder can set an org back even more than a bad trade due to sunk cost fallacy and not wanting to admit a drafting mistake.

How much did Greg Robinson set this org back?

I have to admit, I am surprised that people don't think Les Snead could find impact players and even Pro Bowl starters in the first round of the draft, if he elected to do it that way. The last three first round picks he actually made yielded a Defensive Player of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year and Pro Bowl QB.

I've always thought he was a strong drafter.

Greg Robinson was seven years ago and I think Les has learned since then.

 

[Deac]

And...we currently field the youngest team in the league, so much for that window of success being closed.

 

[TexasRam]

One thing that occurred to me is that by building your team with high end veterans you are paying as your core and prioritizing them over picks you do get one benefit: your core are high end competitors who expect to win it all and drive that down the roster.

I mean look at this Goff situation. The last two years... Even if you mix in some of the logic behind the why he struggled and acknowledging that it wasn't all his fault, expecting guys like Ramsey and Donald and Kupp and Whit and on and on to look the other way for poor play is not realistic. These guys are fucking hungry. They smell that shit.

I agree. It really is a good point. When you have older veterans you have expectations, standards and a win now attitude that doesn't accept some of the excuses rookies bring. That hunger has to filter through the locker room and force a higher level of focus.

 

[TexasRam]

I've seen some of you mention the weakness in Mcvay's self-deprecating approach. I think there is a fine line there.

First off, you can definitely go overboard on both extremes. Too self-deprecating isn't helping anyone. If you are not the problem but claiming you are it's not helpful in identifying the problems and fixing them in a game where corrections must be identified and corrected very quickly. Conversely, if you are NOT constantly evaluating your own coaching or playcalling that could have a drastic negative impact. Even if you don't think you are the problem it is, in my mind, critical to at least consider that you could be, otherwise you could end up like a Mike Martz or Jeff Fisher where your play calling or system sucks but because it worked in the past you are not able to see that it might not be working anymore.

I Remember when Martz questioned Mcvay and said "What the hell has Sean Mcvay actually accomplished yet?" or something to that effect. Mcvay took the high road, saying, its a good question because I haven't won shit yet. I totally respected the Hell out of that answer because it told me that Mcvay didn't need the praise of anyone because he was going to go out and work his ass off for his recognition. It also told me he had the ability to critique himself at all phases of the process if necessary. There are many coaches that are blockheads and cannot do this, so often the problem never gets fixed and they don't last. With Mcvay you have someone that understands he must look at all pieces of the puzzle.

This attitude also filter to the locker room. It's called personal accountability. If your coach sets the example of looking inward at how you can get better instead of blaming others, then you have a locker room of guys that can work on getting better vs blaming others, which often rips locker rooms apart.

As far as Snead goes, I think he's a massive gambler. He's the type of guy that would go for it on 4th down inside your own 40 if the first down could guarantee the win. He would rather not punt the ball and likes to go for it even if it backfired. I can respect that. Conventional wisdom has its place because its usually built on experience and verifiable proven ways of success. But risk takers are also highly rewarded at times. One thing is non debatable. We have a window with Donald and Ramsey. Let's push all our chips in and see if we can land the knockout punch. We might miss, we might be in for years of misery, but what if we win?

I've seen decades of Rams teams that never made a big splash in free agency or went for the jugular. At least this regime isn't boring.

 

[MachS]

We have developed an interesting formula, and if we win a SB in the next few years that will be two SB trips in the McVay/Snead era. And other franchises will start to copy us if we win one. Because for as long as this league has existed, 1st round picks have been looked at like gold and have been valued a ton. Granted most pro bowlers and HOF talents are 1st round picks, but majority of the league and majority of a team is filled with mid round picks.

Trading away a gambling chip for a known, proven commodity is a great idea. The only downside is the cost. If we're trading a 1st round pick for a pro bowler, the only real argument you could make against that idea is the lack of rookie deal and contract associated. But what's interesting is Snead and the front office have identified a few things. One, the salary cap has gone up every single year for the past decade (and would've continued if not for covid). And two, if we sign a vet on a 1 or 2 year deal and they leave in free agency we get a 3rd round compensatory pick assuming they had a decent salary and played a lot of snaps. 3rd round picks are solid as fuck and should be a NFL starting caliber player.

So yea it's an aggressive strategy that has obviously worked well as we've been competitive the last 5 years. I just hope Snead re-tools his scouting department and we have no drop off there. Because this whole strategy is contingent on drafting and finding great players in rounds 2-6.