Just a "Gut Feelin' " But

[DaveFan'51]

I was just recalling I saw some film of Chris Long's Off-Season workout, and He Looked incredible! So, my " Gut Feelin' " is ( With the addition of Donald's Push up the middle ) We will see a 'Shoot-Out', if you will, between Long and Quinn for Most Sacks on the Team! Sort of like, in the Old 'L.A. Dodger Days' When Don Drysdale, and Sandy Kofax used to see who could Win the most games and each wining 20 games. I know it's crazy, But who here wouldn't like to see both Quinn and Long get 20 sacks each!?

 

[den-the-coach]

I will get killed for this and Long is very important from a leadership standpoint and it would be a great story if the Rams could win because Long has suffered through some very tough years...However, with that being posted I like William Hayes over Long or the combination there of.

 

[Rams and Gators]

Another thing to remember is Long was carrying a niggling injury last year so if he can get fully healthy and not get thrown out of games because the ref does't like his face (or whatever the reason was) I can see him matching his career best 13. 20 I'd begin to question if him and his wife were "trying for a baby".

 

[SierraRam]

I will get killed for this and Long is very important from a leadership standpoint and it would be a great story if the Rams could win because Long has suffered through some very tough years...However, with that being posted I like William Hayes over Long or the combination there of.

There certainly isn't any drop off when Hayes is in! Love our depth. I think we know why Long has persued and documented his intense, off-season work out...

 

[Memphis Ram]

I will get killed for this and Long is very important from a leadership standpoint and it would be a great story if the Rams could win because Long has suffered through some very tough years...However, with that being posted I like William Hayes over Long or the combination there of.

Yep. And while a good player, that HUGE contract is going to hurt his chances of staying with the team long-term, IMO. In fact, that was the first thing I thought of when I saw that a team loaded with Dline depth paid so much to bring in UDFA DE Ethan Westbrooks.

 

[Rams Until I Die]

I'm biased cause he is one of my favorite players on the team but I feel like Long is going to have a huge year. Hope we can keep Long and Quinn together for years.

 

[snackdaddy]

Long is similar to JL. Savvy player with a good work ethic. Better than average, but not a top player at their positions. What players like them have going for them is their fundamentals and intelligence. They're true professionals. Every team needs guys like that.

 

[DaveFan'51]

Disagree!! Long was Ranked 7th Best at his position last season!

 

[TheDYVKX]

Long gets a lot of pressure on the QB. It usually doesn't translate to sacks, but with interior push from Donald, QBs won't be able to escape and he could finish his plays more often. And he's still not that old. I could see an increase in sacks. Maybe not 20, but 15-17 could be possible.

 

[crazyhorns]

Yep. And while a good player, that HUGE contract is going to hurt his chances of staying with the team long-term, IMO. In fact, that was the first thing I thought of when I saw that a team loaded with Dline depth paid so much to bring in UDFA DE Ethan Westbrooks.

I thought Long's contract was loaded up front? I don't see Fisher letting Long go. He is the kind of guy every team needs. He is very productive and his leadership and value can not be measured alone by end of the year sacks.

 

[fearsomefour]

TheDYVKX nailed it.
Long makes QBs move their feet and rush throws. His value as a passrusher goes way beyond "he got 8 sacks". There have been guys (Robert Young pops to mind) who could get some sacks but made no other plays. A guy might have 12 sacks and make 14 plays all year where he showed up. Long led the NFL in pressures a couple of years ago and was half a step away from a huge stat year. That said with his improvement vs the run and his consistent ability to get pressures he has way more value than 8-10 sacks.

 

[BonifayRam]

Rams Org. has set these DE positions till the end of 2015. Looks like we will have two seasons like we have now. In 2015 the cap hit from the four DE's will be nearly 24 million. Three DE's Quinn, Hayes & Sims will be UFA's in 2016. The lone remaining DE Chris Long will still be under contract for 13.3 mil CAP hit alone.

In the early off season of 2016.... I suspect that Quinn who is five years younger than Chris Long will demand a GIGANTIC contract with millions of guaranteed $$$ thus making the 31 yr old Chris Long 2016 cost of $13.3 million hard to continue.
http://www.spotrac.com/nfl/st.-louis-rams/chris-long/

 

[Memphis Ram]

I thought Long's contract was loaded up front? I don't see Fisher letting Long go. He is the kind of guy every team needs. He is very productive and his leadership and value can not be measured alone by end of the year sacks.

He still has a $11.5 million cap number in 2015 & a $13.25 million cap number in 2016. I agree that Long is the type of guy that teams need, but not at his salary. That salary calls for more of a difference maker, IMO. But, again, this comes from someone who believes that a slightly younger Williams Hayes who is making about 1/3 of what Long is getting, is also a good leader, is just as good at LE, and is a better overall DLineman.

 

[den-the-coach]

But, again, this comes from someone who believes that a slightly younger Williams Hayes who is making about 1/3 of what Long is getting, is also a good leader, is just as good at LE, and is a better overall DLineman.

Agreed and maybe next year the Rams make a move, however, Long is very popular, but I agree love Hayes and would like to see more of him.

 

[BonifayRam]

I have always thought very highly of William Hayes. His contract is very easy of the Rams CAP pocketbook. I will agree with Memphis here when you consider all things great & small between the two DE's (Long & Hayes) Hayes is the better bargain. WH can play & has played all four DL positions & has proven to be effective no matter where Fisher inserts him! Long is strictly a LDE period. Yes you can play CL inside but WH is much better. WH happens to be one of those rare players who does nothing great but does everything generally good. A team would be in a great position to have a half dozen signed William Hayes's!

The only knock I can come up with on WH is he comes in each season a bit over his playing weight & less in ideal playing shape.

 

[den-the-coach]

Yep. And while a good player, that HUGE contract is going to hurt his chances of staying with the team long-term, IMO. In fact, that was the first thing I thought of when I saw that a team loaded with Dline depth paid so much to bring in UDFA DE Ethan Westbrooks.

Trade Long to the Raiders?

 

[Memphis Ram]

Trade Long to the Raiders?

Can't afford the cap hit.

 

[Ram Quixote]

I was under the impression that both Long's and JL's contracts drop quite a bit in 2015.

Perhaps someone can look up those numbers?

 

[TheDYVKX]

I have always thought very highly of William Hayes. His contract is very easy of the Rams CAP pocketbook. I will agree with Memphis here when you consider all things great & small between the two DE's (Long & Hayes) Hayes is the better bargain. WH can play & has played all four DL positions & has proven to be effective no matter where Fisher inserts him! Long is strictly a LDE period. Yes you can play CL inside but WH is much better. WH happens to be one of those rare players who does nothing great but does everything generally good. A team would be in a great position to have a half dozen signed William Hayes's!

The only knock I can come up with on WH is he comes in each season a bit over his playing weight & less in ideal playing shape.

Yeah, Hayes is fantastic. Hard not to love him, and everybody in the locker room has amazing things to say about him. Best bargain DE in the league. Think we have 3 of the top 15 (maybe top 10) defensive ends in the league.

2 things I want to say though: Hayes plays the run great. He's a top 3 run defender in the league at 4-3 DE. We have another top 5 run defender in Quinn too, which is great. So Hayes does everything else well, but he is one of the best run defenders. Even if that's all he did, he'd be a bargain.

The other thing: Yeah, Hayes is a big big man. I don't know if he can play the amount of snaps Long can. It's tough to handle that many snaps, which is why he's perfect in the role that he is.

 

[jjab360]

Long is a great pass rusher, one of the best in the league. One thing I noticed going back and looking at all of Quinn's sacks was how Long was almost always right there with him. He's also probably the main leader of the entire defense alongside Laurinaitis.

I think anybody talking trade is being ridiculous, tbh.