Nelson Spruce Starting to Make Noise Again

[InnovatedMind]

Cut Everett?? Come on guys... reel it in a little.

That's absolutely ridiculous.

 

[InnovatedMind]

Woods, Austin, Kupp, Reynolds, Cooper, and Thomas.

There's no way Pharoh gets cut, sorry Spruce fanboys.

If we keep 7, I see Spruce making it.

 

[OldSchool]

Cut Everett?? Come on guys... reel it in a little.

That's absolutely ridiculous.

Same with keeping Cooper, Spruce or Thomas over Krupp and Reynolds.

 

[dieterbrock]

I think they keep 5 WR maybe 6
Saints kept 5 WR last year Atlanta 5, Washington 4!

 

[InnovatedMind]

Same with keeping Cooper, Spruce or Thomas over Krupp and Reynolds.

That's not the same at all OldSchool....

Spruce went undrafted, you can't honestly compare him favorably with players that were drafted in rounds 2-4.

 

[InnovatedMind]

I think they keep 5 WR maybe 6
Saints kept 5 WR last year Atlanta 5, Washington 4!

With McVay's passing attack and needing to make sure we have a plethora of options as backups incase of injury, it wouldn't be unheard of keeping 7.

 

[OldSchool]

That's not the same at all OldSchool....

Spruce went undrafted, you can't honestly compare him favorably with players that were drafted in rounds 2-4.

Not what I'm saying sorry. Comments have been made that last years WR picks could beat out this years picks. I don't see McVay keeping a Fisher pick over one of his guys regardless of round picked or udfa.

 

[OC_Ram]

I think we're in for quite the treat this preseason...... let the games begin!

 

[Soul Surfer]

Clean house - Jeff Fisher era connection-draft pick - Pharoh Cooper - Corey Harkey(ufda)-Bradley Marquez(ufda- Jeff fisher favorite)

McVay is not interested in "cleaning house".

He has made it very clear that there will be competition and the best players will play.

I think he's smart enough not to be prejudiced against "Fisher players".

 

[InnovatedMind]

Not what I'm saying sorry. Comments have been made that last years WR picks could beat out this years picks. I don't see McVay keeping a Fisher pick over one of his guys regardless of round picked or udfa.

Ahhhhh, I'd agree with that to an extent. He's definitely not going to show favoritism like Fisher did. I think he'll give everyone a shot, but like you said, he has no ties to last years players. Therefore, it'll be easy for him to cut ties if he notices something he just doesn't like.

 

[Ramification]

That's not the same at all OldSchool....

Spruce went undrafted, you can't honestly compare him favorably with players that were drafted in rounds 2-4.

Sure you can. Draft position is just an indicator of what a player is worth and how much he is expected to contribute. There have been many times that UDFAs have outperformed draft picks from those rounds. Once those players are on the roster, the best player should win. Sometimes, however, drafter's ego, bonus waste and other considerations might influence the decision.

 

[Ram65]

I think they keep 5 WR maybe 6
Saints kept 5 WR last year Atlanta 5, Washington 4!

That's amazing. Josh Docson got hurt early so the Redskins started with 5. Still a far cry from 7. Considering the Rams use Tavon as a punt returner/running back/wide receiver the Rams could go to 6. Trying to figure all this out could drive us nuts before the final cuts.

We have to keep in mind the 3 TEs Higbee, Hemingway and Everett are catchers too. New fullback Sam Rodgers also has college experience as a pass catcher. Lance Dunbar was bought in to be a pass catcher out of the backfield to complement Todd Gurely. Goff will have many options to go to besides the WRs.

 

[InnovatedMind]

Sure you can. Draft position is just an indicator of what a player is worth and how much he is expected to contribute. There have been many times that UDFAs have outperformed draft picks from those rounds. Once those players are on the roster, the best player should win. Sometimes, however, drafter's ego, bonus waste and other considerations might influence the decision.

I'm sure you CAN. It's obvious. The likelihood of it happening is far smaller though.

No where did I say the best player shouldn't win... though you get drafted for a reason. The likelihood of a drafted player panning out is far greater. (though not 100% obviously).

I don't see Spruce beating out Pharoh, or Reynolds, or Thomas right now. Why? Because he hasn't earned that right, yet.

When he's unquestionably better than these players, I'll give him the nod. He hasn't shown shit to think he's better than anyone. Especially a player that got drafted over him. Once he shows up and validates these comments, then I'll consider the possibility but until then... it's just noise.

 

[A.J. Hicks]

Who's most likely to pass waivers and make the practice squad?

 

[shovelpass]

Clean house - Jeff Fisher era connection-draft pick - Pharoh Cooper - Corey Harkey(ufda)-Bradley Marquez(ufda- Jeff fisher favorite)

Fisher is connected to much more than those guys. Fisher chose Goff, Gurley, Donald, etc. Yeah let's clean house.

 

[Ramification]

I'm sure you CAN. It's obvious. The likelihood of it happening is far smaller though.

No where did I say the best player shouldn't win... though you get drafted for a reason. The likelihood of a drafted player panning out is far greater. (though not 100% obviously).

I don't see Spruce beating out Pharoh, or Reynolds, or Thomas right now. Why? Because he hasn't earned that right, yet.

When he's unquestionably better than these players, I'll give him the nod. He hasn't shown crap to think he's better than anyone. Especially a player that got drafted over him. Once he shows up and validates these comments, then I'll consider the possibility but until then... it's just noise.

Your argument assumes that McVay attaches some special status to drafted players such that an undrafted player is not competing on a completely level field with them. That would mean UDFA Spruce has to not just beat out 4th round Cooper, but he has to beat him out by more of a margin than if they were both drafted players. I say McVay doesn't look at it this way. First, I've always believed Spruce was seen as the 7th round pick the Rams didn't have last year (see bonus and guaranteed money). Second I just don't believe it will factor into McVay's thinking. He didn't draft Cooper or Thomas and he didn't sign Spruce, so he doesn't have to prove he was right about any of them. I certainly don't think McVay will give deference to Fisher's draft analysis for any of these three, nor will he consider that Cooper or Thomas "earned" anything simply by draft status. So, I think they are competing on even ground as far as drafted/undrafted status goes, and it will come down strictly to individual performance and team need, and if Spruce proves to be better, it won't have to be by some "unquestionable" margin.

 

[LA_Rams_#29]

I'm sure you CAN. It's obvious. The likelihood of it happening is far smaller though.

No where did I say the best player shouldn't win... though you get drafted for a reason. The likelihood of a drafted player panning out is far greater. (though not 100% obviously).

I don't see Spruce beating out Pharoh, or Reynolds, or Thomas right now. Why? Because he hasn't earned that right, yet.

When he's unquestionably better than these players, I'll give him the nod. He hasn't shown crap to think he's better than anyone. Especially a player that got drafted over him. Once he shows up and validates these comments, then I'll consider the possibility but until then... it's just noise.

I'd argue that based on reports from OTAs and training camp last season...his one preseason game... Spruce has SHOWN more that what Thomas showed last season.

There are a bunch of guys who haven't really shown anything of substance in the NFL competing for some spots... Spruce may not have been drafted but he was the Pac 12's all time leading receiver and he's stuck around based on the ability he's shown....

it should be an interesting camp

 

[InnovatedMind]

We will see ;-) ... I'm of the belief that he's not AS TALENTED nor has a BIGGER CEILING right now than most of our receivers.

I hope he makes me a believer and proves me wrong! Hopefully his injury was a fluke and he isn't behind.

 

[bubbaramfan]

All the recent posts are just opinion and speculation. In the end, it will be the pre season games when playing against another team with real hitting. Precise route running, understanding the playbook, where they are supposed to be and catching the ball that will determine the final WR group, regardless of where they were drafted and by whom. McVay has made that pretty clear Apart from Woods, I don't think any of the rest are absolute locks.

 

[OldSchool]

We've heard McVay say 2 WR's names a lot. Those are Robert Woods and Thomas. Not saying it means anything for the final 53 there's way too much time to go to make those claims. But it's worth noting that he notices Thomas like he has especially with what he said in the MMQB article.