OFFICIAL Rams Free Agency Discussion Thread

[jrry32]

Are you convinced Barron can play effectively at LB for another season?

If Wade wants him in that role, yes.

 

[Mojo Ram]

Or #3 realize that Saffold isn't that good of a LT and would rather not see him rolling around on the ground hurt on the second play from scrimmage anymore. Most of us don't see the logic in moving on from a failed LT by revisiting a guy who failed at LT before him. Move forward not backwards to repeat mistakes.

 

[BonifayRam]

Or #3 realize that Saffold isn't that good of a LT and would rather not see him rolling around on the ground hurt on the second play from scrimmage anymore. Most of us don't see the logic in moving on from a failed LT by revisiting a guy who failed at LT before him. Move forward not backwards to repeat mistakes.

I can agree with you on the injury statement. I was hoping that the Rams would be in a position so they could move on from Rodger Saffold too. Let me make this clear that I am 100% done with him in being considered a starter @ either OG post myself. RS is under contract to cost the Rams over 6 million this season. As discussed back in December of last yr Rams could have released him & gain over 4 million in cap funds. RS is no more healthier playing OG posts & you recall he injured both of his shoulders while playing OG both resulting in surgeries. The only other major injury was his pectoral tear & that did not occur while playing LT either.

I sure do not recall RS having failed @ LT. Where does this come from? I recall that the Rams needed a RT in the worse way in 2013 & Jake Long was available to sign to play LT thus RS was flipped to starting ORT. I see no failure from where I am at. Rams lost RG Harvey Dahl to injury thus causing RS to start @ RG for the 3 games & then return to start @ LT in game #16 once more when Jake was injured the first time during 2013 season.

I do know that GRob has failed the last 3 seasons with 2016 being a steady decline in poor play resulting in two separate benchings. If GRob had succeeded to a position where he was at least an average NFL LT then releasing RS would be a no brainer. Don't get me wrong here I fully understand your position. I would love for the Rams to find the answer other than RS or GRob this season but it sure looks highly unlikely. Thus my stance on the keeping of RS for one more season to play a major part as the stop gap part answer @ LT post not @ either OG post.

Can you share with me on how you see it possible to move on from RS @ LT with the many ongoing issues we have with our 53 player roster & limited cap fund spending with the Tag of Trumaine Johnson?

 

[Mojo Ram]

Can you share with me on how you see it possible to move on from RS @ LT with the many ongoing issues we have with our 53 player roster & limited cap fund spending with the Tag of Trumaine Johnson?

I would cut loose of Saffold, address the position in FA via a fringe talent, draft BA and open up the position in camp which would include GRob under a new coaching staff.

 

[OldSchool]

I can agree with you on the injury statement. I was hoping that the Rams would be in a position so they could move on from Rodger Saffold too. Let me make this clear that I am 100% done with him in being considered a starter @ either OG post myself. RS is under contract to cost the Rams over 6 million this season. As discussed back in December of last yr Rams could have released him & gain over 4 million in cap funds. RS is no more healthier playing OG posts & you recall he injured both of his shoulders while playing OG both resulting in surgeries. The only other major injury was his pectoral tear & that did not occur while playing LT either.

I sure do not recall RS having failed @ LT. Where does this come from? I recall that the Rams needed a RT in the worse way in 2013 & Jake Long was available to sign to play LT thus RS was flipped to starting ORT. I see no failure from where I am at. Rams lost RG Harvey Dahl to injury thus causing RS to start @ RG for the 3 games & then return to start @ LT in game #16 once more when Jake was injured the first time during 2013 season.

I do know that GRob has failed the last 3 seasons with 2016 being a steady decline in poor play resulting in two separate benchings. If GRob had succeeded to a position where he was at least an average NFL LT then releasing RS would be a no brainer. Don't get me wrong here I fully understand your position. I would love for the Rams to find the answer other than RS or GRob this season but it sure looks highly unlikely. Thus my stance on the keeping of RS for one more season to play a major part as the stop gap part answer @ LT post not @ either OG post.

Can you share with me on how you see it possible to move on from RS @ LT with the many ongoing issues we have with our 53 player roster & limited cap fund spending with the Tag of Trumaine Johnson?

We replaced him at LT with Jake Long, it's not like teams sign a new guy to start at your position if you were succeeding at it. Then when Long failed we didn't go back to him showing again a lack of confidence in his ability to play LT and instead drafted GRob to man the LT spot. So we gave him the LT spot and replaced him then showed no confidence in him again when Long got hurt and moved an untested and very raw rookie there. That may seem to you that he was a good LT but we've shown no confidence in him at LT.

Then last year we bench GRob as you point out for poor performance and put Saffold out at LT and do you remember what happened? Oh yeah he got hurt. He's been hurt many times. He's been hurt many times. The guy has played 16 games just twice in his seven year career. His rookie year he played all 16 then the next year when he was our starting LT he played just 9 games. The following year when he was again our starting LT he played 10 games. We finally decide to replace him and move him inside to G and he only starts 9 games suiting up for 12. His 2nd year at G which was GRobs rookie year he actually plays all 12 games. Then two years ago he's hurt yet again only suiting up for 5 games! It's funny though last year shows he played 15 games but when you go out of the game in the first quarter 3 times that number seems a little inflated.

I don't think anybody is saying GRob is good or even the long term solution. But to say Saffold is good at LT is just not true. He was so good we replaced him with an injury prone veteran on the downward side of his career. Then when that guy proved to be a failure we didn't go back to him we drafted the rawest LT the NFL has seen in a decade. Saffold is not the solution at LT for a game let alone a whole season.

 

[OldSchool]

There might just be a 5th round rookie to coach up at the position. It's somebody I've read good thins about and I've seen Jrry talking about him on another site.

 

[Limey]

This might work. Alternatively, other teams get injuries to their LT and find an internal candidate that barely anyone heard of before that still seems to be ranked higher than our guys. This is why I'm hopeful that upgrading the coaching will help, whether it's fixing GRob or upskilling someone else. A reject from our PS (Nsekhe) has been suggested as a serviceable alternative if only the Redskins would leave him unprotected, based on his decent play at the position when filling in last year. I don't remember anyone suggesting that guy would be starting LT material while we had him. Certainly the coaches can't have thought so or they wouldn't have let him go and spent the $$$ and draft picks on other players. It may sound like a cop-out to say "trust in Kromer" but there are enough examples of good coaches finding serviceable players from unexpected sources that I'm actually quite optimistic that we will have a decent O-line next year.

 

[Prime Time]

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2017/03/02/report-patriots-will-release-sebastian-vollmer/

Report: Patriots will release Sebastian Vollmer
Posted by Josh Alper on March 2, 2017

Getty Images

Tackle Sebastian Vollmer was originally scheduled to become a free agent this offseason, but the hip and shoulder injuries that kept him on the physically unable to perform list all of last season mean the final year of his contract tolled to 2017.

Vollmer is reportedly still going to hit the open market, however. Tom Pelissero of USA Today reports that the Patriots plan to release Vollmer rather than hold onto him at a $2.25 million salary for next season.

The 2009 second-round draft pick has been the team’s right tackle when healthy for much of his time in New England and generally turned in solid work up front for the Patriots. Marcus Cannon manned the spot for the Patriots on the way to their Super Bowl title.

Vollmer’s past work is certainly worthy of a look for a team looking for help at tackle, although the health issues that he dealt with last season may factor into both interest from other clubs and Vollmer’s ability/desire to continue playing.

 

[jrry32]

I'm pretty sure that Nsekhe is a ERFA. He only has two accrued seasons.

 

[Mikey Ram]

Might be old news, but I just read that Jeffery wants to be with a contender...Regardless of what anybody might like think, that is not the Rams right now...

 

[Adi]

Not too much money left after tru's 16 million but they couldn't afford to lose him. Why are we so low on cap money? Not like we have a stacked team with veterans we have a bunch of young guys

 

[StealYoGurley]

I could definitely be interested in Brandin Cooks, even it costs us our second rounder because no one at the pick is providing that sort of value. He also wouldn't put a dent in our limtied cap space until at least 2018 when you can decide to pick up his 5th year option. Before anyone says, but we already have Tavon. There games are very different. Cooks would fill the DeSean Jackson role in McVay's offense whereas Tavon would play the Jamison Crowder role. McVay seems to prefer route precision and explosion over size at WR so I wouldn't be worried about having two smaller guys in Tavon and Cooks.

 

[dieterbrock]

Not too much money left after tru's 16 million but

Did he sign the tender?
And I am curious but when do teams have to get "under the cap"?

 

[woofwoofmo]

Did he sign the tender?
And I am curious but when do teams have to get "under the cap"?

All clubs must be under the 2017 Salary Cap by 4pm EST, March 9th. This is when the 2016 league year ends and the 2017 season begins. This is also when clubs may begin signing free agents and make trades.

 

[dieterbrock]

All clubs must be under the 2017 Salary Cap by 4pm EST, March 9th. This is when the 2016 league year ends and the 2017 season begins. This is also when clubs may begin signing free agents and make trades.

Talking about 2017, TJ's franchise designation doesn't affect the cap or inability to sign FA. Not sure when they would have to be under the cap

 

[woofwoofmo]

Talking about 2017, TJ's franchise designation doesn't affect the cap or inability to sign FA. Not sure when they would have to be under the cap

An add-on, the salary cap applies to the top 51 contracts.

 

[dieterbrock]

An add-on, the salary cap applies to the top 51 contracts.

I get all that, but when do they have to get under the cap, June? July?

 

[woofwoofmo]

I get all that, but when do they have to get under the cap, June? July?

March 9th, 4pm EST. All clubs must be under the cap.