Post TruJo Franchise CAP hit Mock ...

[Riverumbbq]

With Truman Johnson now enjoying his enormous $16,742,400 pay day, and me on record not wanting this, I'll have to somehow try and recover enough momentum to submit a mock which is more in line with our current CAP status and personnel. As of 3/3/17, according to Spotrac, the Rams now have $19,494,225. in available CAP space.
Just to spice things up a bit, I have us trading DE William Hayes, WLB Mark Barron & both our # 141 & 149 picks in the 4'th and 5'th rounds to the Cleveland Browns for their # 65 pick in the 3'rd, ILB Christian Kirksey & the rights to problem child WR Josh Gordon. The trade frees up some money to use in free agency, and Cleveland is the richest team in available CAP space, so Greg Williams can be happy with Barron at WLB.
Goff won't get a lot of veteran help with this scenario, but LT, OG, & C should all be improved positions, Goff also gets Garcon, Austin & Gordon as starting WR's along with what looks like a good group of young talented players returning as back-ups. Robinson moves inside where he should now realize some of his beastly potential, and LT & C improvement should make an immediate impact. We also signed last seasons top FB (PFF) to help with the blocking.
Defense should now be top 5, adding two quality OLB'ers, which should hold down the fort if Quinn continues to be a health problem. Other than Hayes & Barron being moved, the front 7 shouldn't miss a beat, and our old friend Nick Fairley returns as a solid rotational DT. While I wouldn't mind a little more depth at Safety, with Randolph returning healthy and an addition at both CB & FS, we should be good to go with Alexander taking over full time at SS.

Re-sign :

K - Greg Zuerlein, UFA, cost $2.25mil. (3 years)
DE - Dominique Easley, RFA Tender
DT - Louis Trinca-Pasat, ERFA

CAP Cut :

TE - Lance Kendricks, save $4.250mil.
DE - Eugene Sims, save $2.5mil.
C - Tim Barnes, save $3.mil.
C - Demetrious Rhaney, save $700,000.
TE/FB - Cory Harkey, save $1.3mil.
RB - Tre Mason, save $750,000.

Trade :

DE - William Hayes, save $2.5mil.
LB/SS - Mark Barron, save $7.mil
ILB - Christian Kirksey, cost $1.962mil.
WR - Josh Gordon, cost $1.mil. ?

Free Agent signings :

LOLB - Nick Perry, $8.5mil. (5 year)
DT - Nick Fairley, $5.mil (3 year)
WR - Pierre Garcon, $8.7mil. (3 year)
FB - Kyle Juszczyk, $2.25mil. (3 year)
OT - William Beatty, $2.5mil (1 year)
OLB - Datone Jones, cost $3mil. (3 year)

Draft :

1) N/A
2) LT - Garrett Bolles, Ut.
3a) C - Ethan Pocic, LSU or DE - Tanoh Kpassagnon, Vill.
3b) DE - Tanoh Kpassagnon, Vil. or C - Pat Elflein, OhSt.
4a) CB - Ahkello Witherspoon, Co.
4b) Traded
5) Traded
6) FS - Josh Jones, NCSt.
7) QB - Jarod Evans, VTech.

53 Man Roster :

Offense (25) :

LT - Beatty, Bolles, D.Williams
LG - Saffold, Brown, Wichmann
C - Pocic or Elflein, Wichmann
RG - GRobinson, Brown
RT - Havenstein, Donnal

RB : Gurley, M.Brown, Green
FB : Juszczyk

TE : Higbee, Hemmingway, Bryce Williams

WR : Garcon, Gordon, Austin, Cooper, Spruce, Thomas

QB : Goff, Mannion

Defense (25) :

DL : Donald, Brockers, Easley, Kpassagnon, Fairley, Trinca-Pasat, Fox
LOLB - Perry, D.Jones
ILB - Ogletree, Kirksey, Hager, Forrest
ROLB - Quinn, D.Jones

CB : TruJo, Witherspoon, EJ Gaines, Joyner, Jordan

SS : Alexander, Christian, I. Johnson

FS : Jones, Randolph, Joyner, Davis

Special Teams (3) :

P - Hekker
K - Zuerlein
LS - McQuaide

 

[OldSchool]

I usually don't harp on this but your first four picks are all about a round late from where they'll likely go in the draft. Bolles has been amazing in the underwear olympics and I doubt there's anyway in hell he makes it past Seattle unfortunately because I'd love him in Horns. Same with the other picks that's a very generous falling to our laps if those guys are available. I'd love it if they did though. I do like Beatty as insurance on the roster as a veteran swing tackle. Also that's a very interesting twist on the trade with the Browns that most of us see coming. Not sure I see us taking a QB in the draft. If any changes are done to the QB position IMO it'll be to bring in a low cost vet and possibly Mannion ending up elsewhere.

 

[JackDRams]

No way can we go into the season with that group of TEs. Yeah the potential is there, but we need someone with some experience. Especially in McVays offense. However, if the draft somehow panned out this way, id be pretty damn happy.

 

[LACHAMP46]

@Riverumbbq

Great job!

 

[DaveFan'51]

Just to spice things up a bit, I have us trading DE William Hayes, WLB Mark Barron & both our # 141 & 149 picks in the 4'th and 5'th rounds to the Cleveland Browns for their # 65 pick in the 3'rd, ILB Christian Kirksey & the rights to problem child WR Josh Gordon.

Is today April fools Day and no one reminded me!?! Or are you nuts!!?! To me your trading way too much for way too Little!! JMHO!

 

[Riverumbbq]

I usually don't harp on this but your first four picks are all about a round late from where they'll likely go in the draft. Bolles has been amazing in the underwear olympics and I doubt there's anyway in hell he makes it past Seattle unfortunately because I'd love him in Horns. Same with the other picks that's a very generous falling to our laps if those guys are available. I'd love it if they did though. I do like Beatty as insurance on the roster as a veteran swing tackle. Also that's a very interesting twist on the trade with the Browns that most of us see coming. Not sure I see us taking a QB in the draft. If any changes are done to the QB position IMO it'll be to bring in a low cost vet and possibly Mannion ending up elsewhere.

Easily possible some of these picks go earlier, although as one who reads many, many draft mock sites, my top 4 picks are well within the range being discussed. Bolles may be on the very edge of what has been predicted up to now, but there are mocks which have him or Alabama's Robinson dropping into the top of the 2'nd. Pocic is also a player many predict for the 2'nd round, that's why I added Kpassagnon, who has been hovering between the 3'rd & early 4'th for most of the off-season until just a few days ago when one site had him going with the # 60 pick in the 2'nd. Elflein has been in and out of the lower 2'nd, 3'rd round for several weeks now. Same pretty much goes with Witherspoon hanging around the lower 3'rd and top end of the 4'th. Sure, i'm hoping some of these guys slide a bit as other players step up in the Combine, and if these players don't work, I'll produce an alternate plan once free agency passes and we close in on the real draft.
There happens to be a thread which polls for which free agent may be the top choice for Rams fans, and I see what appears like illogical picks when you consider both CAP and need, and after signing Tru to his second franchise tag at such high cost, they blow the better part of remaining available CAP on a single player. Anyway, these mocks are just entertainment meant mostly to imply a strategy rather than 'must have' named college players which may or may not produce at the next level, especially once you delve into the later rounds.
The 7'th round QB pick is basically just a camp arm, whether we use a late draft pick or wait for UDFA's, time will tell, but if you look closer at my mock, that 7'th round pick doesn't make the cut for the final 53. With only Goff & Mannion, i'm guessing we'll bring in two QB's to get thru camp, so I draft one and take a second as a UDFA, unless Bryce Williams ends up with a role, which means he flunks out as a TE. jmo.

 

[Riverumbbq]

No way can we go into the season with that group of TEs. Yeah the potential is there, but we need someone with some experience. Especially in McVays offense. However, if the draft somehow panned out this way, id be pretty damn happy.

Yeah, it took a lot of examining to decide on losing Kendricks without a replacement, but I couldn't find the extra draft pick or money meant to keep him. While very young, Higbee should be capable of putting up similar numbers Kendricks managed. Of all the units or positions I was willing to weaken in order to free enough CAP space for better producing players, it fell to Kendricks lack of consistency in comparison to Higbee's potential. With Garcon & Gordon joining the WR's, I felt we could spare a season to qualify Higbee & Hemingway. I have Saffold's final season as a Ram being 2017, his dead CAP & salary make sense keeping him around one more season, just as I pencil in a 2018 TE thru the draft, same goes at OG. jmo.

 

[Riverumbbq]

Is today April fools Day and no one reminded me!?! Or are you nuts!!?! To me your trading way too much for way too Little!! JMHO!

I'm not sure how to address your post with the blue font. Do you believe we are getting a poor return on the trade, or does the blue font suggest agreement ?

 

[InnovatedMind]

I'm liking that Receiving Corps!

My only addition would be to have a JuJu Smith/Ross/Godwin drafted too.

 

[DaveFan'51]

I'm not sure how to address your post with the blue font. Do you believe we are getting a poor return on the trade, or does the blue font suggest agreement ?

I guess I shouldn't have used Blue Font. I think it's a poor return. JMHO!

 

[Riverumbbq]

I guess I shouldn't have used Blue Font. I think it's a poor return. JMHO!

OK, that's fair, but let me defend my post ... 1'st, i'm guessing you have a problem with the player aspect as the trade value chart favors the Rams in a big way as far as the 4'th & 5'th round picks register against the Cleveland 1'st pick of the 3'rd round. 2'nd, Hayes is an aging player whose effectiveness has slowed some over the course of the last few seasons, and although he can still be effective as a 4-3 DE, we can't be sure that will carry over as a 3-4 DE. Cleveland has a big need at LDE and Greg Williams knows how to play him. Barron is in a similar situation as far as making the transition to 3-4 ILB, and Greg Williams got great production out of Mark as his WLB. Cleveland is loaded with over $100.mil in available CAP, with L.A., he has a huge contract demand that may no longer make sense with the change in scheme. Christian Kirksey is a true ILB, graded a good deal higher than both Barron & Ogletree last season, and at 24 is still cheap while working on his rookie contract. Gordon is basically a 'throw in', we might not understand his real value until he makes it thru an entire season, but his cost is barely above league minimum, so I make room for him just on potential alone, especially at one of our most needed positions. Owning two high 3'rd round picks could easily garner us 2'nd round talent as someone always slips, so I make this trade in a heartbeat. Ridding ourselves of an expensive contract and an older player for a quality young ILB, adding Gordon is just icing on the cake. jmo.

 

[jrry32]

I gotta wonder...why trade Barron for Kirksey? We're getting a lesser player with the same limitations as Barron. It's move I've thought twice about since talking to Browns fans about Kirksey.

 

[Riverumbbq]

I gotta wonder...why trade Barron for Kirksey? We're getting a lesser player with the same limitations as Barron. It's move I've thought twice about since talking to Browns fans about Kirksey.

Lesser player ? I wouldn't be too sure about that. Kirksey is 24 years old, costs $1.962 against the CAP. Are we comparing apples to oranges ? I'm not judging or comparing Barron's ability at WLB, more as an ILB or SS in Phillips' 3-4. Barron slams us with an $11.mil CAP hit. Kirksey had 148 tackles and 2.5 sacks registered from the inside last season, grading as PFF's #22 overall LB. Barron had 118 tackles from the weak side, 1 sack & 2 int's, grading #32 overall at LB, Ogletree had 136 tackles, 1 FF and 2 Int's while grading at # 50 with a CAP hit coming in at $8.369mil. Both Ogletree & Barron scored in the 50's defending the run, something we need our ILB's much more successful with, Kirksey scored 84.9 as a run defender. At 24 Kirksey is an ascending player and came into the league as an ILB. He looks the part, Barron would seem undersized at the same position imo, perhaps better suited to a SS role outside the LOLB in Wade's new system. You may not always care to acknowledge PFF, but price, age, size and scores put together, I wouldn't be too quick to judge. jmo.

 

[jrry32]

Lesser player ? I wouldn't be too sure about that. Kirksey is 24 years old, costs $1.962 against the CAP. Are we comparing apples to oranges ? I'm not judging or comparing Barron's ability at WLB, more as an ILB or SS in Phillips' 3-4. Barron slams us with an $11.mil CAP hit. Kirksey had 148 tackles and 2.5 sacks registered from the inside last season, grading as PFF's #22 overall LB. Barron had 118 tackles from the weak side, 1 sack & 2 int's, grading #32 overall at LB, Ogletree had 136 tackles, 1 FF and 2 Int's while grading at # 50 with a CAP hit coming in at $8.369mil. Both Ogletree & Barron scored in the 50's defending the run, something we need our ILB's much more successful with, Kirksey scored 84.9 as a run defender. At 24 Kirksey is an ascending player and came into the league as an ILB. He looks the part, Barron would seem undersized at the same position imo, perhaps better suited to a SS role outside the LOLB in Wade's new system. You may not always care to acknowledge PFF, but price, age, size and scores put together, I wouldn't be too quick to judge. jmo.

I wasn't quick to judge. I looked into Kirksey and asked Browns fans about him. He tackles well and has great range, but he's not a guy who takes on blockers and isn't that effective in coverage.

I guess the cheaper contract is an advantage over Barron, but I don't feel that we're definitely getting the better player in the deal. And Kirksey would offer the same type of skill-set as Barron (run and chase type). Barron may LOOK undersized, but Barron is physical as hell. He never shied away from taking on FBs and OLs in the hole.

Of course, it begs the question: If Kirksey is younger, cheaper, and better than Barron, why would the Browns make this trade?

 

[Riverumbbq]

Of course, it begs the question: If Kirksey is younger, cheaper, and better than Barron, why would the Browns make this trade?

Because Greg Williams wants/needs a quality 4-3 WLB. Same might be said for Hayes at LDE.

 

[jrry32]

Because Greg Williams wants/needs a quality 4-3 WLB. Same might be said for Hayes at LDE.

But you just got done pointing out that Kirksey is a quality 4-3 WLB.

 

[Riverumbbq]

But you just got done pointing out that Kirksey is a quality 4-3 WLB.

Where did I do that ? I've been pointing out that he's a proven quality ILB, as Barron is a proven quality 4-3 WLB. Neither has ever played the others position before in the NFL, so I won't really know what to expect until we see them taking on their new roles.

 

[jrry32]

Where did I do that ? I've been pointing out that he's a proven quality ILB, as Barron is a proven quality 4-3 WLB. Neither has ever played the others position before in the NFL, so I won't really know what to expect until we see them taking on their new roles.

He was the chase ILB. It's the same sort of role as he'd be playing as a Will.

 

[Riverumbbq]

He was the chase ILB. It's the same sort of role as he'd be playing as a Will.

Sort of, but not fully. Barron is not an effective run stuffer, as a 4-3 WLB he could deflect somewhat off of a DT/DE, inside he'll be knocking heads more often with OG's & Centers trying to collapse an interior rush. Not saying he can't do it, just saying it could be a rougher position for him to be successful. We'll see, but i'd make the trade for the multiple reasons already pointed out. jmo.

 

[jrry32]

Sort of, but not fully. Barron is not an effective run stuffer, as a 4-3 WLB he could deflect somewhat off of a DT/DE, inside he'll be knocking heads more often with OG's & Centers trying to collapse an interior rush. Not saying he can't do it, just saying it could be a rougher position for him to be successful. We'll see, but i'd make the trade for the multiple reasons already pointed out. jmo.

No. This is simply wrong. You are analyzing Barron's role in a traditional 3-4, not Wade's. And I disagree with the notion that Barron is not an effective run stopper.

But again, Kirksey's role as the 3-4 chase LB is not that different from the 4-3 WLB. In fact, his role as a 4-3 WLB would probably be easier for a guy of his skill-set. So I'm not seeing why Gregg Williams would want to do this deal if Barron isn't a better player for Gregg.