Rams add some beef, then grab Oregon State QB/PD

[RamBill]

Rams add some beef, then grab Oregon State QB
• By Jim Thomas

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_9c27b160-3c8d-5add-bcd2-029f0bdc2b30.html

It finally happened. The Rams added some beef. Thanks in part to a second-round trade with Carolina that gave them an extra third-round pick, the Rams added Wisconsin offensive tackle Rob Havenstein in the second round, and then added Louisville offensive guard Jamon Brown in the third on Day 2 of the NFL draft Friday.

The Rams then used that extra third-round pick from Carolina to get a quarterback, Sean Mannion of Oregon State. Mannion had a great 2013 season for the Beavers and received a third-round grade from the NFL advisory board.

But without star wide receiver Brandin Cooks in 2014, his production fell off this past season. He threw only 15 TDs in ’14 after tossing 37 the year before. Mannion has a bit of a long delivery but played in a pro-style offense at Oregon State, which should help him make a quick adjustment to the NFL.

“Obviously, quickening my release is something that I had been wanting to do,” Mannion said. “Focusing on my footwork and always throwing from the same base in the pocket can really speed up my delivery and get the ball out very fast.”

Mannion has been working with former NFL quarterback Jordan Palmer, now a QB trainer for the EXOS athletes performance firm during the offseason on just that.

He was taken No. 89 overall. Rams starter Nick Foles was taken No. 88 overall when drafted by Philadelphia in 2012.

But back to the offensive line. Havenstein and Brown definitely do their clothes shopping at the Big & Tall store. Havenstein is massive at nearly 6-7 1/2 and weighing 321 pounds. And that’s a trimmed-down Havenstein. When he arrived at Madison as a college freshman, he tipped the scales at 380 pounds.

On his conference call with reporters in St. Louis, Havenstein said he gave up junk food, particularly soda, to lose the weight. (There goes that Pepsi endorsement.)

Almost giddy to get the call from the Rams late in the second round, Havenstein gave this reply when asked how his name was pronounced: “It’s Frankenstein, with a ‘Haven.’ ” He was projected by some as a middle-round pick, at best, so getting called in the second round definitely fell into the category of unexpected for Havenstein.

“It was definitely a surprise,” said Havenstein, who was at home in Mount Airy, Md., when the Rams called Friday. “I’m still kind of speechless right now. It’s an unbelievable opportunity and I’m so excited right now.”

Havenstein projects as a right tackle in the NFL, but Fisher said the team still remains interested in re-signing free-agent Joe Barksdale, the team’s starting right tackle in 2013 and ’14.

From 2012 through 2014, Havenstein started 41 consecutive games at right tackle for Wisconsin, a program known for its run-blocking. Known as a scrappy mauler-type, Havenstein isn’t the most gifted athletically but didn’t have a holding call in 2014.

Havenstein didn’t make a pre-draft visit to St. Louis. There was a report shortly before the draft that he had a private workout with the Rams, but Havenstein said that wasn’t the case.

“Just the pro day,” he said, when asked about getting worked out by the Rams. “I’ve had a decent amount of contact (with the Rams). Coach (Paul) Boudreau was at the pro day — he was the one who ran it.”

Boudreau is the Rams’ offensive line coach. Havenstein said he met with Boudreau during the pro day and went over some classroom stuff with him.

He was taken at No. 57 overall, after the Rams traded down from their original second-round spot at No. 41. In exchange for moving up 16 spots in the round (to take Michigan wide receiver Devin Funchess), Carolina sent the Rams a third-round pick (No. 89) and a sixth-round pick (No. 201).

“When you’re picking early in the second round, there’s still good players left on the board and teams kinda identify one player,” general manager Les Snead said. “They kind of simmer on it all day, and say, ‘That’s the guy we want.’ ”

So the Rams had a lot of calls from teams wanting to move up. And in those 16 picks between 41 and 57, only two offensive linemen were chosen, leaving the Rams with some options.

The Rams used their original third-round pick, No. 72 overall, to take Brown, another wide-body at just under 6-4 and 323 pounds.

Brown began his college career at defensive tackle but switched to offense as a freshman in 2011. He started two games at left guard in ’11, started 13 games at right tackle in 2012, and then had a combined 26 starts at left tackle in 2013 and ’14. His projected NFL position is right guard.

Brown did make a pre-draft visit to Rams Park on April 1, a day in which the Rams also entertained Alabama wide receiver Amari Cooper, Stanford offensive tackle Andrus Peat, and Duke offensive guard Laken Tomlinson. All three went in the first round Thursday.

“I got to spend a little time with those guys,” he said, speaking from Louisville on a conference call. “Those are good guys and great football players. The visit up there I had fun.”

Brown was more than happy to get the phone call from the Rams in Round 3. Some pre-draft projections had him going in the fourth- to fifth-round area.

“I’m just appreciative that I have the opportunity,” Brown said. “I was just waiting for the phone to ring, and I’m grateful that it rang when it did.”

 

[RamBill]

Rams' identity comes with no ambiguity
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/18077/rams-identity-comes-with-no-ambiguity

EARTH CITY, Mo. -- In case the St. Louis Rams' decision to draft running back Todd Gurley with the 10th overall pick Thursday night left any questions about what the team is trying to become offensively, they put those queries to rest quickly and emphatically Friday night.

After weeks of listening to public pleas to fix an offensive line with as many as three available starting jobs, and repeated assurances that they were aware of the concerns, Rams coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead offered a slight delay in Round 2 before pushing their chips into the center and doubling down to solve their biggest need.

In a span of 15 picks, the Rams found two massive bodies to fill equally massive holes.

After trading the 41st overall selection to the Carolina Panthers for the 57th pick plus a third- and sixth-round choice, the Rams picked mammoth Wisconsin tackle Robert Havenstein. With the 72nd overall choice, they followed by grabbing Louisville offensive lineman Jamon Brown. Even when the Rams didn't pick a lineman, they opted for the biggest quarterback option on the board, Oregon State's Sean Mannion, who stands at 6-foot-6, 229 pounds.

Essentially, the Rams dropped a 13-foot, 644-pound wrecking ball in the gaps where the vacancies on their offensive line once stood. The goal was quite simple.

"It really helped with both the offensive linemen and Todd yesterday," Fisher said. "We are building this team for the future and I think we are establishing an identity right now."

That identity comes with a complete lack of ambiguity. After years of saying they want to be a power rushing team and infrequently attempting to invest in those words, the Rams spent their first three picks in this year's draft trying to turn those words into actual results. It started by trading quarterback Sam Bradford, who while talented and oft-injured, was never going to be worth the $16 million plus investment, especially if his primary job was going to be handing off.

No, with Havenstein and Brown now looking to clear holes for the likes of Gurley and Tre Mason, the Rams are doing everything they can to grind teams down on both sides of the ball. If that means 3-0 victories on a weekly basis, so be it.

Whether Havenstein and Brown become starters right away remains to be seen. Even after drafting the duo, Fisher said the Rams remain interested in keeping Joe Barksdale and also acknowledged that they are considering a veteran lineman to add to the young group (Justin Blalock, anyone?).

In the meantime, Fisher said the 6-foot-7, 321-pound Havenstein projects at right tackle while the 6-4, 323-pound Brown offers more versatility, which likely means he will kick inside to guard.

With Havenstein leading the way, the Badgers rushed for a school-record 320.1 yards per game in 2014. In his career, Havenstein played in 54 games, starting 42. Brown comes with similar experience, starting 39 consecutive games for Louisville over the past three seasons.

"We've got two big, strong, physical players that extend plays, that finish plays, that go downfield, mauler types," Fisher said. "They're very, very aggressive and they're going to fit our style."

In the past 24 hours, what that style is has become abundantly clear.

 

[RamBill]

Watch Jeff Fisher and Les Snead talk about Day 2 of the Rams Draft.

Watch Day 2 Press Conference

 

[RamBill]

Bernie: For better or worse, Fisher stays the course
• By Bernie Miklasz

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/colu...cle_da104e75-2c45-5df5-a425-88f56c364473.html

A day later NFL fans in St. Louis were still buzzing over Jeff Fisher’s bold decision to choose Georgia running back Todd Gurley at No. 10 overall.

There wasn’t a lot of gray area in the reaction. This pick was praised, and criticized, with equal parts passion.

I have mixed feelings about this.

As an SEC honk I loved watching Gurley cut and accelerate through some of the toughest defenses in college football. He’s fast and strong and elusive. Gurley can also catch the ball and make tacklers whiff in the open field. His all-around game radiates excitement. This is potentially a transcendent talent.

Gurley’s surgically repaired knee will have a say in all of this. You want a draft grade? It depends on a big test, and knee must pass it. Unless a peak-form Gurley can get on the field and stay there, all of this talent disappears into the darkness of an MRI tube.

Fisher ignored the risk of putting the weight of his offense on another questionable knee ligament. Fisher’s rebuild in St. Louis was slowed and made more challenging by quarterback Sam Bradford’s two knee injuries — and lo and behold, the coach has charged ahead to use the 10th overall pick on another patient of Dr. James Andrews, who did the repairs on Bradford.

Maybe Gurley will be ready to roll early in the 2015 season, or maybe he’ll have to redshirt. It’s a boom-or-bust move by Fisher, who is emboldened by the rare luxury of complete job security.

With three consecutive losing seasons in St. Louis in the books but apparently feeling no pressure from Rams owner Stan Kroenke to produce a winning record in 2015, Fisher has the freedom to take his time moving through something I’ve termed the perpetual rebuilding process.

Gurley fits the pattern.

Or as Rams GM Les Snead told Sirius NFL radio: “Our goal was this — look, this is a pick not to beat the Seattle Seahawks in week one, but more of a long-term option for us.”

Call me a whiner, but I think beating the Seahawks in the first game is actually a good idea. Given that the Rams haven’t given their fans a winning season since 2003, you’d think there’d be some urgency to win as soon as possible.

Fisher already had drafted four running backs in his first three drafts, and now he’s gone all-in for a fifth. Where this will lead is anyone’s guess — but hopefully it will lead to the end zone more often.

To his credit, Fisher put some heft and muscle in front of Gurley by drafting massive Wisconsin right tackle Rob Havenstein with the 57th overall selection and choosing Louisville’s Jamon Brown, a projected guard, at No. 89.

Fisher wants to party like it’s 1999, when he had Eddie George powering his way past tired defenses to lead the coach’s Tennessee Titans to the AFC championship.

You see, much of this is about Fisher’s football pedigree. His limited success as an NFL head coach has featured a marquee running back. Pounding the ball is what Fisher believes in, and he’s determined to prove that you don’t need a prolific passing game to win in the NFL. Did anyone really expect Fisher to change? It’s much too late for that.

In gambling on Gurley, Fisher is restamping his football identity for all to see. If he wants to, the coach can refer to Seattle and running back Marshawn Lynch as as a triumphant example of his philosophy. But the Seahawks didn’t draft Lynch; they traded for him. And they also have another crucial part of the winning equation in quarterback Russell Wilson.

The NFL is definitely a passing league now, and recent history offers some lessons on the strategy of putting your offense on the back of a runner.

Over the previous 10 drafts (2005-2014) only eight running backs went off the board during the first 10 picks. The most famous was Adrian Peterson, who went to Minnesota on the seventh overall pick in 2007.

But while Peterson is a future Hall of Famer who already has three All-Pro honors and six Pro Bowls to his name, this number is more telling: The Vikings have a regular-season record of 51-52-1 and a 1-3 postseason mark when Peterson plays.

Those eight Top 10 running backs have combined for a .466 winning percentage when in the lineup for their teams. And excluding Peterson, the other seven backs have been chosen for two Pro Bowls, combined. And that’s in 39 NFL seasons collectively.

By now it’s obvious that a team almost always needs to have a very good quarterback and an impactful passing game to win consistently in the NFL.

For all of Peterson’s excellence, he hasn’t been able to transform the Vikings into a dependable winner or champion. Not with Christian Ponder, Tarvraris Jackson, Matt Cassel, Joe Webb, Gus Frerotte and the ancient Brett Favre among his quarterbacks.

I don’t hate this pick, though.

I’m just truly conflicted.

I like it because I’ve been part of the chorus that’s been yapping at Fisher to do something to upgrade a plodding offense that’s ranked 27th in touchdowns from scrimmage and 29th in total yards over the coach’s three seasons.

I’ve been among those clamoring for the Rams to add playmakers to their dull offense.

Fisher has tried to juice it up by trading for Philadelphia quarterback Nick Foles, picking Gurley and drafting two imposing bouncers to clear a path for the big UGA Dawg. And in the third round Friday, Fisher added another rookie offensive prospect by drafting Oregon State QB Sean Mannion.

All of this certainly qualifies as addressing the offense. So I’d be a hypocrite for ripping Fisher’s decision to make the change at quarterback with Foles, or his approach in this draft through three rounds.

I don’t know what to expect from Mannion, but other than Bradford this is the earliest the Rams have pulled a QB in the draft since Tony Banks was a second-round choice in 1996.

If Foles plays well and the Gurley show can ramp up, this could be fun to watch.

That said, you’d have to be pretty naive to ignore the concerns over Gurley’s knee and durability. And you’d have to be a straight-up fool to ignore the way offensive football has evolved in this league, and to dismiss the questionable value of drafting running backs so early.

I know that these instant-reaction columns are supposed to be hot takes that shout “genius!” or “idiot!” when assessing a team’s draft work.

Well, I won’t do that. I like the Gurley choice, but it’s also a scary pick and I don’t know what will happen here. Much like the Rams’ future in St. Louis, we’ll know a lot more a year from now.

 

[RamBill]

Rams third round draft pick Sean Mannion talks about celebrating at home with his family right after getting chosen. Includes some of his highlights from Oregon State.

Watch Mannion Inteview