Rams Being Shortsighted?

[Loyal]

I know I am over the moon about getting Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib. Re-signing Joyner and NRC are huge as well, but are we filling the team starting positions with FA’s instead of home grown guys?We’ve been following the build through the draft model until last year, but now it seems like we have abandoned that somewhat in a Win-Now mentality. How different is what the Rams are doing now with what Philly did a few years ago with the “Dream Team” failure?

Maybe the build through the draft model doesn’t work anymore, or are we just Shortsighted?

 

[…..]

Problem with building through the draft is that you can never build all areas. By the time you upgrade your QB, WR, and RB's.....that corner and Free Safety you drafted and coached up are now at the end of thier rookie contracts and commanding rediculous FA money.

Its a balance. You need smart FA signings to complete the team.

I'd consider the Rams moves thus far as "smart"

Remains to be seen though if we get better and address all the areas we need to become a playoff winner.

 

[OldSchool]

This is no different from last years off season!

Sign Woods, Sullivan, Whitworth, Webster, Blythe and NRC in free agency.

Trade for Watkins and Carrier.

Follow it up in the draft with a couple home runs in Kupp and Johnson and some other promising talent.

All while getting rid of guys McVay didn’t really want on offense now Wades doing the same with defense. This is the exact same process as last year. Nothing wrong at all with what we’re doing, if anything it’s better because we recouped draft picks we sent away by trading Quinn and Tree instead of cutting them. This, IMO, is winning!

 

[fearsomefour]

Too early to tell.
The goal was to fix the D backfield for the next couple of years without jeapordizing the ability to resign high ticket guys. Despite this being a tall order, they did it. That's awesome.
Now the rick is being competitive on the front side of the D without spending a ton on FA.
Drafting is fine but results are not immediate.
Littleton, Samson, Longacre in the LB core....
They have flashed ability. Enough to be every down starters? Who knows. Haven't seen enough for my taste. If that's the approach it a major roll of the dice. .

 

[BonifayRam]

Hard to build through the draft when you traded so many of the top Draft selections (First & Second day) picks away in what will be the last 3 drafts (2016/2017 & 2018). But we would not be going in the direction the Rams are headed without that trade for Goff.

I am fine with what I have seen this off season myself.I hope that Snead & McVay are very smart & shrewd in how they sign the highly overpriced non Rams UFA's. I prefer the resigning of known Ram OL'ers, Gurley, Marcus Peters, Aaron Donald, Lamarcus Joyner.

 

[Merlin]

I think they are being a little short sighted, yes. It was required in the secondary in order to overcome sins of the past, where they basically painted themselves into a corner and Les saved the day with some good trades. But this is what I was talking about when I mentioned them paying the wrong dudes in another thread.

It is still early, so we'll see, but unless we see some longer term deals with key guys knocked out in this offseason the answer will remain a yes. The OL still looms as the next short term flurry requirement for next offseason, and is something they shouldn't be effin with, so a move needs to be made there, one or two contract extensions to settle things a bit are in order. AD is in order too I hope, so they can be positioned to get Gurley knocked out.

Going into this offseason I felt it was a huge test for Les Snead. Well he seems to be on point to my eye at least. Question now in my mind remains whether Demoff is up to snuff.

 

[Loyal]

This is no different from last years off season!

Sign Woods, Sullivan, Whitworth, Webster, Blythe and NRC in free agency.

Trade for Watkins and Carrier.

Follow it up in the draft with a couple home runs in Kupp and Johnson and some other promising talent.

All while getting rid of guys McVay didn’t really want on offense now Wades doing the same with defense. This is the exact same process as last year. Nothing wrong at all with what we’re doing, if anything it’s better because we recouped draft picks we sent away by trading Quinn and Tree instead of cutting them. This, IMO, is winning!

Slow yur roll, Jackwagon! ~LACHAMP46

 

[bomebadeeda]

The home grown guys, are from a different system. We got by last year. Now wade is putting his stamp on things. Are we better. On paper one would have to say yes. In reality....we'll see. But I like the direction being taken. Now to get some Linebackers and a Nose Guard.

 

[Kevin]

NFL free agency feels similar to an auction draft in fantasy football. People tend to overpay for stars early in the draft/free agency, but there are always good players available later for much less money. It takes patience and self-discipline, but good players will be around later in this free agency frenzy for a fraction of what is being paid out now. There will also be more players made available in trades or released outright, and the Rams will be watching and waiting to make a reasonable offer. This approach, balanced with an educated guess as to the players we may be able to draft to fill the holes on our roster, will keep us competitive for the long term. Hang in there!

 

[FrantikRam]

In this case, we had home grown guys who across the board are/were making more than free agents/guys from outside: Trumaine/Tree/Quinn - 15/10/12 million.

Peters/Talib/NRC combined cost barely more than Trumaine by himself.

I'd think they were being shortsighted if they hung on to Tree/Quinn and paid Trumaine that much money.

I really doubt Peters and Talib are Rams going into the 2020 season. We'll have Donald and a few others to anchor the D (young guys or players yet to be drafted), and Goff/Gurley/Kupp to anchor the O.

 

[Dieter the Brock]

I think all these moves are about the long-term future
In Kromer we trust -- But I still think we need to get a back-up left tackle and one for the future. Asking for Whitworth and Sullivan to be 100% next year at their ages is asking a lot.
I think when FA and this draft shake out you'll see how they are indeed looking at the long term.
What Snead and McVay did with the secondary, and by trading away Tree and Quinn is to sign AD long term. Plus we got better.
Watch them address DE's and Left Tackle prospect in the draft, and get some FA's to plug the gap on the line and with the LBing corp and at Center like they tried with groy last year.
With the money being thrown around in FA, it's those second tier players who will be good role players in our system
We won't be the youngest team in the league - or the second - but might be the 5th

 

[RamFan503]

You have to draft and hit free agency well. With rookie deals being renegotiated before they end, that is even more important. You need to be able to take advantage of cheap contracts, try to retain your better draft picks and supplement through FA. It's a tough balancing act.

 

[WestCoastRam]

I think one of the arguments these days is that draftees are no longer at the same premium they used to be. With such a gulf between skills players need from college to the pros, often new players take longer to become as adept at their jobs as in the past. Getting a player on their 2nd contract seems much more important than ever as these are their prime years, one can do that through homegrown talent but trading and FA are seen as equally valuable these days and less problematic within themselves for various reasons, better cap management, cap inflation, reduction in draft capital value.

Where once trying to build your team through FA was seen as folly and trades rarely happened, we have entered into a new era of the NFL where some greater combination of this and drafting will be the new norm. There will still be certain scenarios that will most likely never change. (IE, you pretty much have to draft your own QB, getting one in FA or trade is the rarer scenario).

 

[Ants]

How different is what the Rams are doing now with what Philly did a few years ago with the “Dream Team” failure?

I'd be lying if I said the "dream team" thing didn't come to mind for me as well.

 

[Picked4td]

Someone is gonna have to explain to me how this is short sighted. They only guys they have signed this free agency we're with the team last year (depth cb a shields aside). I mean I guess if you really want you can count talib and peters as "free agents" but combined they make less than tru which saves money to be used to invest in the future on another players contracr. Plus peters is still on his rookie deal which is almost like being home grown talent

 

[Ants]

NFL free agency feels similar to an auction draft in fantasy football. People tend to overpay for stars early in the draft/free agency, but there are always good players available later for much less money. It takes patience and self-discipline, but good players will be around later in this free agency frenzy for a fraction of what is being paid out now. There will also be more players made available in trades or released outright, and the Rams will be watching and waiting to make a reasonable offer. This approach, balanced with an educated guess as to the players we may be able to draft to fill the holes on our roster, will keep us competitive for the long term. Hang in there!

Well said!

 

[Dieter the Brock]

How different is what the Rams are doing now with what Philly did a few years ago with the “Dream Team” failure?

Maybe the build through the draft model doesn’t work anymore, or are we just Shortsighted?

The big difference is the Rams haven't signed a guy like Vince Young - just 2 of the best corners in football via trades, one who is an All Pro, young, and a turnover machine, and the other a Super Bowl champion who is familiar with Wade's style

Nothing close to the failed "dreamteam" but yeah, that team and stupid VY it's always gonna cross your mind when a team makes bold moves like we have

 

[WestCoastRam]

I mean, that Eagles team added two stud corners in FA that year... so, yeah...

 

[I like Rams]

I'm not worried. Who would be worried with 6 picks in the 6th round?










But seriously, im not worried.

 

[OnceARam]

I know I am over the moon about getting Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib. Re-signing Joyner and NRC are huge as well, but are we filling the team starting positions with FA’s instead of home grown guys?We’ve been following the build through the draft model until last year, but now it seems like we have abandoned that somewhat in a Win-Now mentality. How different is what the Rams are doing now with what Philly did a few years ago with the “Dream Team” failure?

Maybe the build through the draft model doesn’t work anymore, or are we just Shortsighted?

The build through the draft model doesn't work anymore.

Look at last years SuperBowl teams.

Look at the Packers.