Two things occur to me about our projected starting OL...

[Rams43]

It’s really not all that hazy when you break it down a bit.

We already seem to know the names of three of our starters.

Whit
Blythe
Hav

Barring injury, those three guys are our opening day starters, I think.

Which reduces our unknowns to just the two OG positions. IOW, Kromer has the entire rest of camp to shuffle and tweak those 2 positions and he seems to have no shortage of quality candidates, does he?

I, too, am a bit surprised by who and where Kromer is inserting players. I had thought it would surely be Corbett at LG and Edwards at RG, but Kromer has forgotten more about OL play than I ever will know and if he wants to tinker then that’s fine by me. Certainly makes it appear that our OL depth might be even better than I had thought.

 

[LARAMSinFeb.]

I find Noteboom back at G very disturbing. My confidence about this year is greatly reduced based on that.

Then again I'm just a random ROD guy and I hope I'm wrong, like I hoped this time last year....

DMarco says it's good to put the "athletes" on the left side and the road graders on the right, because most runs are to the right (which I didn't realize).

 

[Neil039]

As long as the best 5 start on game game I’ll be happy.

 

[Ramhusker]

I find Noteboom back at G very disturbing. My confidence about this year is greatly reduced based on that.

Then again I'm just a random ROD guy and I hope I'm wrong, like I hoped this time last year....

DMarco says it's good to put the "athletes" on the left side and the road graders on the right, because most runs are to the right (which I didn't realize).

A year can make a world of difference in some players so maybe Noteboom has made a transition. I'm choosing to positive on him until he proves otherwise this season. Good thing is it appears we have at least decent backups in case he flops.

 

[BonifayRam]

A year can make a world of difference in some players so maybe Noteboom has made a transition. I'm choosing to positive on him until he proves otherwise this season. Good thing is it appears we have at least decent backups in case he flops.

One would think when you know your 2019 season first as an NFL starter was mostly done in "Fail-Mode" then end abruptly during the 6th game with a horrific right knee injury......I believe Noteboom has spent much of his time since this terrible national debacle in getting himself physically sound in his knee, being stronger in all other parts of his body & most important of all preparing & loading his brain with the OL technical knowledge to delete last season from his mind.

 

[RamsOfCastamere]

For the long run, I do hope Noteboom excels at LG. That would mean he has more starting experience before it's time for Whit to hang up the cleats, and we wouldn't have to worry as much about him getting used to game speed.

 

[MachS]

A year can make a world of difference in some players so maybe Noteboom has made a transition. I'm choosing to positive on him until he proves otherwise this season. Good thing is it appears we have at least decent backups in case he flops.

He's been injured for the past 9 months doing nothing but rehab his ACL + MCL tear. What "development" could he have made in the past year? His rookie year he red-shirted and was being trained at guard, went through the entire off-season healthy and then played horribly last year.

McVay now wants us to believe that during the past 9 months of rehabbing his torn up knee, playing guard suddenly "clicked" for him and he's a much better player after his horrible 2019? I dont buy it for one minute, it just doesn't logically make sense. I think McVay is trying to get him additional live reps to help speed up his knee recovery maybe. I just cant see how right now he's better at guard than Edwards after what we all witnessed last season.

 

[CGI_Ram]

He's been injured for the past 9 months doing nothing but rehab his ACL + MCL tear. What "development" could he have made in the past year?

You could argue he’s been able to dedicate a lot of time to his conditioning and overall physicality recovering from that. In particular a push to the finish to get ready for the season, if he did.

You could argue that.

 

[Merlin]

Well this offseason we kind of have a good reason to nuke everything we hear, but tbh I think most fans I've read are taking things with a grain of salt and waiting to see how it shakes out.

But I'll say again that IF Corbett and Boom are the two best OGs it'll make our line stronger. I don't think that's gonna happen. But Edwards is a legit starter level player IMO so if he's on the bench it means we're in business.

Also irt the Rams allowing non-performers to keep jobs on this year's line... I doubt that happens again. That shit was terrible and you can't tell me McVay didn't learn from it. So not gonna worry about it other than to say I need to see Boom on live snaps handling himself to get in line with him starting, simply because he was not strong enough and coming back from the injury could he also make a big jump in strength? I suppose but again will just need to see him playing well to feel good about it.

 

[Ram65]

Noteboom needed a vote of confidence from the Rams. He needed to get back out on the field to rebuild his own confidence. I wonder if he just got overwhelmed last year playing offensive guard for the first time. We have to count on camp reports and some of the video available to see how he does. It's a big surprise but, he was a higher draft pick that the Rams had confidence in.

I wonder if the Rams wanted to go with the shorter Colbert at RG as Edwards was a bit taller than most OG. It's hard to imagine him being better than Edwards based on last year. Again we will have look at available video and reports to see how he does.

I'm keeping an open mind hoping the Rams get the best offensive line they can with the players available.

 

[Jacobarch]

Yeah I'm not too stoked on boom back at guard. But maybe the Rams have bigger plans for Edwards? Because honestly he played better than Boom

 

[Neil039]

It’s amazing watching a player try to play out of position. Personally, I don’t see it as a weakness. Players along with all of us have our comfort zone or skill set to a specific role. Some players can bounce around and never skip a beat. Others just have that defined role and need to stick to it for success. If Notebloom can’t play guard and isn’t up to the task of taking a Tackle spot move on IMO.

Sorry if there are typos, my iPad appears to correct to another language lately.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

As long as the best 5 start on game day play very well, I’ll be happy.

CITY

A year can make a world of difference in some players so maybe Noteboom has made a transition. I'm choosing to positive on him until he proves otherwise this season. Good thing is it appears we have at least decent backups in case he flops.

He kind of proved you wrong last season, didn't he?

One would think when you know your 2019 season first as an NFL starter was mostly done in "Fail-Mode" then end abruptly during the 6th game with a horrific right knee injury......I believe Noteboom has spent much of his time since this terrible national debacle in getting himself physically sound in his knee, being stronger in all other parts of his body & most important of all preparing & loading his brain with the OL technical knowledge to delete last season from his mind.

This would be a best case scenario, but Joe didn't seem to have the strength to play guard last year when he was healthy. I don't know how that could suddenly change. Second level blocking was another big problem for him. I think that is the type of skill that either takes a long time to develop or maybe one that a guy either has or doesnt. So I'm not expecting much improvement.

He's been injured for the past 9 months doing nothing but rehab his ACL + MCL tear. What "development" could he have made in the past year? His rookie year he red-shirted and was being trained at guard, went through the entire off-season healthy and then played horribly last year.

McVay now wants us to believe that during the past 9 months of rehabbing his torn up knee, playing guard suddenly "clicked" for him and he's a much better player after his horrible 2019? I dont buy it for one minute, it just doesn't logically make sense. I think McVay is trying to get him additional live reps to help speed up his knee recovery maybe. I just cant see how right now he's better at guard than Edwards after what we all witnessed last season.

Me neither, except for Edwards being a little on the stiff side. Maybe they want the better athlete in the left instead of the stronger player? I'd get that by midseason Noteboom is replaced by Edwards.

 

[TexasRam]

Noteboom isn’t a guard and never will be a good one. I’ll put money on that .

 

[leoram]

So much of the OL game is mental and this is where both Noteboom’s frustrating experience and subsequent injury time to observe can be transformative. Before I explain the progression, let’s consider that last year both he and Allen were groomed for LG and C, but only Boom kept his job so it’s not like the coaches are blindly returning these guys to their positions out of stubbornness. Also, Boom’s athleticism is superior to both Corbett and Edwards so his potential has a higher ceiling.

Mental reps and pre-imaging are essential tools for unlocking potential in athletes. A pitcher in baseball has to synch up his rocker step, leg kick, hip rotation, stride, release point, and follow through. He has to imagine and then feel each part of it before he practices them on the mound. For linemen, there are so many factors to process that it makes most player’s heads spin and that’s where Boom was last year. It starts with assignment recognition and the ability to quickly adjust if the defense so predicates. Then there’s the snap count that needs to become a natural and subliminal reaction. A proper stance, get off, strike, stick, and follow through need to be semi-automatic somewhat like what I described for a pitcher. Then there’s the ability to counter like a wrestler when a DLineman executes his move. IF AND ONLY IF, six games of poor execution were absorbed in his mind as training for the necessary mental reps to allow him to play more instinctively, we may see a much improved player this year. What’s more, if this didn’t occur...do any of us really think McVay and Kromer would fail to recognize it?

I need to see him in game action a couple times to evaluate his real progress but I agree with the coaching staff that giving up his potential this early would be a terrible waste at this juncture. Joe’s success now is the best long term option for the team going forward. But if he’s not up to it, wouldn’t you prefer to know now or relive the Greg Robinson nightmare of years past? This staff is unafraid to make such difficult decisions...see Gurley, Cooks, Peters, Talib, Matthews, et al.

 

[den-the-coach]

Noteboom isn’t a guard and never will be a good one. I’ll put money on that .

IDK, I like Boom at LT, but he admitted the footwork was different and that is what he was working on, he's back healthy which was a good sign and Edwards seem to struggle at the end especially with penalties, so I might be in the minority here, but I still believe Noteboom is one of the better five and feel good about him being at LG, especially if Kromer feels the same way.

Havenstein has come back in great shape, working out with Whitworth in the off season, so that is great news, because Havenstein was a fantastic run blocker and I believe we will see more of that this season. Corbett to right guard surprised me a bit, but again, although Edwards was a far better option then Demby, I believe Noteboom & Corbett are upgrades over Edwards and feel good about having Edwards for depth.

 

[Ramhusker]

CITY





He kind of proved you wrong last season, didn't he?

He couldn't prove me wrong last season since I had no idea what to expect. I certainly didn't expect him to be at Guard in the first place. I wasn't disappointed to see him get playing time at any position since he's supposed to be Whit's replacement pretty soon. I'm sure the Cowboy's game will tell us what's up.

 

[BonifayRam]

IDK, I like Boom at LT, but he admitted the footwork was different and that is what he was working on, he's back healthy which was a good sign and Edwards seem to struggle at the end especially with penalties, so I might be in the minority here, but I still believe Noteboom is one of the better five and feel good about him being at LG, especially if Kromer feels the same way.

Havenstein has come back in great shape, working out with Whitworth in the off season, so that is great news, because Havenstein was a fantastic run blocker and I believe we will see more of that this season. Corbett to right guard surprised me a bit, but again, although Edwards was a far better option then Demby, I believe Noteboom & Corbett are upgrades over Edwards and feel good about having Edwards for depth.

Yes From what little I could make out of Rob Havenstein #79 from limited video.... your right he sure looks to have trimmed down from what we saw all of him all last season.

This morning I have come to terms with the Noteboom starting @ LG over the other four OG prospects like David Edwards/ Austin Corbett/ Bobby Evans & Brian Allen whom all who played better as starters last season............is

Bottom line Rams have no other OL'ers out of this 13 total that can play LT other than Whitworth & Noteboom. That fact alone should tell us that if Noteboom does initially start @ LG again this season it's not going to be for any long term period this season. Noteboom is just a short time placeholder for 2nd year OG David Edwards, or OG Austin Corbett or Bobby Evans or even long shots OG Tremayne Anchrum & Jamil Demby.

You think that LT Andrew Whitworth was involved in the discussion as to which OL'er should get a good shot @ starting next to him?

P.S. September 6 at 9:00 am PT, the Rams can sign up to 16 players to their practice squad, Four of those players can be protected from signing with another NFL team. I would think that since OL'ers take such a long period of time to developed compared to all other positions that the PS will have a good amount of OL'ers signed to it & 2 OL are sure to be of the 4 that will be protected from theft by other teams.

 

[AvengerRam]

I think four things will result in better OL play this year:

1. Health: I'd like to think the odds are that our OL will not lose 3 Day 1 starters to injury during the course of the year (I know, Hav came back, but his year was pretty well scuttled by injury).

2. Depth: If the injury bug does bite, I think we have more quality depth than we did at this time last year.

3. Experience: Last year, we started the year with two guys who had barely played in the NFL. Now, every potential starter has at least a few NFL starts under his belt.

4. Lower degree of difficulty: I think we will run the ball more, and take pressure off the OL. Cam Akers, who I think will get the bulk of the carries, is an OL's dream - a guy who can produce positive gains with little space (and, perhaps, won't be so prone to negative yard/zero gain plays that RBs looking for home runs sometimes have). Malcolm Brown is also a basic downhill runner. This isn't a knock on (the healthy version of) Todd Gurley, but if you have a less than stellar OL, sometimes its better to just have a guy who gets 4-5 yards consistently, rather than 10, 1, -1, 15, -1, 20...

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

Yes From what little I could make out of Rob Havenstein #79 from limited video.... your right he sure looks to have trimmed down from what we saw all of him all last season.

This morning I have come to terms with the Noteboom starting @ LG over the quadruplet like David Edwards/ Austin Corbett/ Bobby Evans & Brian Allen whom all who played better as starters last season............is

Bottom line Rams have no other OL'ers out of this 13 total that can play LT other than Whitworth & Noteboom. That fact alone should tell us that if Noteboom does initially start @ LG again this season it's not going to be for any long term period this season. Noteboom is just a short time placeholder for 2nd year OG David Edwards, or OG Austin Corbett or Bobby Evans or even long shots OG Tremayne Anchrum & Jamil Demby.

You think that LT Andrew Whitworth was involved in the discussion as to which OL'er should get a good shot @ starting next to him?

P.S. September 6 at 9:00 am PT, the Rams can sign up to 16 players to their practice squad, Four of those players can be protected from signing with another NFL team. I would think that since OL'ers take such a long period of time to developed compared to all other positions that the PS will have a good amount of OL'ers signed to it & 2 OL are sure to be of the 4 that will be protected from theft by other teams.

There are others on the team that have played Left Tackle in college. And I’m not so sure Noteboom is considered the heir apparent to Whitworth. If so why not be practicing him at OLT and why risk losing Joe to injury again if he’s considered second to Whitworth?

Unlike many of us fans maybe they think Joe could play well at guard. I think he clearly didn’t last year. Brewer is out this year but he seemed to be the backup tackle. Plus Evans( who coaches supposedly are impressed with) and Edwards played tackle in college. So did Anchrum.