What Scott Wells offers Rams' Bradford (ESPN)

[bluecoconuts]

What Scott Wells offers Rams' Bradford
By Mike Sando

The St. Louis Rams are getting one of the better centers in the NFL. They're also getting a veteran with the ability to assist Sam Bradford's development as a quarterback.

That is the immediate takeaway from news the Rams have agreed to terms with veteran center Scott Wells, who earned a Pro Bowl berth with the Green Bay Packers last season.

The Rams loaded up Bradford with additional responsibilities last season, including making protection calls at the line of scrimmage. Wells, the Packers' starting center since 2006, became a resource for Aaron Rodgers.

Rodgers has recently credited Wells for helping take pressure off him mentally. The Rams are looking to help Bradford with a strong running game. Having a veteran center known for his attention to detail also looks like a Bradford-friendly move.

"Scott knows the offense as well as anybody in the building," Rodgers told Jason Wilde of ESPNMilwaukee. "I'd say, if you look at guys who really are the smartest players on the team -- and I'm not going to include myself in that mix -- Scott Wells and (fullback) John Kuhn know the offense as well as anybody and they're able to make checks without me even saying anything."

That should be a huge asset for Bradford.

"It takes a ton of stress and pressure off of me and my film study and my preparation when I know that if I guess wrong, or [hil]if I'm unsure about a look, that I know Scotty is going to be right there next to me, a step ahead of me at times[/hil], knowing what the call needs to be," Rodgers said. [hil]"Scotty and his smarts take a ton of pressure off me."[/hil]
Matt Williamson of Scouts Inc., speaking to Paul Kuharsky of the AFC South blog when Wells and Chris Myers were under consideration for Tennessee, had this to say about the 31-year-old center: "Myers is the better player -- and in his prime -- but Wells is a top-seven or -eight center, too. ... Wells is a tough guy that Mike Munchak will love."

Jason Brown was the Rams' starting center last season. The previous coaching staff benched him for Tony Wragge. The Rams released Brown, 28. Wragge, 32, is an unrestricted free agent.

Brown was already the starter when the Rams drafted Bradford in 2010.

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcwest/post/_/ ... s-bradford

 

[quebecramfan]

This may add alot to our young qb's carreer... Go SAM!!!

 

[boondock]

I LOVE this signing.

 

[-X-]

TST did an interview with one of their affiliate sites' bloggers on Wells...
http://www.turfshowtimes.com/2012/3/17/ ... bout-scott



Super excited about our new center, and I got ahold of Kevin, who was gracious enough to answer a few quick questions about Scott Wells, the Rams new Pro Bowl center

Rick: Let's start by talking about your team. Scott Wells is a pro bowl center that had been with the team since 2004, acting as the bridge from Favre to Rodgers. He will not be easy to replace. Do you have someone currently on the roster that can fill that void, or do you anticipate a free agent move or draft pick to fill his shoes?

Kevin: I think it's going to have to be a free agent or draft pick. There have been some grumblings that G/C Evan Dietrich-Smith could potentially be a starting center in the future, but based on what I've seen from him in preseason and very limited regular season action, I don't think he's ever going to be a high-quality NFL starting center.

How would you describe Scott Wells as a player? A hard worker? A team leader? Smart? Finesse? Physical? All of the above? Something else entirely?

Kevin: He's more of a finesse than physical player for an offensive lineman and he's extremely intelligent. Aaron Rodgers has said that Wells is the player who knows the offense best and he frequently changes protections at the line. This should be a very big help for Sam Bradford.

**********​

Maybe the biggest issue for the Rams on the offensive side of the ball last year was keeping Sam Bradford upright. He was sacked nearly one out of every ten drop backs. Will Scott be able to make a difference to the teams pass protection, and help keep Sam upright and healthy?

Kevin: Yes, absolutely. Wells is a competent, but not elite run blocker. In pass protection, he is one of the best centers in the league. Both because of his pass blocking skills and because of how good he is at making reads and changing protections at the line, he should help in that department immensely.

One of the major issues in pass protection was the calling of protections. Sam really struggled with this, and Jason Brown was virtually useless. Is protection calling something Scott Wells is familiar with?

Kevin: Oops, I probably should have read all the questions, then answered! As you read above, yes, this is what makes him extremely valuable. It's his biggest asset.

Hate to bring up a painful subject, but in the Packers playoff loss to the Giants, protections really broke down, allowing 4 sacks, which lead to 4 turnovers. Any comments on how Scott, in particular, played in that game?

Kevin: I didn't notice any problem with Wells in that game. I would have to watch the game back to be completely sure, but I don't recall Wells making any major mistakes and I don't believe that his play directly led to any of the sacks.

Scott was the center that helped Aaron Rodgers go from young quarterback taking over for a legend to a Super Bowl and league MVP. How instrumental was Scott to Aaron Rodgers development? What do you think he can bring to the Rams and Sam's development that he learned from that experience?

Kevin: I don't think that I can answer that question without really being embedded with the team. From just watching games and listening to interviews, you can figure out that someone is an intelligent player and that they're good at adjusting protections, but I don't feel comfortable making a determination either way on whether or not Wells had much to do with Rodgers becoming an elite quarterback. But, because Wells is such an intelligent player, it seems logical to assume that he will help Bradford become a better player.

With Scott coming off of a pro bowl season, are you surprised the Packers allowed him to walk away, rather than use their franchise tag on him?

Kevin: No, not at all. The Packers are under the cap, but only by $7m. They couldn't afford to gamble that he would be willing to sign a long-term contract that they were agreeable to.

Any other comments on Scott Wells, the Packers, the Rams, or anything else football related?

Kevin: Football is awesome.

 

[RamFan503]

It will be interesting to also see if Wells makes the rest of the line better as well. I realize they can't play much worse but....

I just don't know how much more money the team wants to spend on that O-line. It is time to have players step up and play like a unit. We shouldn't need a bunch of all pros for that - should we?

 

[Ramhusker]

It will be interesting to also see if Wells makes the rest of the line better as well. I realize they can't play much worse but....

I just don't know how much more money the team wants to spend on that O-line. It is time to have players step up and play like a unit. We shouldn't need a bunch of all pros for that - should we?

That's probably the plan. Put a proven Center that knows how to read a D in there with what ya have and let the other follow his lead. I think this coaching staff is saying we are going to give these young Tackles a chance. Fisher probably thinks Bell can return to how he played under him before and they know Dahl is a beast. Should be interesting to watch. I think they will add a OL with the draft, although it may come later in the draft. (Round 4 or later)

 

[bluecoconuts]

Bell is a FA, they might be letting him test the waters (I mean really, it's not like he's going to be given a great contract after his last few years) and then bringing him back cheap, but so far it seems they're just letting him walk.

 

[Angry Ram]

Already callin him Scotty, eh?

Sounds like a good relationship aboot to happen.