Offseason? What NFL offseason?

We had a two week down-ish window between the Super Bowl and the combine (or as NFL Network’s draft guru extraordinaire Mike Mayock calls it the “Underwear Olympics.”) But don’t be mistaken, something is always going on in the NFL and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

1) I think WR Titus Young Sr. must be quite the basket case.

Now you see him then now you don’t. The Rams were the only NFL team to put a claim on Young Sr. after the Detroit Lions said enough was enough. This wasn’t a complete head scratching move on the Rams part because the situation at wide receiver is still very much in flux in St. Louis. So why not take a low risk gamble on a very troubled yet talented player.

Yet Rams head coach Jeff Fisher and company decided Young Sr. wasn’t worth the headache after nine days.

We just felt like he was not the best option for us at that position. We went into detail. We felt like we’ve got a good young group, and we feel like perhaps Titus is better suited for another organization.

And this coming from a coach that took chances on some non-Four Pillar-esque players such as Janoris Jenkins, Chris Givens and Trumaine Johnson.

If Fisher didn’t give you a chance you might be done playing in this league, Mr. Young.

» Continue reading “Five Things I Think – St. Louis Rams Early Offseason Edition”

St. Louis Rams defense huddle. (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

The home season finale at the Edward Jones Dome didn’t go quite as planned. The score at half time ballooned to 30-7 and the Rams got lost searching for their missing offense. They’ve had a habit of starting games slowly and this time the deficit was too big to overcome.

All Day Made The Rams Pay

I fully expected the Rams to win Sunday. I knew Vikings powerhouse running back Adrian Peterson would run on the Rams. With that being said, I didn’t think I’d witness a 212-yard spanking. He did almost half of the damage on two runs in the second half: 82 yards that resulted in a TD and 52 yards that ended with a 51-yard field goal by kicker Blair Walsh. In all fairness to the Rams defense they did hold Peterson in check for a good portion of the game. It’s just that when he did break a couple of runs he really gored them.

The Usual Penalties 

The Rams offense drudged through the first quarter on their way to eight penalties. So last week’s two flags were the anomaly. Four false starts by the offensive line (seriously who gets called for false starts at home?!),  holding calls on left tackle Rodger Saffold, and my personal favorite the unsportsmanlike conduct taunting flag on wide receiver Brandon Gibson.

Just when the Rams have you believing they are headed in the right direction they take a detour the next game. This latest loss may have directed them out of the playoffs.

» Continue reading “36-22 Loss To Vikings Detours Rams Playoff Chances”

In week 10, the first meeting between the two teams ended in a 24-24 tie. It was an unbelievable foot stomping, hair pulling, deep sighing tie. The ups and downs that occurred just in the 15 minutes of overtime were enough to render a Dramamine sedated fan nauseous. Here are my real time game notes if you’re wanting to relive the roller coaster ride.

Even though the Rams and 49ers are playing again in the span of four weeks, Sunday’s week 13 match up will not be the same for four reasons.

1) Rams will most likely be without wide receiver Danny Amendola.

Amendola has not practiced all week nursing a foot injury. He’s been seen off and on with a walking boot at Rams Park which is never a good sign even, if precautionary. He was a big reason for the Rams success against the 49ers in week 10 with 11 receptions for 102 yards. (And that’s not including the 80-yard bomb that should have counted but got wiped out by stupid penalties.)

Amendola is officially listed as doubtful.

2) The 49ers will be getting their first real glimpse at rookies cornerback Janoris Jenkins and wide receiver Chris Givens.

The Rams dynamic duo got into some dynamic trouble on the business trip to the Bay Area a few weeks ago. Coach Fisher put his foot down and the two were relegated to running stairs during pre-game warm ups and watching helplessly on the sidelines.

Since coming off the figurative naughty chair the two have made a big impact – especially last week against the Cardinals. Jenkins returned two INTs for touchdowns (He scored 12 of the team’s 31 points) and Givens had five receptions for 115 yards and 1 TD.

3) Rams center Scott Wells will be playing.

The anchor(man) of the Rams offensive line, (I am Scott Wells?) was not available in week 10 but returned last week. His presence immediately upgrades the line in turn upgrades the offense.

» Continue reading “San Francisco 49ers At St. Louis Rams Week 13 Preview”

Rams RB Steven Jackson: Probably the only player that got a passing grade in Sunday’s game. (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

NFL analysts and Vegas had the Rams 3.5 point favorites coming off the almost win against the very stout San Francisco 49ers team. I should have known something was up when NFL LIVE’s Mark Schlereth and Tedy Bruschi sang the Rams’ praises. Even the NFL Network Gameday Morning crew picked the Rams to beat the lowly struggling New York Jets. Red flag alert!

For what it’s worth I had the game score at 14-30. The final score of the game was 28-13. I just had the teams wrong.

And then from my game preview.

If the Rams don’t beat themselves they’ll beat the Jets. The Rams have to eliminate the stupid penalties and they can’t allow this become the trap game that people are speculating it could be. They have to win against the teams they are expected to beat.

Key words here include:

1) Stupid penalties – How about that phantom-ish holding call safety Rodney McLeod that wiped out the 98-yard kick return TD by wide receiver Chris Givens?

Here’s what Coach Fisher said when asked what his thoughts were on the penalty.

To me, no? Did it like like that to you? No. We’re not good enough to overcome those kinds of things and the fact that it wasn’t a hold, but it’s just kind of the way it happens. You don’t know what happens with the momentum change in that game if that works.

Or the illegal motion penalty on wide receiver Danny Amendola that negated a key 17-yard reception by tight end Lance Kendricks? All in all the Rams committed less fouls this game – ONLY five penalties for 30 yards. It’s a vast improvement from last week’s 13 but those two specific flags came at very inopportune times.

» Continue reading “Rams Lose 28-13 To Jets In Flat Fashion”

I cannot tell a lie. This is one game I had circled back in April when the 2012-2013 Rams schedule was released. This and the London game against the New England Patriots. Hopefully this game will have much better results.

I even predicted that by week 11 the famed Jets back up QB/Punt Protector Tim Tebow would be the starting instead of Mark Sanchez.

Tebow may not get the starting nod but I’d bet my money on Jets head coach Rex Ryan using some sort of Tebow package. If the Jets watched any game tape from the Rams-49ers game they’ll know Tebow can run outside a la San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

I’m going to try something new (Thanks to our Broncos  writer, Brenda.) by jotting down observations, big plays, and anything else that stands out during each quarter.

Let’s see how this goes…

First quarter

The big news of the afternoon: Rookies Janoris Jenkins (CB) and Chris Givens (WR) – INACTIVE for today’s game. On top of that third string DT Kellen Heard was released. All stemming from what the Rams are calling a violation of team rules.

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DT Michael Brockers and DE Robert Quinn share a sack on 49ers QB Alex Smith.

The Rams must have read my game preview. They marched down the field 66 yards with the ground and pound via Steven Jackson in the opening drive. This set up a 36-yard TD from Sam Bradford to rookie wide receiver Brian Quick. Welcome to the game, Mr. Quick. We’ve been waiting for this type of play from you.

Rams defense doing their best to stop RB Frank Gore and the Niners run game. DT Jermelle Cudjo with a big third down tackle for loss. So far so good.

More ground work as Steven Jackson rumbles in 7 yards to score the Rams second TD. They are up 14-0 with 1:47 left in the first quarter. Yep, you heard right. First quarter.

The Rams are pumped and taking it to the 49ers right now. I think they are a little stunned. I know I am.

» Continue reading “Rams At 49ers: Quarter Quick Hits”

The only bright spot in Sunday’s loss: St. Louis Rams WR Chris Givens (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

Not that the 3-4 Rams were high flying going to London but if there ever was a wake up game for the Rams, this was it. Expectations were a bit higher than they probably should have been considering the Rams played the Packers close last week.

I was expecting a close game. I didn’t think they would win but I at least thought they’d keep it close and the Patriots would win in at the end.

But it wasn’t even close. The Rams crash and burned in Wembley Stadium in front of 84,000 plus NFL fans.

The game started out beautifully with a 50-yard touchdown pass from Sam Bradford to rookie wide receiver Chris Givens. That was Givens‘ fifth consecutive 50+ yard reception. Boom. Just like that the Rams had the lead on New England 0-7.

That lead lasted all of 4 minutes and 35 seconds. Tom Brady threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to former Rams wide receiver Brandon Lloyd and the Patriots never looked back.

» Continue reading “Mayday Mayday, Rams Wrecked At Wembley 45-7″

Week 8 is finally here and honestly I’m not sure how I feel about it. Kind of a mixed bag of emotions. On one hand, like many other local St. Louis fans, I’m upset that we’ve lost a home game and the advantages that come along with playing in the Edward Jones Dome. It also would have been nice to watch certain New England Patriots play in person. Of course I’m talking about Danny Woodhead. Who else?

On the other hand, what a great opportunity for the Rams fans in the UK and abroad. I have many tweeps in the UK that are just thrilled to be able to see their cherished team in the flesh. Some have been counting down the days and hours since the announcements were made January 2012.

Here is a long time Rams UK tweep @PFF_RossMiles. See the joy on his face. Almost makes it worth losing that home game. Almost…

St. Louis Rams great Torry Holt and Ross Miles (Ross’ personal photo.)

Ultimately, this weekend is about the match up between your beloved Rams and the New England Patriots. If my research is correct, quarterback Tom Brady is the only remaining Patriot from that Super Bowl XXXVI squad. But I digress.

Five Things I’ll be watching for in Week 8

1) Can Rams quarterback Sam Bradford live up to the pre-grame hype?

With everyone and their third cousin’s uncle poo-pooing the Patriots secondary the pressure is on Bradford to put up some big time numbers on Sunday.

New England is giving up an average of 23.3 points per game (19th in the league) and their passing defense is giving up on average 290 yards per game (29th) to opposing teams.

» Continue reading “New England Patriots At St. Louis Rams Week 8 Preview”

The Rams take their third road trip of the season to Miami this week as they try to win their first game away from Dome Sweet Dome. The Miami Dolphins are coming off their first road win as they defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 17-13.

There they will face another rookie quarterback in Ryan Tannehill. Tannehill threw for 223 yards but none of them connecting on touchdowns. In fact, Tannehill has only thrown two touchdowns this season and six interceptions. He could be adding few to that latter stat by the end of week 6 and I don’t see him padding his touchdown stats either. His offensive line should have their hands full with the Rams front four.

Basically, the defense will have to carry the burden and much of the load for a Rams offense that has yet to score a rushing touchdown this season. They are the only remaining team to hold such infamous distinction since Tennessee Titan back up running back Jamie Harper vultured a touchdown from Chris Johnson owners on Thursday night.

With the Dolphins only giving up 61.4 yards per game, the best rushing defense in the league, don’t be surprised if the Rams go into week 7 still without a rushing touchdown. Their best bet is to change it up on the Dolphins rush defense by giving them calculating doses of Steven Jackson and Daryl Richardson. Will Isaiah Pead see many snaps? Your guess is as good as mine.

» Continue reading “St. Louis Rams At Miami Dolphins Week 6 Preview”

Arizona Cardinals QB Kevin Kolb sacked by Rams DT Jermelle Cudjo. 10/04/12 (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

Isn’t that just a thing of beauty – from a Rams perspective, of course. If you’re Kevin Kolb this was the reoccurring nightmare that haunted him all night as he was sacked nine times at the Edward Jones Dome. In all, seven Rams defensive players took turns bringing Kolb to the turf. Only defensive end Robert Quinn recorded a hat trick for three sacks.

The Rams defense was more or less the story of the Thursday Night Football. They had their way with the Arizona Cardinals offensively scary offensive line. Poor Cardinal tackles D’Anthony Batiste and Bobby Massie had a long night. The only player who had a worse night - Kolb. Bloody lip, multiple hits, and as you can see from the photo above he had a 311 pound defensive tackle just flatten him. Say what you will about Kolb’s play but you can’t deny that he’s one tough son of a gun.

1) A Rams running man needs to show up.

 The Cardinals are giving up on average 101 yards on the ground which ranks them midrange (15th) in the league.  The collective efforts of Jackson, Richardson, and I’m hoping, Terrance Ganaway, will surpass the century mark.

Okay, so Ganaway didn’t see any action on the field but the Rams did manage to run more than 100 yards this game. Jackson managed to get some long runs during this game which helped set up the passing game. I sort of wondered how he’d play considering news of his contract changes had just come out. If this is indeed his last year playing as a Ram then he’s putting on a good show for future teams.

» Continue reading “Rams Beat Cardinals 3-17 To Stay Perfect At Dome Sweet Dome”