If day one of Rams free agency was about the big splash (Jared Cook) then day two can be summed up in three words: Long. Physical. Wait.

Rams fans were losing their minds waiting for the white smoke to appear from the top of Rams Park hoping that they would know either way what had happened with Miami Dolphin free agent left tackle Jake Long. Both Long and Detroit Lions safety Louis Delmas were at Rams Park getting poke and prodded to make sure their respective injury prone parts checked out.

Tight end Jared Cook officially signs with the Rams.

Rams Tight End Jared Cook signing his new contract at Rams Park (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

For all you salary cap buffs out there here are the specifics. As announced Monday morning, Cook received a 5-year, $31.5 million contract with $19 million guaranteed. His contract could go up to $38.5 million with incentives.

Now we need to get him a good nickname. I’ve seen the hashtag #TopChef from @STLouisRams. What do you think?

How many hours does it take for Jake Long to get his physical?

Apparently way too Long. (See what I did there.)

“Long Watch” was just that. It began around 7:00 a.m. St. Louis time with Rams fans hanging on each and every Jim Thomas tweet. Every once and a while we’d see an update from Ian Rapoport of NFL Network saying it’s still going. Meanwhile, all I can think of is, “Are we there yet?”

» Continue reading “Rams Free Agency Fast Five – Day Two”

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”

St. Louis Rams WR’s #87 Greg Salas and #83 Austin Pettis (2012 Training Camp, Personal Photo)

The St. Louis Rams continued their quest to improve the team by making some cuts that have some fans wondering WTH and some even upset.  Out are WR Greg Salas, CB Jerome Murphy, TE Mike Hoomanawanui, and OL Quinn Ojinnaka.  In are RB Terrance Ganaway, DT Kellen Heard, T Ty Nsekhe, and OG Shelley Smith.

Nick Wagoner of STLouisRams.com did make it a point to write “It needs to be mentioned again and this can’t be emphasized enough but this is by no means a hard and fast final roster. Fisher and GM Les Snead and their crew will be looking at everyone who hits the waiver wire in search of potential upgrades. We’ll have a much better idea of the 53 the Rams want to go into the regular season with come next Wednesday.”

And true to his words the Rams did just that.

» Continue reading “Rams Trade Salas, Cut Murphy, Hoomanawanui, And Ojinnaka”

The Rams O-Line: #62 G Harvey Dahl, #59 C /G Robert Turner, #67 G Bryan Mattison  (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

Right now these are the most important guys on the field in my book.  They are in charge of holding the pocket and protecting QB Sam Bradford from becoming another sack statistic in 2012.  But other than Harvey Dahl the other two are not projected starters.

Free agent center Scott Wells is finally able to participate in limited amounts at Thursday’s and according to offensive line coach Paul Boudreau he may see playing time in a couple of weeks.

Sam Bradford’s Cabin Fever

Sam Bradford swears he hasn’t heard the criticism that he’s become skittish in the pocket, mostly because he’s found a way to tune out the football media.

But that doesn’t mean he disagrees with the notion completely.

No, the St. Louis Rams’ third-year quarterback isn’t conceding happy feet or, as one ESPN analyst put it, “cabin fever.” What he will cop to is that last year he took too many hits. And that this summer, with new offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer’s help, he’s taking the problem head on.  … Read more at NFL.com >>>>

» Continue reading “Pigskin Cover 3: Friday Edition”

Rams GM Les Snead and Turf Show Times’ Ryan Van Bibber (Personal Photo)

As I was saying yesterday the guys over at Turf Show Times arranged a rare opportunity for local Rams fans – a tweet up with the Rams front office.  A small group of us were able to pick the brains of Rams Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officier Kevin Demoff and the Rams General Manager Les Snead.

(A shorter but still stylin’ version of @LesSneadHair was also present.  See the above photo for visual evidence.)

I had been watching NFL Network’s coverage of other training camps Tuesday morning.  I noticed the New England Patriots and the New Orleans Saints having practices together.  The Arizona Cardinals and Kansas City Chiefs were also conducting a joint practice.   One thing I was able to ask Les Snead: Will the Rams think having a joint practice with another team?  Snead said he and Coach Fisher have discussed it and are considering it later in the preseason.  He did not specify whether he was referring to this year or in the future.  Personally, I’d love to see a practice with the Ravens just before the last preseason game on August 30 at the Edward Jones Dome.

» Continue reading “Pigskin Cover 3: Wednesday Edition”

WR Greg Salas (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

I caught up with Rams second-year wide receiver Greg Salas for a quick couple of minutes after minicamp last week.

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Salas took over slot receiver duties last year when WR Danny Amendola went down with a dislocated elbow and torn triceps in Week 1. Greg was getting more comfortable with each game, starting to really contribute to the Rams’ offense since starting in six games last season.

Salas suffered a serious leg injury that ended his season in the Week 9 game against the Arizona Cardinals. But before that fateful play he displayed flashes of why the Rams drafted him in the fourth round and was just starting to get comfortable with the Josh McDaniels offense.

So with all that being said, one thing on the minds of Rams fans this summer is whether Salas is ready for the 2012 season. Has his leg recovered 100 percent?

“Yeah, I feel like I’m pretty much back completely. Just a couple more strengthening things I can always improve on but other than that I feel good and pretty confident. It’s a fresh start for everybody and we’re looking a lot better this year so we’re really excited.”

I can’t stress enough the sense of anticipation at Rams Park. Head coach Jeff Fisher and his meticulously assembled coaching staff have truly brought a breath of fresh air and confidence to this team. Add the luxury of a full off-season to all that swagger and we may just have the makings of a instant playoff contender in the Rams.

» Continue reading “Rams WR Greg Salas Is Confident And Excited For 2012″

Rams Full Back Ben Guidugli (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

Another installment from my weekly column at 101ESPN.  This week I interviewed Rams second year tight end turned full back Ben Guidugli.

What a difference a year makes

Exactly a year ago, I wrote about how the Rams defense needed to develop a focused identity. I specificially put James Laurinaitis on notice and said he needed to take charge in forging a strong Rams defense. (Laurinaitis stepped up to the challenge in 2011 by recording his best season with a combined 142 tackles and three sacks.)

It was also the 91st day of the NFL lockout. Lesser NFL players were taking other jobs to make ends meet, and free agents’ families were in limbo as everyone waited on NFL owners and the NFLPA to agree to a new collective bargaining agreement. On July 25, 2011, all the anxiety and frustration came to an end. Hallelujah!

But the one thing all 32 teams couldn’t get back was the valuable time lost. The 2011 rookie class didn’t have the luxury of OTAs (organized team activities), minicamps and weeks of absorbing the playbook. They basically got a crash course in the ways of the NFL, and for the Rams that wasn’t a good thing. Yeah, I’m trying to delete the 2-14 record from my memory.

It’s pronounced “guh-DOO-lee.”

I remember taking note of Ben Guidugli during a condensed training camp last summer. He was an undrafted free-agent tight end from Cincinnati who, on paper, didn’t seem to have a great shot at making the Rams’ final 53. He was competing for one of four tight end spots. The words “long shot” immediately darted into my head as the catchy pronunciation of his name stuck in my brain. (Say it with me now: The second “g” is silent, “guh-DOO-lee.”)

» Continue reading “One-On-One With Rams Full Back Ben Guidugli”

#17 Mr. Miller busted for PED's. (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

The best tweet I saw from these mishaps were, “*That’s* the problem with our WRs! Got a bad batch of PEDs!!!” courtesy of @Wynnde13.  Yep, *that’s* it!

» Continue reading “Pigskin Cover 3: Lloyd, Miller And Moss”

SI's Peter King, Scotty's Brewhouse, Indianapolis, IN. 01/31/12 (Personal Photo)

SI’s NFL writer, Peter King, hosted a Super Bowl tweet up in Indianapolis Tuesday evening after Media Day.  He answered all sort of questions, most of them NFL related sprinkled in with some baseball questions.  I heard something about Theo Epstein and $20 million?  Baseball buffs will have to fill me in on that.

Despite being one of a handful of women in a tent full of dudes I was still there to talk football.  So I went ahead and asked Mr. King this important question:

Who do you think the Rams should get as their quarterbacks coach?

With the hire of head coach Jeff Fisher, defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer the next logical position to fill is the one closest to Sam Bradford‘s heart and arm.

» Continue reading “Peter King: Schotty Will Work Closely With Bradford”

He'll be sitting next to his favorite #12 this week. (Courtesy STLouisRams.com)

Just when you thought things in the NFL couldn’t get any wackier, it does.  One of the many reasons why I kicked my day time soap opera habit years ago.  Because as any real NFL fan knows, it’s the best drama reality show the world has ever known.  Move over “Real Housewives of (insert city name)” and “General Hospital.”  The NFL has you beat – hands down.

Wild card weekend totally lived up to its billing – and some of it off the field.

McDaniels officially returns to the Patriots

 It’s official. Josh McDaniels will return to the New England Patriots as an offensive assistant this week, and will serve under Bill O’Brien, the offensive coordinator who was named coach at Penn State on Saturday.

If there was an award for luckiest bastard man in the league it would go to Josh McDaniels.  He went from orchestrating the Rams’ second to bottom NFL offense to the Patriots’ second from the top offense – all within one week.

Never mind that he contributed to the sinking of the Rams’ offensive even lower than its 26th ranking from 2010.  He set Rams QB Sam Bradford back a few (drop) steps, too.

» Continue reading “Josh McDaniels, You Lucky Bastard”