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The Rams are looking to make a splash in the draft with the second overall pick. Coming off a season in which they finished 3-13, there are plenty of needs after a relatively quiet off-season. NFL Insider Bryan Palmese examines.
ST. LOUIS RAMS
2007 Record: 3 -13
2008 Draft Selection: # 2
2008 Adjusted Salary Cap Number: 117.36
Prominent Player Departures:
WR – Isaac Bruce, LB – Brandon Chillar, OG – Milford Brown
Areas of Need This Off Season:
Defensive End, Offensive Tackle, Safety, Linebacker
Free Agents Potentially on the Rams’ Radar:
DE – Damion Scott, Al Wallace, Greg White
OT – Eric Pears, Mike Rosenthal, L. J. Shelton
S - Hamza Abdullah, Deke Cooper, Jarrod Cooper
LB – Kendrall Bell, Roosevelt Colvin, Ian Gold
Summary:
After a tumultuous 3 -13 season, the St. Louis Rams can do nothing but close the chapter on 2007 and open the new chapter for 2008. For the rocky and injury-plagued season that they endured, the Rams have been rewarded with the number two overall pick in the 2008 draft. Any of the top players with the exception of Matt Ryan and Darren McFadden would make an immediate impact on the St. Louis roster. You say that franchise offensive tackle Orlando Pace is out indefinetly and is pondering retirement. How about University of Michigan tackle Jake Long? Rumor is that you want to add an athletic pass rushing linebacker. Vernon Gholston of The Ohio State University is ripe for the picking. So the rumor wasn’t that you wanted a pass rushing linebacker, rather a defensive end. Chris Long, son of Oakland Raider great Howie Long, might be available and is arguabley the most talented player in this draft class. Long may very well be the first overall pick by Miami, but after the Dolphins select, St. Louis has the rest of the draft class to choose from. It’s hard to say which direction the Rams are leaning towards, but the choice is either add an impact player in the trenches on the offensive side of the ball, or add a defensive game changer with the selection of Gholston or Long. A pass rusher is probably the biggest need for St. Louis, considering they added some serious talent to the defensive line through the draft last year by selecting former Cornhusker, Adam Carriker. Carriker can play either tackle or end, but is looking more comfortable at tackle. His size is good, but it’s the athleticism and motor that allows him to cause match-up problems for offensive coordinators at tackle. In free agency, there are few fish that fit the bill of pass rusher. Al Wallace and Greg White are past their primes and would only be rotational ends to give a spark on certain downs. At linebacker, the story is the same in free agency. Players like Kendrell Bell, Roosevelt Colvin, and Ian Gold are questionable starters in this league, though Bell was a ferocious pass rusher in his prime. If this need is not filled through the draft, perhaps a player will be available once teams start cutting players this summer. Continuing with the defensive theme, the Rams need some help in the secondary, primarily at safety. Hamza Abdullah is a restricted free agent with Denver, but is young and would be a nice starter for St. Louis. Other free agents include Deke Cooper and Jarrod Cooper; both are hard hitting, one-dimensional safeties that are probably better suited for special teams. Offensively, the Rams have a huge question mark at left tackle. Orlando Pace has been the franchise tackle that St. Louis thought he would be when they drafted him first overall in 1997. However, at 32 years old and on the brink of 33, Pace’s treads have started to wear thin. Bringing in Jake Long would be a solid move, though Long is nowhere near the level of Orlando Pace upon entering the league. Still, Long would add a gritty franchise player to the offensive line and would ease the problems that are beginning to plague Pace. Free agency holds a few options and those few are nothing to write home about. Eric Pears from Denver is young and is emerging as a dependable starter. L. J. Shelton was a stud tackle, but is a shadow of his former self. Mike Rosenthal was released by the Dolphins and could be worth a look, though he is no spring chicken either. There is some good second round talent on the offensive line due to the depth of the position in the draft. USC’s Sam Baker or Carl Nicks of Nebraska would be great additions to the St. Louis front if the Rams decide to go defense with their first pick.
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