St. Louis Rams 2011 Offseason Thread

[Hungary Jack]

Be crazy to cut Gilyard, IMO.

[cpebbles]

RB is a pretty big concern--if Jackson goes down or trails off due to age/workload, what is the backup plan?

2012 is the backup plan.

Obviously if you have a much better value available at RB you draft him and roll with a lousy receiving corps for another year, but a #1 receiver improves the Rams' playoff chances more than a RB will (Even for 2011, despite the expected rookie WR struggles).

[Popeye_Card]

Based on what, exactly?

They can easily make the playoffs with what they have coming back. Hell they almost made it with Amandola being the best threat.

If Jackson is injured or seriously regresses (a valid concern), the Rams' playoff chances are virtually nill with what they currently have on the roster. The time to draft and ready Jackson's replacement is before it becomes a need, not after. There is no current "need" at WR that trumps that. There are some "wants" at other positions that might, depending on who is available in the mid-1st.

[Cronos]

Yeah, Gilyard is an example of a WR that needs development. Not all of these guys can really graduate to the pro level and be burners right away. The scuttlebutt on Gilyard seemed to be that he couldn't learn the plays/routes. Maybe another offseason and training camp and he'll be improved?

Amendola is pretty much the only constant, and I think that the way Gibson has been used shows that he's probably here to stay, too. Curry is most likely gone (he wasn't involved much at all this year, was he injured and I'm being forgetful?)or relegated to the practice squad.

I'm good with bringing Clayton back for another year (Bradford and he have a history and a good rapport and despite his age and less than #1 talent, he and Bradford were on pace for decent numbers before he went down in Motown), going after a veteran FA WR (Rice? V. Jackson?), and then letting the scrum of:

Avery
Gilyard
D. Alexander
Robinson
WR Draft Pick X

Duke it out in training camp for the remaining spots. I am not assuming DX as a mainstay next year at all, too many knee injuries.

[Lesson]

Based on what, exactly?

They can easily make the playoffs with what they have coming back. Hell they almost made it with Amandola being the best threat.

If Jackson is injured or seriously regresses (a valid concern), the Rams' playoff chances are virtually nill with what they currently have on the roster. The time to draft and ready Jackson's replacement is before it becomes a need, not after. There is no current "need" at WR that trumps that. There are some "wants" at other positions that might, depending on who is available in the mid-1st.

I want them to pick a RB, too. I'm thinking around the 3rd round would be okay. If Daniel Thomas( a RB out of KSU) falls to the 3rd round, I'd think the Rams would have to pick him. Two other RBs that I like would be Noel Devine out of WVU and Kendall Hunter out of Oklahoma St.

[Freed Roger]

There has to be something more about Gilyard than route running, grasp of O etc -considering their extreme need. He wasn't successful at KR either.

[Popeye_Card]

For reference, here is the list of wide receivers taken in the top 20 of the 1st round (i.e. by a non-playoff team the year prior) by their current team which made the playoffs:

Jeremy Maclin--19th overall.

That's it. Expanding to any top 20 pick, you add Braylon Edwards (3rd overall). Every other receiver playing in the playoffs is a late 1st round guy (i.e. a guy taken to improve an already good team), or a 2nd rounder or later.

Given, that is anecdotal. But many teams seem to think that a playmaking WR is the final piece. For most, it clearly is not. Most of the consistently great teams in the league have never used an early pick on a WR in the past 10 years. They find that talent elsewhere.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

For reference, here is the list of wide receivers taken in the top 20 of the 1st round (i.e. by a non-playoff team the year prior) by their current team which made the playoffs:

Jeremy Maclin--19th overall.

That's it. Expanding to any top 20 pick, you add Braylon Edwards (3rd overall). Every other receiver playing in the playoffs is a late 1st round guy (i.e. a guy taken to improve an already good team), or a 2nd rounder or later.

Given, that is anecdotal. But many teams seem to think that a playmaking WR is the final piece. For most, it clearly is not. Most of the consistently great teams in the league have never used an early pick on a WR in the past 10 years. They find that talent elsewhere.

Not sure why you'd approach it this way. Of the 12 playoff teams, there's going to be more than a couple who haven't picked that high in a while. If WR is identified as a problem, fix it. Don't fill lesser needs because "playoff teams" do that. Now if you find that Top 20 pick WR typically aren't a good value, that's another question(although I don't think you'll have a ton of support for that).

[Freed Roger]

The guy they are looking for SB akin to a Percy Harvin or Desean Jackson. Someone who can break it anytime -whether its a pass reception, reverse, KR PR, or random lining up in backfield.

[Popeye_Card]

Well, certainly very good receivers have been taken in the top 20 picks. And some of those go on to contribute to consistently good teams.

But my point is the perception of a wide receiver being taken as a difference maker between being a bad or non-playoff team and a consistently good playoff team. Consistently good teams in the modern NFL haven't taken receivers high even when they were bad.

Of all the positions on the field, WR is the most dependant on their teammates to be good, rather than the other way around. They are the tires of the car, not part of the engine that drives them. You can get by on used and spare tires. It is harder to get by on used and spare motor parts. A car can be fast without performance tires. Performance tires on a [expletive] car still don't travel very far very fast.

As it pertains to the Rams, they have a decent set of tires and a couple spares already, despite getting through this season on a couple of donuts. I'd upgrade other parts of the car first.