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Editorial Page
As Sunday came to an end, the Rams saw their playoff hopes go up in flames, and watched the 49ers pass them in the standings. At the beginning of the year the Ram defense looked like they were going to be a force to be reckoned with, but that turned out not to be the case. Since London Fletcher left St. Louie, the Ram run defense continues to be one of the worst in NFL.
Free agent pickup, LeRoi Glover, has been a huge disappointment this season. He has not provided the inside pass-rush that was promised and has been a liability against the run. Many in St. Louis were happy to wave Ryan Pickett goodbye, but the Rams have greatly missed his presence in the middle. If Glover was going to be a solid addition to this team, the Rams needed a big fat man to clog the middle and tie up blockers, which in turn would allow Glover to do the things he does best. Jimmy Kennedy has provided very little and it looks like he'll be another 1st round bust. Many other teams have been successful drafting defensive tackles, but not the Rams. Kennedy, Damione Lewis and to a lesser extent, Ryan Pickett, have failed miserably in blue and gold.
What’s next for the Rams?? For starters, a mandate preventing Charlie Army from picking any defensive tackles in the first two rounds would help. This team has to start drafting better. When the Rams were the greatest show on turf, Army and Martz botched one draft after the other and as Warner and Faulk started to slip, the Rams went down with them. Management had multiple drafts with multiple first round picks but failed to draft one single contributor to the teams with those picks. Trung Candidate, Adam Archeleta, Ryan Pickett, Damione Lewis, Jimmy Kennedy, Alex Barron (boy has he stunk this year), are just a few first round busts over the last three or four years. And who can forget using a third round pick on Eric Crouch. If the Rams are going to improve and become a contender, they must be able to draft quality players. I think his track record speaks for itself, Charlie Army must go and should have been fired a number of years ago.
The next step is to finally sign, not draft, a couple of defensive tackles who can stuff the run. This team couldn't stop the run if their lives depended on it. Maurice Morris looked like LT against St. Louis a few weeks ago, and if the front office would have signed the proper personnel in this past off-season at DT, the Rams would be winning the division right now. Instead, they're 4-6, with a defense that has more holes than the Titanic.
Jim Haslet is a good coach, but he needs the tools to be able to build an effective defense. Leonard Little will be a free agent at years end, and most likely will be one of the most sought after free agents, if the Rams are going to keep him, they will have to shell out some serious cash. Not only should the Rams keep him, but they must acquire another end that can provide pressure on the QB. Little has been double-teamed consistently this year, which has limited his effectiveness on the field. Having another end opposite Little, who has the ability generate a pass rush would help this defense immensely. This team has not been able to provide a consistent pass-rush this season, which has allowed opposing quarterbacks the time necessary to dissect the Ram secondary.
The offensive line hasn't been playing at a high level, mainly due to the massive amount of injuries the Rams have had on the O-Line. At the beginning of the year the Rams had good depth and some of those players have filled in and have played decent football. The main problem is that their backups lack talent and experience, which has led to missed blocking assignments and clear lanes for defenders to take clean shots on Bulger. As the season continues, Bulger will continue to take a pounding and the question in St. Louis is when, not if, Bulger will get his yearly scheduled injury. If Bulger has any chance of staying healthy for all 16 games, Alex Barron MUST greatly improve his play. Barron continues to miss assignments, is penalized often for false starts, and plays with poor technique. He has all the ability in the world but his poor play has started to get to him. With good coaching he could be an All-Pro but if things do not improve, all signs point to him being a huge disappointment.
Well, there you have it, the Rams failed to improve on last years disappointing season. They really only need a few more pieces to become a contender next year, lets all hope they go out and have a productive off-season. I wish I had better news to report, but I doubt the Rams will be able to turn this ship around with only a handful of games left in the season.
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