Proving Grounds: A Look at the Rams Preseason Opener

by Eric Nagel on Aug 11, 2009 6:57 PM CDT in Preseason

As this is my first post on the site, please stick with me while I try to get the system down. But onto the Rams!

This upcoming Friday is the Rams first preseason game, against the New York Jets. While they may not be an ideal opponent (I'm sure everyone is well aware of what happened to them last year with a certain veteran QB), they are an opponent nonetheless and are the first test of the upcoming 2009 season. With that in mind, there are a few players on the Rams that stand quite a bit to gain, assuming they play well:

Larry Grant: While Chris Draft was off the field this morning (don't worry, he is fine), Grant played with the 1st team defense. In that time, he picked off Bulger and punished Darby during a running play. Even though Draft has impressed coaches with his play and seems to be playing quite a bit more with the first team defense as of late, Grant could make a huge statement by playing well against the Jets. With both Mark Sanchez and Kellen Clemens appearing only marginal at best, he has a legitimate shot to make some noise on Friday and could really open up this positional "battle."

Bradley Fletcher/Quincy Butler (Any Cornerback not named Tye Hill): Tye Hill was injured this morning as well and just like Draft, will be just fine. However, he has had an uninspiring camp so far, and with Bradley Fletcher and Quincy Butler looking good, the two stand a lot to gain by playing well this Friday. Like I noted earlier, the Jets QB situation could lead to some big plays, and if it does, Butler and Fletcher stand quite a bit to gain should they be able to capitalize.

Alex Barron: This quote by Mike Sando of ESPN explains exactly why Barron needs to play well for the team to succeed this year:

Bulger tends to look very good in practice no matter what. I think he'll be fine if the Rams protect him, which depends on that line.

I'd think a good night from Barron would just be blocking effectively and most importantly not having any false start penalties, but playing well against the Jets would be a good first step to easing the minds of the entire Rams fan base. The real test is going to in the first week of the season, because he will be going up against Patrick Kerney. At this point, a bad start to the season for Barron would mean nothing less than seeing what the 2010 Draft has to offer in regards to Offensive Tackles. Russell Okung, anyone?

With those players in mind, it will be interesting to see how the Rams look for their first (semi) official game of the Spagamania era. One can only hope they come out and look good.

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Hope

I predict Rams will look good.Rams players disrespected Scott linehan to the point they quit on him. Who wants to play for a pussy (linehan) they recognized Linehan was a mental midget and a coward. They love Spaggs, a MANS MAN. Spaggs is the MAN.

by Thomas W on Aug 11, 2009 8:27 PM CDT reply actions

While I’d have to agree that the players quit on him…Calling him a pussy is hardly accurate. I think it’d be more accurate to think that he was just a coach who lost control of his team, and was given one last shot last year but realized it was already to late.

The team obviously wouldn’t win for him, which is probably why he benched Bulger, etc, etc. He was desperate to keep his job. Nice guy, bad coach (at least his style).

Spags seems to be the man…but as of yet, he has a 0-0 record as head coach. Let’s wait to see if he really is THE man before we call him as such.

Spagamania is in full bloom

by Eric Nagel on Aug 12, 2009 12:29 AM CDT reply actions

I disagree

I disagree with a lot in this post. For one, a healthy J-E-T-S team would in fact be an ideal opponent because the Rams need to measure themselves against a team of that calibre. This isn’t about winning, this is about checking to see where you’re at, both as a team and individual contributors. The Jets are the right level for that — good but not elite.

Second, Barron’s most important thing isn’t false start penalties, it’s keeping Bulger’s jersey clean. Yes I know he needs to fix those false starts but think about it….what’s worse?.. a false start on a critical third down in the red zone of a pre-season game, or your QB getting pummeled into the ground, maybe injured and developing even more skittish tendancies because he can’t trust the new Left Tackle? Bulger’s already shown he can lose concentration and rush his mechanics and hell I don’t blame him, he’s been sacked a LOT. We need to protect him forst and foremost so he can settle in and get to work. Eliminating habitual penalties is important, I get that, but if I had to pick a single “most” important, thing it HAS to be protecting the QB.

Lived in LA during the Rams and Raiders days. Now based in NorCal, I am still a die hard Rams fan and Raiders season ticket holder.

by CoachConnors on Aug 12, 2009 1:25 PM CDT reply actions

I agree whole-heartedly with CoachConners...

The tougher the team we face in the pre-season the better to guage our talent. Playing against mediocre to bad teams tells us nothing about our player’s abilities against strong teams and top-notch individual opponents. Isn’t that really what pre-season is all about?

Go Rams!

"We can't run. We can't pass. We can't stop the run. We can't stop the pass. We can't kick. Other than that, we're just not a very good football team right now." --- Bruce Coslett, New York Jets Head Coach circa 1990s

by Nbr1RamFan on Aug 12, 2009 2:29 PM CDT reply actions

I understand what you're saying.

Still, this team needs to get the feeling of winning again. Their preseason record has been just as bad as the regular season, so they don’t have much experience with winning and that’s a feeling and an attitude they need to develop. I will be happy if they beat the Jets, even if it is their second team.

by andyrose on Aug 12, 2009 10:58 PM CDT reply actions

true too

Well sure, I’ll be happy if they win too and I totally get the winning attitude thing, believe me, I’ve tried to turn situations around before and a new coach will start that on day 1. But that’s just not what this is about, or they’d be playing starters all game long. This is about where our starters are compared to the league, who do we keep around vs who do we not cut, and checking your “live fire” timing.

I still think they’re a great opponent because they’re good but not elite. We don’t want to play the Lions or Raiders, we wouldn’t learn anything about ourselves. We’d go into the season overconfident and ripe to be blown out.

Lived in LA during the Rams and Raiders days. Now based in NorCal, I am still a die hard Rams fan and Raiders season ticket holder.

by CoachConnors on Aug 13, 2009 7:12 PM CDT reply actions