Alexander Resurgence?

Chris Lee - St. Louis Post Dispatch

With all of the woes that the Rams have had at wide receiver this year,

rookie WR Danario Alexander's presence on the squad has generated much needed intrigue and discussion. For some he offers a glimmer of hope looking into the future and possibly a tandem to rookie QB Sam Bradford for years to come. For others, he is a role-player with potential upside that is still limited by inexperience and injury concerns. Regardless of which pool of thought that you fall into, it is undeniable that Alexander has contributed in several key games. Currently the question must be: where does Danario Alexander fit in with the future of the Rams?

After a quick start against San Diego,

Danario Alexander re-injured his knee in practice a few weeks later and seemed to be written out of the offensive play-calling for a few weeks. However, Alexander reminded us of his presence in the game against San Francisco with a spectacular 6 REC 99 YRD game. But after disappearing for so many weeks before the sudden success, some Rams fans, including me, are a bit skeptical. Was Alexander's game against the 49ers a fluke or is he for real?

Since I am an optimist, I'll offer some plays or notes that support the case the Alexander's game against the 49ers is for real:

• On one of the Rams' possessions, Alexander caught 3 passes on 3 consecutive plays. 
  Spin: Perhaps this is a flash the type of possession receiver that we need. Of course, Amendola probably has the surest hands on the team, but Alexander has the body size and strength to fight off defenders in traffic. We need a big target like this. Matt Ryan's completions to reliable Roddy White during the Falcon's game kept drives going and made me drool.
  
  
• Alexander caught a career long 46 yard pass from Bradford to set up a touchdown in the 4th quarter.
  Spin: On this play, Alexander completely burned the defensive back that was covering him. Safety coverage was drawn to the other side of the field as Alexander ran open down the sideline. He has the speed to be a deep threat.
  
  
• On the same play as above, Alexander realized that he was not downed by contact and walked into the endzone. This touchdown would later be overturned because the replay revealed that his heel went out of bounds.
  Spin: Good awareness to realize that the whistle had not yet been blown and that he could still run. This isn't anything amazing, but its good for a rookie to have a head above the body.  
  
  
• Immediately before the above play, on a 2nd and 8, Bradford finds Danario Alexander for a short gain that is turned into 17 yards.
  Spin: Other than perhaps Brandon Gibson, its rare to see a Rams receiver fight for some YAC. On this play, it looked like Alexander broke 3 tackles to get the first down. Any time that a receiver fights after the catch to keep the drive going, that is a good thing. 
  
  
• Late in the third quarter, Steven Jackson catches a short check down pass on second down while Bradford is pressured and is able to run for the first down. The play is reversed because of a offensive pass interference call on Alexander.
  Spin: Personally, I thought that this call was horrible. Jackson had clearly caught the ball and was running before Alexander had started to impede the path of the cornerback. It was actually a good block and gave Jackson the space he needed to reach the first down. Good blocking, bad call. 
  
  
• One last stat that has nothing to do with the 49ers game. Alexander currently leads the Rams in AVG yards per catch with 17.2. This is 25th among all wide receivers this season, 13th among receivers with 10 or more catches, and 9th among all rookies. Much of the Rams' deep passing offense runs through Alexander. Two memorable long completions are the touchdown against San Diego and the 46 yarder against San Fran. The only other player on the Rams with a catch longer than 46 yards is Steven Jackson (who has a 49 yard catch). 
  Spin: Is Danario Alexander a deep threat? 

That's all for now! Discuss, discuss, discuss!