Mathias Kiwanuka, free agency and the Spagnuolo connection

by Ryan Van Bibber on Jan 5, 2011 5:02 PM CST

You can make educated guesses about the St. Louis Rams free agent moves just by knowing which former members of the New York Giants or Philadelphia Eagles are or will be free agents.

Spagnuolo has mostly had a good track record in bringing in his former players to fill needs for the Rams. The success of Fred Robbins stands out. James Butler has been a useful role player, while Craig Dahl became a solid starting strong safety. Yeah, there's the Kevin Dockery thing, but nobody bats 1.000, right? That said, there's one name to keep an eye on when/if the free agent season rolls around this year, a current member of the New York Giants that might be an intriguing fit for the Rams: Mathias Kiwanuka.

The 27-year-old's season ended early this year, after three games and four sacks, when a herniated disc in his neck landed him on injured reserve. It's actually a pretty serious injury, which means his health could be a factor, but he is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent this year.

Earlier in the year, Kiwanuka had expressed frustration about some playing time issues (he wanted to be a starter) and a contract extension, which made his departure from New York a possibility. There's still a question about whether or not he'll be able to play in 2011, and GM Jerry Reese has speculated that a one-year deal to see how he's recovered from his injury is their most likely approach to bringing him back. Might a certain former defensive coordinator be able to persuade Kiwi away from a one-year offer in New York?

This post at Big Blue View has the complete run down of Giants players set for free agency this year.

Tweet Comment 29 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

sounds good, but

I worry about the neck injury situation.

Should we add Barry Cofield to our DTs to complete our NYG DT tandem? Plus we would get the “taser” celebration as a bonus. Best. Celebration. Ever.

Future Redbirds! www.futureredbirds.net
Rams Gab! www.ramsgab.com

by jroman on Jan 5, 2011 5:08 PM CST reply actions

YES

Get em all. Hell try to convience Tuck to come over when his cotract is up. Try and even lure Strahan out of retirement.

"Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no PLAYOFFS."
Winston Churchill

by SMASH44 on Jan 5, 2011 5:47 PM CST up reply actions

Actually

pretty much everyone bats .1000

by jeff_abs on Jan 5, 2011 5:34 PM CST reply actions

Here are the players I would target.

TE Kevin Boss A so;id TE, him uh-oh and Fendi would be great TEs but I doubt he will be a Ram.

RB Ahmad Bradshaw ($1,001,000) He is a playmaker.

DT Barry Cofield Why draft a DT when we will have a great one right here.

DE Mathias Kiwanuka A good player to play alongside Chris Long if healthy.

WR Steve Smith He is what we expected Avery to be, if Avery isn’t healthy it would be nice to have this guy.

Is that great man formally known as Tevin T. Broner

by Tevin Broner on Jan 5, 2011 5:41 PM CST reply actions

i think smith is only a number 2

great route runner, works slots great but he aint a big play guy…

bradshaw on the other hand… i want…

Bradford to Onobun!

by Infemous on Jan 5, 2011 5:48 PM CST up reply actions

Get him

Drop Gibson.

"Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no PLAYOFFS."
Winston Churchill

by SMASH44 on Jan 5, 2011 5:49 PM CST up reply actions

Bradshaws talent yea sure but......

what about his fumbling problem

by Smiff620 on Jan 5, 2011 5:58 PM CST up reply actions

I mean get Smith

Bradshaw isnt worth it to me.

"Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no PLAYOFFS."
Winston Churchill

by SMASH44 on Jan 5, 2011 6:01 PM CST up reply actions

Giant fan here

All of those players have problems to one degree or another except Cofield. I will be surprised if the Giants don’t pay him. The others:

Boss- I like him but 3 concussions over last two years. Any team has to be concerned about giving him too much guaranteed money.

Bradshaw- I think the Giants will resign him because they will probably cut Jacobs. Either way, the Giants will be in the market for RB help in the 2011 draft.

Kiwanuka- I think he will be gone. If healthy, he is a very talented player but was always being played out of position with the Giants. If he is going to have to settle for a one year deal, expect him to go to a team that plays a 3-4.

Smith- The most critical of all of the Giants free agents before his injury. The Giant 3rd down conversion rate went in the toilet after he went down, as well as their season. Resigning him would be a no-brainer, however his knee injury is very serious. He is having a microfracture procedure. His leg will be immobilized for the next 6 weeks. It was recently revealed that his injury is more serious than Kenny Phillips’ was, and that is bad news. KP had his microfracture surgery in Sept. ’09 and was never 100% for the whole 2010 season. The rehab is slow and very involved. Smith will certainly not be 100% for the 2011 season, and there is a good chance that he will not be available at all.

by Be Driven on Jan 8, 2011 10:53 AM CST up reply actions

i would still gamble on him regardless of injury

we still have hall and long, and we could use him as a joker like selvie.

would great to have a guy that talented and somewhat young/in his prime on our roster.

Bradford to Onobun!

by Infemous on Jan 5, 2011 5:42 PM CST reply actions

I dunno about regardless

isn’t it the same injury that caused Antonio Pierce to retire?

If the odds of recovering fully were about 80/20 I’d give him a contract, but not regardless.

by RamintheUK on Jan 5, 2011 5:55 PM CST up reply actions

GET HIM!!!!!!!!

Send the whole D to tlk to him…have the Whole Rams team wives bake him a cake…Rename a street in St.Louis after him…..What ever it takes GET HIM IN HORNS!

"Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no PLAYOFFS."
Winston Churchill

by SMASH44 on Jan 5, 2011 5:46 PM CST reply actions

Im on Board for taking a chance Kiwanuka

Spags will prolly draft a DE in the late rounds in the draft anyway for depth

by Smiff620 on Jan 5, 2011 5:57 PM CST reply actions

i think he (they) drafted 3 last April.

by ZamRam on Jan 5, 2011 6:47 PM CST up reply actions

kept 2

Probably lose 1 or 2 this offseason…soooo….bring on the pass rush

"Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no PLAYOFFS."
Winston Churchill

by SMASH44 on Jan 5, 2011 9:34 PM CST up reply actions

No way we need a guy with a bum neck.

We’ve already got a $33M RT with a soft head. A WR that’s had 4 knee operations and two others coming back from major knee surgery. No more crips please.

Spags is 8-24 over 2 seasons. In my book he’s batting .250, which ain’t bad in baseball but sucks in the NFL.

by RamChop on Jan 5, 2011 9:03 PM CST reply actions

hahaha

Turning down the blue man because he’s a suspected “crip”

by Zoo on Jan 5, 2011 11:01 PM CST up reply actions

Old person slang

I may have to warn you RamChop…haha..

Number 8 is great

by Eric Nagel on Jan 5, 2011 11:01 PM CST up reply actions

Cmon let's be fair

He didn’t exactly inherit a powerhouse. This season, yeah, it’s all him, but I think last season’s record can get an asterisk next to it..

Number 8 is great

by Eric Nagel on Jan 5, 2011 11:01 PM CST up reply actions

lol RamChop

Chopper in 1999 Dick Vermeil said this has turned out to be a rehabilitation center for broken down players and he cleaned house got rid of every injured and injury prone player on the team in one year lol and we all know what happend that season

by Rams67 on Jan 6, 2011 4:55 AM CST up reply actions

8-24 inheriting a 6-42 squad

Improvement… BUT in my opinion a coach needs 3 years to prove their worth… 3 drafts, 3 free agency periods, 3 regular seasons.

So far personal has taken a major upgrade.. they’ve snagged Bradford, Animal Jr, Amendola, Saffold, Robbins, Uh Oh, Fletcher Bradley Fletcher and hell you COULD even lump Clayton in there.

We’ve also dumped “Hold on Loosely” Barron, “Hit me with your best shot” Incognito, Bulger (his time had come), “Stone Hands” McMichael etc.

So far, there has been tons of positive movement, and another year will tell whether or not we’re solidly headed in the right direction.

Players have ceilings, so do coaches. Where is Spags ceiling? Are we destined for 7-9 and 8-8 seasons or will his system and coaching philosophy allow for substantial growth?

I can’t disagree about some of the question marks though Chopper. We’ll see after this season.

Pooch punts should be illegal inside an opponents 38 yard line.

by VTramsFan on Jan 5, 2011 9:59 PM CST reply actions

I Feel Comfortable Putting The D In The Hands

of the FO……….its the offense that worries me. They seemed content with giving Sam limited talent to work with….they didnt seem aggressive enough in the off season on the offensive side of the ball………..

by JordansDad on Jan 5, 2011 10:25 PM CST up reply actions

I agree with your worry.

This year will tell the tale on whether they are willing to really upgrade the offense, or would rather continue to dink and dunk and play to not lose.

by andyhawk on Jan 5, 2011 11:22 PM CST up reply actions