via cdn0.sbnation.com

For as long as I can remember, the tight end position has been an Achilles’ heel for the Rams. Why is it so difficult to find someone who can block, catch and … oh yeah, stay on the field? Every year the team makes an attempt to fill the void, yet results are never good.

Enter John Carlson, an NFC West rival who seems to possess all the tools of a typical "safety net" TE. During his first three years as a Seahawk, he became a regular "Red Zone" threat and a pain in defensive coordinators’ rear ends, accumulating over 1,500 yards and 13 touchdowns. Were it not for a season ending shoulder injury in last year’s preseason, his stats may be greater.

Carlson appeared to fade off in Pete Carroll’s first year with the team, although he did catch two touchdowns during Seattle’s upset romp of the Saints in the playoffs. One has to assume that the young TE doesn’t figure into Seattle’s long-term plans, having recently signed Zach Miller to a lucrative five-year deal. He may also be a miscast in Carroll’s enigmatic offensive, when you figure that Miller totaled only 233 yards and no touchdowns in all of 2011.

If Lance Kendricks is the future of the Rams TE’s, he needs some guidance to get there. And if Bajema and "UhOh" are indeed goners, the Rams need a proven blocker to line up off tackle.