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I have been a Ram fan for many years now, 43 to be exact. All those years of being a Ram fan brings back plenty of fond memories: Jack Youngblood playing in the Super Bowl on a broken leg, Eric Dickerson breaking the single season rushing record, Hacksaw Reynolds roaming the middle of the field, the GSOT years, the Fearsome Foursome.........I could go on and on.
There have been some pretty bleak seasons in the last decade if you are a Ram fan. I can feel the excitement in the air now though; with Kroenke, Demoff, Snead, Fisher and the youngsters (and vets) in the midst of turning this franchise around. Bringing back the glory days. We have a bright future ahead........... It is always a good thing to remember the past when thinking about the future. Many of you will not remember or know any of these players. That is ok. Come along for the ride anyway. Please take the time, at some point, to look up some of these names and learn about what greatness in a Ram uniform truly means.
In this post I have assembled what I consider to be the Rams All Time 53 Man Roster. I haven't seen all of them play. The ones that I have seen though have left an indelible imprint on my mind and in my heart. These players aspired to greatness and achieved greatness. Learning about them will help you to understand what this current team needs to accomplish to aspire to that very greatness embodied in the careers of these memorable Rams players.
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The Rams All Time Roster
C - Rich Saul - Doug Smith
G - Tom Mack - Kent Hill
G - Dennis Harrah - Tom Newberry
T - Jackie Slater - Bob Brown
T - Orlando Pace - Charlie Cowan
TE - Billy Truax - Terry Nelson
WR - Torry Holt - Tom Fears - Henry Ellard
WR - Isaac Bruce - Elroy Hirsch - Harold Jackson
RB - Eric Dickerson - Steven Jackson
RB - Marshall Faulk - Lawrence McCutcheon - Dan Towler
QB - Norm Van Brocklin - Kurt Warner - Bob Waterfield
PK - Jeff Wilkins
DT - Merlin Olsen - Roosevelt Grier
DT - Larry Brooks - Coy Bacon
DE - Jack Youngblood - Lamar Lundy - Andy Robustelli
DE - Deacon Jones - Kevin Carter - Fred Dryer
LB - Jack Reynolds - Les Richter - Tank Younger
LB - Isiah Robertson - Jack Pardee
LB - Kevin Greene - Maxie Baughan
CB - Jerry Gray - Pat Thomas - Rod Perry
CB - Dick Lane - Leroy Irvin
S - Nolan Cromwell - Eddie Meador
S - Dave Elmendorf - Aeneas Williams
P - Dale Hatcher
How's that for positional value!! Thanks for taking this trip with me down memory lane. When you think of the current Ram team and what they should aspire to, look no farther than this post.
The Honour Roll
50 out of the 53 players on this roster were Pro Bowler's (Elmendorf, Dryer and Nelson are the three who weren't). This roster has 15 members in the Hall of Fame: Tom Mack, Jackie Slater, Bob Brown, Tom Fears, Elroy Hirsch, Marshall Faulk, Eric Dickerson, Norm Van Brocklin, Merlin Olsen, Bob Waterford, Deacon Jones, Jack Youngblood, Andy Robustelli, Les Richter and Dick Lane. Future candidates for the Hall of Fame include Orlando Pace, Aeneas Williams, Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt, Kevin Greene, Tank Younger and Steven Jackson.
On this roster, there is only one player who is active and still playing for the Rams: Steven Jackson. There has been much talk in the last week about his pending free agency and whether he should be brought back or not. I did an entire post on the merits of having him remain a Ram, a balanced post that looked at both sides of the argument. If you want the biggest reason for him to remain a Ram, the answer lies here in this post. For he is our only link to the greats from the past. If anyone on this team can lead the way in teaching the younger players how to aspire to greatness, it is Steven Jackson. For he has already achieved greatness.
In this post there are pictures of ten famous Ram players from the past. Can you name them???? Please leave the list in the comments section.
Thanks for your continued support and friendship. Your comments and opinions are always welcomed and appreciated.
As a footnote, one player keeps popping up in the comments as worthy of being on this all time team. As such, I am giving an honourable mention to WR Jack Snow.
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