FanPost

Fresh Take on the Rams

The first thing I want to say is that i'm going to try and bring as much realism to this read as possible. I want to be non-bias with realistic opinions. Part of that, in my opinion, is knowing that luck does play a role in sports. How small, or big, I don't know. If you're being realistic in predicting stats, you would have to account for how many different realistic possibilities can play out, right? Well I'm going to take a look at Sam Bradford and try to figure out what type of player he is. Bradford is a hard player to analyze but i'm not going to try and make this one of those cliche discussions about Bradford because that is overdone. Let's try to find a new perspective on the St. Louis Rams starting quarterback.

Situation 1: The St. Louis Rams stay healthy for a change, which almost certainly won't happen. So maybe this situation will account for 1 key injury (Probably on the O-Line). It also assumes that year 3 players will progress accordingly, while a couple of 2nd year players will realistically have a bit of a slump. I honestly think the best rookie player we have is Aaron Donald at DT. I think he has an ideal situation while possessing enough talent to really contribute in any situation. Dude is gonna be good, and I think in a year or two he will be our best D-Linemen behind Robert Quinn. That is saying alot because Micheal Brockers is progressing very nicely and Chris Long is actually underrated IMO. He had a rough year dealing with injuries and limitations but I expect a bounce back that will put him back to where he was a year or two ago. Donald may be our biggest impact rookie but i'm hoping Greg Robinson will be a long term building block. Greg Robinson seems like a genuine person and will most likely have some sort of positive impact on the season.

To get back on topic, this also assumes a philosophy in terms of play calling that may not be completely expected. While I think the running game will be very important, I think it's possible the Rams go with more of a passing game than people might expect. We have a ton of young receivers, and I think the coaches could make sure each player gets enough touches to actually progress. This isn't to say we won't be a run first team, but if Bradford really shows up then the coaching staff is going to give him a little more touches than we may expect. That being said, this is a realistic best case scenario for the Rams and Sam Bradford.

3700-4000 yards, 28-34 TD, 8-11 INT

Comp. Percentage: 60-64%

Situation 2: An unrealistic best case scenario:

4,500 Yards, 40 TD, 8 INT

While the hype out of college was overwhelming, we have to come to the realization that Bradford isn't going to be the "Next Peyton Manning". This doesn't mean he can't become a damn good player, but like I said from the beginning.. let us try to be realistic.

Situation 3: If the injury bug takes over, which seems to be a common theme in St. Louis, then the Rams could be in trouble. We are getting better in the depth department but it could be better in areas. This is ultimately a realistic worst-case scenario. This is also assuming Sam Bradford stays relatively healthy for the sake of argument. Our o-line is at the biggest risk for injury, while a couple skill position injuries could really hurt.

2900-3,300 Yards, 15-20 TD, 15-18 INT

Comp. Percentage: 55-58%

Situation 4: Situation 4 is a situation that I refuse to accept as a possibility. Sam Bradford suffers a season ending injury. Again. I mean, it really could happen to anybody but it would possibly end his tenure in St. Louis. Never know............fingers crossed =/ ........... oh no.. a sudden wave of emotion telling me I've jinxed the season!!!!

All in all, I hope and think Bradford will be what we need. Maybe we had expectations of being a pass happy team in the future when we drafted him in 2010, but after a couple of years I think we have the right people in position to really utilize Bradford the way he is most effective. I think the Bradford haters are haters because they had lofty expectations of him being the next pass happy quarterback. Well, just because he isn't that, doesn't mean he can't be a complete player in a different system. Not one quarterback is the same in the NFL, and not every quarterback has an ideal situation in terms of coaching and players like a Drew Brees or Tom Brady may have, but in the NFL, teams learn to adapt. Just because it is a pass happy league now, doesn't mean it won't be a run happy league in 5 or 10 years. The NFL evolves. If history repeats itself, then let us look at the past. We started as a run happy league, and developed into what we are today. As defenses evolve to that style of offense it only seems natural that offenses will re-evolve into something that will give them the upper hand. Maybe the Rams are getting a head start on that? (Fingers crossed anyone) Theories upon theories can satisfy readers looking for something interesting to entertain them for 10 minutes, but theories are mostly inaccurate and i'll be the first to admit that. Chances are the NFL will shock us once again this upcoming season.

Up Next

- More player reviews and opinions.

- Win loss projections

-NFL Power Rankings

Hope you enjoyed the read, and honestly the main objective behind writing this is the feedback! I would love to hear opinions on the Rams and this article. This doesn't have to be a Sam Bradford discussion!!! I realize that is a turn off because i've read more than enough of those. So how about it? Opinions on the Rams and the upcoming season?