Idiot. Claude Wroten threw away his season and leaves the Rams short of a DT. Substance abuse violation numero dos. Definitely not ideal, but also purges the character question marks in the locker room. 

Hurts depth-wise. They'll have to find a reliable enough replacement, which filling in for Wroten shouldn't be that hard. Here's the list of free agents. The Rams were fine w/out Kennedy last season and his release provoked similar questions about depth in the middle of the d-line. On the other hand, they'll be leaning on Glover more, upping his injury risk.

I'm just shooting from the hip here, so I have idea who's available... but if someone out there wanted to unload a DT for some, mmmmm draft picks...

Friday the 13th. After last season, I feel like I should be waiting for injury news to arrive any moment on an otherwise unnotable Friday. But, like some drugged out repressed 50s housewife, I choose to focus on the positive.

Om, the Rams will win. Om, the Rams will win.

• OT John Greco, the Rams 3rd round choice in this year's draft, signed a three year deal with the Rams. Schuening signed a 3 year deal too; the Rams traditionally give their later round picks 3 year deals.
• OTAs are over, and the Rams won't meet again until training camp begins on July 24. They'll be in Wisconsin. 
• Pro Bowl center LeCharles Bentley, who was recently granted his release from the Browns, has several teams calling about his services. No word on who those teams are. As jroman pointed out in the comments the other day, he'd be a nice addition in St. Louis, but he's looking for a starting gig and would have to compete with Romberg and Incognito here. Two years ago, he'd have been a shoe in, but he hasn't played for two seasons so you have to wonder how realistic his chances would be with the Rams.  Still, it's hard to watch a former Pro Bowl lineman get away.
• Barry Sims is in town  for a visit today.
  
• Ross Tucker at SI.com takes a look at "players on the hot seat" this season for each team, nominating La'Roi Glover and Claude Wroten for the Rams, citing the Rams decision to pass on Glenn Dorsey in the draft. Ahh, the ghost of Dorsey draft hype. (speaking of...) He is right about Wroten, but I'd have to add Alex Barron to that list. Who else?

Back with the Friday Fantasy tipsheet later.

The mere thought of playing without a salary cap in 2010 evokes images of the Wild West, anything goes to the highest bidder. Fortunately, the decision to opt out of the CBA triggered a number of rules and restrictions to keep the Cowboys from turning into the Yankees of the NFL that season. John Clayton has a nice summary over at ESPN , but here's the gist of it. Teams get an extra transition tag for a player, allowing to keep an extra fee agent along with the franchise tag. Players will need to have six years of service in the league, rather than the usual four, before they can become unrestricted free agents. That will make it easier for teams to keep their younger players via restricted free agency. And to keep the top teams from piling up the talent, teams that play for the conference championship for the '09 season won't be allowed to sign unrestricted free agents until they lose one of their own UFA, and the other, less fortunate playoff teams will face additional restrictions on free agency as well. 

With the new rules, some teams are in better shape than others, as pointed out in the Clayton article. That got me curious about the Rams; how are they set when 2010 rolls around? Fortunately, the Rams are in a good spot, with only a few free potential free agent casualties. 

Alex Barron - His contract with the Rams ends in 2009, but that will only be his fifth season in the league. Clearly, Barron's playing for his future this season as it is, but should he start to live up to his promise, he'd be a restricted free agent ahead of the 2010 season, meaning the Rams can tender him an offer just above his previous year's salary ($1.233 million for Barron) and get first right of refusal and a compensatory draft pick for his services. Besides, how Barron responds this season, much will depend on how John Greco develops as a potential replacement. Orlando Pace, who's under contract through 2011, probably can't be counted on in 2010, meaning the Rams will need Barron and Greco to emerge OR find another OT in the next two drafts.

Torry Holt - Holt's status as of 2010 has already received endless speculation. It's probably safe to assume that he won't be back in 2010, and use the capless year to cash in on free agency as he enters his age 33 season. The Rams expect Donnie Avery and Keenan Burton to blossom in the coming seasons to replace Holt.

Randy McMichael - Another contract that ends after 2009. McMichael will be 30 for hte 2010 season, hardly too old to contribute. Will the Rams look for TE talent in the draft before then? Their recent track record drafting TEs hasn't been spectacular, so should they?

Leonard Little - By 2010, Chris Long will be the Rams stand out DE, and they'll likely have to add another speedy pass rushing DE before the 2010 season, as Little will turn 36 early that season anyway.

Claude Wroten - Reportedly this offseason's workout warrior, the former LSU DT says he ready to get serious about the game. His contract ends after the 2009 season, but he won't have enough time in under the new rules to be an unrestricted free agent. Like Barron, the Rams can chose to tender him an offer as a restricted free agent in 2010. Just how far he comes in living up to his potential will determine what that offer is, if there's one at all. 

Some of the names on this list get top billing on the marquee to be sure. Recent draftees should grow to replace two of the biggest names on the list, Holt and Little. Losing McMichael will be a concern, as he figures to be a prominent part of the Al Saunders offense. The Rams will have the option of attempting to sign him to an extension ahead of that time, competitively bid on the UFA, or seek a replacement through the draft or free agency. As for the rest of the roster, we're pretty young in the right places, particularly on defense, and have our starters under contract through the uncapped season. There will be age concerns about some of the players we do have under contract, but with two more drafts between now and then, the Rams should be able to find the next generation of talent to fill those shoes.  

In between now and the 2010 free agent season the Rams will have some big contract issues to deal with. We mentioned the LT situation above, but their current candidates for center and right guard will be looking for contracts before then. Like Greco, if Roy Schuening emerges - and there are those that think he has the talent to play now - that leaves only the starting center role to be filled for 2009. There's also the 2,000 lbs gorilla in the room, Steven Jackson, who's contract expires after this season. 

Still, it's refreshing to see that the Rams won't be completely SOL when the uncapped 2010 rolls around.

Don't forget to make your voice and projections heard in the great Chris Long vs. Glenn Dorsey projection showdown!

In an offhand sort of way, we've been joking about visions of Matt Hasselbeck being pummeled by the new and improved Rams defensive line. But, the Rams moves in the draft really should go along way to making that vision a reality.

Inspired by the talk of Jacksonville stocking up on pass rushers to break the Colts' grasp on the division, I think it's worth taking a look at the Rams moves in the context of how they figure to size up against our division rivals. And who better to start with the reigning division champ over the last four seasons, the Seattle Seahawks.

The most obvious place to start is with those lofty visions of Matt Hasselbeck sacked again and again. The Seahawks biggest need arguably was at offensive tackle. I'll let our friends at Field Gulls sum up the situation on the o-line there:

Walter Jones is no longer an elite left tackle. Where once Jones was irreplaceable, he is now simply inadequately able to be replaced. That is, Jones is not so good that the Hawks couldn't hope to replace his production with another player; they just don't have that player on roster. Sean Locklear wouldn't be lost at left tackle, perhaps deficient, but not disastrous or crippling. His replacement on the right, though, presumably Ray Willis, would jeopardize any hopes of contention. Willis may yet develop into a serviceable starter, but we're far from knowing that. Combining the inherent value of the position, the age of the incumbent and the overall team depth, no position presents a greater need for Seattle than offensive tackle.

Seattle did not draft an offensive lineman this year, not a one. Last season, they ranked 19th in pass protection , allowing 37 sacks and a had a sack rate of 7.1%. (The Rams, by comparison, has a sack rate of 8.1% and the paper thin o-line ranked 25th overall in pass protection.) With LT Walter Jones another year older and at a little higher risk for injury, they could very well struggle with pass protection. At the very least, figuring they stay at about the same level, the Rams figure to be much improved in their pass rush. The addition of Chris Long, the return of Leonard Little, improved play from second year players Adam Carriker and Clifton Ryan, the rejuvenation of La'Roi Glover, and whispers of Claude Wroten being the offseason's hardest worker, gives the Rams plenty of depth. Add to that equation Haslett's ability to attack with different looks in the 3-4, utilizing the emergence of Will Witherspoon as a rushing OLB, and the 4-3, and the passing game could get pretty difficult for Seattle.

The Seahawks' questions at wide receiver were also left unanswered in the draft and free agent period. Their best pass catcher, Deon Branch, has health questions, and behind him they lack a solid pass catching threat. The Rams d-backs, Fakhir Brown included thanks to his successful appeal,figure to have some good games against the Seahawks this season.

Of course, Seattle did make plenty of moves to beef up their running game, no longer dependent on the rusty jallopy Shaun Alexander. Bringing in Julius Jones from Dallas and T.J. Duckett gives them a pretty good 1-2 punch, with Duckett supplying the short yardage help they lacked last season. The addition of Mike Whale at guard figures to beef up the run game as well as the addition of West Virgina FB Owen Schmitt, who profiles as a top flight blocker in the NFL. The Rams pass attack has the chance to shine, but the run defense will have to build on last season's gains and prove it wasn't a fluke.

On the other side of the ball, Seattle's made solid improvements on their d-line. The addition of Lawrence Jackson at DE in the first round of the draft gives them a nice pairing with Patrick Kerney. The addition of Jackson will also save Darryl Tapp's legs for situational pass rushing. The Rams better be damn sure about Orlando Pace's health, and it's truly now or never for Alex Barron. The blockers will need to be firing on all cylinders in order for Bulger to make his passes.

While their defensive front improved, the Seahawks sport the same old backfield featuring Marcus Trufant as the only real threat. Take a look at Seattle's rank against types of receviers from last season:

With Trufant tied up with Holt and if the blockers up front can stave off the rush, the Rams second round draft pick, Donnie Avery, could have some nice games against the Seahawks, catching a couple deep balls and using his speed to cruise downfield relatively unfettered.

I like the way the Rams stack up against their division rivals, who've been wrongly holding the division title we grew accustomed to having. This, of course, is all on academic at this point. We'll get a much better sense of things in week three when the new look Rams pay a visit.