New broke mid-day Tuesday that the St. Louis Rams hired Rutgers offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti for the team's quarterbacks coaching job. Jim Thomas of the PD echoed initial reports later in the day, while most Rams fans, keeping a close eye on the hire after Sam Bradford's terrible second season, scratched their heads.

The Rams had been linked to two candidates for the QB coaching job prior to Cignetti's surprise hiring, Alex Van Pelt, who had the same job in Tampa Bay, and Bart Andrus, who had worked with Fisher on two separate occasions. That made the Cignetti hiring especially curious.

We looked into Cignetti a little more yesterday. Jon from SBNation's Rutgers blog On The Banks provided me even more context on Cignetti.

I think he is a good hire. At least in the college game, he was a fairly good offensive coordinator who seemed to run a normal NFL offense. Considering that this was a year after the worst offensive coordinator in the country destroyed the offense, you won't find too many complaints about Cignetti. As a coach he definitely believes in a ball control offense and taking shots down the field; maybe getting a bit too aggressive with the latter, to the detriment of keeping drives alive. That should not be an issue as a QB coach though.

He is a good hire. Cignetti has NFL experience, so there isn't much reason to be unhappy.

Kevin Weidl, one of ESPN's NFL Draft experts, also commented on Cignetti's hiring.

Good hire by the Rams naming Frank Cignetti QB coach. One of the more underrated developers of QBs and should help Bradford immensely.

I think it might be even more telling that this guy got the job over a known associate of Fisher's. That's a good sign that he's hiring the best candidates rather than prioritizing pals for the coaching ranks. Then again, that sounds almost hopelessly naive.

The St. Louis Rams reportedly hired a quarterbacks coach on Tuesday, choosing Rutgers' offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti. After a tough sophomore season for Sam Bradford, following his Offensive Rookie of the Year debut the season before, it's easily the most watched assistant coaching position on Jeff Fisher's staff.

Reaction so far is best described as "huh?" given that Cignetti was pretty far off the radar as far as the public knew.

Two other names had been mentioned recently as candidates for the Rams quarterbacks coaching job. Alex Van Pelt, the Buccaneers former QB coach, and Bart Andrus, the quarterbacks coach who worked with Fisher early in the careers of Steve McNair and Vince Young.

If in fact, Marvez' report is correct, then Cignetti must have some pretty solid recommendations to beat out two guys with established NFL bona fides, especially one that worked directly with Fisher's two most high profile quarterbacks from his Tennessee days.

Rutgers fans think fairly well of Cignetti. I turned to On The Banks, SB Nation's Scarlet Knights community, for more insight.

From a discussion about who should be their next head coach:

Frank Cignetti - Current Rutgers offensive coordinator is well-liked, which will at least warrant an interview in the name of continuity. Paul Zeise claimed that he had a chance at the Pitt job last year, but lost out due to the perception that he is a bit too ambitious and quick to interview for new jobs. Still, Cignetti proved to be a miracle worker at Rutgers in 2011; think about it like this. If Greg Schiano never hired Cignetti, he'd be closer to out of a job at Rutgers today than the head guy in charge down in Tampa. The best reason to hire Cignetti? Pitt doesn't seem to have a clue what they are doing, and they didn't want him, so clearly there must be some upside here.

From a Nov. 2011 assessmentof the coaching staff (Cignetti wasn't working with elite QB talent during his stint at Rutgers):

Frank Cignetti - this was pretty much night and day from 2010 and the unending nightmare of Kirk Ciarrocca's tenure. Is Cignetti a perfect play caller? Of course not, but he is a genuine, qualified DI offensive coordinator, who stemmed the bleeding and made Rutgers relevant again. Now the challenge will to build on this year, and bring to light a truly dynamic attack next season. More of his personnel will be in place, with the players having another year to learn his scheme, but Cigs will have to make everything work absent the performance of Mohamed Sanu. It's on Cignetti's shoulders to develop one of Gary Nova or Chas Dodd into a credible starter. Let's hope a suitor with deep pockets doesn't come calling, or that Cignetti is tired of moving around for a while.

Another thing that's clear is Cignetti runs a conservative, ball-control offense, or at least he did at Rutgers. He's not running the offense in St. Louis, but he working for an offensive coordinator who is on the record as stating a preference for the running game and making the play action a big part of the offensive game plan.

At Rutgers, Cignetti worked with the quarterbacks, but he also ran the entire offense, something else to consider when looking at his track record there.

The St. Louis Rams have hired a quarterbacks coach. According to Alex Marvez of Fox Sports, the Rams have hired Rutgers offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti, Jr. to fill the position last held by Dick Curl in 2010.

Cignetti has been a quarterbacks coach in the NFL before, with the Saints in 2000-2001 and then with the 49ers in 2007. He was considered a candidate to replace Greg Schiano, who left to take the head coaching job in Tampa Bay, but was passed over for Mario Cristobal.

Many thought he would end up in Tampa with Schiano as the Bucs' offensive coordinator.

The Rutgers offense leaned heavily on the run under Schiano and Cignetti.

The Rams took heat for not hiring a quarterbacks coach last season, when Sam Bradford was learning a new offense on short notice. Why they decided not to hire a specific position coach for Bradford is unknown. It proved to be a fateful decision.

Cignetti fills one of the few remaining assistant jobs. Head coach Jeff Fisher said during his Super Bowl media appearances that he hopes to have the coaching staff in place by the end of the week.

St. Louis Rams head coach Jeff Fisher has found another assistant coach for his staff in St. Louis. According to the Detroit Free Press, Lions defensive assistant Brandon Fisher will join the Rams' staff. Yes, that's Jeff Fisher's son.

Fisher tried to hire his son in Tennessee, but owner Bud Adams put the kibosh on that move citing the team's nepotism policy. It was one of a cascade of factors leading to Fisher's departure from the Titans.

Brandon is one of three children Fisher has. He played linebacker at the University of Montana.

Lions head coach Jim Schwartz, Fisher's former defensive coordinator in Tennessee, hired Brandon Fisher last spring as a defensive assistant. Nepotism aside, the NFL coaching ranks is a pretty closed society, which really isn't anything unusual.

The Fishers are the second father-son pairing the Rams will have on their coaching staff this season. Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams hired his son Blake, who worked with him for six years prior to this one. Blake will most likely have a role coaching linebackers. What role Brandon Fisher will play has not been reported.

The St. Louis Rams have their new head coach. They have their two coordinators and a bevvy of assistants and position coaches, with a few spots left to fill. Of all the job openings left on the Rams' staff, the quarterbacks coach is the position that will draw the most scrutiny. TST has learned that another name is in the mix for the Rams' quarterbacks coaching job, Bart Andrus, a former Fisher assistant from his days in Tennessee.

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The St. Louis Rams' new head coach, Jeff Fisher, and his offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer have made it quite clear that they plan to hire a quarterbacks coach this season. It remains to be seen who will fill that position, but one name they are reportedly interested in is Alex Van Pelt, the quarterbacks coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

"I think that that's something that was one of the first things that Jeff and I talked about," Schottenheimer said when asked about the quarterbacks coaching job in a recent conference call. "It's something that I really, truly believe in as well."

Van Pelt bounced around the NFL for 10 years as a backup quarterback. He started coaching in 2005 with the Frankfurt Galaxy, landing in the NFL a year later with the Buffalo Bills. The Bills promoted him to quarterbacks coach in 2008, an the next season he became their offensive coordinator before heading to Tampa Bay.

During his stint in Buffalo, Van Pelt developed a knack for making backup quarterbacks look good, including Trent Edwards and Ryan Fitzpatrick. He coached Josh Freeman during his breakthrough second season, one that included a 25/6 TD/INT ratio and a 61.4 completion percentage. Freeman and the Bucs struggled last season, but the quarterback did maintain a 62 percent completion rate ... while throwing 22 picks.

The Rams are not the only team interested in Van Pelt. He'll interview with the Chicago Bears for their quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator jobs this week. The Colts are also interested, and the Steelers, the team that initially drafted the Pittsburgh (NCAA) product in 1993, are said to have him on their short list for the offensive coordinator position.

The St. Louis Rams have hired Ray Sherman as their next wide receivers coach. The news first bubbled up on Twitter via NFL agent Fredrick Lyles, who represents Patrick Crayton. TST has since confirmed Sherman's hiring with another source. Sherman fits the profile as another well-experienced coach for Jeff Fisher's staff.

Sherman's most recent job was in Dallas, coaching receivers there. He was interviewed for the head coaching vacancy in 2011 to satisfy the Rooney Rule. Dallas let him walk after interviewing him because of some controversy around Dez Bryant, of course.

Sherman has a reputation as a coach who gives his players a wide berth, especially important among receivers who seem to typify the diva modern athlete. According to Matt Moseley of Fox Sports, Sherman allowed Bryant to "vent" on the sidelines. He also maintained a regular "Keepin' It Real Thursdays" for his players to "blow off steam." Miles Austin also spoke highly of Sherman and regretted losing him in an interview with PFT.

Sherman's name first bubbled to the surface as a coaching candidate last week. Rams great Henry Ellard was another name in contention for the job.

Sherman worked with Fisher in Tennessee from 2005-2006 as the receivers coach. He was with the Packers from 2000-2004. His first NFL coaching job was in 1988 as a running backs coach with the Oilers.

The St. Louis Rams announced the hiring of Gregg Williams and Brian Schottenheimer on Monday. Williams will be the team's defensive coordinator, and Schottenheimer will run the offense. Both hirings were confirmed prior to today's press release from the team.

Williams is a long-time Fisher associate, and was the first assistant hired after Fisher took the job. In fact, Fisher confirmed the news himself last Tuesday at the press conference where he was introduced as the team's new head coach.

"I have worked with and known Gregg for a lot of years and I have a tremendous amount of respect for him as a defensive coordinator and value his past experience as a head coach," Fisher said. "He brings an aggressive approach that I'm sure will benefit our defense and he has a wealth of knowledge that will aid our entire team."

Williams' defense took some heat this season after a loss to the 49ers in the Divisional round of the playoffs. However, his unit lacked talent, particularly along the defensive line and among the linebackers.

Schottenheimer got the job over former Oakland head coach Hue Jackson. He leaves the Jets after six seasons.

"I am really excited to have Brian join our staff," Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher said. "He is a well respected coach in this league who has had success for many years at a high level as an offensive coordinator. We share the same philosophies on the offensive side of the ball and I think he is a tremendous addition to our staff."

The addition of Schottenheimer could increase the likelihood of backup quarterback Kellen Clemens sticking around for another season.

The Schottenheimer hire has been less popular with fans, based largely on what happened with the Jets over the last couple seasons. In Schottenheimer's defense, the Jets have some pretty significant problems off the field. LaDainian Tomlinson spoke pretty directly about those issues in a recent interview.

Related: The Brian Schottenheimer Paradox

Fisher is now in the process of hiring the assistant coaches who will work with those coordinators.

Former Rams offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels left to take the same job with the New England Patriots. Ken Flajole, the Rams defensive coordinator under Steve Spagnuolo, is expected to join his old boss as an assistant coach in New Orleans, where Spagnuolo is now the defensive coordinator.