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Random Ramsdom: February 19: St. Louis Rams - The Combine Begins

For the remainder of the week, the NFL Scouting Combine will take center-stage in Indianapolis. Over 300 draft-eligible prospects will be evaluated for the upcoming NFL draft. Will another RG3, Dontari Poe, or Tavon Austin stand out in spectacular fashion...and see their draft stock soar as a result?

Sam Greenwood

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Well...at least Richie got THAT much right:

An incredible exchange on Twitter over the last of couple of days. This came in the wake of CBS Sports' Jason La Canfora's comments, reported by Ryan Van Bibber Monday on TST (link). The tweets were exchanged between TST's own Daniel Doelling, NBC Rotoworld's Evan Silva, and Spencer Engel, editor of Cover 32 Rams:

I guess Mr. Silva isn't a big Rams fan. Props to Spencer and Daniel!! And Jason La Canfora? Not a peep since Monday. My thoughts on the issue were expressed on January 23, in "Sam Bradford's 2014 Salary Cap Hit: Can It Be Lowered" (link). The conclusions I drew in that article still stand.

Assessing the Rams' current cap space: ESPN NFC West

Nick Wagoner gives his take on the Rams' current salary cap situation. I'll be preparing my first major cap space update of the year next week, as part of an ongoing off season primer series.

Chat With Nick Wagoner: ESPN NFC West

Wagoner continues his weekly question and answer series, covering a wide range of topics related to the Rams.

The Sam Bradford Dilemma: National Football Post

Joe Fortenbaugh examines the contract issues the Rams face regarding Sam Bradford. His thoughts coincide almost exactly with mine, in the article I wrote for TST mentioned above.

2014 NFL Draft Big Board: Walter Football

Charlie Campbell offers up his latest big board, highlighting the top 132 college prospects in the nation.

Predicting The Rams' 5 Biggest Free Agent Moves: Rant Sports NFL

Anthony Blake believes the Rams will be quite active in free agency this year. The Rams will re-sign Rodger Saffold and Jo-Lonn Dunbar. In addition, the Rams will sign free agent DT Linval Joseph, DB E.J. Biggers, and G/T Geoff Schwartz. The Rams would benefit greatly from such a scenario unfolding, although I don't see how they could create enough salary cap space to make it happen.

Draft Prospect Highlight Reel: QB - Aaron Murray - Georgia

Aaron Murray - 2014 NFL Draft Profile (via Erick Ward)

Greg Cosell Breaks Down Quarterbacks: SB Nation - Mocking The Draft

Respected NFL analyst Greg Cosell briefly shares his thoughts on the top 3 QB's in the 2014 NFL Draft. The fate of these 3 QB's is inextricably tied to what will happen with the Rams' # 2 selection in the upcoming draft.

Vetting potential trade partners: Vikings: ESPN

As part of an ongoing series, Nick Wagoner discusses the viability of trading down the Rams' #2 selection in the draft to the Minnesota Vikings.

NFL Combine 2014: 10 Bold Predictions: Bleacher Report

Will QB Derek Carr cement 1st round status? Will Ra'Shede Hageman move into the top 15? Can Jadeveon Clowney run a sub-4.4 forty? These questions - and many others - could be answered this week at the scouting combine.

Rams still must find a way to score more: St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Bernie Miklasz ponders what it will take for the Rams to score more points next season:

"Over the past five years, 50 NFL receivers have caught at least 10 touchdown passes in a season. And the Rams? They haven’t had a receiver gather more than seven touchdown passes in a season since Torry Holt grabbed 10 in 2006."

Lions releasing Burleson and Delmas: Yahoo Sports

The Rams came close to signing safety Louis Delmas last year, but couldn't settle on contract terms. Given the Rams' obvious need at the position, could the Rams again attempt to sign Delmas? Or should they draft a safety early in the 2014 draft? Or both?

Stat Facts Of The Week: Top 20 Rookie Receiving Seasons In The Past 20 Years

Top 20 Rookie Receiving Seasons since 1992 (min 50 receptions)


Player


Team


Year


Rec


Rec Yds


1


Roy Williams


Det


2004


54


817


2


Keyshawn Johnson


NYJ


1996


63


844


3


T.Y. Hilton


Ind


2012


50


861


4


Frank Sanders


Ari


1995


52


883


5


Jeremy Shockey


NYG


2002


74


894


6


DeSean Jackson


Phi


2008


62


912


7


Eddie Kennison


StL


1996


54


924


8


Julio Jones


Atl


2011


54


959


9


Mike Williams


TB


2010


65


964


10


Andre Johnson


Hou


2003


66


976


11


Eddie Royal


Den


2008


91


980


12


Kevin Johnson


Cle


1999


66


986


13


Dwayne Bowe


KC


2007


70


995


14


Marques Colston


NO


2006


70


1,038


15


Joey Galloway


Sea


1995


67


1,039


16


A.J. Green


Cin


2011


65


1,057


17


Terry Glenn


NE


1996


90


1,132


18


Michael Clayton


TB


2004


80


1,193


19


Randy Moss


Min


1998


69


1,313


20


Anquan Boldin


Ari


2003


101


1,377


Adjusting to the NFL is a very difficult thing for most rookies, especially wide receivers. The chart - courtesy of Sporting Charts - presents the top 20 rookie receiving seasons between 1992-2012. Only 7 rookie WR's achieved 1000 yards in that time period. San Diego's Keenan Allen - with 1046 yards - achieved the feat last year. The bottom line: not many rookie WR's have a huge impact in their first year, irrespective of where they were chosen in the draft.

Ra'Shede Hageman Scouting Report: Walter Football

DT Ra'Shede Hageman - a physical freak - should have little trouble improving his draft stock this week at the combine. It should come as no surprise if the Rams selected him with the 13th pick in the NFL draft. Take a peek at some film from Draft Breakdown (link).

2014 NFL Mock Drafts: CBS Sports

Rob Rang, Dane Brugler, Pete Prisco, and Pat Kirwan post their latest 1st round mock drafts. No surprises for the Rams with the #2 pick. Some interesting selections at #13.

What the Rams Can See From The Stats Of Seattle's Success: 101 Sports

The recipe for success seems rather simple, at least in theory:

"There are countless ways to look at why teams win football games. In the case of the Seahawks, their formula of winning the turnover and field-position battle has been a fairly tried and true one."

Rams Chat Highlights: Rams News Now

Highlights from Jim Thomas's weekly question and answer period. Interesting thoughts on Sam Bradford, and soon-to-be free agent CB Alterraun Verner.

NFL Combine: Position-By-Position Primer: Bleacher Report

BR takes an in-depth look at which players to watch for - at each position - during the combine.

On This Day In Sports History

1965 - The NFL decides to add a 6th official for all games.

A nostalgic look back at Los Angeles Rams highlights from the 1950's through the 1970's:

LA RAMS highlights 50's-70's (via Robert McDorman)

Mike Sando talks about Sam Bradford and contract extensions:

Rams Coach Jeff Fisher: Sam Bradford Is Our QB: Sports Illustrated

Enough said...

The Rams & Bradford: Looking at four possible contract scenarios: Over The Cap

I covered all of this ground in my article a couple weeks back on Bradford's contract. This is still worth the read, for it reinforces all of the complexities involved in contract structuring.

Standing by Bradford right move...for now: ESPN NFC West

Might as well get all the Bradford stuff out of the way in ONE Random Ramsdom.

The Mike and Mike Show - Jeff Fisher - Audio: ESPN Radio

Fisher: Bradford is our quarterback: ESPN

The boss addresses all of the Sam Bradford talk from earlier this week.

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Mike Mayock's 2014 NFL Draft Position Rankings: NFL.com

Respected analyst Mike Mayock releases his first NFL draft positional rankings of the year.

NFL Scouting Combine Preview: SB Nation - Mocking The Draft

Over at MTD, Dan Kadar previews the Combine, and what to look for in the coming days.

2014 NFL Draft Big Board: S.I. Audibles

Doug Farrar presents his top 40 prospects entering the scouting combine.

St. Louis Rams Off Season Preview: CBS Sports

John Breech previews the Rams off season, heading into free agency and the NFL draft.

Vetting Potential Trade Partners: ESPN NFC West

Nick Wagoner continues his series, exploring potential trade partners for the Rams' #2 selection in the upcoming NFL draft.

Blast From The Past: Classic Rock Wednesday: Led Zeppelin - Since I've Been Loving You

Led Zeppelin - Since I've Been Loving You Live (HD) (via Jimmy Karlsson)

Please have a great Wednesday and a Ramtastic week!