Let's Go Blues

A couple of days away and #1 is still up in the air. There have been rumors linking the Rams to everyone, including Manziel, and rumors of them trading Bradford to the Vikings. I realize that it might be a little dumb to get all wrapped up in the announcing of players' names but I can't help it. Can't wait til Thursday.

I'm looking forward to it too. Unfortunately, I have a linear algebra final at 6:55, so I won't be able to catch what the Rams do as it happens.

I don't want Manziel. Period. If we take him, I'll cheer for him, but I hope we don't. Unless there's a QB that they are ridiculously high on, I don't want a QB in the first round. It's a deep QB draft, and I don't mind taking a chance on somebody in the 3rd round or something while giving Bradford a chance to earn a new contract. Bradford wasn't bad last year, was on pace for something like 32/10 TD/INT over 16 games with like 4K yards. Not 1st overall draft pick production level, but better than replacement level.

Other than taking Manziel, there's not a lot that will disappoint me. A D-Line of Clowney-Quinn-Long is pretty sick. Watkins could be a good addition to the WR group. Hard to have too many good O-Linemen, so I'd be happy with Robinson or Matthews (I think those are the 2).

And, if somebody wants to overpay for the number 2 pick (which I think is likely), let em. The number 2 pick is the last RG3 pick we have. If we can turn that into a similar package, that's great.

BTW, my thoughts on Manziel aren't related to his maturity and whatnot. I think he's cocky which is kinda annoying if he's not on your team. But, the media overplays that angle of him. A very large percentage of people would be doing the same things if they were in his shoes. Not all, but many, probably most. That's a concern heading into the NFL I guess, but what is he, 21? I'm 29 and I'm infinitely more mature at 29 than 21. I was a (Franking) moron at 21. I bet he'll mature just like the rest of us making that stuff a non-issue.

I just don't think he's going to translate to the NFL very well. He's good at eluding pressure. But, the gap between his speed and NFL pass rushers will be drastically smaller than it was in college. I also don't think his arm is great. He had Mike Evans vs college DB's at Texas AM. Whatever receivers he has in the NFL likely won't be one of the best in the NFL and they will be going against NFL talent. He will have significantly less margin for error.

Obviously both of those things are true for every QB in the draft, but not every QB in the draft had Mike Evans to throw to or depended on their difference in speed over pass rushers as heavily as he did.

I completely agree with your assessment of Manziel. The only plus side is that the Rams would immediately become a national 'brand' as long as he plays well. They'd be talked about more, in future seasons they might have way more prime time games, etc.

My concern with Manziel is his passing ability. I've never been impressed by how his throws look. I'm no scout or anything, obviously. I heard Kurt Warner on a radio show say that the flaw with Manziel is that he looks to make plays with his feet first, but in the NFL, you don't resort to that until the play breaks down or your receivers are covered. And I agree with that. Manziel might come in and tear the league up like RGIII his rookie year, but eventually teams will know to key in on the run, especially if he can't pass.

But I agree that this is a deep QB draft. Honestly, I'm not so sure the two/three first round QBs are much better than the ones that will be there in the 2nd round. If the Rams could get a prime OT in Robinson or Matthews, or a WR in Watkins, or a S in Clinton-Dix, I'd rather do that at the top and then get a QB sitting there for us at 44.

I'm hearing rumors that the top 3 picks are highly likely to all be moved. Manziel is Ryan Leaf lite. Bortles is the best QB available in the draft, but none of them should go top 15. I freaking hate when teams draft a QB just to draft a QB. Fans don't get overly excited about linebackers or defensive backs getting drafted but sometimes that's just what a team needs. Don't appease the fanbase by drafting a position you either A. don't need or B. need but could fill via trade or free agency.

There are apparently rumors going around that the Rams want Manziel and are trading Bradford to Minnesota. I will be shocked if either happens, but it's kinda funny to hear. It wouldn't shock me if the Rams leaked that rumor themselves with the purpose of driving up the 2nd pick's price.

A ton of Rams fans on social media are saying they're disappointed because they wanted Manziel or Watkins. But seriously, Robinson and Donald? Our lines just got beefier and our D-line could be the start of something big. You've gotta be able to play big boy football in the NFC West. Flash doesn't get you that. I love our picks.

It's also hilarious most pundits are saying we had one of the best first rounds. I know you can't put stock in that. But it's funny seeing what losing football gets you: bitter, cynical fans that nay say everything, including a 1st round that is being lauded as the best.

Myself and a few of my buddies did the Fantasy Entry Draft game on NFL.com. We filled it out and then went to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the draft. Got there a little early...good thing too, because at about 6:45 there was a line out the door to get in.
It was a good time. When they started to announce each pick the place quieted down to a whisper. Kind of funny.
Doing the fantasy entry draft made it more fun, as you are rooting for guys to go to certain teams that you wouldn't otherwise care about.

cprice12 wrote:Myself and a few of my buddies did the Fantasy Entry Draft game on NFL.com. We filled it out and then went to Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the draft. Got there a little early...good thing too, because at about 6:45 there was a line out the door to get in.
It was a good time. When they started to announce each pick the place quieted down to a whisper. Kind of funny.
Doing the fantasy entry draft made it more fun, as you are rooting for guys to go to certain teams that you wouldn't otherwise care about.

Never heard of one of those. Sounds like fun.

dmiles2186 wrote:A ton of Rams fans on social media are saying they're disappointed because they wanted Manziel or Watkins. But seriously, Robinson and Donald? Our lines just got beefier and our D-line could be the start of something big. You've gotta be able to play big boy football in the NFC West. Flash doesn't get you that. I love our picks.

It's also hilarious most pundits are saying we had one of the best first rounds. I know you can't put stock in that. But it's funny seeing what losing football gets you: bitter, cynical fans that nay say everything, including a 1st round that is being lauded as the best.

I like our draft a lot so far. Fan reaction is to be expected though. Linemen, especially ones not names Clowney, aren't exciting. But, they are necessary.

Robinson: I've heard him compared to Pace. If he's Orlando Pace 2.0, we just won the lottery. I kinda wanted Watkins there, but we need an OT more. Going in I viewed Matthews and Robinson as the same thing largely because I don't know enough to know any better. So, I wouldn't have minded trading back a few spots to get whichever one was still there and a pick to go along with it. But, that wasn't necessarily an option. And, if Robinson has the highest ceiling of any OT in the draft, you won't hear any complaints from me.

Donald: Caught me off guard. I wasn't expecting a DT there for a second. I thought we might go Ha ha or Dennard, maybe Mosely, or even a trade to later in the round. But, I wasn't expecting a DT for a second. But one reason I wouldn't have minded taking Clowney at 2 instead of trading back (had he been available) is that what every championship team has in common moreso than a good QB is that they do one thing great. D-Line was already getting there. This might have pushed it way over the edge. 4 young 1st round D-Linemen on the same line? The line could be scary now. I'm excited to see how it plays out.

What a weird round 1. The Browns, in classic Browns form, screwed up big time. Oh well, good thing I also like the Jets. Oh wait. Yeah, I got nothing. Both NFL teams I like suck at everything.

glen a richter wrote:What a weird round 1. The Browns, in classic Browns form, screwed up big time. Oh well, good thing I also like the Jets. Oh wait. Yeah, I got nothing. Both NFL teams I like suck at everything.

I think the Browns did well. And they are selling a ton of tickets right now. Their fans are excited.

Now Johnny Football won't have anyone to throw to since they passed up the chance to take Watkins and Gordon couldn't keep his hands off the wacky tobacky. Even if it's Hoyer, Campbell or whoever, 2-14 is a very real possibility.

I think the Rams killed it in this draft. And I'm so happy that we were the ones to take Michael Sam.

dmiles2186 wrote:I think the Rams killed it in this draft. And I'm so happy that we were the ones to take Michael Sam.

Agreed on both. When he fell so far, I thought there was a decent chance we would take him at 249/250. I don't know if he'll make it, but I'm happy he's getting his chance here. There's significant overlap between Mizzou and Rams' fanbases. I don't know how relevant that is, but I don't think it hurts.

cprice12 wrote:

glen a richter wrote:What a weird round 1. The Browns, in classic Browns form, screwed up big time. Oh well, good thing I also like the Jets. Oh wait. Yeah, I got nothing. Both NFL teams I like suck at everything.

I think the Browns did well. And they are selling a ton of tickets right now. Their fans are excited.

I think they did really well in round 1 as well. They got a ton for moving from 4th to 9th. They might have 2 top 10 picks next year. I'm still not high on Manziel (and losing Gordon really really sucks for his chances), but at 22, that's pretty decent value.

cardsfan04 wrote:

dmiles2186 wrote:I think the Rams killed it in this draft. And I'm so happy that we were the ones to take Michael Sam.

Agreed on both. When he fell so far, I thought there was a decent chance we would take him at 249/250. I don't know if he'll make it, but I'm happy he's getting his chance here. There's significant overlap between Mizzou and Rams' fanbases. I don't know how relevant that is, but I don't think it hurts.

I don't think it hurts either. I know there are going to be idiots who disapprove of this because, well, they're idiots. But the Mizzou fans were already pulling for this guy. And folks like me who became his fan after the announcement will pull even harder for him now that he's on my team. And then the other Rams fans will just pull for him because he's 'our guy.' I think this was probably the best situation for him to be in though. He's not going to be expected to start , he'll hopefully be given a chance to learn and grow and a chance to succeed.

Maurice Alexander has an interesting story. He's from Eureka. Went to Utah St. At a party, he punched a teammate in the face and was sentenced to a year in jail, but a judge suspended all but 45 days of the sentence. He was suspended from Utah St for a year and moved back home to Eureka and became a janitor at Edward Jones Dome. Then, he was welcomed back to Utah St (I guess that's a good sign) and went on to get drafted.

One thing that concerns me is how quick he is to tell you how awesome he is:

“It made me a better man today. Utah State believed in me, they brought me back. I’m a great guy, I’m a great friend, I’m a great person to be around and I’m good in the locker room.”

Nothing out of line or anything. But, he sure does think highly of himself. Hopefully it's with good reason.