The Cowboys will have two of their offensive weapons who
earned questionable designations. Tight end Blake Jarwin and receiver Cole
Beasley passed pregame
workouts
Brandon
Allen Jersey , and both are active for tonight’s game against the
Rams.Neither Jarwin nor Beasley practiced this week because of an ankle
injury.Beasley had three receptions for 28 yards in last week’s wild-card
playoff win over the Seahawks, and Jarwin caught three passes for 15 yards.Left
guard Xavier Su'a-Filo also is active after missing last week’s game with an
ankle injury, but rookie Connor Williams is expected to start.The Cowboys’
inactives are quarterback Mike White, safety Darian Thompson (groin), running
back Darius Jackson, linebacker Chris Covington, defensive lineman Dorance
Armstrong, defensive tackle Daniel Ross and defensive lineman David Irving
(ankle).The Rams enter the game healthy, and their inactive list includes no
surprises. Defensive back Darious Williams, running back Justin Davis, outside
linebacker Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, outside linebacker Trevon Young, offensive
lineman Jamil Demby, defensive tackle Sebastian Joseph-Day and defensive tackle
Tanzel Smart will not dress. Are the 2018 NFC Champions posed for a
repeat?"WhiteSections 2019 offseason2019 free agency2019 NFL DraftFull
ArchiveLibrary 2019 NFL calendar2019 Rams regular season sched2019 Rams
preseason schedMasthead Community Guidelines NFL Odds StubHub 鉁?019 NFL DraftThe
“If” Factor: The Professor’s pre-draft review of the 2019 Los Angeles Rams’
offseasonNew,17commentsAre the 2018 NFC Champions posed for a
repeat?CDTShareTweetShareShareThe “If” Factor: The Professor’s pre-draft review
of the 2019 Los Angeles Rams’ offseasonLos Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay
celebrates after winning the NFC Championship over the New Orleans Saints, Jan.
20, 2019.Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY SportsIts been an interesting offseason for
the 2018 NFC Champion Los Angeles Rams. On the defensive side of the ball the
Rams have either said goodbye to DT Ndamukong Suh, ILB Mark Barron and FS
Lamarcus Joyner. The Rams responded by signing sweetheart deals for LB Clay
Matthews coming from the Green Bay Packers and FS Eric Weddle from the Baltimore
Ravens proving there’s nothing like being a winner and living in sunny Los
Angeles.Between LT Andrew Whitworth,
Suh
Sam Shields
Jersey , Matthews and Weddle, the Rams have clearly become an attractive
team for quality veteran free agents to play for.The Rams also re-signed edge
rusher OLB, Dante Fowler, Jr., who they acquired midseason in a trade with the
Jacksonville Jaguars inking him to a one-year, $13m deal. While some of my
fellow Turf Show Times brothers were upset by this signing, I like it. First,
its only a one-year deal. And if Fowler wants a long-term deal at that kind of
money in the future, he’ll need to step up his game. Now, he controls his own
destiny. The other reason I like the signing of Fowler is that the interception
in overtime against the New Orleans Saints by SS John Johnson III was caused by
Fowler forcing QB Drew Brees to throw a duck. The interception led to the
57-yard field goal for the win, and off to the Super Bowl the Rams went. To pay
$13m for that one play was worth it!On offense, the Rams have moved on from C
John Sullivan and LG Rodger Saffold III. The Rams didn’t go out to in free
agency to find replacements; instead ;they’re either looking in house or
possibly to the 2019 NFL Draft for replacements. I’m fine with this. OL Joseph
Noteboom coming off the bench last year looked like he can do the job, and last
year’s fourth-round pick C Brian Allen is slated to replace Sullivan. The Rams
are therefore younger and faster on the offensive line which is a good thing. As
much I would have liked to have re-signed Saffold, there was no way the team
could afford to pay him given their needs and salary cap restrictions. I’m happy
for Rodger who got a megadeal with tons of guaranteed money from the Tennessee
Titans that was well deserved.Anyone who puts on the Rams uniform and plays as
long as Rodger did for our team will always be one of us, no matter where he
goes.Evaluating the Offseason MovesSince honesty is the best policy, here’s my
take on the Rams’ moves up to the draft.Suh had an outstanding playoff run, but
never lived up to hype when his acquisition was announced last year during the
regular season. Letting him go in my opinion is no big deal. He can be
replaced.Joyner had a great 2017 season so much so that it caused the Rams to
tag him last year. Unfortunately, his play 2018 was no where near 2017, so I’m
also fine with losing him to the Oakland Raiders.Barron never seemed to fit Rams
Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips’ 3-4 defense. He’s just too smallish for
that position. He’s a tweener drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to play either
safety or linebacker—but not linebacker full-time. He will be missed in pass
coverage
Aqib Talib
Jersey , but not as a run stopper. The only issue I have with letting him
go is who will Rams replace him with.In order to fill the void at safety left by
Joyner departing. the Rams signed Weddle. He’s not as fast as Joyner, but he’s
an upgrade in the “knock his head off” category. He’s fearless against the run,
and can whack guys off their feet against the pass which I love in safeties. The
only issue is his age. Does he still have the speed to compete at the highest
level demanded by the position? This is one of my biggest “if” factors.In order
to fill the void left by Barron’s release, the Rams signed Matthews. A SoCal
native, Matthews played his college ball for USC and was the best player on the
Packers’ defense for years which isn’t saying much given how bad Green Bay’s
defense has been the last four years. Still, he will definitely be an upgrade in
the run game as opposed to Barron. He can also rush the quarterback either at
the inside or moving him to the edge. As long as he avoids those iffy illegal
roughness quarterback penalties, this signing looks good on paper. But he too
has an age issue. Although he was on fire at the start of 2018 regular season,
he wasn’t the same pass rusher at the end of it. I am still confident that the
Rams have enough at the linebacker to cover the loss of Barron with ILB Micah
Kiser and EDGE Samson Ebukam coming off the bench for a series or two so that
Matthews can get a breather. I’m especially high on Ebukam, but have no clue
what Kiser can do since he rarely if ever saw any action last year.Thus this is
my second “if” factor—that all things being considered if things work out as
planned with Matthews, he could be a key factor to an improving Rams’ defense.On
offense, the biggest question isn’t how the Rams will be able to replace the
lost offensive linemen. It’s the status of RB Todd Gurley and the ongoing saga
of his knee.There was clearly something wrong with him at the end of the year.
Neither the Rams or Gurley have sincerely explained what it was. Instead, its
been a lot of PR smoke and mirrors. What we do likely know is that Gurley will
not be used as much as he was last year. So unless the Rams use their 31st pick
in the first round to draft a running back, I‘m not going to worry that much. If
the Rams do draft a running back that early, I’ll be in panic mode.Thus, “if”
factor number three is Gurley’s health. If the Rams don’t draft a running back
in the first round, I think it signals Todd is okay to go, and the Rams will
remain a juggernaut on offense with him being a centerpiece of it.Hopefully my
prayers will be answered tonight.The DraftOh boy just can’t wait for this one.
Our Rams actually have a first-round pick!However, the draft show drives me
nuts. First, I could care less what other teams do. I’m only interested in what
the Rams do. Thus I am forced to
sit
Marcus Peters
Jersey , watch and listen for at least three hours of incessant gibberish
from Mel Kiper tell me how good or bad a player is. Watching this, I feel the
same way when someone tells me the numbers you should use to win the Mega Ball
lottery.The NFL has created so much buzz about the draft, an entire cottage
industry has developed. In my youth, the Los Angeles Times used to print a
small, one-paragraph story on it in the back pages. Today by the time you sift
through the experts, you’re up to Mock Draft 3,012. Enough already! Just tell me
who the Rams drafted with their first pick so I can start asking God that he not
turn into a bust. After that, it’s more about position than it is player.I still
have my opinions about what I think the Rams should do in the draft given this
is an opportunity to turn a team weakness into a strength. Most of the offseason
moves or lack thereof weren’t made by NFC teams. The big name splash free agent
signings and trades were made by AFC teams. As a result coming into 2019,I think
our Rams have a better then 50/50 chance of repeating and this time winning the
Super Bowl.So here’s my one and only single-pick mock draft, Professor-style.I
would like to see the Rams use the their 31st pick on the best DT available. I
believe in this because DT Michael Brockers can move to nose guard and DT Aaron
Donald. always be the most dominant force at his position, is too often double-
and triple-teamed. A young, fast defensive tackle who can step in right away
will pair well with both Brockers and Donald freeing them up to wreak havoc on
an opposing team’s quarterbacks and improve the Rams’ lackluster rush defense.Of
course, I will probably be completely wrong.So as long as the Rams don’t draft a
running back at 31, I can live with whatever the team does do including trading
#31 for more picks.“If” they do draft a running back, all bets are off and I
will be in total panic mode for 2019.Here we go...
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