By Jim Thomas
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
03/29/2007
PHOENIX — Rams fans might be jittery over the state of the St. Louis defense, particularly the run defense. Coach Scott Linehan is not.
"The first thing I can say is we're three weeks into free agency," Linehan said Wednesday at the annual NFC coaches' breakfast. "So it's hard to say we've stopped. We've still got a draft coming up. ... You never know, a trade could pop up that we can't refuse."
It's not as if the Rams have been inactive so far on the defensive side of the ball. They traded a fifth-round draft pick for Detroit end James Hall on the opening day of the free-agency-trading period (March 2). Hall will start at right end.
In free agency, they've added a starting-quality linebacker in Chris Draft. Draft will begin his Rams tenure as the team's fourth linebacker. They've added depth in the secondary in strong safety Todd Johnson and cornerbacks Mike Rumph and Lenny Walls.
But where's the sizzle? Fans almost play fantasy football at this time of year, hoping their team will sign "name" players. In the Rams' case, linebackers Adalius Thomas and Joey Porter come to mind.
"We have some fantasy football in us, too," Linehan said. "We'd like to have those guys. But both of them are 3-4 outside linebackers. If you've got a player like that, you're going to probably change your scheme (to a 3-4). But the problem is that you have 10 other positions you've got to take into account to do that."
In the Rams' system, that would have meant a radical change in personnel in their front seven, something that just isn't feasible. Porter's playing style might have been more suited than Thomas' to a 4-3 alignment. But team sources told the Post-Dispatch a couple of weeks ago that the Rams couldn't even get Porter to return a phone call after his release by Pittsburgh. He ended up signing with Miami, another 3-4 team.
For those decrying the lack of "impact" defensive moves in the offseason, Linehan said the re-signing of potential free agents
Leonard Little and
Pisa Tinoisamoa during the 2006 season should be included in the ledger.
"We didn't let our 13-sack player (Little) go to another team," Linehan said. "Had he gone to free agency, I don't know what would've happened. But it would have been off the chart."
As for nose tackle, Linehan said the Rams didn't see any good options in free agency once targeted players Terdell Sands (Oakland) and Hollis Thomas (New Orleans) re-signed with their teams. As for the group of available free-agent defensive tackles. ...
"We felt like they were backups," Linehan said. "And we needed a starter.
Claude Wroten's going to end up being a more effective player than anyone thinks right now. He's a younger player that we have high expectation for. Victor Adeyanju is going to be a much-improved player (at end). Those guys will be better in that (backup) role than bringing in somebody else's backup. That's not going to be the difference between us going from 31st in the league against the run to first. I promise you that."
Ever the optimist, Linehan believes many of the Rams defenders will show improvement next year, through more experience. Nine of the defense's 11 primary starters in '06 were either veterans new to the team, or young players getting a chance to start for the first time.
While looking for a potential starter at the nose tackle, Linehan said the Rams aren't ready to give up on Jimmy Kennedy, who's entering the final year of his contract.
"I think Jimmy will be better," Linehan said. "How much better, we're going to find out. Jimmy played really good in that first game (against Denver) before he broke his hand."
Whether it's defensive tackle or defensive end, Linehan expects to move quickly in that direction in the draft. "Whether it be the first round, or the first day, somebody else is going to be in that mix that's going to make us better," he said.
Linehan would love to add an edge rusher who can provide a further complement to Little.
"That's why you don't get caught up in: 'You need a nose tackle,' " Linehan said. "If you've got a guy that can rush the passer — just like a guy who can score touchdowns — you're not going to pass that guy up."