By Jim Thomas
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Tuesday, May. 01 2007
PRACTICAL DRAFT • Team's choices make sense, add strength where it was needed
most.
BUYING POWER • Free-agency purchases help round out Rams' other needs in
several areas.
With the draft completed, and free agency now entering the garage sale phase,
the Rams roster is 90 percent complete. But the question remains: Did they do
enough to improve the defense, particularly the run defense?
"We can't help but improve," coach
Scott Linehan said.
For starters, Linehan said, the Rams kept two of their top defenders out of
free agency by re-signing them during the 2006 season: end
Leonard Little and
outside linebacker
Pisa Tinoisamoa.
On the first day of the free agency-trading period, they acquired end James
Hall of Detroit for a fifth-round draft pick. Hall will start at right end
opposite Little.
In free agency, they signed linebacker Chris Draft, strong safety Todd Johnson,
and cornerbacks Mike Rumph and Lenny Walls. Draft led Carolina's seventh-ranked
defense with 111 tackles last season, and if he doesn't start next season
should play a lot anyway. Johnson started six games for the NFC champion Bears
last season and will provide depth at safety. Rumph and Walls will compete for
backup spots at cornerback.
In the draft, the Rams added three defensive tackles, headed by first-round
pick Adam Carriker of Nebraska, plus more cornerback depth in Jonathan Wade of
Tennessee.
"We know we've still got a long ways to go as a team," Linehan said. "Not just
defense. We're working on our special teams. Working on some new looks on our
offense. We're doing it, and we're doing it at the right pace."
That's "pace" as in patience. The Rams looked at the crop of defensive linemen
in free agency, but there wasn't much to chose from. So instead of "grabbing at
need" as Linehan put it, the Rams traded for Hall but continued working the
entire roster, while exploring other options on the defensive line,
particularly in the draft.
There was a discussion with Carolina about acquiring defensive tackle Kris
Jenkins, but that trade never materialized. As a result, it was imperative for
the Rams to draft someone who could play right away up front.
That turned out to be Carriker at No. 13 overall. Linehan called Carriker
"probably the best run defender ... coming out in this year's draft." Having
Carriker play inside is a bit of a projection, but he has some experience doing
so in college, and he certainly has the requisite size and strength.
Carriker's selection typified the entire draft for the Rams. It was short on
sizzle, but solid. Every pick made sense. There were no quarterbacks drafted to
play wide receiver (Eric Crouch) or safety (Steve Bellisari). No obvious
reaches (Jacoby Shepherd). No players that no one had ever heard of (Travis
Scott).
As is the case with Carriker, the addition of second-rounder Brian Leonard of
Rutgers won't sell many tickets. There was some second-guessing as to why the
Rams didn't take Ohio State's Antonio Pittman instead. But Leonard looks like a
good fit for Linehan's offense — and a fitting backup for
Steven Jackson.
Leonard can play running back and fullback, can block and catch passes and can
spell Jackson as a ball carrier.
Everything else in the draft was about depth. Defensive tackles Clifton Ray
(Michigan State) and Keith Jackson (Arkansas) will compete for spots in the
rotation. Both are slated for work as nose tackles. Throw in Carriker, who
could very well start, and if Jimmy Kennedy doesn't hear the wake-up call, his
alarm clock is unplugged.
"There is no greater motivator than competition, and I think only positive can
come out of it," Linehan said. "I don't think there's any competitor worth his
salt that doesn't welcome it and elevate his game because of it. We'll have a
tough decision to make when we get down to our roster cuts, especially when it
comes to the defensive line."
Despite all the offseason work, one of the things the Rams haven't accomplished
is to add an edge rusher, particularly the 'tweener to man the "buck end" spot
in coordinator
Jim Haslett's scheme.
"Those are hard guys to find in the draft and are harder to find in free
agency," Linehan said.
The Rams brought one such edge rusher in for a free-agent visit — Tully
Banta-Cain — but he ended up with San Francisco instead. Even so, Linehan said
that any discussion of the Rams' pass rush should not overlook Hall.
"One of the best things he does is rush the passer from that other (end) spot,"
Linehan said. "We've got high hopes, as he does, to get back to his true form."
Hall had 11 sacks in 2004 but only five in 2005. He had five sacks in just
seven games in 2006 before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury.
Linehan thinks Carriker can provide inside pressure on the pass rush. Raonall
Smith, who manned the "buck" end position last season, was re-signed to a
one-year deal as a free agent. And Eric Moore, who spent the final games of
2006 on the active roster, could compete for the "buck" position as well.
"I'm a beast and you don't tame a beast, you hit it with a stick and then let it go out into the wild"
Linear Mode
