Not so fast

[sosa39rams]

As unreal as Justin Blackmon has been playing, lets not rule out Alshon Jeffery.

I honestly do believe Jeffery will be the better NFL WR. Jeffery comes in at 6'4, 235 lbs, and runs a 4.56 40 yard dash.

Justin Blackmon comes in at 6'1, 215 lbs, and runs a 4.54 40 yard dash. Blackmon is 2 tenths of a second faster than Jeffery, and look at the size advantage Jeffery has over him. The only reason people are so quick to king Justin Blackmon is because of the statistics he has.

Why dont we forget about the stats? There sort of irrelevant, or at least overrated. Jeffery has had terrible QB's throwing to him. Thats why his production is way down from last year.

Why is it that when Jeffery comes off a 1,500 yard receiving season we actually have a debate about whose the better WR, and it actually comes in at about 50/50. Now this QB problem comes along, his production takes a huge hit obviously, and now Blackmon is immediately the better WR.

I think we should consider trading down very very much. If we slid, what, 7 spots down, we could take Jeffery. That would get us a few extra picks in the draft.

Moving down from #3 we could go to (hypothetical) #9 the Eagles spot. From here we can take Jeffery. What we would get in return for moving down would be: a 2nd round pick, a 3rd round pick, and another 3rd round pick in next years draft.

So we would have:

1. Alshon Jeffery, WR
2. Kelechi Osemele, OG
2. Alameda Ta'amu, NT
3. LaMichael James, RB
3. Sean Spence, OLB
4. Depth
6. Depth
7. Depth

And next year:

1.
2.
3.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

In this case, we would be able to release Jason Brown. Thats his terrible play and his huge contract gone. Also, we get rid of Jason Smith. Thats 2 bad lineman gone, and $15 million saved (only this year). With that saved money with either go after superstar LT D'Brickashaw Ferguson (who I'd LOVE) or the under the radar yet still solid LT Demetrius Bell. That allows us to slide Saffold to RT.

So our line would be : Ferguson, Osemele, Wragge, Dahl, Saffold

Seems solid to me. Nice mix of vets and young guys. I'd be ecstatic with this line. Ferguson is a pro bowler. Kalil at his ceiling would be as good as Ferguson, so its like the best of both worlds.

Our offensive skill weapons : Lloyd, Kendricks, Jeffery, Amendola, Salas, SJAX, LaMichael James, Pettis.

Once again looks good to me.

So by just moving down so many spots and grabbing the "next best" WR we can solidify a lot of things. I still am torn on which WR I want. Blackmon's production is insane, and if he could replicate what hes doing now, I'd take him at any spot in any draft. Jeffery is more of a risk I guess.

Either one we end up with, is a solid choice in my opinion.

This is also something else I'd like to mention. We take Blackmon and stay put, it can look like this :

1. Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State
2. Alameda Ta'amu NT, Washington
3. LaMichael James, RB, Oregon
4. Ryan Miller, G, Colorado
6. Grant Garner, C, Oklahoma State
7. Ryan Baker, OLB, LSU

And in FA we go after once again Ferguson or Bell, and OLB Dan Connor. Either draft I'd be happy with. I'm leaning towards this scenario because imagine our offense? Blackmon, James, Jackson, Bradford, Lloyd, Kendricks, Amendola? Dang.

Our line : Ferguson or Bell, Miller, Garner or Wragge, Dahl, Saffold.

[xkidflowx]

i was in love with alshon man.. but dude has bad work ethics... he got a beer belly during off season.. we cant let that slide. There are many successful receivers who run slow 40's but are greats like our own bruce/holt , and the GOAT Jerry Rice.. greg jennings is also 6,1 and look how he's doing! i'm all in for blackmon.. we need a physical body like him

[BarronWade]

i hate talking about trading down in the 1st round because we talk about it every year and it never happens

But the Blackmon to Jeffery comparison really?

Blackmon is far better than jeffery...this is just another Ndamukong Suh to Gerald McCoy type comparison...have u seen blackmon play he is uncoverable...No way we pass him up

EDIT: Also why dont we give Dahl a shot at RT...he hasnt done horrible and with some continuity i think he will be good at RT...also Saffold was really good his rookie season he had a sophomore slump i think he deserves another shot at LT

[Nick]

I have too many Big Mike Williams flashbacks when I think about Alshon Jeffery to feel comfortable with him as a first round pick by the Rams.

If you're looking for an alternative to Blackmon, I think Michael Floyd is probably that guy.

[lostsoul]

The big thing i dont like about Blackmon is that he runs out of bounds instead of pushing for the first down after the catch. I counted him do this 3 times last game against the Sooners.

I would love to have Ferguson if we can sign him.

Im not sure Ta'amu makes it to the 2nd round, He seems to be the consensus best DT in the country right now.

[fliptalianstallion]

I prefer Justin Blackmon because of how the guy has talent on separation and speed on a consistent basis; Jeffery may have a higher potential ceiling but his weight problems carry a high risk, high reward type factor, which I'm not willing to take. Fantasizing Lloyd and Blackmon on each sides, wearing horns gives me flashbacks of Bruce and Holt and with Bradford's specialty to throw to slot receivers and TEs will give us one of the finest offenses next season on paper.

Rebuilding an O-line may be a glaring need, but it's definitely fixable in the FA and the mid rounds, You can say what you want about Saffold but the guy was coming into his own through midseason prior to injury; he has the athletic tools to become great but it all falls down to coaching and putting him in proper O-line adjustments. Smith may have huge problems with concussions potentially putting an end to his career but I wouldn't mind giving him another shot, he just need to find a good backup tackle who can fill in his shoes well (and he needs a paycut).

[sosa39rams]

I prefer Justin Blackmon because of how the guy has talent on separation and speed on a consistent basis; Jeffery may have a higher potential ceiling but his weight problems carry a high risk, high reward type factor, which I'm not willing to take. Fantasizing Lloyd and Blackmon on each sides, wearing horns gives me flashbacks of Bruce and Holt and with Bradford's specialty to throw to slot receivers and TEs will give us one of the finest offenses next season on paper.

Rebuilding an O-line may be a glaring need, but it's definitely fixable in the FA and the mid rounds, You can say what you want about Saffold but the guy was coming into his own through midseason prior to injury; he has the athletic tools to become great but it all falls down to coaching and putting him in proper O-line adjustments. Smith may have huge problems with concussions potentially putting an end to his career but I wouldn't mind giving him another shot, he just need to find a good backup tackle who can fill in his shoes well (and he needs a paycut).

Jeffery's "weight issues" are the equivalent to Blackmon's "law issues and primma dona personality".

[Nick]

Jeffery's "weight issues" are the equivalent to Blackmon's "law issues and primma dona personality".

Disagree; Jeffery's work ethic issues are of much bigger concern to me than Blackmon's off the field issues, which IMO are largely overblown.


EDIT: One point I'll bring up regarding the argument that Jeffery has suffered from the QB situation at South Carolina. One could argue that an elite receiving talent should be somewhat of a safety blanket for a lesser QB, rather than allowing the QB's shortcomings to basically hinder things entirely. For instance, Calvin Johnson had Reggie Ball throwing to him in '06 but that didn't stop him from having a big year.

[hill_Bartell=Probowl]

Is LaMichael James not that high on the NFL boards?

[xkidflowx]

nope... he's to small

[Tampa_Ram]

Do i really have to show the pic again?
Do you really want a wr who looks like this in the offseason?
He may have the weight and height of calvin/andre Johnson, but he definatly lacks the muscle and physique.



I rather have this guy-


He had 1 dui and seems to of learned from that mistake, and im hoping his not a huge diva, but a little diva might be needed for this team.

[RKDfan]

height is not all that matters. it helps, but it's not the only factor. a receiver also has to have nice moves to get separation, and good hands. and it's not like blackmon is small. he's 6'1" look at the height for some of the top receivers in the NFL:
Greg Jennings 5'11"
Wes Welker 5'9"
Steve Smith 5'9"
Mike Wallace 6'0"
Roddy White 6'0"
Hakeem Nicks 6'1"

[eric2810]

Not so fast, LaMichael James in the 3rd? Talk about a steal. I know size helps a ton, but guys like Blackmon and James have that raw football talent where they can make an immediate impact in the NFL.

[39WillRunYaOva]

Blackmon is clearly my 1st pick but if Lamicheal James is there in the 3rd no way can we pass on him.Lets be serious our def is light years ahead of our offense we need to help that side of the ball out now.A good offense does wonders for a def keeps them rested and they dont always feel like they have to win the game so there head is focused on doing the job at hand not everything else.

[FestusRam]

Two biggest problems for most of our wide-outs, other than Lloyd who could just as easily be gone at seasons end(everyone needs to remember this)...

1. Separation

2. Play-making ability

Hello Justin Blackmon