NFL Preview: St. Louis Rams

St. Louis Rams 


Key Additions:
DE Robert Quinn (draft)
TE Lance Kendricks (draft)
WR Austin Pettis (draft)
G Harvey Dahl (FA)
WR Mike Sims-Walker (FA)
RB Jerious Norwood (FA)
CB Al Harris (FA) 
LB Zac Diles (FA)
S Quintin Mikell (FA)
DT Justin Bannan (FA)
DT Daniel Muir (FA)
RB Cadillac Williams (FA)
LB Brady Poppingha (FA)


Key Departures:
TE Daniel Fells 
WR Laurent Robinson 
G John Greco
WR Mark Clayton
T Adam Goldberg


Report:
If there was one thing that hindered the Rams last season it was the absence of a legitimate receiving threat. St. Louis believes they have solved this problem with the signing of WR Mike Sims-Walker from Jacksonville. The Rams also drafted WR Austin Pettis and TE Lance Kendricks, both are expected to enrich this offense. WR Donnie Avery is back from an injury and will join the young receiving corps of Danario Alexander, Danny Amendola, Brandon Gibson, and Michael Hoomanawanui. QB Sam Bradford returns and is improving every time he steps on the field, and will get more out of his talent with new wide receivers. Josh McDaniels is their new offensive coordinator and is expected to get the most out of Sam Bradford's talent. RB Steven Jackson comes back as Mr. Consistency in this St. Louis offense. They also added Jerious Norwood and Cadillac Williams to back him up in case of injury and add extra juice. The offensive line for the Rams is young and full of potential. Rodger Saffold and Jason Smith are young tackles that are always getting better. The LG and C position are filled with Jacob Bell and Jason Brown. Harvey Dahl was signed from the Falcons and gives them great protection for their most important player.  


The defense lacks the star name power that other defenses have. The main strength of theirs are their linebackers. The starters from last year, James Laurinaitis, David Vobora, and Chris Chamberlain are all back. St. Louis also brings in Brady Poppingha and Zac Diles from free agency which adds great depth to the position. The pass rush should be good again because they have Chris Long and James Hall patrol the edges again after combining for 19 sacks last season. The Rams added Robert Quinn from North Carolina to give them more rush without blitzing. Defensive tackle also got deeper because the Rams signed free agents Daniel Muir and Justin Bannan. CB's Ron Bartell and Brandon Fletcher are back with veteran Al Harris to give them more experience. In the secondary the Rams lost O.J. Atogwe to the Redskins, but picked up S Quintin Mikell from the Eagles. S Craig Dahl and James Butler make safety one of the more experienced positions on the field. 


Kicking in a dome is advantage for K Josh Brown without any wind or weather conditions. Danny Amendola is an underrated and surprising KR, because he doesn't seem like a real threat. 


Review:
This team can only get better with all the young talent it has. Sam Bradford looks  to have a great year with year under his belt and OC Josh McDaniels. The front office filled a lot of holes that this team had during free agency which shows they want to make the playoffs and every year thing. In a division like this the best QB may win it for you and get you a home playoff game. Luckily, the Rams have one of the best young quarterbacks in the league.


Division Finish: TBA