It’s never too early for the St. Louis Rams to look ahead

By AJ Sanson

Overall, the Rams have been a pleasant surprise so far in this young NFL season. Even after a heartbreaking loss at Tampa Bay a couple of weekends ago was a tale of two halves, the team has shown some promise and the crowds at the Edward Jones Dome continue to grow larger and louder.
Yet, there is still something missing.
Well, they realistically could improve on a few positions, but all signs are starting to point toward a big one: wide receiver.
Sam Bradford as quarterback is the real deal. Once Peyton Manning decides to hang it up, I can see Bradford blossoming into the top five quarterbacks of the league behind Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Ben Roethlisberger, and Matt Ryan. Bradford is calm, poised, and mature far beyond his age of 22. He is the future of the team and if Mr. Pujols decides to leave the Cardinals, St. Louis becomes Bradford’s city. Still, he needs a solid home run hitter to chuck the ball to in the end zone.
Let’s hope next spring we hear NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell say “With the [whichever pick] in the NFL draft the St. Louis Rams select wide receiver from the University of Georgia, AJ Green.”
A healthy Danario Alexander and Donnie Avery to compliment the best wide-out in college football split either side of Bradford sounds pretty good doesn’t it?
Just this week, Mel Kiper listed Green as his number two pro prospect behind University of Washington quarterback Jake Locker.
I may be biased being a die-hard Georgia fan, but he really deserves it.
Although he is just a junior and said two weeks ago that his four game suspension earlier this year made him feel as if he owed it to the Bulldog faithful to play his senior year, it seems someone who could rake in around $30 million as a rookie would very likely come out early.
Money talks.
Green would be the best receiver the team has drafted since they selected Torry Holt sixth overall in the 1999 draft. I do not mind Donnie Avery, but I feel Green has a better skill-set and more of an ability to stretch the field, which the team desperately lacks right now. He also brings the ability to go up and grab a jump ball that the five foot-eleven inch Avery can’t. Green is listed at six foot-four, I have met him and can tell you that is selling him short. If you have not had the chance to see his touchdown catch a few weeks ago against Colorado, take a moment to check it out.
The Rams have missed on nearly a dozen draft picks in the rebuilding years after “The Greatest Show on Turf,” but I think the fans are breathing a sigh of relief with Bradford and even the play of OT Rodger Saffold. The team is pointed in the right direction, but as a fan I could only imagine how much greater they could be with that big time receiver and you can never have enough of them, especially with a quarterback with the potential of Bradford.
The only problem is, the Rams may win enough games to pull themselves out of the Green sweepstakes. Raise your hand if you predicted that three months ago.

Under the Arch: Does Bradford’s pro day lock up #1?

Greg Maddox, Alestle Reporter

by Greg Maddox, Alestle Reporter

Coaches, scouts, managers, assistants, and whoever else could make it from all 32 teams in the NFL made their way to Norman, Oka. last Monday to watch somebody throw a football 63 times. Before you say “what a waste of time” I should clarify that the man throwing the ball was former Heismann Trophy winner and top quarterback prospect Sam Bradford.

Bradford threw a scripted 50 passes and an additional 13 to his Oklahoma teammates, the first time Bradford has thrown in front of the public in almost six months. As most college football fans know, Bradford injured his shoulder in the second game of the season and came back three weeks later only to re-injure the same shoulder after a 300-pound defensive lineman drove Bradford into the turf. Bradford ended his season early and underwent surgery to repair the shoulder.

James Andrews, known as the authority when it comes to joint and ligament injuries to athletes, performed the surgery and has since given Bradford his stamp of approval. Andrews says Bradford’s shoulder is healed and is well ahead of the curve as far as his physical therapy goes. No questions have arisen about Bradford’s health since the end of the season, and his strong pro day performance has seemingly answered any other questions about the strength of the shoulder.

The St. Louis Rams hold the number one pick in the draft and have a colossal hole at the quarterback spot. Bulger is old, injury prone, and has a heavy contract, Kyle Boller is going to be looking for a job outside of the NFL, and Keith Null can be a solid backup. The Rams have needed a franchise quarterback for awhile, and Bradford could be the answer.

Many fans will clamor for top defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, but a team as bad as the Rams needs the hope that a franchise quarterback can bring. Steve Spagnuolo and Billy Devaney were both in Norman to watch and speak with Bradford.

Bradford completed every pass he threw at the pro day and looked good doing it, throwing with zip and accuracy. His footwork was solid and showed impressive drop-back abilities. While it is important to emphasize the fact that it was not against a live defense, everyone was impressed with how strong Bradford threw the ball. Gil Brandt, considered a godfather of modern scouting, called the workout the best he had seen since Troy Aikman in the 90s.

A pro-day shouldn’t guarantee the number one spot for Bradford, but it should wrap up all the questions that needed to be asked about the health of his shoulder. All it comes down to now is whether or not the Rams decode to take the plunge and take their franchise quarterback at number one; something they haven’t done since the 1960’s.