About that #2 pick in the 2012 Draft

Given my dearth of commentary on the Rams lately, you might conclude that I am not too particularly crazy about the coaching moves we've been making.  You would be right about that.

I got a text message from my apartment manager (who happens to be a 40 year Ram-fan) the other day.  It read: "Your silence speaks volumes."

Yep.

I like Gregg Williams.  That's the only positive thing I can say right now.  I think things would have been a lot better with Hugh Jackson at the helm offensively.

But this is not what I sat down to blog about today.  What I wanted to comment about is the up-coming 2012 NFL Draft.

If I understand things correctly, I take it that there will be three football teams engaged in a bidding war to acquire our #2 pick over-all in the up-coming 2012 NFL Draft.  Those three teams are the Redskins, the Dolphins and the Browns.  XM Radio combined with the Internet is pretty amazing stuff when it comes to intelligence collection.

The most fascinating rumblings of them all are radiating out of the Dolphins camp.  It would appear that Dolphin owner Stephen Ross has a massive man-crush on Baylor QB RGIII.  Scuttlebutt says that Ross believes Robert Griffin brings the talent and the star power necessary to make the Dolphins the talk of Miami again.  Rumor has it Ross is willing to give up a Roman Emperor's ransom to get him.  We're not talking about a King's ransom.  We're talking about a sum well north of that figure.

Many Dolphin fans seem to agree.  I am hearing outlandish talk about the potential offers.  I'm talking about the kind of offers that makes a season skeptic like your author salivate grotesquely...  all over the nice leather seats in my Hyundai Genesis.

Although I grimace as I write this...  We have to entertain those offers.  We have to be prepared to move down in the draft, even if it means losing Justin Blackmon.  You know I don't say that easily, or with a devil-may-care attitude.  I've wanted to draft this kid for a couple of years now.  It would hurt like hell to lose him now.

Nevertheless, the kind of loot they are talking about tossing in our direction is just too rich to pass up.  We have to be open to serious negotiations.

I told you the Redskins weren't taking a receiver

This morning the Internet is buzzing like hell with news of the Redskins negotiating with the Broncos for that #2 overall-pick in Thursday's draft. Some are saying the Redskins' move was premature. On the contrary, the timing is perfect. We are presently only about about 30 hours from gavel-time. It's time to go, buddy. You better be negotiating right now.

For the Redskins, the move is perfectly understandable. It's pricey as hell, but it is perfectly understandable. Shanahan's WCO doesn't work without a smart AND mobile quarterback. Say what you will about his very lack-luster college career, but Gabbert is very smart and very mobile. He fits the suit very well. Sometimes you just have to pay what it costs.

If you want that Bob Kramer knife, you're going to have to pay through the nose to get it.

The McNabb story in Washington has ended tragically, and so will the Shanahan story if he doesn't bust a move. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Shanahan needs defense like a dying man in the desert needs water. He may be planing to do what I hope my Rams will do: Fix the defense in free-agency.

I do want to crow for a moment, though. I told you the Redskins weren't taking a receiver. All the stuff about Julio Jones was horse shit from the beginning. The only thing worse than a QB with no WR is a WR with no QB. Just ask the Cardinals.

As Michael Lombardi has said many times, there is a certain order of operations you go through in building an offensive unit. The order of operations is important. Go out-of-order you will get bad results. Here is that order.

1. Offensive line
2. Quarterback
3. Receivers

You need the line first, or you will have a David Carr situation. You need the Quarterback next. There is no point in tying up picks and money in a receiver until you have a trigger man who can make him work. I have excluded the RB positions because this is increasingly a commodity position handled by a committee.

On the other half of the equation, I don't think I like this deal if I am the Broncos. I know the defense needs a full scale rebuild. I know this is a defense-rich draft. I know you want several of these players, not one. I know you feel you can get several by doing this deal.

Nevertheless, Marcell Darius and Von Miller are two of the crown jewels in this draft. I think I would probably take Von Miller and see if I could arrange Phil Taylor from Baylor later on. I would reckon this as the best way to rebuild my defense. You might also take Darius and Akeem Ayers.

We'll see if the Redskins make it worth John Elway's trouble. Shanahan and Elway certainly have deep-ties. I am sure there is enough personal good-will there to get the deal done, if the figures are right.

The Mocks of 2011 suggest a great rivalry

So, my friends at the Bleacher Report sent me a morning NFL update, as they always do, and this one contained about 50th Mock Draft I've seen this season. What did it indicate?

Well, there were two points of interest for me in this and numerous other mocks:

1. The 49ers select Patrick Peterson, CB LSU
2. The Rams select Julio Jones, WR Alabama

That has been one of the premier street-fights in NCAA football over the past three seasons. If the Mocks are correct. It will continue and intensify in the Pro ranks. We'll see these two beat on each other twice per year for God knows how long.

The reasoning is pretty simple in both cases. In Peterson's case, the reasoning goes like this:

1. Patrick Peterson is possibly the best athlete in the draft
2. Corners are undervalued, and never go that high.
3. He made a 9 on his Wonderlic, sliding him down a bit
4. The NFL is about to tamper with his value as a returner
5. Ergo Patrick Peterson slides to 7 where the 49ers cannot pass

In the case of Julio Jones, the reasoning goes like this:

1. Julio blew up the combine
2. Julio either broke his foot at the combine, or before the combine (accounts vary). While this makes his performance all the more amazing, he now has a medical red-flag. Minor though it may be, it will not be ignored.
3. Julio is the clear #2 WR behind B.J. Green
4. Julio dropped some passes in college. Shame, shame.
5. The top 10 is jammed with teams that need QBs and defense.
6. There is only one very likely spot in the top 10 where a WR will go (Cleveland)
7. Julio is likely to slide to 14 where the Rams have a desperate need.

Of course, there are exceptions to this pattern. Some think Peterson will go as high as #1. I think that is bloody unlikely; wishful thinking really. It's either QB or DT for the Panthers. Forget everything else. Nobody else is truly in the running.

Some think the Washington Redskins will select Julio Jones at the #10 spot. I think that is bloody unlikely; trade stimulus talk to be frank with you. I think some Redskin fans are signalling this to see if they can pimp the Rams for some picks.

Why do I say that about the Skins? I'll give you two reasons. Few, if any NFL insiders think the Skins will select an offensive player in this years draft. Shanahan has a serious political problem and liability on his hands. He inherited a good 4-3 defense. He arbitrarily blew up the ship and went 3-4 when he did not need too. His defense is now at the bottom of the barrel. This literally spoiled the honey moon. Shanahan created some very, very, very angry Redskin fans with this one move. If that defense doesn't get up off the carpet and show some life in 2011, Shanahan could be in some danger.

I will bet you dollars to donuts that the Redskins go defense in 2011. I'll bet they do it in a big way. As Mike Lombardi says, they have a 3-4 defense, and they do not have 3-4 personnel. This is the Redskins' most serious problem. It's even worse than their QB situation, which is now sitting at #2 slot. Only after this can we begin to discus the subject of a WR. Julio Jones at #10? Nope.

Can you imagine Patrick Peterson and Julio Jones in the NFC West, playing for bitter rivals? One thing is for sure: This would be good for business.

Week One, 2010

I have been slow in finalizing my picks for this season due to the fact that Pre-Season didn't furnish me with much certainty about what would happen this year. It was kind of a blah pre-season as pre-seasons go.

Cheating though it may be, I will post my pre-season predictions after the double-header tonight. I will publish my final predictions sometime Tuesday evening. It is a good think I waited. Week one was full of surprises that shed light on the upcoming season.

The Bengals go pop

The Bengals v. Patriots game was the first bit of light shed on the new season. The Bengals are a team know for their booms and busts. They rarely follow one playoff campaign with another. This has been true throughout their history. Although it would appear that the Bengals increased their ammo supply during the off season, they sure played like pooh-poo dooh-doo yesterday morning.

Don't compare this season's Week-One loss to that of last season. The Bengals had a fast-starting Denver team beaten, on the last week one, when suddenly the Immaculate Deflection struck. The Bengals played very well in that game; more than well enough to win. They were just robbed by fate.

Let's make no mistake about this: The Bengals got blown out by the Patriots. This was never a competitive game. The Patriots knocked them out and stomped on them. The logical inference is not that the Patriots are strong in 2010. The logical inference is that the Bengals are going flat after a good season, just as they have in so many years prior to this one.

My conclusion is that the Bengals got stomped by a suspect and vulnerable Patriot crew primarily because Carson Palmer did not perform well at all at the QB position. Make no mistake, Carson has never quite lived up to his billing as an elite QB. Now he is looking more and more like Jim Everett 2.0; but not quite that good.

Going into this season, we all know that Palmer is on the hot seat. Right now Palmer is 0-1 when it comes to making his case in 2010.

The Bengals also suffered something of a defensive failure, but I think that was triggered by the inability of the offense to stay on the field and eat the clock, as they did so well last season.

The lesson I take from this is clear: The Bengals will not contend in 2010, and the Ravens have an even stronger position to launch a Super Bowl run.

What the hell happened to the 49ers?

How did the Seahawks crush the 49ers? Chris Berman said it best: "This, above all results today, has us scratching our heads." The 49ers are not a great team, just a good one. However, the Seahawks do not look anything like a playoff team to my eye. How the hell did the Seahawks destroy the 49ers?

What we saw was a full-blown system failure for the 49ers. They failed offensively, and Alex Smith did not look at all like a franchise QB. Unfortunately, they also failed defensively, allowing the Seahawks 38 points. How did that happen to this potentially-elite Mike Singltary defense? This I find shocking.

Don't read too much into this. As a famous New Orleans bluesman once sang: Even the Sun shines on a dogs ass some days. I have a hunch this may just turn out to be a fluke game. Last season, the Seahawks opened by crushing my Rams 28-0. They went 4-11 in the next 15 games and finished as the 6th worst team in the league.

The Jinx

The Colts are suffering the Super Bowl loser's jinx. What did I tell you about that thing? It is real and powerful and effective. During the deep off season, I shocked some people by making the Texans my favorite to win the South.

Right now, I think it is a two horse race: Titans vs. Texans. The Colts are bringing up the rear. I think the Titans have a distinct advantage.

The Giant defense seems much-improved.

Perry Fewell seems like the man of the our in New York. The Giant defense looked good yesterday, drastically better than last year. They victimized the Panthers as we would expect them to. If things continue to improve, expect the Giants to the lead the East for the duration of 2010.

Based on limited data, the Giants could be the best team in the East.

The Vick controversy

Let's just say that the Kobb era didn't get up and fly yesterday. I'll give you the two key reasons. First, Kobb looks like the second coming of Shaun Hill. Second, Andy Reid was calling a classic West-Coast game, and the WCO is an outmoded, outdated, obsolete offense that just doesn't work anymore.

You saw how easily the Packers were nailing the Eagles in the early going. I assure you, that was not because of the struggles of a young QB. That was because of the ease with which you can counter-measure the WCO system.

The second Kobb goes down with a concussion, and Vick goes in, the WCO playbook gets tossed out, and the Eagles begin to surge. Reid is a true believer in the WCO. He is not going to give up his religion without a fight. However, he would be best served to just let Vick play.

I am not a fan of the crazy gunslinger and the sandlot QB type, but that style of offense works better than the WCO does. It will produce more yards and more points and more gray hair for NFC DCs than the WCO will

The curse of Alex Barron

I hope you were watching the Sunday night game. It all came down to the final seconds. Tony Romo throws a game winning touchdown pass to Roy Williams in the right corner of the end zone. The Cowboys win! Nope! Guess again. There is yellow laundry on the green grass. Alex Barron, 6th year man from Florida State held mr. Brian Orakpo of the Texas Longhorns. Oh shit! Is that the ball game? Yep, holding #71 offense. That's the end of the game folks. Redskins win. Good night, and good luck.

The penalty was absolutely decisive. Without the penalty, the Cowboys win. With the penalty the Redskins win. The whole game turned on just one penalty. Jeezzzeee... I would hate to be Alex Barron right now.

You should have seen the Play Maker Michael Irvin on the NFL wrap-up show. The frustration! The exasperation! The anger! To quote Irvin: "I told him in training camp 'YOU SIT YOUR FAT BUTT DOWN AND BLOCK FOR 3 SECONDS'".

Michael was killing me. I was laughing my ass off. Play Maker, you do not know how many Sundays over the course of the past 5 years I have screamed at my HDTV "YOU SIT YOUR SCRAWNY ASS DOWN AND BLOCK FOR 3 SECONDS!" At 6-7 and 325 pounds, I think Alex is actually pretty scrawny. He has less than 10 pounds of fat on his body. You have to give him credit for that much. Nevertheless, I said essentially the same thing as the Play maker, about 875 million times.

I feel your pain, Mike. Furthermore, you are feeling the pain I (and all Ram fans) experienced for the past 5 years. I don't understand Alex Barron. He's got every gift God ever gave an offensive lineman, except intelligence, and he wrecks it savagely by committing all these stupid penalties. Herm Edwards claims that the offensive linemen are usually the smartest guys on the team. Not Alex. You cannot get this guy to eliminate mistakes.

Back in the deep off-season, when I made Dallas my mild-favorite to win the NFC, I worried about whether my Rams had injected the poison pill into the Cowboys' fuel mixture. This worry already seems like a serious concern.

I am sure Billy Devaney was sweating a bit after dealing Barron for Carpenter and then subsequently releasing Carpenter. Essentially, he gave away Barron of nothing. Then, when you see Barron in the starting lineup for the Cowboys... It doesn't look so good for Devaney. When you hear that former Ram coach Jim Hasslet, a guy you fired, is targeting Barron because he is sure Barron will screw up... Well... it's cold comfort.

Then comes vindication. Barron makes the decisive penalty play that costs the Cowboys a win in his first week as a starter. Awe crap... The Ram fans who didn't want to flush Barron--and there were not many of them--all looked at each other and said: "Maybe Devaney was right... this time."

The Rape of Detroit

Now for the truly egregious moment of the week! The Lions get a game winning touchdown pass without franchise QB Matt Stafford, and the Zebras take it away upon further review. Let's make no mistake: the Refs sodomized the Lions like a Jailhouse rapist going to work on new meat in the shower.

I am wearing my Calvin Johnson jersey and a black arm-band all day long. I am protesting this injustice.

I know you are going to quote the fucking rule book. That ain't nothing but good 'ole fashion communism. I know a touchdown when I see one, and that was a touchdown. He lost control of the football as he was standing up to go celebrate. That was a catch with full control in the endzone.

The refs are lucky they were in Chicago. In Detroit, they might have come down with a bad case of Columbian Neck-Ties.

What did I chastise Lion Management about?

Folks, when I was setting team goals for the Rams, pass protection and sack-reduction were of paramount importance. I sited Detroit as the perfect example of how not to do things. Matt Stafford finished his rookie campaign needing not one but two surgeries. Still, the Lions got him no viable pass protection in the 2010 draft, or in free agency.

I stated that this was incredibly stupid, and now look what has happened. I accused the Detroit management of digging the kid an early grave. Guess what? Detroit will not be getting up off the carpet in 2010, and they will not make a run. Why? Matt Stafford is out for the next 4-6 weeks with an injured passing shoulder. Don't expect him to perform perfectly when he returns. Expect another off-season surgery.

You see, this is what comes of Buttism. You cannot draft players based on how many seats they will fill. As much as I love Jahvid Best, it would have been better to take a Left Tackle.

Is Sam Bradford next?

So the Left Tackle the Lions didn't take (Rodger Saffold) is now a Ram. I have profoundly mixed observations about the Rams line, and mixed feelings about what I am about to say about them. The Rams line looked considerably better than last year in week 1. They still did not look like a high quality line. Usually, it takes 5-6 weeks for an OL unit to jell, and show signs of a little team work.

There are several questions. Will this line jell? If they jell in 5 to 6 weeks, will that be soon enough to keep Bradford healthy. Is this unit talented enough to protect Bradford?

You did notice that the Cardinals were opening some mighty big running holes yesterday, right? They kinda looked like the New York Jets last season. Awe shit! Look at the guy wearing #66! Is that Alan Faneca? Gheeze... isn't he that washed up dude the Jets released? Booouuuyyy! Look at dem holes in the defensive line. The HD video is pretty clear.

Man, wouldn't Steven Jackson benefit from holes like that? How are the Jets doing at the Left Guard position? Did I hear somebody say that Hard-Knocks exposed shitty performance for the Jets at the Left Guard position?

I categorically rejected all the absolute bullshit floating around about Faneca in the immediate aftermath of his release from the Jets. I knew it was a salary dump. I knew the Jets' management was spin doctoring with heaping helpings of disinformation.

The NFC East is going to be competitive?

So I heard the guys on NFL Total Access agreeing that the NFC East was going to be the most competitive division in 2010. I have on thing to say to that: Nope, fuck no.

Let's get this straight. The Redskins were dog-shit in 2009, finishing 4-12 and drafting #4 overall. The one modestly good looking unit on the team was the 4-3 defense they had. So, they fire the defensive coordinator, blow-up the ship, flush the 4-3 down the toilet, and convert to the 3-4. They are now in the 1st year of a big QB transition, which is always traumatic, a new offensive system, and a new defensive. All this is true, and you expect them to be competitive?

Ha! Nah! Nope! Not going to happen.

So the Eagles have blown Donovan McNabb out the door, and they are in the first year of a quarterback transition, which is always traumatic. They are going to this young kid Kobb, who is a major X factor, and you expect them to be competitive? Let us remember, the Packers fell from 13-3 to 6-10 in the first year of their transition from Favre to Rodgers. That was quite unexpected, and they did have an excellent to superb kid ready to come in and play for them.

So the Eagles are going to compete? Ha! Nah! Nope! Not going to happen.

Now we have the Giants, the first authentic possibility on the list. The Giants were crushed by the loss of Steve Spagnuolo last season. Their proud defense fell to #30, and was worse than the Rams, a fact I still find shocking as hell. I haven't been able to stuff my green eyes back in their sockets since I saw those stats. Shocking as hell!

If the Giants have found a good defensive coordinator to replace Spags, they might be on their way. They had a nice draft. They got some nice free agents. I like what they did.

It all comes down to Perry Fewell. The weight of the New York Giants is upon his shoulders. If he does a good job, the Giants could rebound big-time. So what about Perry Fewell? I know absolutely nothing about him. He is a complete X factor in my book. He is an unknown quantity.

So, as you can see gentlemen, it all comes down to the Cowboys. This is their division to win. I think only the Giants have a prayer of challenging the Cowboys. If Giants don't challenge, the Cowboys will have a free and unobstructed run to the playoffs. They will cruise to a division title in a non-competitive NFC East.

Until I see every 1st quarter of the pre-season, I will stick to my guns and declare that the Cowboys are the mild favorite to win the NFC. Plenty of challenge may from from Green Bay, Atlanta and New Orleans.

Let's not rule out the possibility of a surprise story in the NFC. It would shock the world if a team like Detroit got up off the carpet and made a 1999 Ram or 1981 49er run.

My take on the McNabb trade and the NFC East

So, I have to eat some crow. The McNabb trade did happen. You punks in the media are lucky. I was going to beat you down at the start of the 2010 season. You have avoided an ass-whipping of historic proportions. I wanted to be noted that Mike Florio is still a liar, and he was totally off base. The truth has come out and the Rams were never in the hunt for McNabb. His talk of "...McNabb being in St. Louis as early as Friday [several weeks ago]" was utterly wacko.

So what's my take on this trade?

1. The Eagles were crazy to deal McNabb for an unproven commodity like Kevin Kolb.
2. The Eagles' situation is not comparable to the Favre+Packer situation. McNabb is a lot younger than Favre, and he never did the "I'm retiring/I'm back" disco dance.
3. The Eagles will now enter a rebuilding/transition phase. They will win less games not more. The Eagles were 11-5 last season, I doubt they will be close to that this season. Perhaps they will finish 8-8.
4. Consider the Packers. They had a super QB sitting on the bench in Aaron Rodgers. Nevertheless, a team that was 13-3 in 2007 fell to 6-10 in 2008 largely because of the transition. Of course, the defense had much to do with it, but the Packer offense was not nearly as explosive in 2008 as 2007.
5. Do you think Kolb is as good as Rodgers? The Philly homer may want to say yes. The objective observer from the West does not think so. Rodgers may very well prove himself the best QB in the league this season, provided he stays healthy. He looks like one of the most deadly QBs in the league from my point of view. If the Packers can just cut the damn sacks down from 51 to 30, Rodgers may well take the MVP title from Peyton Manning this season. I seriously doubt Kolb is close to that level. Maybe I am wrong, but in my experience, a QB that good rarely comes along. I doubt we will see two such powerful QBs emerge so quickly in succession.
6. If Kolb is substantially less a QB than Rodgers, expect the Eagles transition to be worse than the Packers.
7. Dealing your QB within the division is stupid and borderline suicidal. Take it from me, a Ram fan. We dealt Jim Everett--a QB who lead a parallel life to McNabb in many respects--inside our division to the New Orleans Saints. Everett crucified every time we played against him. He knew our defense inside and out. He knew who was weak. He knew how to burn him. He knew all this from countless hours of scrimmaging against our defense, and hear the DC complain about guys.
8. Consider Sonny Jurgensen, a distant relative of mine on my mama's side of the family. The Eagles dealt him to the Redskins and he immediately threw 5 TD passes against the Eagles at the first opportunity. Believe me, history repeats itself: The first time as tragedy, the second time as farce.
9. Consider what Favre is doing to the Packers right now. I realize that Jared Allen was a major key to victory in both those games, but they would not have out-scored the powerful Packer offense without Favre in either case.
10. Consider the fact that Shanahan is now in Washington. Sorry to inform you of this, but Shanahan is better than Reid. It isn't just because of the 2 rings that I say that. They already have a fairly nasty defense. Now Shanahan and McNabb are going to boot-strap his offense into the picture. You have much to be concerned about.
11. The Eagles now have a lot of picks, but this has been the case for the past several years. The pattern is pretty clear. Most of the offensive choices do well. Most of the defensive choices don't. There are exceptions on both sides, but this is the pattern. If the pattern holds, a significant number of 2010 picks will be wasted on defensive players who don't pan out.

In conclusion, I see the East as a two-horse race. The Giants are rebuilding their defense, but they will chase the Cowboys from behind. The Cowboys now have to be the prohibitive favorite to win the East. If the Cowboys don't win the East, the 2010 Cowboys will be an utter disgrace to the lone star of Texas. If they don't win its a shame.

I expect some back-biting, recriminations and drama once the Eagles get into the heavy water of 2010. I wish you well, but I think you just jammed your dick in the door and slammed it. Like Mayock says "Be careful of what you wish for, because you just might get it."

I can't get Bradford, and I don't want Clausen. I'll take McNabb

The shocker has happened. Philly traded McNabb to the Redskins on Easter Sunday 2010 for the #37 pick in the 2010 draft, a #3 in the 2011, and a conditional #4 in 2011. The conditional pick can rise if the Redskins win more games, posting a better record. Most Philly fans seem glad that the McNabb era is over. They are also shocked that the trade happened inside the division. They seem to be happy that the Kolb era will commence now. They are unhappy that they will face McNabb in a Redskin uniform twice per year for the indefinite future.

CBS Draft Central was the first to publish the opinion that the real looser in this trade is Jimmy Clausen, not Jason Campbell. Campbell was expected to go elsewhere this season. This is only a confirmation of that notion. Clausen was thought, by some, to be the guy Shanahan would develop for the Redskin's future. It is pretty damn clear that Clausen slides past #4 in this season's draft. I believe it is extremely unlikely that Holmgren will select him. Ergo his very first possible landing point is at #9 with the Buffalo Bills.

Pray for the Bills' sake that the GM does not try to take the cheese out of the mouse trap.

This brings us to the Redskins feelings about this. Many D.C. fans are expressing subdued jubilation. They believe the Eagles, an arch nemesis and tormentor, will now spiral downward. A city which is 90% Black is happy to receive (arguably) the greatest Black QB ever. We should leave some room here for Hall of Famer Warren Moon.

On the other hand, Redskin fans are all-to-familiar with the pattern of grabbing over-priced washed-up veterans who under-perform when Dan Snyder gives them fat contracts. This is not just an artifact/relic of George Allen and the 1970s skins. It is a persistent pattern that continues to this day. Many of these fans had already pinned their hopes on Jimmy Clausen as their QB of the future. Shanahan is known as one of those few men in league qualified to evaluate and coach the QB. They hopped he would use his powers to groom Clausen into the Redskins' franchise QB for the next 10+ seasons.

This brings us to Shanahan. Nobody believes the Skins are taking a QB with that massive #4 pick in the 2010 Draft. Nobody believes the Skins are going to do a deal with the Rams for the #1 pick. That ship has sailed out of the harbor. Can anyone explain to me why Shanahan would want to pass on a QB in this year's draft?

• It is possible that he was out-voted. Bruce Allen and Synder could have pushed this deal through.
• It is possible that he felt Bradford was unobtainable. The Rams will take him or demand too much for him.
• It is possible he was concerned about Bradford's durability. The Redskins allowed more sacks (46) than the Ram (44) in 2009. That is a sad, sad commentary. It should be noted that Green Bay allowed the greatest number of sacks (51) in 2009.
• It is possible that Shanahan just didn't see what he wanted in Clausen.

As I mentioned in title line: I can't get Bradford, and I don't want Clausen. I'll take McNabb. Maybe this is Shanahan's decision tree? Maybe this was the read progression?

There we have it again folks. Shanahan and Holmgren are arguably the best QB developers in the league right now. There are a few others. Andy Reid and Mike Martz are two more. I seriously doubt Charley Weis is one of them. What do we say about Clausen now that Shanahan and Holmgren have apparently voted no-confidence in the kid?

Maybe I am right and maybe Kiper Jr. is wrong? Maybe? Maybe McShay is right and Kiper is wrong? Maybe?

Watch for Shanahan and Holmgren to go after Jevan Snead. The kid is going to be cheap, and he has real potential.

Sam Bradford's Pro-Day. See you in St. Louis?

So by now we have all heard that Sam Bradford lit everyone's fire at his ProDay in Norman Oklahoma. He shot 62 for 63, and a good pass was dropped. He executed 50 scripted plays and threw 13 passes from a fixed stance. Gil Brandt commented that it was the best performance by a QB candidate since Troy Aikman. That is powerful praise.

Congratulations are in order, and I still think it is a bad fit. You can't throw this kid in the shark tank behind our offensive line and expect good things. The order of operations we must go through is critical, just as in calculus. We need to build our offensive line first, and then draft a QB. The Jets were successful last season with Mark Sanchez because they went through precisely this order of operations. They built the best line in football, and then they drafted their rookie. Guess what? He did okay, even prospering a bit towards the end.

If we are haunted by the spectre of QBs we passed up, we need not be. Neither Matt Ryan nor Mark Sanchez would been successful behind our offensive line. Arguing that we should not have passed on them is rank foolishness.

When we acquired Jim Everett we had the best offensive line in professional football. We three guys who routinely started in the Pro-Bowl. I'm speaking of Jackie Slater, Dennis Harrah, and Dough Smith. We lost Kent Hill in the deal we made with the Oilers. Irv Panky wasn't bad either. We had a line that drove Eric Dickerson to 2,105 yards. When Kurt Warner blew up in 1999, we had a very good offensive line. Good enough to win the Super Bowl.

The only reason Steven Jackson hasn't rushed for 2153 yards is that he doesn't have a line.

Drafting Bradford is just not the right move right now. This is no reflection of Sam. Sam is worth the pick. If we had a quality line, I would draft Sam immediately. We do not have a quality line. A young QB needs an OL like a fish needs water. A rookie QB and our offensive line will go together like Basketball and a Vasectomy.

From my perspective, the real value of what happened yesterday is this: We now have three interested parties buzzing about doing a deal to acquire Bradford. Those parties are the Washington Redskins, the Cleveland Browns, and now the Seattle Seahawks. I hope Devaney is a man of his word, and hope he is in contact with these parties,

Our best deal is probably with Cleveland, if we can swing it. We can probably swap 1sts, get a 2nd and a 3rd. We probably would probably swap 1sts and acquire a 2nd from Washington. Whilst I am not delighted by the prospect of dealing Bradford to the Seahawks, I do covet Coach Carroll's two 1st rounders. He better know it is going to cost him if he wants do do business within the NFC West.

In any of these cases, we can put together the picks to fix our terrible offensive line, and we can add 'skilled players' as well. I still think this is the way we should go.

Sam Bradford & Todd McShay
Sam Bradford & Mike Mayock

NFL Total Access Debate
Sam Bradford on Path to the Draft
Pete Carroll on Sam Bradford
Mike Holmgren on Sam Bradford
D'Marco Farr predicts Sam Bradford

So why should we trade Adam Carriker?

For the Rams, the second really interesting bit of off-season personnel news cropped up today. The first was Marc Bulger cleaning out his locker. The second is Jim Haslett {our former coach and now DC in DC} calling to inquire about the availability of Adam Carriker in a potential trade deal.

This is interesting. It is interesting because there is a strong minority report among Ram fans that Carriker is a busted 1st rounder. I want to make it clear that I do not believe that. I believe we have had a swiss cheese defensive line, and Carriker has been one of the focal points for offensive lines around the league. As a result, he has taken a beating and gotten hurt several times.

Those who read this blog know that I am very eager to see what happens when you place Ndamunkong Suh between Chris Long and Adam Carriker. I believe this is a pure overload situation where we simply have to many killers on the field. Offensive lines will not be able to contain them all. You can't double bracket three men in a four man line. The math doesn't work out.

I would like Carriker critics to ask themselves the following question: Why are the Redskins calling about Adam? Is it because he is an injury prone bum? Is it because was a favorite of Haslett, and Haslett knows he can do it as a 5 technique in a 3-4 defense? Which is the case?

I'll tell you what I think. I think Haslett believes he can use the negative vibes on Carriker to steal a gem. They think they can get our guy cheap. Put Albert Haynesworth at the NT, Carriker at the DE, and Orakpo on his outside shoulder and you will have a hell of a nasty situation in that 3-4 defense.

This begs the question: Why in the world would be interested in dealing him when we are on the verge of having one powerful DL unit? Now that Fred Robbins is joining our team, we may even play Carriker at the DE ourselves. If we can get Leonard Little back, we can platoon our defensive ends a bit.

Unless the Skins are willing to part with substantial chinchillas, I don't think we ought to entertain this offer. I think we ought to stick with Adam. We will be glad we did when our defensive line explodes this season.