Dilip Vishwanat - Getty Images
4 months ago: EARTH CITY, MO - JANUARY 17: St. Louis Rams Executive Vice President of Football Operations & Chief Operating Officer Kevin Demoff introduces new head coach Jeff Fisher (right) as team owner Stan Kroenke listens during a press conference at the Russell Training Center on January 17, 2012 in Earth City, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)
The St. Louis Rams search for a general manager took a back seat to the team's effort of luring Jeff Fisher. Now, with Fisher on board, the search has begun again in earnest for an executive to replace Billy Devaney. Several possibilities have been mentioned and a couple candidates went through interviews this weekend. The National Football Post reports that the arrangements made for coach Fisher are limiting the GM search.
An update on the GM search and some updated info about a GM candidate, after the jump.
From Dan Pompei in the National Football Post on Sunday:
One of the reasons the Rams general manager search is moving slowly is the team is a little limited by the fact they aren't offering control of the 53-man roster. As a result, other teams can block the Rams from hiring someone who is under contract, such as Lake Dawson.
The exact arrangements between the new GM and Fisher have never been stated outright. However, it has been said that Fisher doesn't want to be the GM, per se, he just wants to make sure his voice is heard in the personnel process, i.e. he doesn't want to get stuck with another Vince Young.
As for the GM candidates, Pompei points out two names in consideration, Mike Ackerley, recently with the Texans, and Rich Snead. That's not to be confused with Les Snead, an Atlanta front office man who had a second interview today.
There have been several reports of Rich Snead in consideration, but that's not the case. Rich Snead worked for the Raiders from 2007-2009, following a stint with the Titans as director of player personnel. He actually worked for the Rams as a scout in 2010 and 2011.
When asked about Rich Snead as a GM candidate, Rams COO Kevin Demoff told TST that Snead "may return as a pro scout" this year.
The rumor mill may be wrong on this one, shocking, I know.
0 recs | 53 comments
I have a feeling we're going to hire a nobody:(
Brick Top - January 29, 2012
Your rumor mill is never right Van as far back as i can remember lol
Rammon105 - January 29, 2012
IMO Kroenke fucked up
Hiring Fisher over a GM means we’re committed to him as HC over a GM, and for me, I’d rather have a great GM who knows when to pull the plug on a coach if they under perform.
If we could have got an elite GM candidate like the Ravens dude, we’d be in a position to build a team the correct way.
Now we’re limited to finding a good enough puppet for Fisher, when a coach, especially one with such an unflattering history, should not be the one calling the shots with regards to roster control.
They should most certainly have the majority of a say in the final roster, simply because the coach will know better, but having a GM who can go out and search for FAs and prospects unhampered by executive control means our searches can be more thought out and beneficial to the Rams in the long term.
We went ALL in on a coach who just isn’t as good as we want him to be, and now we’re suffering with regards to having an accountable figurehead GM who can keep the team progressing in an identified direction (without distractions). Not to mention the awful OC hire.
What I mean about a figurehead GM is someone who is good at finding talent and filling the roster with it, and therefore can be maintained should the coach not provide the results for him and need to be fired. We’d be able to have a systematic consistency with regards to talent acquisition and have accountability run from the top down.
With this current set up we have an all powerful HC who, should he fail, set the team back a couple more years due to the need to completely rebuild AGAIN.
If he feels pressure from Kroenke Fisher will now have the power to sacrifice sustained success for immediate job security, just how Devaney and Spags managed to fuck up last year. The loss of vision and direction is what cost them their jobs imo. The team wasn’t building TO anything after the McD hire, regardless of their many valid reasons for being retained, that was the crucial element to me.
Sorry for the essay but I’m deeply unhappy in the way this team is being built and can only hope free agency, the draft and the upcoming season can prove me wrong and signal towards a bright, superbowl glittered future.
Infemous - January 29, 2012 via mobile
"The Ravens dude", as you put it, was never going to be available. Having somebody similar to him was always going to be a difficult find...
Baltimore have such a great set-up in the FO, that the replacement for Ozzie Newsome is already in place.
What would you rather we did Infemous? Take on ANOTHER inexperienced HC? Fisher doesn’t have that much power over this team – as Ryan says, he’s just covering his own ass when it comes to taking on players for this team. You can’t blame him for not wanting another VY episode. Give the guy a chance to do his job first, before condemning him to the depths of Hell. Because all I’ve seen from you in these threads is total negativity towards our new HC, before he’s even had a chance to do anything on the field. Plus Schotty might not be everyone’s first choice, but I’d rather some experience in ALL major positions within the coaching area, as opposed to guys that were either completely unknown, or were plain and simply found out to be living off the glory of Tom Brady.
JoolzMF - January 29, 2012
i said someone like "the ravens dude"
According to all the fan posts detailing each possibility there were several very good candidates available that had we prioritised the GM over the HC we could have lured to the Rams and still pursued Fisher. That’d have been a win-win. Now we have a much narrower range of candidates. All I’m saying is I don’t agree with the way Kroenke has gone about putting our team together. Differs from my personal philosophy on building a team.
With regards to the whole me being anti-Fisher, I’ve stated many times experience seldom has any bearing how good they do. I would have rather we got another OC and built this team around Sam instead of having a famously conservative Head Coach.
With regards to Schotty I’d literally rather have anyone than that bum. His years in the league have only served to prove how terrible he is and he only has a job due to his surname.
I’m sorry I’m being slightly contra to everyone elses’ belief in the new regime but it smells off to me already. I don’t like it and I’m saying so as is my right to. I’m not insulting anyone else with what I’m saying and I’m not making unfounded judgements. I have statistics and descernable traits as my reasoning, as well as my own personal belief on how to build a CONSISTENTLY winning team.
I wouldn’t be a fan if I didn’t want to be wrong and the moment this new management show to me that they are doing something right I will applaud them. I just simply refuse to blindly put faith in them when I don’t agree with anything they’ve done thus far. Benefit of the doubt got lost with the Schotty hire and they have to actually do something to change my opinion.
No free pass here.
A good draft, free agency or good season and a radical shift in Fisher’s philosophy will win me over fully and until then I’m going to call them out when I see fit.
Sorry if you disagree, but this is a Rams forum in which we all have a right to say what we want within a mutually agreed set of rules and I haven’t broken any.
We can discuss our differing opinions, its the whole point of discussion.
Language is based on binary oppositions and there wouldn’t be anything to talk about if we didn’t have any conflicts of opinion at all.
Infemous - January 29, 2012 via mobile
and with regards to the VY covering clause
A good GM wouldn’t force any players on their coach. They would have a mutual approach to team building and work together.
That whole VY clause as I’ll call it is a crock of shit. At the end of the day it was the owner who ‘forced’ VY on Fisher and if Kroenke does likewise the clause will have no bearing. All the VY fiasco proves is Fisher is stubborn and unable to adapt his philosophies for the benefit of his team. I got no respect for that and simply haven’t seen a counter argument that can change this (yet).
Infemous - January 29, 2012 via mobile
I agree
that the GM should be hired 1st and he picks the HC.
Ramfan4life - January 29, 2012
i'll agree that i want to see "results"
maybe the cart was put before the horse. I feel good about the experienced coaching staff that was put together. I’ll have to get back to you on this GM thing. MHO will be purely based on results.
DevsLaRams - January 29, 2012
Jeff fisher has more NFL experience than Stan Kroenke and Demoff put together
I think he’s trusting these three former head coaches and their staff with over 60 years experience in the NFL at all levels that he’s hired as a sort of brain trust for all personnel decisions and honestly, you cant say thats a bad move. Im willing to bet that we have as much football knowledge as Silent Stan. And 3K could probably scout and draft a better team than he could too. We all have th right to knock the way the team is run or watever but cant we at least wait til we know who the gm is? Til we see the draft and FA? Lol
And id rather have a great coaching staff in place with an unproven gm anyway. Cuz if the gm sucks, his duties are easier to replace. We cant afford another coaching change in the next two three years
Lexxi - January 29, 2012 via mobile
valid points bro
Except, I think a good GM is rarer than a good coach. Look how many GMs are noticeably good, I can think of Mayhew, Newsome, Thompson… Maybe Steelers GM and Giants GM and that’s it, oh and BB. List of good coaches a lot longer in my opinion.
We can’t afford another coaching change in 2 to 3 years you’re right, but does this mean if Fisher is decidedly average that he gets a pass? I just can’t see this team he’s trying to build being anything above 9-7.
Yes its too early to judge, so consider that an uninformed prediction, but expectations are high now and it’ll be interesting to see how they try and temper them, or if they don’t how they handle adversity.
Infemous - January 30, 2012 via mobile
That's just because GMs jobs aren't as sexy and the media gives all the credit to coaches
Brick Top - January 30, 2012
true
Although coaches have the harder job imo.
Infemous - January 30, 2012 via mobile
I never said anything about putting your point across - my argument was that you condemned Fisher before he's even taken charge of a game...
JoolzMF - January 30, 2012
based on my dislike of what he's done in the short time he's been here
If he proves me wrong you won’t find anyone happier, but he has to do that.
I don’t see why I should be happy about the hire if I don’t like it or I don’t like the things he’s done since he’s been here. I didn’t like how he decided to be our HC, I don’t like his contract, I don’t like his resume, I don’t like his philosophy and I sure as hell don’t like who he hired for OC.
I just can’t support that until he does something to make me change my mind.
Do you get what I mean now though homie?
Its not nice being misunderstood lol
Infemous - January 30, 2012 via mobile
I thought that Schottenheimer thing was a joke
….we did hire Hue, right?!?!
DCRamFan - January 30, 2012
i wish homie, i wish.
Missed out on Caldwell as QB coach to Baltimore too FOL
Infemous - January 30, 2012 via mobile
no one cares what you think over there in London lmfao your still trying to learn american football now you wanna tell Kroenke what to do? nicca please
Rammon105 - January 29, 2012
infemous is still crying about that douchebag spags hahahahaha all he has is bad things to say about Fisher lmfao
Rammon105 - January 29, 2012
Yea, not needed
Fisher isn’t a saint and is way overrated by a lot of people, bottom line. Plus Infemous wanted Spags gone so you’re way off base.
RG31 - January 29, 2012 via mobile
thanks bro
And tbh I was a fan of Spags staying purely coz I saw no one better available.
His firing was no surprise however, and once he was gone I was gonna just keep on supporting my Rams. Was hoping that if we fired him we’d at least go a different direction and unfortunately it seems we haven’t and that’s another thing that I’m bummed about.
Infemous - January 30, 2012 via mobile
True
I honestly wanted him to stay another year because the deficiencies of thus team wasn’t all this fault but felt he would be fired just based on principle. I still don’t get the infatuation of Fisher but ill give it a chance..
RG31 - January 30, 2012 via mobile
lol you done yet?
I’m still bored
Infemous - January 29, 2012 via mobile
I read the subject and knew it was you...
Think about all these coaches we are getting and how people want to work for him. It means a lot. It means we get to pick and choose, instead of begging for people to come onboard. We never had experienced coaches like this before…
m0pi1 - January 29, 2012
did you read the rest though?
You make a valid point, although maybe I quite arrogantly believed we were the best spot for anyone to land so strong leadership and direction from the top down would be something tertiary after money and the team inherited. Fact is, is it is purely my opinion that I disagree with Kroenke’s approach. I believe GM first, then HC. Only time will see what would have served better in this situation.
Infemous - January 29, 2012 via mobile
So
did you get to hired your boss?
Ramfan4life - January 30, 2012
Sorry that wasn't for Infemous
It was for anyone who didn’t understand what he was saying.
Ramfan4life - January 30, 2012
hahahaha awesome
You said what I was trying to say with one line. If I could rec on my fone I would!
Appreciated!
Infemous - January 30, 2012 via mobile
Can we expect a hire this week?
zachmann21 - January 29, 2012
I would rather this team take their time
to select the right GM who will work in tandem with the Head Coach, than suffer through Billy Devaney the Second. Spagnoulo would’ve been much more successful with a better group of players to select from, which were provided by the former GM. I can’t blame Fisher for wanting a say in who he will coach, his job is on the line dictated by the players provided.
I’d like this team to hire a GM who will revamp an apparently broken Scout Staff and FO that will actually be able to select talent throughout the draft and have them stick with the team, for a change.
Guitpik - January 29, 2012
How about Tom Snead?
Is he busy? How about Lake Speed?
dbcouver - January 29, 2012
Lake Speed!!!!! Best name ever for a NASCAR driver
Douglas M - January 29, 2012
Dick Trickle
isn’t just the best name in NASCAR history, but possibly the best name ever.
FailureDrill - January 29, 2012 via Android app
fuck nascar
Rammon105 - January 29, 2012
amen
sergey606 - January 29, 2012
Jeez, a guy can't even make a joke anymore?
FailureDrill - January 29, 2012 via Android app
yes indeedy
dbcouver - January 29, 2012
Ramming Speed!
OakCityRam - January 30, 2012
I really wanted McKenzie, stupid Oakland
I guess the Texans guy would work, they have some good players, finally won the division this year thanks to broke Peyton
sergey606 - January 29, 2012 via mobile
What happened to the other guy from Green Bay?
diehardram87 - January 29, 2012
what other guy? i thought he was the only name being tossed around
sergey606 - January 29, 2012
I couldve swore there were 2 possible candidates..I cant remember the name though
diehardram87 - January 29, 2012
I think it was Dorsey something
diehardram87 - January 29, 2012
no clue man
don’t know anything about him
sergey606 - January 29, 2012
i think it might've been john dorsey
diehardram87 - January 29, 2012
Infemous makes some good points...However, I still feel better that they are taking their time
trying to find the right fit…even if it looks bad. This is the most important position to fill for this team IMO.
Also the fact that Fisher gets a say if he really smells something bad cant be bad either. Picking good players is obviously more of an art than a science. Having a person that has coached professional football players has insight that a scout would not.
leadhead - January 29, 2012
I understand taking our time to get it right
But the more time we take, the more off season workouts our GM misses due to not being in place. We had an off season in 2009 that we mis handled by not having our shit together until after the combine was over. As a reasult we were tremendously compromised in our knowledge of the draft prospects. The FO even used it as an excuse to screw up the last half of the draft. I’d really like to see that NOT happen this year, please. I can see it coming a mile away, Stan, can you?
dbcouver - January 29, 2012
They should have given Fish
both the HC and GM hats.
This way we wouldn’t be wondering why it takes so long to find a GM.
We already have a de facto GM: his name is Jeff Fisher.
Arsenal, like most soccer teams, has ONE man in command. He’s been in place for 16 years. Me thinks Kroenke would like Fisher to be for the Rams what Arsene Wenger has been for the Gunners.
Dummy question: Why do we need a GM ?
Le Ram - January 30, 2012
Cause everyone else has one?
OakCityRam - January 30, 2012
And everyone always had ?
Did Jimmy Johnson or Bill Parcells have a GM looking over their shoulder ?
According to the team’s official site: “Kevin Demoff is the Club’s chief negotiator, responsible for salary cap planning and compliance with the CBA”.
What does a GM do that Fish or Kevin won’t/can’t do ?
Le Ram - January 30, 2012
Jerry Jones was constantly looking over Jimmy's shoulder.
I need to do some checking, but I’m sure Tuna had a GM of some kind in New York. The last real HC/GM of note that I can remember was Mike Holmgren.
FailureDrill - January 30, 2012 via Android app
giving arsene wenger ultimate control
Hasn’t been particularly successful in recent years though.
Infemous - January 30, 2012 via mobile
We just in a transitional phase
we lost two of our best three players in the first week of the year. We’ll bounce back. We have a bunch of good young players and money. We’re Arsenal.
Brick Top - January 30, 2012
So what happened to our
hiring a QB coach?
OakCityRam - January 30, 2012
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