Restricted free agent CB Kevin Dockery is visiting the St. Louis Rams, according to this report from Pro Football Talk. Adam Schefter reports the same thing.
Dockery plays Spagnuolo's style of physical, man coverage well. He's been mostly a nickel corner with the Giants, including the two years Spags spent there as defensive coordinator. This could be a good add for the Rams, upgrading their nickel spot between a healthy Bradley Fletcher and Ron Bartell, and making a decent replacement should one of those guys have to miss some time.
This continues the Rams theme of upgrading their depth via free agency, a smart course, if rather unsexy.
Dockery was not offered a RFA tender by the Giants.
The St. Louis Rams will host former Chicago Bears fullback Jason McKie today, according to this report from Vaughn McClure (related to Troy?) of the Chicago Tribune.
Unlike Willie Parker who the Rams kicked the tires on as a potential backup for Steven Jackson, McKie does not fit that role. He's a fullback, a blocker, and we all know where those guys fit when Mike Martz is at the helm.
The Rams have FB Mike Karney, who signed a three-year contract last year as a free agent. An excellent blocker, Karney does have a bit of an injury history, missing two games last year and four the year before. Given that style of play, it's of little wonder. I wonder if the Rams are concerned about Karney's health?
As the St. Louis Rams continue to search for answers at tight end, one name that keeps coming up is Bears TE Greg Olsen. His name got included on the market after Mike Martz was hired to be the new offensive coordinator in Chicago, where he is expected to implement his famous system that doesn't rely heavily on a receiving tight end with limited blocking ability.
Olsen's name came up Tuesday in Jim Thomas' weekly QnA with fans and armchair general managers at the Post-Dispatch. One reader asked about the possibility of an Olsen-for-Alex Barron swap, which Thomas called "intriguing." That hardly qualifies as a trade rumor, but it hit the internets nonetheless. I want to reiterate that was Thomas' own judgement and it was clearly noted as a hypothetical situation.
The Olsen possibility was further discussed on ESPN's Rumor Central, where Adam Schefter mentioned that the likely price tag was a second round pick (notice how coveted those second round picks are this year?). From there, KC Joyner, the Football Scientist weighed in with some intriguing information of his own:
The general consensus is that the Bears might be thinking of moving Olsen because Mike Martz doesn't use his tight ends, but there is another reason they might be inclined to make the move. Olsen was one of only eight tight ends to be targeted more than 100 times last season, but his 5.9 YPA total was the fourth-worst among tight ends. That total was only one-tenth of a yard higher than Randy McMichael's mark last season, so unless the Rams were to get more productivity out of Olsen than Chicago did, the move would be a lateral one and would not make much sense.
Yikes. Randy McMichael territory? My first thought was that this perhaps had something to do with the fact that the Bears offense didn't have many weapons last year (Olsen led the team in receiving). I've sent a message to KC for more insight.
I wouldn't make the move, regardless of this info, for a second rounder.
One can only hope the meeting with Willie Parker goes well. I've always liked him, and hopefully he can resurrect his career and help the Rams win a few games as well. Here is some other news from around the interweb:
Enjoy Thursday!
He'd be a good backup to Steven Jackson. If the Rams think his injury history is a thing of the past, they should try to sign him. He would definitely be an upgrade over any other backup RB the Rams have.
The Arizona Cardinals and former Cleveland Browns quarterback Derek Anderson have agreed to a two-year contract worth $7.25 million.
With the news that the Falcons jettisoned Tye Hill, I thought it would be interesting to look back the past few years and see how the Rams fared in the numerous post draft report cards. I don't think much of them personally (it's always nice to read about your team though), but are they really worthless? Do some people have a history of judging the Rams drafts well? Can they spot those troubled players? Or will all this article do is take you down memory lane? Let's find out...Hit the jump to continue.
Cogs has talent, but lacks the head to go with it. If some other team can get him to control himself during games, they'll have a valuable player. The Rams certainly tried and gave him several chances. The deal is said to be worth up to $1.3 million.
