Tag Archives: Rams
Cortland Finnegan says Rams offense knows to target 49ers safety Craig Dahl ‘early and often’
St. Louis Rams cornerback Cortland Finnegan has certainly been one of the more feisty players in the NFL in recent years.
When he was with the Tennessee Titans during the 2010 season, Finnegan slugged it out with Houston Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson that earned both players an ejection and $ 25,000 fines. Late in the fourth quarter of a game last September, Finnegan goaded Washington Redskins wide receiver Josh Morgan to throw the football at him after the whistle, resulting in a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Morgan that took the Redskins out of field goal range and ultimately cost the Redskins the game.
Finnegan’s latest target is safety Craig Dahl, who left the Rams this offseason and signed a three-year, $ 5.25 million contract with the San Francisco 49ers. The Rams went 7-8-1 last season, but played the eventual NFC champion 49ers tough. The two teams played to a 24-24 tie on Nov. 11 before the Rams upset the 49ers 16-13 in overtime on Dec. 2.
On Wednesday, Dahl told reporters in San Francisco that upon signing with the 49ers, he immediately told the coaching staff that the Rams were successful against them last season because they were able to diagnose run or pass based on the personnel and formation.
“We had a few tips off of film that we were able to differentiate between run and pass early,” Dahl said, via Matt Maiocco of CSN Bay Area. “So that kind of gave us an added benefit on defense.
“It was a few different things. Some different personnel and alignment stuff really were the big keys, as far as our giveaways.”
Of course, this sort of information gathering is nothing new and happens all the time in the NFL. Offensive coaches will pick the brains of defensive players coming in from other teams (and vice versa) on a variety of things, including tendencies that the coach’s own self-scouting might have overlooked.
However, Dahl “spilling the beans” to the 49ers was not something that Finnegan could let slide.
In response to a ProFootballTalk tweet, Finnegan wrote “Craig Dahl is lame and weak for that glad he with another squad we know how he play thanks for the tips we know who 2 go at”.
“Craig Dahl we know how you play thanks for the tips we know who to attack early and often”, Finnegan added.
The first of two meetings between the Rams and 49ers this season will be in St. Louis on Thursday, Sept. 26.
Patriots, Cowboys and Rams spent the most guaranteed money on undrafted rookie free agents
The New England Patriots, Dallas Cowboys and St. Louis Rams each spent over $ 100,000 in guaranteed money on their class of undrafted free agents this offseason, according to a source with knowledge of rookie salary data.
NFL teams could spend a maximum of $ 78,170 in signing bonuses on undrafted rookie free agents this offseason, but there are no limits to the amount of guaranteed money teams can include in the standard three-year contracts signed by undrafted free agents. Seven NFL teams have spent more than the $ 78,170 signing bonus maximum in guaranteed money, with New England leading the way by spending $ 140,000 in guaranteed money on their undrafted free agents.
The largest individual guarantee among the Patriots undrafted rookie free agents belongs to Missouri wide receiver T.J. Moe, who received an $ 8,000 signing bonus and will receive $ 22,000 in fully guaranteed base salary regardless of whether or not he makes New England’s 53-man roster for a total of $ 30,000 in guaranteed money. The 5-foot-11, 204-pound Moe excelled in the three-cone drill at the 2013 combine, posting the second-fastest time among all invitees. As explained here by Christopher Price of WEEI.com, the Patriots have shown a tendency to target players who perform well in that particular agility drill, so that Moe was a “priority free agent” for the Patriots does not come as much of a surprise. (Had Moe played at Rutgers, the Patriots might have requested that Foxborough officials award him the key to the town or make him an honorary selectman.)
Behind Moe on the Patriots’ list of large guarantees is Nevada tight end Zach Sudfeld, who received the team’s largest signing bonus ($ 12,000) and also has a $ 5,000 base salary guarantee for a total of $ 17,000 in guaranteed money. Sudfeld, who a month older than Rob Gronkowski and a few months older than Aaron Hernandez, caught just two passes in his first five seasons at Nevada catching 45 passes with eight touchdowns after being granted a medical redshirt for the 2012 season. Offensive lineman Elvis Fisher, Moe’s former teammate at Missouri, received $ 15,000 in guaranteed money from the Patriots, while guard Josh Kline ($ 14,000), fullback Ben Bartholomew ($ 10,000) and linebacker Kanorris Davis ($ 10,000) also received five-figure guarantees.
The Cowboys ($ 104,500), Rams ($ 103,100), Tampa Bay Buccaneers ($ 94,670) and New Orleans Saints ($ 88,500) round out the top five in guaranteed money on rookie free agents. The Jacksonville Jaguars ($ 86,000) and Philadelphia Eagles ($ 82,000) have also exceeded the signing bonus limit. The Chicago Bears ($ 29,500) and Green Bay Packers ($ 35,500) are the two NFL teams to spend under $ 40,000 in guaranteed money on undrafted rookie free agents.
For the Patriots, Cowboys, Rams, Saints and Jaguars, committing larger-than-required amounts of guaranteed money to undrafted rookies is nothing new as each club spent $ 85,000 in guaranteed money or higher on undrafted free agents in 2012, as well.
The Cowboys, Patriots and Saints spent over $ 200,000 on undrafted free agents last season. Those guaranteed amounts were inflated as each team signed a single player to a contract with over $ 200,000 in guaranteed money. For the Cowboys, they paid undrafted offensive lineman Ronald Leary as if he were a fifth-round pick, guaranteeing him $ 214,000 ($ 9,000 to sign, $ 205,000 base salary guarantee). The Patriots’ total was pumped upwards when they guaranteed Olympic silver medalist Jeff Demps $ 211,000 ($ 11,000 to sign, $ 200,000 base salary guarantee) following the London games.
As the first seasons of Leary and Demps show, large financial guarantees are not an indicator that the player will make an immediate impact in the NFL. Demps spent last season on injured reserve and was traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the third day of the 2013 NFL draft. Leary did not make the Cowboys’ 53-man roster, spent 15 weeks on Dallas’ practice squad and was inactive for the two games he was promoted to the team’s active roster.
For the second consecutive season, the Cowboys handed out the largest individual guarantee, signing former Arizona State linebacker Brandon Magee to a contract that includes a total of $ 70,000 in guarantees, including $ 65,000 in fully guaranteed base salary. The second-largest guarantee on the Cowboys belongs to safety Jakar Hamilton, who pocketed a $ 10,000 signing bonus. The Rams’ large guarantees were made to offensive tackle Braden Brown and safety Cody Davis, each of whom received $ 20,000 in guarantees. Linebacker Jonathan Stewart was third with $ 17,500, while linebacker Phillip Steward and running back Benny Cunningham received $ 15,000 in guaranteed money.
The largest signing bonus issued to an undrafted rookie this year belongs to UNLV linebacker John Lotulelei, who received $ 25,000 to sign with the Seattle Seahawks. Boston College offensive tackle Emmett Cleary received $ 20,000 to sign with the Indianapolis Colts, while Florida linebacker Lerentee McCray was third on the list with a $ 17,500 signing bonus from the Denver Broncos.
As is the case with guaranteed money, a large signing bonus does not improve a rookie’s job security. Virginia Tech wide receiver Marcus Davis received a $ 15,000 signing bonus from the New York Giants after the 2013 draft and was waived after the team’s rookie mini-camp. Davis was claimed the following day by the New York Jets. On Monday, the Philadelphia Eagles waived running back Miguel Maysonet, who had received a $ 10,000 signing bonus, which was the third-highest bonus that the Eagles paid to an undrafted free agent this offseason.
Players receiving small signing bonuses, or even no signing bonus at all, can have a major impact in their rookie seasons.
Last year, linebacker Vontaze Burfict, Magee’s former teammate at Arizona State, led the Cincinnati Bengals in tackles (127) after receiving a $ 1,000 signing bonus. Burfict played in over 82 percent of the Bengals’ snaps as a rookie, so it was not much of a surprise when he led the NFL in performance-based pay with $ 299,465. Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker was 30-of-33 on field goal attempts in the regular season, and four-of-four in the post-season (including two in the fourth quarter of a 34-31 win over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII) as a rookie who received zero guaranteed money when he signed with Baltimore last year as an undrafted free agent out of Texas.
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Rams make a lot of roster room for 6-foot-10, 403-pound lineman Terrell Brown
Some will tell you that the NFL is a height/weight/speed league, and St. Louis Rams undrafted rookie free agent Terrell Brown certainly has the first two nailed down. Brown, who played predominantly for Mississippi as a defensive lineman and will switch to the offensive line for Jeff Fisher, measured at 6-foot-10 and 388 pounds at his pro day on March 7. However, when the Rams signed him and weighed him in, it seemed that Brown had been spending extra time at the wrong training table.
“Actually, we weighed him in at 403,” Fisher said on Thursday. “We had him in for the tryout, and he had some issues that we had to clear up from a physical standpoint. But he got that put behind us. We worked him out on both sides of the ball, defensive line and offensive line, and we felt like his best position would be right tackle. [Rams offensive line coach Paul Boudreau] said he’d love to have him. He’s a defensive lineman that we’ve converted to offensive lineman.”
Brown actually played on both sides of the ball in college, and Fisher also joked about using him to block kicks. And why not? As Gil Brandt of NFL.com said of him, Brown “just might be the biggest player we’ve reported on.”
And as you can see from the video below, the Rams had best reinforce their folding chairs.
As for the speed part of that height/weight/speed equation … well, Brown’s still working on that. At his pro day, he ran the 40-yard dash in 5.80 and 5.88 seconds, but it was his raw measurements that set NFL teams off. Brown measured in with 38-inch arms and a 92 3/8-inch wingspan, far above the norm, even by NFL standards.
That said, if he makes the Rams’ roster, Brown would not be the tallest player in pro football history — that honor goes to Richard Sligh, who played a few games for the 1967 Oakland Raiders at seven feet tall even, and was a reserve in Super Bowl II. The heaviest player ever to make an NFL roster (at least, we’re talking official weight here) was Aaron Gibson, who cracked the 400-pound bar with the Dallas Cowboys in 2002.
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Rams WR Tavon Austin learns that everyone wants your money when you’re in the NFL
The adjustment process when one moves from high-caliber college player to NFL prospect trying to fit in is generally a tough one. With a few notable exceptions, even the best collegiate players need a settling-in period, and that has as much to do with the off-field stuff as it does with what Mr. Hot Shot will bring to his NFL team on game day.
Former West Virginia receiver Tavon Austin, perhaps the NCAA’s most dynamic offensive player in 2012, is learning that the NFL brings a few interesting realities to light. Specifically, the fact that money brings problems in the form of people wanting money … and we’re not talking about agents and the IRS.
“Everybody expects a lot of things from you as far as money.” Austin recently told the Rams’ official website. “Everybody wants to be around you. My phone doesn’t stop ringing now. It feels like they’re counting my bank account now. So that’s probably the hardest thing for me right now, just people.
“I’ve got a lot of cousins now. The whole [city of] Baltimore is my cousin now. We’re going to just try to keep focused and let my mother and all of them handle it.”
Si.com’s Peter King spent draft weekend in the Rams’ war room, and he reported in his latest Monday Morning Quarterback that while Austin was admired for bypassing the temptations he encountered on the mean streets of Baltimore, there was some concern in NFL circles that Austin’s past, in the form of “hangers-on,” might follow him to the pros, and even increase their presence once the money started to roll in. That’s not a knock on Austin, who is a great kid by all accounts — it’s a simple truth for young NFL players. Once the cash piles up, you’re going to receive “heartfelt” communiqués from people you hardly know.
Draft pick salaries are slotted for the most part per the current Collective Bargaining Agreement and the numbers change a bit from year to year, but Austin will be moving up quite a few tax brackets when the numbers come out.
The Rams traded with the Buffalo Bills to move up to the eighth overall slot to select Austin. Miami Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill, last year’s No. 8 pick, signed a four-year, $ 12.668 million contract with $ 7.653 million guaranteed in the form of a signing bonus. Tannehill made $ 480,000 plus a $ 484,841 roster bonus in his rookie year, and he’ll rake in about $ 1.5 million this year between base salary and bonuses. Austin should expect to see similar numbers, and for him, it’s all about getting his family out of his childhood home and into a better life.
“The goal was to get my mother and my grandmother out of the city,” Austin told the Charleston Daily Mail on Apr. 28. “I don’t know if they want to leave, but I’ll definitely get them a better house so they don’t have to worry about living in the hood. That was my No. 1 goal and that’s happening now.
“I’m definitely going to move them to a nice place outside in the county, Harford County, or something like that, where it’s a gated community and I pretty much know they’re comfortable while I’m here working and they’re back there just waiting for my game days on Sunday.”
Sounds like Austin has his priorities in order, even if some around him don’t seem to. As the noted philosopher Notorious B.I.G. once opined, “Mo’ money, mo’ problems.”
Rams Trade With Bills For 8th Pick; Take WR Austin
It was a move that you had a feeling the Rams would try to make, and they did, trading with the Bills for the 8th overall pick, and then snagging the first WR of the draft, taking West Virginia WR Tavon Austin.
He’s expected to be a big playmaker in the Rams offense, and has all the tools to step right in from day one and be a starter.
Athleticism
+Lightning quick and agile, able to stop and start quickly.
+Elite speed and acceleration, 4.3 a possibility.
+Changes direction with ease, very elusive in the open field.
-Small in stature and doesn’t carry a lot of bulk.
Route Running
+Experienced making route adjustments both pre and post-snap.
+Able to run precise routes and get back up to speed.
+Can also round out routes to carry more speed through his break.
+Excels underneath with pivot and stick routes, but can get vertical as well.
+Sells double moves and fakes well, able to create separation.
+Effective in the screen game, sets up blocks well.
+Quick enough to beat press coverage.
Hands
+Can handle touch passes down the field as well as fastballs underneath.
+Good body control making the catch.
-Will drop the occasional ball when in traffic.
-Makes too many catches with his body.
Running / Return Ability
+Sees cutback lanes very well, able to score on any given play.
+Elusive, difficult to tackle in open space.
+Will make the first man miss.
+Extremely effective on jet sweeps, reverses and mis-direction plays.
-Not much of a blocker, but isn’t allergic to contact.
Overview
Tavon Austin is lightning in a bottle. He is the guy that keeps defensive coordinators up at night. You want the ball in his hands.
NFL teams looking for either the next Percy Harvin or the next Wes Welker will find qualities that they like in Austin – he is a prototypical slot receiver that can dominate the game on the ground as well.
Our only concern is his size, as his listed 170+ size might be a bit generous. If he can convince teams that he can hold up to the NFL grind,
Jake Long agrees to four-year deal with St. Louis Rams
As it turned out, Miami Dolphins guard Richie Incognito’s Twitter campaign to keep teammate Jake Long didn’t have as much pull as a future with the St. Louis Rams. That’s where Long, the first overall pick in the 2008 draft, and a four-time Pro Bowler, will play left tackle in the future. On Sunday night, the Rams announced that they have agreed to terms on a four-year deal. The contract is worth $ 34 million (a possible $ 36 million in total if incentives are maxed out) with $ 16 million guaranteed, and another $ 4 million that will become guaranteed in 2014, according to Pro Football Talk.
Long, who started every game in his first three seasons, missed a total of six games in the last two campaigns, including the last four games of the 2012 season with a left triceps injury. Those injuries have led to an overall decline in Long’s play of late — in those 12 games, per Pro Football Focus, he allowed four sacks and 21 pressures in just 390 pass-blocking snaps. Roger Saffold, the man who will be moving from left to right tackle now that Long has signed, allowed just two sacks and 16 pressures in 10 games.
Long had spent most of this last week in St. Louis, taking a bevy of physical tests so that the Rams could get a sense of his overall health. He flew back to Miami on Friday, leading some to assume that Long and the Rams were too far apart on money, and that the Dolphins would make a final push to retain him.
It’s not known how much the Dolphins tried to up the ante after a busy free-agency period, but Long is now out of their picture.
“It was a tough decision,” Long told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I came in for a visit and Coach [Jeff] Fisher and [CEO] Kevin Demoff and [general manager] Les Snead were amazing. I just fell in love with their vision and the entire organization. And all the great things they had to say about [Rams owner] Mr. [Stan] Kroenke and the way they go about football.
“They really made me feel welcome — my wife and I. It was such a great family atmosphere. It was something I wanted to be a part of. But in the end I wanted to think it through, make the right decision because Miami was amazing to me. Took me No. 1. [Dolphins owner] Mr. [Stephen] Ross and I have a great relationship. This was my home for the last five years, and I just wanted to make sure I made the right decision and I’m happy with the decision I made.”
When Long was hurt, right tackle Jonathan Martin kicked over to the left side, and allowed two sacks and 21 total pressures in five games. Martin, selected in the second round of the 2012 draft, would be the favorite to replace Long on the left side, unless the Dolphins take a closer look at that possibility and refocus their efforts at left tackle in the draft.
Vikings And Rams Won’t Go After Giants WR Cruz
The Giants placed a first-round tender on restricted free-agent wide receiver Victor Cruz.
The Rams and Vikings were thought to be two of the likeliest teams to sign Cruz to an offer sheet because they both possess two first-round draft picks and could afford to part with one.
Jane McManus of ESPN New York reports Cruz isn’t a free-agent target of the Vikings or Rams, according to Adam Schefter.
Minnesota signed receiver Greg Jennings on Friday to a five-year deal worth $ 47.5 million, reducing the likelihood the Vikings would go after Cruz.
As for the Rams, they let Danny Amendola bolt for the Patriots over money, so spending big to get Cruz doesn’t seem to fit with their free-agency philosophy. Amendola signed a five-year deal worth $ 31 million.
Cruz has been a popular, valuable wide receiver for the Giants, but he has also been extremely cost-efficient. Signed as an undrafted free agent from UMass, Cruz stands to make just under $ 3 million next season, up from his base salary of $ 540,000 in 2012.
Since the Giants would have the opportunity to match any offer for Cruz, a team would likely have to offer the wide receiver a high-priced deal in addition to giving up the first-round pick.
Rams release veteran safety Quintin Mikell
The St. Louis Rams have released high-priced veteran safety Quintin Mikell, reports Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Mikell was signed to a four-year, $ 27 million contract as an unrestricted free agent following the 2011 lockout. In two seasons with the Rams, Mikell started 32 games, totaling 192 tackles, four sacks and a pair of interceptions.
The current Rams regime of GM Les Snead and head coach Jeff Fisher inherited Mikell, but releasing him last season would not have made sense. The Rams lacked depth in the back-end of the secondary and Mikell had a $ 1 million base salary and $ 4 million cap number last season. Mikell’s cash and cap imprint on the Rams’ roster increases to $ 4 million to $ 6 million in cash and $ 9 million against the cap in 2013.
Releasing Mikell saves the Rams $ 6 million in cash and $ 3 million in cap space.
Moving on from Mikell means the safety position will be one the Rams will look to address this offseason. The only safeties under club control in 2013 are Darian Stewart, an unrestricted free agent, and Matt Daniels, Rodney McLeod and Quinton Pointer, a trio of undrafted free agents that were signed in 2012. One option for the Rams in free agency is San Francisco 49ers Pro Bowl free safety Dashon Goldson, who avoided a second franchise tag and will be an unrestricted free agent on March 12.
Mikell, who turns 33 in September, entered the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles, who signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2003. In 155 games over 10 seasons, Mikell has 12 interceptions and eight sacks. A potential landing spot for the veteran is the Carolina Panthers, where Sean McDermott, his former secondary coach with the Eagles, is the defensive coordinator of a unit that could use help at the free safety position.
‘Shutdown Corner’ offseason TPS report: St. Louis Rams
After taking a few days to focus on the 2013 NFL scouting combine, “Shutdown Corner” resumes our TPS reports (Office Space), where we take a look back at each team’s 2012 season and a look at what lies ahead for the 2013 offseason. We continue in the NFC West with the St. Louis Rams.
2012 record: 7-8-1
What went wrong: When the Rams beat the Cardinals 17-3 to improve to 3-2 on Oct. 4, it marked the first time the club was over .500 since 2006. Unfortunately, the Rams would not win another game until their rematch with the Cardinals on Nov. 25, a stretch of four losses and a tie.
The Rams improved on both sides of the ball in 2012, but one area that needs to be addressed this offseason is their return game. Rams kick returners averaged 21 yards per return, which was tied for 26th in the NFL. On punt returns, the Rams averaged 6.6 yards per return, which ranked 31st in the league.
What went right: For a sub .500 team, quite a lot went right for the Rams in the first season of the Les Snead/Jeff Fisher era.
The Rams’ defense ranked 14th in total yards allowed per game and were tied for 14th in points allowed per game. According to Football Outsiders’ opponent-adjusted metrics, the Rams were seventh in defensive DVOA, finishing in the Top 10 against the run and pass last season. Though no Rams players would appear in the 2013 Pro Bowl, the defense received solid seasons from defensive ends Chris Long and Robert Quinn, who combined for 22 of the Rams’ league-leading 52 sacks in 2012. Middle linebacker James Laurinaitis led the Rams with 142 tackles, adding two interceptions, while second-round cornerback Janoris Jenkins led the Rams with four interceptions. Another key contributor on defense was outside linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar, who had 113 tackles, 4.5 sacks and led the squad with 16 tackles for a loss.
With a third coordinator (Brian Schottenheimer) in as many seasons, the offense remains a work in progress, improving from 32nd in FO’s offensive DVOA in 2011 to 21st in 2012, but still finishing towards the bottom of the league (25th) in points scored.
The Rams also struck gold with sixth-round kicker Greg “The Leg” (or Legatron, depending on your inclination towards sci-fi cartoons) Zuerlein, who was 23-of-31 on field goal attempts on the season with six of his eight misses coming from beyond 50 yards. Zuerlein nailed a 60-yard field goal in a Week 4 win over the Seattle Seahawks and became the first kicker in NFL history to hit a 60-yard field goal and a 50-yard field goal in the same game. Rookie punter Johnny Hekker also had a solid season, finishing with a net average of 39.9 yards and completing all three of his passing attempts on fakes for 42 yards and a two-yard touchdown in the Week 4 win over Seattle.
Coaching/front office changes: The Rams went without a defensive coordinator after Gregg Williams was suspended indefinitely over his role in the New Orleans Saints’ bounty program. Fisher says he made the decision late in the season to move on from Williams, but took his time this offseason before naming a full-time replacement. The Rams named Detroit Lions secondary coach Tim Walton their defensive coordinator in mid-February.
Estimated 2013 cap space: $ 750,000 over their estimated 2013 adjusted cap number.
Possible cap casualties: The Rams will gain $ 7 million in cash and cap space when Steven Jackson officially voids his contract and becomes a free agent. The Rams could clear an additional $ 3 million in cap space, and more importantly save $ 6 million in cash, by releasing safety Quintin Mikell, who turns 33 in September and is a player the current regime inherited from the Billy Devaney/Steve Spagnuolo era. Another inherited player who could be released is right guard Harvey Dahl, an over-30 veteran who is coming off a biceps injury and has a $ 4 million salary and cap number in 2013. If the Rams have faith in young tackles Joe Barksdale and Ty Nsekhe and/or use a draft pick on an offensive tackle, they could part ways with, or seek to reduce, Wayne Hunter’s $ 4 million in cash compensation ($ 3.95 million base salary, $ 50,000 workout bonus) and cap number this offseason.
In terms of restructures, the lucrative, long-term extension signed Laurinaitis before the start of the regular season was structured in such a way that a slight tweak would create a lot of cap space in 2013. Laurinaitis is scheduled to receive a fully guaranteed $ 11 million roster bonus on March 16, which could be converted to a signing bonus and prorated through the end of the current deal (2017). The move would lower his 2013 cap number to $ 3.2 million, a cap savings of $ 9.4 million this season, while adding very little prorated amounts to future seasons.
Cortland Finnegan ($ 14 million cash, $ 15 million cap number) and Chris Long ($ 13.25 million cash and cap number) also have contracts with large sums of guaranteed money that could be converted to a signing bonus and prorated over the next four seasons (five, if a season is tacked on to maximize proration), but the Rams may opt to not leverage the health of future caps for short-term relief. Between Jackson, Mikell, Dahl, Hunter and a Laurinaitis restructure, the Rams would have well over $ 20 million in cap space by 4:01 p.m. ET on March 12, which should be plenty for a team that showed in 2012 that they’re fully capable of playing with division powers San Francisco and Seattle.
Unrestricted free agents
Danny Amendola, WR
Kellen Clemens, QB
Craig Dahl, S
Bradley Fletcher, CB
Brandon Gibson, WR
Mario Haggan, LB
William Hayes, DE
Trevor Laws, DT
Rocky McIntosh, LB
Brit Miller, FB
Barry Richardson, OT
Steve Smith, WR
Robert Turner, C/G
Chris Williams, G
Restricted free agents
Justin Cole, LB
Jermelle Cudjo, DT
Darian Stewart, S
RFA tender amounts in 2013 are:
• $ 1.323 million for right of first refusal and/or original draft round compensation
• $ 2.023 for right of first refusal and second round draft selection
• $ 2.879 for right of first refusal and first round draft selection
Franchise Tag candidates: Rams GM Les Snead told NFL.com’s Gregg Rosenthal that the Rams will not use the franchise tag on Danny Amendola or anyone else on their list of free agents this offseason. That approach makes sense because no matter how valuable Amendola has been to the Rams offense, it’s hard to guarantee that much money – around $ 10.4 million, depending on the official league-wide cap number – for one season to a player who has appeared in just 12 games over the last two seasons.
Previous installments of the “Offseason TPS Reports” series:
AFC East: New England Patriots, Miami Dolphins, New York Jets, Buffalo Bills
AFC North: Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns
AFC South: Jacksonville Jaguars, Tennessee Titans, Indianapolis Colts, Houston Texans
AFC West: Kansas City Chiefs, Oakland Raiders, San Diego Chargers, Denver Broncos
NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Redskins
NFC North: Detroit Lions, Chicago Bears, Minnesota Vikings, Green Bay Packers
NFC South: Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Atlanta Falcons
NFC West: Arizona Cardinals
Falcons Could Eye Rams RB Jackson This Offseason
The Falcons could find themselves with a new running back in 2013, and that could be the Rams power runner Steven Jackson.
Jackson is expected to void his contract with the Rams, as he would like to find his way to a Super Bowl contender.
The Falcons are expected to part ways with Michael Turner, who could turn to Jackson, who would fit their offense great moving forward.
According to Jason Cole of Yahoo Sports reports Jackson’s likely landing spot seems to be Atlanta based on what was happening at the NFL scouting combine.
