St. Louis Rams Have Signed Jason Smith

The St. Louis Rams have signed Jason Smith their first round draft pick, and second overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft to a six year contract. It is being reported that Smith will receive $33 million in guaranteed money. Noteworthy is the fact that the contract voids to only 5 years, meaning Smith is getting 6.6 million per year in guaranteed money. That is more per year than Jake Long received last year as the number 1 selection in the 2008 NFL draft. Jake Long was considered a stud left tackle, while the Rams still say Jason Smith will start his career at right tackle. If Smith is unable to convert to left tackle during his tenure in St. Louis then the Rams have way over paid. For now the fans and the Rams can't worry about that. We need to solidify the offensive line and start building a power running team with a solid defense. According to the Rams Smith will be on the field Friday at Russell Training Center for practice. With the signing of Smith the Rams have now signed all of their 2009 NFL Draft picks.

St. Louis Rams Have Signed James Laurinaitis

The St. Louis Rams signed their second round draft pick James Laurinaitis Wednesday to a four-year contract. Contract details have not been released yet. The first practice for the rookies will be today, and now Laurinaitis will be part of it. This is great news. With a brand new coaching staff and many roster changes it is very important to get all of the new guys into camp on time. It is also important that Laurinaitis be our starting middle linebacker in 2009. I don't think many fans were wanting to see Chris Draft play 60+ plays per game. The Rams desperately need to shore up their run defense and this will be a step in the right direction. Jason Smith will now be the Rams top priority. He also needs to get into camp if he is going to get into the starting lineup.

St. Louis Rams Cut Four Players

The St. Louis Rams announced Wednesday that they have cut / released defensive linemen Kirston Pittman and Willie Williams as well as wide receivers Travis Brown and Horace Gant. None of these players were expected to make the Rams roster. However now they will not even make it to training camp. The four have no previous NFL experience.

Banner Contest Voting

Chris Long edged out Donnie Avery 36% to 33% and will replace Torry Holt on our banner. Look for this update later this week. Mike from Wentzville gave the best reason for his selection: "I voted for Long and I think he should be on there. First of all, it can't be Avery, he shows promise, but the "Greatest Show" has folded it's tent and left town so you're going to see a lot of running and swing passes and since Avery is all we have he's going to see a lot of doubles and I don't think is going to put up the numbers. Secondly it should be Long, because the defense should be represented since it's going to be on the upswing with Spags in charge and I think Long is poised to have a breakout year".

2009 St. Louis Rams Training Camp Schedule

St. Louis Rams training camp will start on July 30th as the rookies will report. Veterans are to report to camp on July 31st. 2009 training camp will be at the Russell Training Center in Earth City Missouri. All of the training camp dates should be released soon, including the dates open to the public. Hopefully Steve Spagnuolo and the St. Louis Rams will make many of the practices open to the public this year. The Rams need to win the fans back this year and moving training camp back to Earth City is a good start. Not many fans were wanting to drive to Concordia University in Mequon Wisconsin to watch a 2-14 team practice. We plan to post many pictures from the practice seesion.

Alex Barron To Play Left Tackle

During OTAs Alex Barron played left tackle with the first unit while Jason Smith the number 2 pick in the 2009 draft was playing with the second unit at right tackle. Barron is in the last year of his contract and the Rams seem determine to see if they may want to sign him long term. it would be nice to make these decisions without effecting the status and playing location of Jason Smith. Left tackle is the position that Barron played while at Florida State however the Rams drafted him and placed him immediately at right tackle. The Rams have played quiet a few players out of position over the last few years and it does not work well. Now that super genius Scott Linehan is no longer driving this bus I hoped some things would change. Jason Smith should start at left tackle and Barron can show us if he is good enough to play right tackle in the future for the rams, or we can turn the job over to Adam Goldberg. After going 2-14 spending 50+ million on a draft pick to play right tackle does not make a lot of sense.

With the salary cap era no one wants to hear the term rebuilding but the St. Louis Rams are still rebuilding don't fool yourself. This team is considered to have one of the worst receiving cores on paper. In addition the Rams are still lacking depth and potential starters at linebacker and in the secondary.

St. Louis Rams Day 1 Recap

Day one of the 2009 NFL Draft saw the St. Louis Rams play it safe, and have a nice day. What became abundantly apparent in 2008 was that Billy Devaney and the St. Louis Rams are all about character. The selection of Chris Long and Donnie Avery made that crystal clear.

Heading into Saturday the Rams had several players they liked at #2, and there was a possibility that they could trade down. No trades were made and the Rams selected Jason Smith, OT Baylor. Jason Smith is a 6'5", 310 pound monster tackle that the Rams can plug right into the lineup. With the offseason pick up of Jason Brown, the offensive line should be ready to role in 2009. Steven Jackson should have a big smile on his face today. As Day1 went on some surprises were taken and it started to look like one of the top rated linebackers may come our way. When both the Detroit Lions and New England Patriots passed on the top rated inside linebackers Rey Maualuga and James Laurinaitis it was the Rams turn. The Rams selected James Laurinaitis from Ohio State. This fills a huge hole the Rams have had since losing London Fletcher. The selection of Laurinaitis allows the Rams to move Will Witherspoon back to the outside.

I was very pleased with the Rams two selections on Day 1 of the 2009 NFL Draft. Jason Smith was rated as the top offensive tackle on most boards, and James Laurinaitis was rated as the top inside linebacker on a lot of boards. These were the two biggest needs for the Rams, and they filled both on day one. I look for the Rams to pick up secondary help, a backup running back and possibly a WR on Day 2.