The Rams got their man in the first round of this years draft. Carriker will come in and be an iunstant starter most likely and he will help out on an improving defense.
Bulger Deal Coming?
Saturday, May 26, 2007
The Rams have gotten good at keepiing their stars off the free agent market in recent years. As the end of Marc Bulgers contract nears, the team's number one priority this season is to give the star quarterback a new contract. Bulger is coming off his best season as a starter.Bulger has been quoted ""I'd love to finish my career here." This is a good sign for Rams fans. It appears a deal is close to being made, but may not come too soon. The sooner the deal gets done, the less Bulger has to worry about the future. If a deal gets done before the season begins or not, Bulger still should put up big numbers playing in St. Louis' high powered offense this year. As of now, Bulger's backup is Gus Frerotte. Frerotte has 13 years of experience of his own and his career is coming to an end. The team has seen what third string QB, Ryan Fitzpatrick, can bring to the field in 2005 when injuries let him step in. The team may look into a long term backup in the near future for a safety pin in case Bulger gets hurt again.
First Team Primary Backup Backups QB Marc Bulger Gus Frerotte Ryan Fitzpatrick Drew Tate Bulger is the starter, hands down. There is no competition, there won't be for a long time. Most likely, Frerotte will be his backup, and Tate will have to impress the coaches to make the roster. RB Steven Jackson Brian Leonard Travis Minor Kay-Jay Harris Same situation here, Jackson is the starter, hands down. He is emerging as an elite back in this league and has his best years yet to come. Rookie Brian Leonard will probably slip into the second spot on the depth chart due to the lack of talent after Jackson. Leonard will get his carries when Jackson gets tired or injured. Other backs that aren't listed will have a tough time making the active roster. FB Madison Hedgecock Unless a free agent comes in or they move one of their current RBs to FB, this is Hedgecock's job and he is getting better at it. FB really isn't used too much in the Rams offense. LWR Torry Holt Drew Bennett Dominique Thompson Willie Ponder Holt is the man at WR. He will go for another Pro Bowl year, and chances are, he may get it in this offense. Bennett was brought in to help replace Curtis and McDonald. He should be able to do that and more. He can still be a big threat. 5th WR is a battle between a few players. The losers may not make the squad. RWR Isaac Bruce Dane Looker Dante' Hall Marques Hagans Bruce doen't have many years left in him, but he still can be productive and he should put up good numbers. Looker will have to battle Hall for the 4th receiver slot. Hall has never been too much for a WR and his open field skills may not be what the were a few years ago. Hagans will be in the battle for 5th WR TE Randy McMichael Joe Klopfenstein Aaron Walker Dominique Byrd After drafting 2 TEs last year, Linehan brought in Randy McMichael from Miami. McMichael will come in and be another target for Bulger. They may even run more two TE formations, allowing Klopfenstein to get some catches. Walker will battle Bryd for the 3rd TE slot. ORT Alex Barron Todd Steussie Kendrick Shackleford Like most of the Rams offensive positions, This is Barron's spot and he won't lose it. Stuessie played well when he saw the field, but Barron is young and talented. Shackleford is just a rookie trying to learn. He may get his shot in the future. ORG Richie Incognito Adam Goldberg Things get a little interesting now. Incognito can be considered a G or a C. He has a shot at starting at either. If he does play C, Goldberg would move into the starting role. C Andy McCollum Brett Romberg Dustin Fry Depending on what Incognito does, McCollum is the starter. He has been for a while and probably should be.Fry will battle Romberg for a backup role. OLG Claude Terrell Mark Setterstrom Terrell should be the starter here, but there has been talks of Setterstrom slipping into this role. OLT Orlando Pace Jeremy Parquet The Rams anchor is Orlando Pace. If he can stay healthy, the run game will be better, the pass game will be better, and even the defense will be better. He helps everything. he has no chance at losing his starting spot.
1 LaDainian Tomlinson, SD, RB Turner knows how to keep the rock rollin' on ground 2 Larry Johnson, KC, RB KC wants to use Bennett more to ease LJ's load 3 Steven Jackson, StL, RB McMichael, Bennett adds may drop his catches a bit 4 Shaun Alexander, Sea, RB 15+ TDs still very likely in this offense if healthy 5 Frank Gore, SF, RB '07 goal is breaking Eric Dickerson's rushing record
Obviously Jackson is expected to put up big numbers. Being ranked behind only LaDainian Tomlinson and Larry Johnson should be a huge honor. Plus, he is the highest ranked NFC player in the entire league. If he can put up the numbers that people expect, then the Rams may be looking at a playoff birth.
Other Rams on the list 19 Torry Holt, StL, WR McMichael, Bennett additions means a lil' more sharing 41 Marc Bulger, StL, QB Loaded: S-Jax, Holt, McMichael, Bruce, D. Bennett
it's true, the Rams are "loaded" Bulger should be a good guy to have this season. Though there may be more "sharing," don't expect Torry Holt's numbers to diminish very much. He will find a way to get well over 1,000 yards and about 100 catches.
Rams starting quarterback, Marc Bulger is entering the final year on his contract this season. He will make just under $4 million this season. Though both sides are interested in a long term deal, it appears not much is happening yet. It's reported that the Rams are not close to reaching a deal with him. Bulger would like to play the rest of his career in St. Louis but if the two sides can't reach an agreement, Bulger may end up playing for a different team in 2008. There isn't much to worry about though. Bulger has all season long to reach an agreement. As long as injury doesn't take him out for some of this season, he should still put up good stats with the team around him.
Rams starting quarterback, Marc 
