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Tag Archives: Les Snead
Transcript Of McVay;Snead Pre-Draft Pres Conference
Rams’ GM Les Snead and Head Coach Sean McVay held a pre-draft press conference on Tuesday. The following is an excerpt from the transcript which appeared on TheRams.com
(On how needs of the team play into building the draft board and when needs override best player available)
Snead:
“I think you always try to set your board with not taking needs into play. Obviously, if you really need something, you might be desperate and then all of the sudden, you’re making players better than what they are. So you try to do that, for sure. I always say this, ‘Best player available is always speculative.’ That’s our best player available, time will tell – it’s usually about three years later whether you were right. But I do think there’s a blend of common sense in this thing where there are some definite needs that will help us as a team in 2017 and the future. Then, there are some times where, guess what, a really good football player falls that may not be your A or B need, but you can always use a really good football player, especially if there’s buy-in and he’s going to start and help us. It’s a blend of that, I think.”
McVay:
“Yeah, I think exactly what Les said. When you look at free agency and the draft, you certainly evaluate your own roster and then you develop your needs based on your evaluation of your current players in place. I think the thing that he said that is critical is that you do have needs, but you don’t want to overreach for a need – meaning, if you have a specific player valued at that spot and you don’t get a certain guy at that spot, you don’t then go to the next guy because of it being a need. But I think when you look at it, there’s a certain position that might have a little bit more depth at, you’ll lean towards that need. But I don’t think you want to reach for it. He and his staff have don’t an excellent job of being able to listen to our coaching staff’s evaluation of our current players that we have and how that dictates and determines how we’ll move forward, both on offense and defense and with ‘Bones’ (Special Teams Coordinator John Fassel) on special teams. And I feel very good about where we’re at, collectively, as an organization, going into Thursday.”
Les Snead The Second Worst GM in The League Could Have Peyton Manning in HIs Future
Remember last season when you had to decide between losing and winning and you knew that losing would finally get rid of Jeff Fisher? Well, we may have to make that hard choice again, but this time it will be about the removal of Les Snead. Why am I bringing up Les Snead fate?
Well, Les Smead was the topic of conversation yesterday after Rotoworld’s GM Rankings and Les Snead came in second to last as reported by Joe McAtee of Turf Show Times. Here what Rotoworld had to say about Les Snead:
Les Snead still has his job, but he no longer has his alibi. With Jeff Fisher gone, there’s no one to hide behind. Snead has to own a roster that’s been historically inept on offense and riddled with underachievers on defense. To his credit, Snead has approached 2017 with a sense of urgency. He replaced Fisher with his polar opposite, making offensive-minded Sean McVay the youngest head coach in NFL history. Next, he lured LT Andrew Whitworth from the Bengals, filling a hole the Rams have had since Orlando Pace left St. Louis. Letting Kenny Britt walk in favor of Robert Woods was questionable, but clearly at the behest of his new head coach. Snead’s biggest problems as he untangles the headphone cords of the Fisher era are directly related. He doesn’t have a first-round pick. He flushed it down the toilet in last year’s calamitous trade for Jared Goff. With no signal caller or first-rounder, it’s going to be hard to get this gas guzzler out of neutral. It will likely end up a job for another man.
Last year they ranked at 18 and this year he is at 28 and there is a good reason for such a drop. That would be last season poor record, his alleged tumulous relationship with Fisher, and last year trade up in the draft for Jeff Goff. though the jury is still out on Goff. You can hammer any or all of those issues and I am sure you can think of more reasons, but I don’t want to turn this into a bash Snead post. This is because of a post I published Saturday.
Saturday, I published that the Rams are extremely interested in Sean Payton for a front office position and possibly in the realm of GM but the article that I had gotten did not mention what Snead’s fate would be should Manning accept.
The article went on to suggest that he would have the same type of position occupied be John Elway of the Denver Broncos. Elway holds two positions. He is the executive of football operations as well as the teams’ general manager which gives him total control of the team football operations. I am not sure how much control the Rams will offer Manning.
Will Manning come to the Rams and how much of an effect will it have on Snead? Keep this in mind that the Rams are not the only team interested in Manning. There are two other teams also interested Manning and one of them being Indianapolis. But if were to decide to go with the Rams, in the beginning, I do not foresee Snead’s immediate removal. I don’t see him getting as much power as Elway has now, bit I could see gaining power over time and possibly pushing Snead out the door.
This year Snead has to really push hard to disprove his title of being the second worst GM in the NFL because he could have Manning breathing down his neck. Even without the pressure of Manning breathing down his neck, he still has to make the right decision in the draft and bring in the right people to help head coach Sean McVay and his assistant coaches build a successful team this season. So whether or not Manning comes the team he has to turn this team around because if he doesn’t that title of the second worst GM won’t be the only thing he has to worry about.
The Rams and Nick Foles are on the same page: He’s a Dead Man Walking
Remember back in the winter of 2015 when the Rams and the Eagles swapped their starting? The often injured Sam Bradford went to the Eagles and the Rams received Nick Foles in return. There was aRams quarterback Nick Foles by 101sports.com
honeymoon period between the Rams and their newly acquired quarterback. He impressed him so much that they gave him a contract extension. Well, honeymoons do end and their realities of the marriages begin to take over and you the person that you married has been taken over by some monstrous beast.
The regular season left the Rams in that same predicament. They thought they had a superstar. Someone, who would breathe new life into their almost dead offense. Instead, Foles turned out to be so bad that they pulled him late in and replaced with Case Keenum. Unfortunately, they pulled him to late in the season to even be able to try salvage it and at least end up and have their first winning season since the early 2000’s.
This all took place back in St Louis, but now, that they are in Los Angles things there seems that the marriage between the Rams and Foles seem to be ending. Right now, I would call this a separation before their divorce. Foles has been avoiding the voluntary OTAs. Why has he been avoiding them?
Because the Rams have found a new interest in younger quarterback named Jared Goff. Yes, Foles has been replaced.
Let me add that it is not only Goff that seems to be pushing out of the Rams’ home but also another quarterback named Dylan Thompson. He signed with the forty-niners last year as an undrafted free agent to their practice squad. They released him last month. Thompson could find a spot on this team should the Rams cut or trade Foles.
At this point, a divorce looks to be on the horizon, and Foles is helping to become a reality by avoiding OTAs.
I would like to share what head coach Jeff Fisher has to say about Foles avoiding OTAs.
“We’re on the same page and trying to work things out.” Said Fisher after the team’s workout. “That’s all I can say…” He adds “We talked again,” Fisher said. “I think Nick has the feeling that if things stay the same, he’s probably not going to be on the roster.” Josh Webb’s article at the LA Rams Report. Here is link to that article.
Fisher does also mention that the OTAs are voluntary and they have three quarterbacks to give reps. Fisher’s comment about Foles not making the roster fits nicely with his comment about them on the same page when you think about it. The Rams want Foles gone and he knows that they want him gone. I say they are pretty much on the same page.
Though I must be honest with you, I think the decision that the marriage between the Rams and Foles had been over since the end of last year. He showed them that he could not be trusted that is to run their offense. What makes me think so? Recalled that Rams’ GM Les Snead declared that Case Keenum would be the starting quarterback and not the incumbent Nick Foles. Even though this would be later walked back to going into preseason, it shows that there had been a discussion and decision made that Keenum had been chosen over Foles. Then the persistent pre-draft trade rumors involving Foles. Again even though they never materialized, the team never denied them nor was there no reassurance to Foles that he was still welcomed.
Yes, there is enough evidence that the marriage between the Rams and Foles will be ending in a divorce anytime now. The Rams have four quarterbacks now in OTAs and it is pretty crowded. Now if you add a fifth quarterback, it will be over crowded. Someone will be gone before camp and that person will be Foles and he knows that he will be the one gone from the team because he already admitted it. So, sometime between now and training camp he will be gone either by trade or cut. As for the money the Rams owe him well is another topic for another post.
Damn if You Do, Damn if You Don’t; the Plight of Fisher and Snead
The Los Angeles Rams traded all their 2016 draft picks to get the Tennesse Titans’ coveted first pick. While we all should be happy and full of hope, but the opposite has happened.
This Titans’ coveted pick cost the Rams their four picks in 2016 draft and their first and third in 2017.
With the first pick, the Rams most likely be picking a quarterback which should make the people who want a franchise quarterback happy but alas. These people just found another reason to tear into Jeff Fisher and Les Snead.
While they have a point of contention, here with the cost of losing draft picks, but how else do expect to get a franchise quarterback? Do they expect one to just pop up of the air by magic?
No, the reality is that it cost to have a shot a franchise quarterback, but this just somehow escapes them.
For, I don’t know how many times, I have heard the cries for a franchise quarterback, and now I hear complaints about the cost of getting one.
It is not just the cost, but they are now complaining about whether these the quarterbacks in this draft are worth the cost. Is any player worth what they cost to obtain them? In a trade or a draft, you are taking a risk. The risk is what you take to improve your team.
So, as far as I am concern these people just want to complain period.
I Am Not The Only One To See A Rams’ Quarterback Controversy Brewing
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| 2015 Rams Quarterbacks during drills |
The other day I wrote about how Sean Mannion and Case Keenum looked better than Nick Foles in the Rams and Titans’ preseason game. I also did make the suggestion that maybe the Rams should put Keenum into this Saturday’s game against the Colts. I would this just to see how he perform with the starters.
Well, just after I made that in my article, I a came across an article written by Curt Popejoy in Fansided. The title of this article suggests that the Rams could have a quarterback controversy brewing between Foles, Keenum, and Mannion. He draws this conclusion from the three quarterbacks’ performances during the past two preseason games. He also points out as I do that Foles does not look good so far as compare too Mannion and Keenum.
Unlike my suggestion to try Keenum with the starters, he suggests the possibility that a move could be made if Foles looks disastrous after their first three games.
Either course whether now or later if a quarterback change should get made, Les Snead and Kevin Demoff will be asked to explain why they gave Foles that two year extension only to have him sitting on the bench.
Yet, to save face, I would bet that they will keep Foles as starter and hope that over time he works out all his wrinkles.
I could see them choose to blame his poor performance on a poor running game or poor defence which meant that he had to throw more then they would have like. Yet, that excuse should countered with if he is quarterback, shouldn’t you expect him to throw the ball more than you would like? .
Some quarterback controversies are easier to solve then others, while this possible quarterback controversy falls into the later. Look the Rams took a gamble on Foles by giving him that extension and I know why because they were looking for him to fill the roll of game manager in game plan that relied mostly on the running game. They believed that his past skills of two years ago would be good enough for him to fulfill that role. Well, so far it looks like they guessed wrong.
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