SB Nation - Larry Grant

Rams going with blue-collar outside linebackers

VanRam — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:17:40 -0000

Over at his NFC West blog, Mike Sando talks to Matt Williams from Scouts, Inc. about some of the issues surrounding the St. Louis Rams rebuild.

One of the things I found particularly interesting about it is Williams' take on Spagnuolo's approach to the defense. Here's a pretty elightening statement about Spag's history with linebacker and DLs in light of yesterday's Witherspoon trade:

If you look at the Giants' defenses, they never had a lot of money tied into linebackers. They were fourth- and fifth-round picks, journeymen. I don’t disagree with that, especially running a 4-3. That is the place you can get bargains. It wouldn't shock me if they took that money and got a killer defensive end, using the Giants' formula of, 'Let's beat your tail up front with our defensive line.' "

If they harvest a bunch of defensive linemen, I'm cool with that. It's a terrific formula. Defensive linemen are gold. I tend to think Steve Spagnuolo thinks that as well.

He's referring to getting a DE with the $6 million or so of cap space that Witherspoon would have cost the Rams in 2010. It would certainly seem that strategy is at play with Spags and Co. this season, since they've now jettisoned the Rams two most experienced and costly starting LBs in trading Witherspoon and releasing Pisa Tinoisamoa in the spring.

The Rams are using a journeyman in Paris Lenon this season, a seventh-round pick in David Vobora (once he returns after this week) and another seventh-round pick in Larry Grant to complement keystone MLB James Laurinaitis.

NFL Week 4: Early game open thread

VanRam — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 16:12:12 -0000

More photos » by Bill Kostroun - AP

Larry Grant in preseason action.

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There's a bevy of early games to keep us occupied. Only one NFC West team is playing early; Seattle at Indy...Go Indy!

Is there a game Monday...oh wait.

As far as injuries for our game, no updates yet. It sounds like they're not counting on Bartell to start. Barron sounds good to go. And no word as to whether it will be Paris Lenon or Larry Grant at SLB. Who would you prefer?

I like Grant for the rushing ability we saw some in the preseason, but is that realistic for today?

Random Ramsdom, 9/22: Digesting all the Rams news you can handle

VanRam — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:41:00 -0000

Here's a look at all things St. Louis Rams this morning.

Can Donnie Avery get over his fumble-itis? - If fumbles come in bunches, then maybe he's over the hump...or maybe he's only halfway into it. Remember Steven Jackson had a case of the dropsies last year after missing most of the preseason because of his holdout.
Rams have higher expectations for themselves - As well they should. It's all well and good to play better, but it's time for a win.
Spagnuolo is game planning to get the pass rush going - Whatever it takes. The Rams have to figure out creative solutions to overcome a lack of talent on the defensive line. Let's get Larry Grant swooping in.
Richie Incognito meet Robert Henson - Our Richie has a counterpart in tormenting fans. At least Richie can block when he's not being a block head.
Seattle suffers rash of big injuries - Seattle could be battling the Rams for last place with an injury list like this. Somewhere, 3k is telling people "told ya so."

Rams at Seattle, week 1 injury report

VanRam — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 13:01:06 -0000

Here's the injury report for the St. Louis Rams week one opener at the Seattle Seahawks, pieced together from official reports and a few good Google searches. Keep your fingers crossed, knock on wood, all that stuff because right now, the Rams are looking like a pretty healthy bunch. Remember, that's the key to their season, staying healthy. According to Football Outsiders 2009 Almanac, the Rams should see significant improvement as injury is unlikely to take as big of a toll as it has the last three years. Of course, the same goes for the Seahawks, but they're starting the season without several important players.

St. Louis Rams

S Craig Dahl (Hamstring)	OUT
OG John Greco (hand)	OUT
LB Larry Grant (knee)	QUESTIONABLE

Comment: I'm still shocked at how thin the injury report is for the Rams. Of course, I am leaving off the IR guys which includes Adam Carriker and Brooks Foster. Grant was not expected to play this week, but his recovery has been faster than expected. With the unceremonious release of Chris Draft this week, getting Grant in there at SLB with David Vobora, today's starter, would help the Rams since Grant gives them a nice blitzer.

Seattle Seahawks

OT Walter Jones (shoulder)	OUT
WR Deion Branch (hamstring)	OUT
C Chris Spencer (Quadricep)	OUT
CB Marcus Trufant (back)	OUT, PUP list
CB Travis Fisher (hamstring)	QUESTIONABLE
DE Derek Walker (hamstring)	DOUBTFUL
S C.J. Wallace (ribs)	DOUBTFUL

Comment: Those are some glaring injuries on their offensive line. Those much-talked about blitz packages will be key for the Rams to take advantage of Jones' absence and get Hasselbeck off his game early. I'm not 100% as to whether Branch is out or not. It's been trending that way. Without or with Branch, Seattle doesn't have a WR that demands double coverage the way Ochcocinco did in Cincy, which should change the way Housmanzadeh experiences the field.

St. Louis Rams at Seattle Seahawks Injury Report

John Morgan — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 23:10:37 -0000

More photos » by Lenny Ignelzi - AP

C.J. Wallace, face mask lodged in Darren Sproles back, is not likely to play this Sunday. His injury and the injury of Travis Fisher leaves Seattle thin in the secondary and thin at special teams.

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The NFL has released the official injury report for Sunday's Seahawks game at Qwest Field.

St. Louis Rams at Seattle Seahawks
Name	Position	Injury	Practice Status	Game Status
St. Louis Rams
Craig Dahl	S	Hamstring	Out (Definitely Will Not Play)	Out
John Greco	T	Wrist	Out (Definitely Will Not Play)	Out
Larry Grant	LB	Knee	Limited Participation in Practice	Questionable
Marc Bulger	QB	right Finger	Full Participation in Practice	Probable
Seattle Seahawks
Walter Jones	T	Knee	Out (Definitely Will Not Play)	Out
Chris Spencer	C	Quadricep	Out (Definitely Will Not Play)	Out
Travis Fisher	CB	Hamstring	Did Not Participate In Practice	Doubtful
Derek Walker	DE	Hamstring	Did Not Participate In Practice	Doubtful
Deion Branch	WR	Hamstring	Did Not Participate In Practice	Questionable
C.J. Wallace	S	Rib	Did Not Participate In Practice	Questionable

Marc Bulger headlines the Rams injuries. Probable means St. Louis projects a 25% chance Bulger will not play. Craig Dahl is depth and was not likely to contribute. John Greco is also depth, but is listed at guard on the Rams depth chart. Larry Grant's injury and the recent release of Chris Draft have thrust David Vobora, the last man selected in the 2008 draft, into starting at strongside linebacker. Vobora is an undersized tackler that tackles too far from the line of scrimmage. He was active in special teams and recorded a tackle for a loss and a sack in the preseason. The Seahawks need their lead blockers to get up to Vobora and shove him out of the play.

Deion Branch has missed three straight practices with a hamstring injury and is 50-50 to play on Sunday. Derek Walker is likely to be deactivated, so his injury is of no concern. I doubt C.J. Wallace will play. That and the injury to Travis Fisher leaves Seattle thin in the secondary and thin at special teams. Nick Reed could be activated to bolster the special teams. If Fisher can't play, Seattle will be barred from a true Dime defense. I, for one, think Will Herring should pick up snaps in obvious passing downs.

Reading between the lines of the Rams' decision to release LB Chris Draft

VanRam — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 16:08:33 -0000

More photos » by David Kohl - AP

St. Louis Rams linebacker David Vobora becomes the team's starting SLB after the sudden release of Chris Draft.

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Wow. The St. Louis Rams have released LB Chris Draft. This is a head-scratcher for me.

Draft was tentatively scheduled to be the starting strongside LB, but his real value was the fact that he could play all three linebacker positions. Depth, something we still need to see whether or not the Rams have enough of at LB.

Of course, the critic could look at the situation and say that Draft didn't make the Rams linebackers any better last season or the season before when he was getting plenty of playing time. The real upgrades to the Rams linebacking unit is the addition of a true MLB in James Laurinaitis and moving Will Witherspoon back to his natural fit on the weakside. You've got to honestly ask yourself what the dropoff is between Draft and Vobora and Grant.

The move makes David Vobora, the 2008 draft's Mr. Irrelevant because he was the final overall selection, the starting SLB. However, I would expect Larry Grant to either take that mantle or get something close to a 50-50 time share at SLB given his ability as a blitzer. Grant, out for now with a knee injury, would probably be the primary backup at MLB, should Laurinaitis miss time. Or even Vobora. Chris Chamberlain is the primary backup to Witherspoon. Quinton Culberson, brought in to replace Draft, will mostly be a special teams guy, but profiles as an outside LB.

Salary drove the decision to release Draft, specifically his reported unwillingness to take a $300K pay cut. You can look at that from either side. From Draft's side, why take a pay cut when you've been identified as a contritbuting member of the team. From the organizational standpoint, a pay cut gives the team the flexibility it needs to field the best team they can. Veteran players agree to have their contracts restructured all the time, usually it's the big contracts we think of though.

What it most immediately indicates to me is that the Rams are finding every inch of salary space they can in order to make further additions to the roster, whether those additions are planned or on an as-needed basis remains to be seen.

Poll

Do you agree or disagree with Chris Draft's unwillingness to take a pay cut?

Agree

231 votes

Disagree

183 votes

414 votes | Poll has closed

Rams still looking at running backs and wide receivers

VanRam — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 21:14:42 -0000

by Ted S. Warren - AP

Gary Russell spent the preseason with the Raiders. The Rams had a workout with the free agent today.

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Due diligence or outright concerned about roster depth, the St. Louis Rams brought in a few players to workout today.

We mentioned the news this morning that former Steelers RB Gary Russell was at Rams Park today. Joining him were RBs DeShaun Foster and Carey Davis, another former Steeler, along with LBs Tank Daniels and David Herron.

I doubt that's the last players that the Devaney and Co. visit with as they tweak their roster prior to the Seattle game. These workouts will also be handy down the road in case they need to quickly plug a gap due to injury. On top of that, they've got to be concerned about RB depth. Gado had a nice preseason, but he's dealing with what could be a painful injury. Another blow to those ribs and he could be on the bench. Behind Gado is Darby, who failed in the preseason to build on the promise he showed last season. I don't mean to be a hater about Gado either, but I wonder if there's not a dropoff between what he's capable of doing in the preseason versus live rounds.

The Rams have six LBs on the active roster and two on the practice squad (K.C. Asiodu and Dominic Douglas). They're already without Larry Grant, who looks like a nice option as a rusher at SLB, for this week and probably next.

The biggest, most obvious question for a Rams roster tweak is adding another WR. Right now, the Rams have just four receivers on the active roster and one (Sean Walker) on the practice squad. The report from the PD (linked above) says Devaney and the Rams are interested in former Eagles WR Greg Lewis, a system, route runner type with some yards-after-catch ability.

Former Giants WR David Tyree's agent said recently that the Rams were among a small group of teams with some interest. (I think I'll pass).

Rams lose LB Larry Grant for two weeks

VanRam — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 19:28:45 -0000

by David Kohl - AP

St. Louis Rams linebacker David Vobora has had a nice preseason and will get more time to establish himself with Larry Grant on the shelf for a couple weeks.

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The Rams lost LB Larry Grant today to a sprained knee, and he'll be out for two weeks.

I'm glad it's not serious because Grant has quickly become one of my favorite scrappers on this team. The 49ers cast off has played well in the preseason, even getting a sack with the first team. Two weeks means he probably misses the opener against Seattle.

Fortunately, the Rams have gotten some inspired performances from their other LBs as well through the last month. David Vobora and Chris Chamberlain have both made some noise and looked pretty strong in both special teams and time with the first and second units on defense.

WR Brooks Foster is officially on IR, giving the Rams one open roster spot. See ya next year Brooks.
Bulger, Grant, Little and Karney are out this week against KC. Karney's ankle worries me, but supposedly their just holding him back to make sure he's 100% when the season starts.
Incognito is questionable for Thursday. Might as well let him rest, and give Greco and Schuening more time with the ones.

Rams 24, Bengals 21: Now this is more like it

VanRam — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 03:47:49 -0000

More photos » by David Kohl - AP

St. Louis Rams defensive end Chris Long (72) and his teammates looked sharp against the Bengals as the Rams picked up their second preseason win.

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That noise? That was a collective sigh of release coming from Rams fans.

After a game in which the starters really struggled for both units, the St. Louis Rams come out with a strong, sharp performance to win their second preseason game. Sharp, except for the special teams, who allowed a punt return TD right off the bat and an unusual two missed field goals from Josh Brown.

But the special teams weren't the big story here. The starters owned the evening, with both the offense and defense combining to score three first half touchdowns. We'll have more reaction tomorrow, but for now, some of the highpoints...

A well played game by the defense

The Bengals first offensive drive ended almost as quickly as it started, with James Butler coming for a sack on the Bengals first snap. That was followed by an OJ Atogwe forced fumble recovered by Lauinaitis, as the Rams again brought pressure. The blitz is alive in St. Louis! Flajole and Spags didn't show much in the way of pass rush in the last two games, but they gave fans the red meat they wanted tonight as the defense recorded six sacks in all. They also recorded four tackles for a loss.

In the first quarter the Rams defense allowed just 21 yards, only 11 yards rushing. Their first drive of the second quarter ended with a fumble and James Butler's TD. For the entire first half, the defense allowed a mere 57 yards rushing in the first half. Cincinnati did better with the pass, with most of those yards coming on two plays that went for more than 20 yards.

Oh, and the tackling. Blue shirts swarmed to the ball, got wrapped up and brought guys down. They even had some nice ball stripping on display.

Had we seen this defense last week, I think Atlanta would have still been successful running the ball, but not nearly as successful. The secondary is still not without issues. Jonathan Wade is our second best corner right now.

The first team offense had a good night too

Spagnuolo wasn't kidding when he said we would see more from Steven Jackson. The Rams starting RB carried the ball five times...doubling the number of carries he's had this season. The running game was much better than last week, though in the end they averaged just 3.3 yards on 31 carries. Total stats are always a little wonky in preseason though. Continuing with something we talked about on TSR last night, the passing game looked surprisingly sharp. Quick, short throws moved the ball downfield effectively, and they threw out of the shotgun more often than not with Boller. The TEs and RBs were involved, and Boller saved his bacon by scrambling a couple times.

Something that will surely come as surprise: the Rams converted 2 of 3 red zone attempts.

The offensive line allowed no sacks. None. First, second or third team. That's impressive. All the tackles looked pretty good blocking against the pass. Watching streaming on the web, it was hard to see when different players went into the game on the line, but I did see Jason Smith make a couple of nice blocks in pass pro. Any readers have insight on how he looked blocking for the run? Was he lower in his stance? The middle of line did a nice job opening lanes too. Gado had nice gaps in front of him on their second drive, eventually leading to his 16-yard TD.

Player notes, after the jump...

Bulger, Avery, Bell and Carriker all sat out with their various injuries.

Let's start with the guys feeling the most heat coming into this game...

Chris Long - Had a good night. He got penetration and was able to get his hands up and deflect a pass. He consistently brought pressure, along with the rest of the defense.

Tye Hill - I'll go to my video quality sucked excuse for Hill, but I didn't see much to impress. Of course, didn't see any big whiffs either. That's a small victory for Hill.

Kyle Boller - He completed 70% of his passes, made quick drops and the ball out. A couple of smart scrambles bailed him out tonight too.

Jason Smith - As I said above, it was tough to see Smith's work when he was on the field. I did see some more nice pass blocking, which contributed to the Rams success working out of the shotgun so often tonight. As far as run blocking goes, what did you see?

The Rams had some real standout performances too, including...

James Laurinaitis - Yeah, I like which MLB we drafted in the second round this year. He was sharp reading the plays coming at him, and generally looked pretty polished in his game. Someone said it in the comments, and I have to agree: this kid could be something special. And, hey, it's just nice to have a real MLB for a change.

James Butler - Where was he NOT on the field? A sack and a fumble recovered for a TD, you can't ask for a better night than that. The Rams should be glad they signed him. He also made a few tackles on plays that otherwise might have done some damage.

Sakmon Gado - He reinserted himself into the second spot on the depth chart...and owes the offensive line a steak dinner. He averaged 6.6 yards per carry with a rushing TD and a receiving TD.

The Middle of the Offensive Line - Brown, Cogs, Setterstrom and Greco moved bodies and kept paper tigers out of the backfield. Remember, this Bengals defense was the among the top third in the league last year, despite their 4-12 season.

Continuing their strong preseason play...

James Hall - He's the best guy on the defense right now. Tonight, he tackled Cedric Benson for a 4-yard loss, forced an incompletion and made a nice stop to thwart the first Cincy drive of the second half.

Laurent Robinson - You knew someone would emerge from this group of unheralded receivers, and Robinson looks like he could make a nice #2 across from Avery.

Larry Grant - Grant had a sack, playing with the first team. He looked strong and quick out there, and could make a case for serious playing time.

David Vobora - Vobora got time with the starters too, and generally had a decent night.

Quincy Butler - Hadn't seen much out of Butler in the games, until a nice play for an INT tonight.

And a few guys having a rough night included...

Keith Null - Sorry Null fans. He'll get lots of time to make his case next week. Berlin didn't do much himself to make the race any clearer.

Kenneth Darby - Just doesn't hit the holes with much umph on runs. But here's a question: which RB is the third best right now?

Josh Brown - What the...? His golden leg was anything but. Surely it's just the preseason.

That list is by means all-inclusive. Who did we leave out?

Chapter 1, Game 3 - @ Cincinnati Bengals (Aug. 27th)

3k — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 13:19:23 -0000

Oftentimes when I write these previews, we get two animal logos. When I see a pissed off blue ram mugging down a neon, maybe radioactively orange tiger who appears to be singing, I wish I could actually see a ram and a tiger in a death match. I'm not saying I want Michael Vick to start hosting interspecies cage matches, but let's just think about this. You don't fuck with tigers. I mean, seriously. Don't be dumb. But rams are dumb. They fight by headbutting and nutknocking. The difference? When a ram is done, it "proves its worthiness."

Child please. Game 3 preview after the fold.

For game-specific info, check out the event page for tonight's game. For Bengalss news leading up the game, check out Cincy Jungle.

St. Louis Rams, 1-1, 3rd - NFC West

Cincinnati Bengals, 1-1, t-2nd - AFC North

Parentheses include NFL rankings in that area.

STL pass v. CIN pass D

Going into this without Marc Bulger could be a challenge for the first team. Cincy boasts a very functional pair of starting CBs in Johnathan Joseph and Leon Hall. In the back, their safety trio of Chinedum Ndukwe, Marvin White, and Roy L. Williams is nothing to sneeze at (which BTW is one of my favorite all time sayings. If you happen to sit front row at a Rams game this year and a benchwarmer walks within spray range, I expect you to sneeze on them), but I would certainly rather have James Butler and O.J. Atogwe in the back.

Hopefully, this means we'll get a similar result from Laurent Robinson to what he offered up against the Falcons (5 rec,. 65 yds.). He could definitely open up the game for what starters we do have on offense. Keenan Burton needs to get his hands on the ball as well. While Kyle Boller exhibited a penchant for inaccuracy, I'm hoping we tighten up the passing game a bit and work Burton into some shorter routes.

STL run v. CIN run D

Suffice to say, we need to improve on the 2.6 yds per carry average we posted against ATL. While Steven Jackson will probably be off the field as soon as possible, the running backs behind him have to do more with less. Kenneth Darby was able to hammer out 30 yards on 7 carries, whil Samkon Gado rushed 12 times... for 5 yards. We could see somewhat similar results against the Bengals, especially if Darby sits out.

At LB, they feature Keith Rivers at WLB who is a very capable OLB. Of course they drafted Rey Maualuga just 3 picks after we took James Laurinaitis, so they have plenty of talent at LB. The key will be dealing with their front 4 and defending any run blitzes.

STL O-line v. CIN D-line

Hopefully, we can get Jacob Bell and Alex Barron back on the field in time for this; it would be a great opportunity to face some qualified defensive linemen and get ready for week 1 of the regular season. The Bengals have a phenomenal DT in Domata Peko and an young DT in Pat Sims who should continue to improve his game coming off of his rookie campaign. They needed to upgrade their pass rush and did so by drafting Michael Johnson, who at 6'7" and a solid 260 lbs., should be a force once he adjusts to the NFL game. I think he needs more development to take advantage of his size, but once he gets going, I think he could have a very productive career.

The Rams were able to pass block as well as I can remember against the Falcons; repeating that success would be no small feat. Improving the run blocking, to be frank, has to happen if we want any success out of 2009. Doing so tonight would be an achievement, albeit a small one.

CIN pass v. STL pass D

Despite the loss of T.J. Houshmandzadeh to the Seahawks, Cincy still can put up solid numbers in the air... as long as Carson Palmer stays healthy. Chad Ochocinco, tomfoolery aside, is as talented as any WR in the league. Picking up Laveranues Coles adds experience to a unit that needed it once Housh bolted. And in drafting Chase Coffman, Cincinnati may have finally found a reliable receiving TE. Cincy has scored just 13 points in two games this preseason, so they're certainly not an offensive powerhouse, but the Rams defense has been known to make even the weakest offense look pretty explosive so don't rule anything out.

The Rams have to get more pressure. Four sacks in two games might be tolerable if it was coupled with a more consistent rush on the QB. While Palmer will likely sit due to an ankle injury, any QB, if given enough time, can be effective. Chris Long needs to step up and make sure this is not the case tonight. Seeing Larry Grant in some varied blitzes would be a welcome change, but he can't go it alone. Given the quality of Cincinnati's line (which is poor), the Rams need to capitalize on shutting down this facet early.

CIN run v. STL run D

Having praised the Bengals pretty blatantly until now, let me be equally blatant - their running game is soft sauce. Cedric Benson, their starting RB, averaged just 3.5 yards per carry last year and found the end zone twice. This should be enough to remind Rams fans how valuable a talent like Steven Jackson is.

After being carved up by Michael Turner, we need to get back to the kind of run stopping we saw the Rams exhibit when they stuffed Thomas Jones for just 13 yards on 9 carries. Part of that will be dependent on James Laurinaitis. The need for Animal, Jr. to recognize appropriate attack lanes was on clear display when Turner broke a nice counter off for more than 40 yards; James bit, and the rest was more blistery than history.

CIN O-line v. STL D-line

This is a great matchup between subpar units. For "trenchers" like myself, Cincinnati's O-line is their biggest weakness. It makes Cedric Benson look worse and heightens the risk of another injury to Carson Palmer. Meanwhile, the Rams' defensive line isn't scaring anybody. Chris Long looks mediocre and Adam Carriker is watching his spot on the depth chart being taken over by Gary Gibson (click here and scroll down to "Carriker Works"). If your two of your three most recent first round picks (and the two with the most experience versus your greenest rookie) are struggling to earn a first round talent tab, your franchise is going to suffer, your team is going to struggle and your fans are going to be, well, pretty pissed off.

Because I want to pump this out and the 3 storylines are killing me, I'm skipping them this week. But fear not, they'll be back next week!

Go Rams!