Breaking down the Rams overall roster was very interesting. I first looked at the Rams roster by experience, or the number of years the players have been in the NFL.
General manager Billy Devaney has done a good job drafting, once he took over the helm, with future Pro Bowlers in Sam Bradford, James Laurinaitis and Rodger Saffold.
After rookie seasons, players become veterans and earn what is called an accrued season, which dictates the level of retirement they receive. The Rams currently have zero first-year players, 13 second-year players, eight third-year players, four fourth-year players, three fifth-year players, four sixth-year players, seven seventh-year players, four eighth-year players, one ninth-year player, three 10th-year players, one 11th-year player, two 12th-year players and one 14th-year player.
Let’s take a look at age. The oldest player on the roster is Al Harris at 36. The Rams have 10 players including Harris over the age of 30: Adam Goldberg, 31; Jacob Bell, 30; Jason Brown, 32; Ben Leber, 32; Justin Bannan, 32; Quintin Mikell, 30; A.J. Feeley, 34; Fred Robbins, 34; and James Hall, 34.
I always find it interesting to look at each NFL roster and see how many players come from small colleges and which school was the smallest. For the Rams roster the winner is California (Pa.), a Division II school.
My Twitter account blew up after the Rams’ 53-man roster was released. A lot of fans were extremely happy for Danario Alexander and upset and confused about Donnie Avery’s release. For me, it is a split decision. Avery is coming off another injury (knee) and has not completed a full season in his short tenure in the NFL. Despite the long grueling rehab and working his way back into the starting lineup, it was a struggle as I watched during training camp.
Keeping Alexander was a heartfelt decision. He has fought through pain, practiced with a swollen knee and came back the next day after getting it drained and trained with passion and heart. For me, the knee will never get any better, just only worse and he will need another surgical procedure at some point during the season. I would not have given him the green light to make the 53-man roster.
The insurance policy is Mark Clayton (an unrestricted free agent signed while the Rams flew to their final preseason game in Jacksonville). After talking with Clayton on Monday, he is ready to rock and roll, and yes he is the third receiver I’ve mentioned. He is also coming off season-ending knee surgery from 2010, just like Avery.
OK, so pick your poison, a receiver with an arthritic knee, bone on bone and still needs another surgery but makes plays down field outside the numbers, or a receiver that has not been able to stay healthy for three straight seasons, or a player that has playtime and injured his knee last season after a few games that changed the landscape of the Rams’ receiver group since the departure of Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce. At the end of the day, Clayton will emerge to help lead the Rams into the playoffs in 2011.
Listed below is the Rams roster as it stands right now. This could, and will, change due to roster upgrades and injuries:
2011 St Louis Rams Roster
Quarterbacks
8 Sam Bradford
4 A.J. Feeley
Running Backs
39 Steven Jackson
33 Carnell Williams (Cadillac)
34 Jerious Norwood
49 Brit Miller (fullback)
Tight Ends
47 Billy Bajema
81 Stephen Spach
86 Michael Hoomanawanui
88 Lance Kendricks (R)
Wide Receivers
10 Mike Sims-Walker
11 Brandon Gibson
15 Dominique Curry
16 Danny Amendola
83 Austin Pettis (R)
84 Danario Alexander
87 Greg Salas (R)
Offensive Line
60 Jason Brown
62 Harvey Dahl
63 Jacob Bell
64 Tony Wragge
67 Drew Miller
73 Adam Goldberg
76 Rodger Saffold
77 Jason Smith
Cornerbacks
21 Justin King
24 Ron Bartell
31 Al Harris
32 Bradley Fletcher
Safeties
20 Darian Stewart
21 Quintin Mikell
22 Jermale Hines (R)
37 James Butler
43 Craig Dahl
Linebackers
50 Bryan Kehl
51 Brady Poppinga
52 Jabara Williams (R)
55 James Laurinaitis
56 Josh Hull
57 Chris Chamberlain
59 Ben Leber
Defensive Line
71 Gary Gibson
91 Chris Long
92 Eugene Sims
94 Robert Quinn (R)
95 Justin Bannan
96 James Hall
97 Darell Scott
98 Fred Robbins
99 CJ Ah You
Specialists
3 Josh Brown
5 Donnie Jones
44 Jake McQuaide
