Loosen up on offense

Add me to the list of people wanting the offense to be more aggressive throughout the game! I think we could easily have 3-4 more wins this year if this philosophy had been in place.

The Rams get out to a lead in the first half and then go conservative in the second half, which allows the opponent back into the game.

I do realize we would not have had these first half leads last seaon, so my wish is tempered by thanks for the progress which has been shown.

Another important step

The Rams took another important step on 11/28 when they held on to that lead late in the second half on the road at Denver. It may not have been a real pretty win, but it still counts every bit as much in the standings as if it had been a Rams rout.

The team just continues to show growth and maturation as a team each week. Over time there will be new free agents and draft picks to blend in with the team, and unfortunately some of our present players may be traded or choose to move on to other teams, but I am feeling confident we finally have an organization ALL on the same page from the owner right on down to the last staff member.

This is a BIG improvement and hasnt been consistently true of the Rams since Carroll Rosenbloom drowned. Good times for the Rams and their fans are around the corner, folks, hang on and enjoy the ride!

Falcon game

This was another game that I would have written off as a loss ahead of time. The Falcons showed why they are counted among the top teams in the NFL last Sunday, and the Rams showed once again that they are much improved, but still have a distance to go.

Overall they stayed in the game with an excellent Falcons team well into the game. Patience is something which has been sorely tested for Rams fans the last several years, and that continues this season, with one large difference. That difference is that we can see large improvement over last years team each week(except for the Detroit game), and I believe that improvement will continue.

Those calling for DeVaney and or Spagnuolo to be fired just arent thinking - that would mean starting over and last season and this would be an utter waste. If we are patient, I think we will continue to see improvement each year, and I honestly think we may be playoff contenders next season or 2012, and that team nucleus will hold together for a number of seasons.

Another tough Loss!

Another tough road loss for the Rams this week, and it was also another game I feel they should have won.

 I just have to keep reminding myself of the 'pits' this team has been in, and how far they have already come.

 They will claw and fight every week, and that hasnt always been true, even in some games in the "Greatest Show" years.

We are on the right track, and I think if Stan Kroenke is patient, he will see a first rate team and organization emerge from the rubble of the past several years, and it will be a permanent improvement.

The reasons for the errors of the past are no longer in the organization making personnel decisions, and DeVaney and Spagnuolo are very good at their jobs and will get it done.

Rams - Panthers game

Went to the Rams win against the Panthers yesterday and it was a good day. Saw Isaac Bruce be honored before the game with his #80 jersey retired - they did a nice job with that ceremony.

This offense now being used by the Rams will make those of us who remember the 'Greatest Show on Turf' teams get very impatient. I think that 'dink and dunk' would be an accurate description of the strategy. Some of that is dictated by the personnel available, particularly wide receivers.

This is a tough scrappy team who, in some cases, may not have the talent their opposition has, but their heart and desire pushes their effort to an overachieving level. The Rams are definitely on the road back to respectability and long-term competitveness.

Chris Long

It seems to me that Chris Long is really progressing as a difference maker on the defense this year. I think we tend to forget how difficult it is to come into the NFL and make an immediate impact.

Some exceptional players look like all stars right out of college, but I think the majority take some time to really get their bearings in this highly competitive league.

I think Chris will continue to improve especially considering his reputation as one of the hardest workers you'll ever find.

Step Up

What a discouraging game that was against Detroit! I am hoping that getting their rear end kicked in all phases helps the players take their effort to another level for the rest of the year. Nearly every team has that kind of game once in a while, their character will determine whether they bounce back. I believe our Rams will, the spunk shown by this group of players thus far has been impressive, I think .

Competitive Rams

The Rams are on their way back to being a competitive team, and the future looks very bright. I am especially optimistic because of the new makeup of the team from the owner on down to the players.

Georgia, God rest her soul, was an aloof and disinterested owner who let unqualified people make football personnel decisions which dogged the franchise much of the nearly 20 years she was the owner.

That was then, and we now thankfully have a fully energized owner who cares very much about the team, and there is also a very competent front office and coaching staff who knows their duties.

I am as impressed with Kevin Demoff as I am with Billy Devaney and Spags!

Go RAMS!

That was fun

That was the most enjoyable afternoon of Rams football I have experienced in a LONG time. Just an overall good performance by a feisty improving team who refuse to give up or give in! It may be another year or even 2 before they turn the corner into an above .500 team but I feel they are definitely on their way to doing just that. The ownership situation, the front office, the coaching staff, and the players are all pulling in the same direction, a positive direction, and I daresay things are looking better for the long term than they have since Carroll Rosenbloom's untimely death

Help!

Another week, another game the Rams could have won.. It does seem that our coaches/players are not adjusting their game plan after the other team makes adjustments, and also the opponents are taking advantage of our lack of a deep threat wide receiver.

We are in games but need to find a way to push the effort over the top and into a win. I dont have any ready answers, if I did I would be trying to get on an NFL coaching staff.

I do think Pat Shurmur has the burden on him at this point, we need to be finding creative ways to counter the defensive strategy of loading the line of scrimmage with personnel and stopping Steven Jackson. So far any such strategy has failed with a resounding 'THUD'

Cause for Optimism

Rams lost a game yesterday they very well could and should have won. I still feel very optimistic about the team. They scrapped, fought and clawed every minute and I do see much more hope in their team effort. The fight in them carries over from last year, and it combines with more talent.

The ad nauseum criticism and wailing on message boards because they lost adds to my disgust with some fellow fans. Folks, we need to be PATIENT. It took a long time for the talent pool on this team to get as depleted as it was, and it is going to take time to build it back up! If you arent ready to face that, you are going to be very unhappy.

Perspective

As we reflect on a very good preseason for our Rams, folks, and mutter as every 'expert' totally discounts all of it as 'just preseason', lets all remember just how DREADFUL that 'just preseason' period had been for several preceding years!

They do look SO MUCH BETTER. And yes,it is only preseason, but it has given us all much more hope than we have had in a long time for a decent regular season!

GO RAMS!

Stan Kroenke

I think good times are ahead with our new owner on board. He is a person with deep pockets who cares about the performance of the team, but is wise enough to place people with expertise in the critical jobs rather than pull a Dan/Snyder/Jerry Jones act and meddle in day to day team operations.

 I am sure the GM and coach will be apprised of his general wishes in a particular situation, but he will leave the details to the people best suited to carry them out.

He was on hand for the game in Foxborough, and I am sure it was a pleasant evening for him, as it was for all Rams fans!

Same old Same Old

Well, now, our first peek at the 2010 Rams was a bit underwhelming. I sure hope things are looking better by the opener against Arizona! We keep hearing 'its just preseason' with 'vanilla packages', but I think all of us want to see at least some sign that the team is turning it around, and that was not the case against the Vikings. Have read a number of posters on various message boards berating Shurmur as an OC for some time now and found it tiresome, but its beginning to look as if their rants are not unfounded. LETS GO RAMS!

Patience

None of us really wants to hear this, but I really think we and all Rams fans need to be patient with the current rebuilding process going on with the team. Because there was such futility the last few years of the previous front office, its particlarly hard to be patient.

We are seeing good young talent coming to the team through the draft and there are some veteran pickups to mentor those young players along with playing their respective positions.

Hearing posters on other boards already wanting to throw Devaney and Spags out and start over mystifies me. This is a major undertaking for which changing staffs would just reset the process to square #1 and thus require an even longer time frame.

Bradford and Saffold will help to improve the entire team, but there is still a long way to go, in my opinion.

Rams Front Office

I had contact with Rams ticket sales since the last newsletter, and am quite encouraged by it. I have attended 1 Rams home game each season since the 1996 season, and there was 1 year I attended 2 games. I received a phone call recently acknowledging my previous game attendance and was asked for input on how that experience was, and whether I planned to continue going to games. I advised them I did plan to continue going to games and encouraged their effort to reach out to the fans, telling them I thought it was exactly the right thing to do. I was given a short 'promo' for season tickets which I declined, but it was really not pushy, and I was not shunted aside when I said no. Folks, I think all phases of our teams operation are in excellent hands, my only regret is that it had to fall to such depths as it did before this transformation took effect. GO RAMS!

Ownership needs to be settled

It is critical, I think, that the Rams ownership situation be settled as soon as possible. The front office and coaching staff are manned by knowledgeable and capable people and the ownership needs to be set in place so the entire organization is 'set' and are on the 'same page' to address the future of the team. Either Kroenke or Khan seem to be very highly qualified people with extraordinary resources and would be excellent 'hands on' owners with high interest in the teams success. Kudos to the Rams and the 49ers for allowing the trade of Reverend Ike back where he truly belongs for his retirement. Classy move by both organizations to accomplish this!

False Start

It seems to me that Stan Kroenke, the NFL owners, and the 'limbo' of the Rams ownership are as guilty of a 'false start' as Alex Barron, the king of the 'false start' art!

I was willing to give Kroenke the benefit of the doubt until I hear that he is wanting the NFL to approve his wife as the Rams owner in name to get around the 'cross ownership' dilemma.

Stan has right of first refusal and no one else! If the NFL approves this, its a sham that is a slap right across the face of Shahid Khan.

If that is Stan's position, the NFL should deny him and accept the bid offer of Mr Khan to be the teams owner, period! Acceptance of Kroenke under these conditions stinks of prejudice, in my opinion, and is an affront to a well qualified man in Mr Khan.

2010 Draft

The big day has come and gone and we have our franchise QB and other new players selected. Now comes the process of signing them to contracts and seeing what level of talent we have. I really think the next few months is a chance to see how well our scouts and personnel gurus are doing their jobs. No one other than Sam Bradford is a name that knocks anyone's socks off, but I know those people making recommendations on the picks have put alot of effort into making their judgement calls and we will see the results in the coming months. I do feel confident that the Rams organization is a dedicated professional group wanting to put the best team on the field and that they have the expertise and knowledge to get it done.

#1 Pick

I am hearing alot about Sam Bradford these days with the prevailing opinion seeming to be the Rams should pick him rather than Mr Suh from Nebraska. We are very fortunate to have a football professional actually being responsible for making the pick - I say that because I know I would be wavering like a very small tree limb in a howling wind between the 2 were it me making the decision. Valid arguments can be made for both young men, and we will be getting a very good person along with a very talented football player in either case. Good luck and best wishes to Billy as he researches about the possible draft picks and brainstorms with Spags, the staff, and the scouts.

Owner Approval Process

There seems to be a deliberate slow response to the proposed sale of the Rams to Shahid Khan, in my opinion. It may well serve the process well to move slowly and carefully through it, but it sure is aggravating to me as an interested fan. I would like to know whether or not he is being viewed favorably by the owners, or at least have a hint here and there on his status. I certainly hope he is approved and we begin a new era with a committed and professional staff throughout the organization.

Shahid Khan

Assuming Mr Khan 'passes muster' and is approved by the NFL as the Rams owner, I think we can look forward to very good times for the organization in the future. He is a avid fan of the team and will be an owner who takes a direct interest in the team. I dont think he will be an 'interfering owner' like Jerry Jones or Dan Snyder, but he will be very interested and very up-to-date with how the organization is functioning.

Though Chip and Lucia have been exceptional during their ownership of the team, there is a lot of damage to UNDO because of the disinterested ownership of Georgia for oh so many years. I sincerely hope MR Khan is approved, and soon!

"Rumored ' Moves

I am sick of hearing about "rumored" moves of the Rams. These stories are blatant attempts to sell papers or draw attention to the writer.

Chip Rosenbloom and the organization have been very professional throughout the process, which is more than what can be said for the reporters who keep giving CPR to this "dead horse" of a story every few weeks.

Bleacher report has now entered the round of speculation, but their gossip and ungrounded speculation is no worse than the so-called professional reporters already poking around.

I will be glad when something happens on this front and the story no longer has any fuel.

Important time

Its time for Billy Devaney to prove himself worthy of the confidence placed in him by Chip and Lucia. WE need to hit on nearly all of our free agent signings and draft picks to start to make a difference in this teams talent level. I feel he is very capable as he has already brought in some unsung players who are at a reasonable if not great talent level. I think he has to do what he thinks is the correct pick, not what sportswriters and fans think he should do. I think that was part of the problem with our lawyer/accountant front office, they were too worried about what others thought, but then again, they had no business being in the position of having say on picks and signings.