All Things Rams - Stafford Thread

[Tom]

Stafford’s offensive teammates can’t tackle…

[froot loops]

Fraquar was using that stupid pick 6 nonsense last year when Super Bowl Champion Matthew Stafford led three come from behind wins to save the Rams bacon. He'll never get it. When Matt stole Tom Brady's soul, Fraquar was saying, "but what about the pick sixes?"

[Tom]

So the pick 6s now suddenly taint his Super Bowl? Sure, that makes sense…

[CGVT]

So the pick 6s now suddenly taint his Super Bowl? Sure, that makes sense…

It's all they have

[whatever_gong82]

From a few days ago. I thought that Stafford and L.A. Rams fans would appreciate this Athletic article.

A long article that I'm breaking into 4 parts.


Rams mailbag: Cap space, ‘remodel’ identity, injury updates, NFL draft and more


By Jourdan Rodrigue

Mar 17, 2023


Rams fans, you asked me some really great questions this week. In lieu of an introduction section that nobody will read, I’ll get right into the answers:

One update, in response to several questions: The Rams have about $8.4 million in 2023 cap space. They will need anywhere from $7-10 million to sign their 2023 class of draft picks. They are currently carrying about $52.7 million in dead money, according to Over the Cap. Without any further player movement, they are scheduled to have almost $60 million in cap space in 2024.




If we obviously rebuild, why keep the last three blue chips (Matthew Stafford, Aaron Donald, Cooper Kupp) and pay them? —



So, it’s all semantics at this point, right? You can’t actually call something a “rebuild” when you have those players on your roster. This is why the Rams are saying “remodel” because the current plan is to use 2023 as a financial setup year for 2024 and overhaul many areas of the roster on the fly.


To the specifics of your question, Rams head coach Sean McVay wants to keep much of the offense intact/building toward getting back to scoring points. McVay does not want to lose football games. Further, Stafford and Kupp’s deals seem at surface level pretty difficult to move; cuts or trades incur almost $100 million in dead money before June 1. Stafford’s 2023 and 2024 salary is guaranteed as of March 17 and his option prorates that out like a bonus. All of this can be true at the same time.


The time to trade all three, if they were going to do that, would have been right after the Super Bowl when they were at maximum asset value and without the “baggage” of new contracts. Instead they all got new deals, which is understandable within the context of that time since McVay and the front office believed they could at minimum be a playoff team in 2022. But 2022 was instead a disaster. And all three players suffered season-ending injuries and also now have difficult-to-maneuver contracts. I’m not ruling out the Rams eventually moving on from any or all of these three players. But from a front-office perspective, the way to recoup lost value is to get these guys healthy and killing it on a football field again.

Finally, on Donald specifically — he has a no-trade clause. For people asking “what does he think about this ‘remodel,” he’s sort of already telling you. If he wanted to play elsewhere, he could waive the clause. He also stands to gain $63.5 million in cash from the Rams over the next two years. The Rams quite obviously believe they will be back in contention around 2024. That’s the last year on Donald’s deal — the last year the Rams have the best player in the world officially under contract.



Who do you predict will be the starters in the secondary next year? —

At cornerback, Cobie Durant and Derion Kendrick. The Rams really need to see Robert Rochell take a step forward. If Durant moves into the nickel on some plays, they have to be able to trust Kendrick and Rochell on the outside. At safety, Jordan Fuller and Quentin Lake. Russ Yeast showed some good things in limited reps in 2022 as well.



Veteran cornerback Troy Hill could come back on a cheap deal but he may have a market affected by the growing number of teams who play the Vic Fangio defensive system. He’s a great nickel/”star” player for the Rams, who now lack multiple players who can move inside and outside (Rochell and Kendrick do not).


continued..

[whatever_gong82]

With the “remodel’ in mind, do you believe the Rams’ approach to the draft will be different? Meaning, acquiring additional assets vs. staying put with selections and the need to get higher-ranked talent. — PaulCat1969 (and others)



Usually, I would rule out trades up because they are often inefficient — but last year they did it for a running back (Kyren Williams)! So I can’t rule out anything if they’re enamored by a player. One of their best “tradable” picks if they’d like to maximize return is their first one, No. 36. The Rams will have at least 11 picks in this draft and the intention on defense is to get really athletic with young players, even if there will be some angst that comes with that. They need to address their depth players at several positions, and are currently without a kicker, punter and long snapper. Two of their top receivers, Kupp and Van Jefferson, are either coming back from significant injury or on the last year of their rookie deal. So I wouldn’t rule out that position group/pass catchers in general getting attention, either.

No sugar-coating it, this is probably one of the most important drafts for the Rams in recent history. They are potentially at the start of their new “window” and the foundation they set now will have ripple effects into 2026 and beyond.



Will the Rams prioritize improving the offensive line through the draft and/or free agency or do they plan to run it back with our same group? If Rams want to fix the offense to keep Stafford healthy and (Sean) McVay’s spirits up, shouldn’t having a great OL be critical? — Dhanseth (and others)



Fans don’t like hearing it, but at most the likely changes coming to the Rams’ offensive line include potentially picking up cheap veteran players and/or addressing the line in the draft.

The thing is, they are also facing a backlog of young depth players who got hurt last year. They have to see what those players are capable of, because in no way were they able to do that (outside of maybe Alaric Jackson) because of all the injuries and turnover.

My best guess at the 2023 offensive line: Jackson, Joe Noteboom, Shelton/Brian Allen, Logan Bruss/Tremayne Anchrum, Rob Havenstein. Backups could include AJ Arcuri (left or right tackle), Anchrum/Bruss depending on how that position battle shakes out, and maybe a draft pick. Any NFL team will only actively carry a two-deep that includes swing players to save game-day roster space, don’t forget. If Allen were a post-June 1 cut, the Rams could open up about $4.5 million in cap space. That gives them time to see where Allen is physically, and also how their draft board ultimately falls.



With the interior defensive line market being so hot, how do you expect the Rams to address the position? — Jacobohnmacht


They could still get something done with Greg Gaines, but it would have to be pretty cheap. I can see them bringing in a cheap veteran for their “gap” year, but it seems likely that this will be a position group addressed in the draft. They’d also like to bring back Marquise Copeland on a cheap deal after not picking up his restricted free agent (RFA) tender.



Could the Rams trade a mid-round pick for Matt Corral? —


This is a “wait and see” scenario with Corral/Carolina because if the Rams believe he could be cut (the Panthers signed Andy Dalton to back up whichever quarterback they take No. 1 overall) then it makes a heck of a lot more sense to pick him up that way instead of trading capital they need. That could be a great scenario for the Rams, in fact, because they are evaluating their backup position and may need all of their draft picks to address quite a few holes on their roster.




Updates on the Rams’ OL/guys coming back from injuries? — (lots of people)


Good news here, per a team source: All of their linemen are expected to be ready to go by training camp, with the possible exception being Noteboom due to the nature of his injury (Achilles). However, there is still optimism about Noteboom’s timeline as it correlates to the natural ramp-up period of camp.

What’s the position or position groupings that you expect the Rams to target the most during the draft? — greymorrison3

Cornerback, defensive line, pass rusher, receiver (yes), running back, tight end, offensive line. So … almost everything, except perhaps safety and inside linebacker.



Can you shed light on what went wrong with Ra’shaad Samples and the running backs room, issues with Cam Akers and the improvement when Thomas Brown took over? — FireCap30



This may be repetitive for many readers/listeners after I addressed it in various pieces and on the 11 Personnel podcast over the last several months, but if it’s helpful to put it all in one place I am happy to do that here:

• McVay and the Rams rushed to fill a couple of their assistant coaching positions after most places were staffed up in late-February 2022. While the initial thought for the running backs coach opening was to fill it with a young coach who they could develop, the injuries and overall chaos of the season compounded to the point where everyone on staff was plugging leaks, not really developing others or being developed.



continued..

[whatever_gong82]

• Akers came back from a grueling rehab from an Achilles injury in 2021, believing he could grow into the Rams’ lead running back. Instead, he remained in rotation with Darrell Henderson, who had to stay on a pitch count, which naturally limits the scope of what that rotation can mature into and in the minds of some coaches, made game planning and communication more complicated. McVay then told Akers in training camp that he wanted to see more “urgency” from him in his detail work (this could mean pass protection, among other things).

As the season unfolded and his production dipped, Akers was open about feeling a “lack of clarity” in his role, and because of all of the injuries to their offensive line much of the run and the pass game was already in disarray. Akers and Samples got along well to my knowledge, but Akers is a young player and may have needed a more experienced head coach on some of the more granular teaching points, especially when all of that chaos was unfolding.

The Rams had not even retained a veteran running back to help with this, when the year began — an error by the front office, in my opinion, and one they quite obviously corrected later by bringing in Malcolm Brown. Samples took the job believing he would be developing as a coach as well as coaching, but again, the season took a turn nobody expected and it affected every part of their building and a lot of that teaching environment was lost in the shuffle under all the chaos. And remember, as I reported previously, McVay himself was mentally withdrawn from players and staff through this time.



There was no true animosity or any sort of “boiling-point moment.” There is no villain. It was just a lot of stress and poor communication all around, and that wasn’t just specific to the running backs. Like I have said, it was everywhere. It’s OK that the situation was nuanced. People are complicated!

• McVay and Akers finally sat down together and had a full conversation about the situation as the Rams tried (and failed) to trade him. McVay was later impressed by how Akers eventually turned it around, and I have to believe McVay also learned from the entire thing.




Any thoughts on the morale in the RB room? Akers finished the year strong, but is the relationship salvageable? Likely to spend a late pick on someone? — Rebel908



The best-case scenario for the Rams and ultimately for Akers as well is if he carries forward the production he had at the end of 2022, and truly becomes the lead back he believes he can be. Some of that will be dependent on the new coach, Ron Gould, and on how the run game is coordinated between Gould, offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur and McVay.

But in terms of the “relationship,” once Akers and McVay re-opened their line of communication and Thomas Brown moved back to coach the running backs, the situation normalized. Brown is a clear communicator who coaches players hard and has literally decades of experience at the position. That’s what the entire group needed at that time, but nobody could have predicted that fresh off the Super Bowl.

The Rams could still look to add a cheap veteran “downhill” running back via free agency, or they could draft one. Second-year back Williams will probably remain in a complementary role for the time being.


continued..

[whatever_gong82]

Please explain the cash over cap idea. — JoshVice


Moves such as the Leonard Floyd cut, which only saves $3 million in cap space in 2023, are “cash” moves instead of “cap” moves because they free up future cash and pay back the cash owed on the contract. Cutting Floyd incurred $19 million in dead money.

The Rams “charged” (as if it were a credit card) $16 million on Floyd’s deal in 2021, and $16.5 million in 2022. But his cap hits were just $5.5 and $8 million, respectively, like a “minimum payment” for that credit card. That $19 million difference between the cap savings and the cash payment (which meant the cap numbers could be lower) will now be “paid back” in 2023.




Larger cash payments with smaller cap numbers meant for the Rams that, in a hard-cap league, an owner willing to pay those larger cash numbers could attract a lot of “high-dollar” players all in one place, and still keep them all under the hard cap because of the way the cash was spread out.


This helped the Rams keep huge deals on their books through 2021, when they won the Super Bowl. It becomes especially strategic when the highest-paid core players (like the quarterback) aren’t on rookie deals, yet the team still needs to attract talent to push themselves higher into contention. Further, unlike a credit card, the cash owed does not accrue interest added to the “payback” so as the salary cap/spending limits increase each year, the money owed does not also independently inflate based on that increase.




A team that owes $10 million owes $10 million, even though the cap (so, spending opportunity) increases each year. The Rams will probably always operate like this, under this particular leadership group — but taking on more dead money/paying back the cash this year in one big rip is what most points to 2023 being a “setup year” for 2024 because of the corresponding resources it frees up all in one go.



The amount coming off the books for the Rams in 2023, if they stay disciplined, points toward financial autonomy in 2024 unlike which they have had in quite some time.



Jourdan Rodrigue covers the Los Angeles Rams for The Athletic. Previously, she covered the Carolina Panthers for The Athletic and The Charlotte Observer, and Penn State football for the Centre Daily Times. She is an ASU grad and a recipient of the PFWA's Terez A. Paylor Emerging Writer award (2021). Follow Jourdan on Twitter @JourdanRodrigue

[whatever_gong82]

1st of 3 parts.

Rodrigue: Rams’ word of the year is ‘discipline.’ What does it really mean?


By Jourdan Rodrigue

Mar 29, 2023



PHOENIX — Rams head coach Sean McVay repeated the word several times early Tuesday morning, then several more: Discipline.

A mantra? A reminder?

Both.

The Rams — after a five-year all-out sprint to a Lombardi Trophy (and a second Super Bowl appearance in that span) and a personally and professionally disastrous 5-12 season in 2022 — are now taking on some financial and roster pain in order to clear the runway for what they’re calling a “more healthily-engineered cap” in 2024.


That has meant parting ways with prominent players, such as star cornerback Jalen Ramsey, future Hall of Fame inside linebacker Bobby Wagner, pass rusher Leonard Floyd, and watching a plethora of contributing players depart in free agency without much of a fight. It has meant accruing $52.7 million in dead cap, and clearing tens of millions of dollars in future cash even when cuts or trades don’t greatly impact their current cap room (they have about $11 million in space according to the NFL, and will need more than that to sign their draft picks and also account for a few million in roster churn throughout the season). It has meant getting their books ready for 2024 in one angst-ridden swoop. Yet when a reporter at the NFL annual meetings at the Biltmore Hotel and Spa asked general manager Les Snead and chief operating officer Kevin Demoff about their “quieter” offseason in 2023, both pushed back.



Snead sarcastically reacted to the idea that the Rams have been “boring,” quipping a few times about the word through the weekend of league meetings and adding that no, the Rams don’t generally go out and spend big in free agency (and they instead have made the splashy picks-for-players trades any time before or at the deadline, while also letting more players walk than those they acquire because of their dependency on the compensatory pick formula) — so what is different, really?



Writer’s note: Well, the ominous nature of the previous season and the necessity to get back on track quickly, to start …




“I agree with Les, I think this is the mode we’re normally in this time of year,” Demoff said. “We always lose more players than we gain. … That has really been at the heart of our model for the past few years … pretty standard for us. I think the difference this year has been normally there is a high-profile move of some sort via trade, or some maneuver, or we’ve signed players who have been cut who didn’t qualify in the comp formula that is accompanied the start of free agency. This year, we haven’t done that.


continued..

[whatever_gong82]

“Philosophically, it’s been where we’ve been at. … This year, it’s the model without a little bit of the ‘sizzle’ that has come outside of it. But I actually don’t feel that we’ve strayed too far from our core DNA under Sean and Les.”

The core leaders of the Rams have been together this entire time: Demoff, McVay, Snead and Tony Pastoors. They all felt the emotional lows of losing Super Bowl LIII to New England — an experience that sent McVay into the hell-bent mode of winning it all, at any cost, and the rest of them sprinting in stride with him. They all felt the emotional highs of winning it all in 2021 — an experience that led to its own unique post-party circumstances when they extended or restructured the deals of aging stars Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp and Aaron Donald.



All three are elite players, now with something to prove after all suffered various season-ending injuries in 2022. But they also command the bulk of the Rams’ finances. Whether truly serious or not, some in the Rams’ building did discuss whether they should tear the entire thing down after the Super Bowl (others argued that there is little proof in football where a multiyear rebuild is not required afterward; the Rams don’t believe their current model will take that much time before they are contenders again). Were those three deals emotional, hasty, borne of the rush of a Super Bowl victory and the idea that their “window” could stretch at least one more year?



“For the most part, I don’t regret any of the decisions that we made with the players who were on the 2021 roster, and how that all played out,” Demoff said.



“A credit to all three of those guys, when we did their deals we said, ‘you’re doing it in ’22 but you’re looking towards ’23 and ’24,'” Pastoors added. “And they were all great to work with on that. They understood the structure.”


It should be noted, however, that keeping the core three players intact (in part because the Rams have committed to their salaries, but also because the players have committed to the team) means it’s impossible to “blow the whole thing up.” So does McVay returning after mulling a break from coaching throughout the 2022 season. It also means these executives and this head coach are apparently damn serious when they say they will be better than many think they can be in 2023.



“I really believe in this team, this year, with what we have (and) with what we’re going to have,” Demoff said. “I fully expect this team to be a playoff team. … Obviously, we’ll see how it plays out. … Everybody here believes in this team’s capability to have a run this year. That, to us, I don’t think you’ll ever see this team comprised certainly of Sean, Les, myself believe that we’re going into a year where we’re not capable of making the playoffs (and) not making a run.”



continued..

[whatever_gong82]

Added McVay, “(We have to) figure out how we can remain as competitive as possible, put together the most competitive roster … and then let’s just go see what happens? You reflect on the previous six years, sometimes the best thing you can do is reset the deck, have a healthy perspective, focus on the things you can control. I think often about (how) in ’17, I didn’t know any better than to worry about some of the stuff that I worry about now. That was the right approach, the right perspective.”



It means those three players, referred to by Snead as “weight-bearing walls,” will have to be a rising tide for a very young incoming group. More discipline — in retooling a scheme that buoys others, in those players remaining healthy, in the coaching and development of the rest of the roster which has to do enough so the three veteran stars don’t have to do it all.



“There has been a lot of hand-wringing on defense because essentially we’re down to a couple of starters,” Demoff said. “But Aaron Donald lifts everybody else up and has always been that core piece. On offense, you have the chance to return a lot of your group from last year. Now, significant changes from a coaching perspective and hopefully we can have that health as well.”



Snead noted Monday that when the Rams believe it’s time to be aggressive again, they will be.



“When we do get to a moment where we think, ‘OK, let’s press the gas again,’ you have the capability to do it,” he said.



Could that be as early as 2024? Some internally believe so; the Rams will have anywhere between $55 million and $65 million in cap space and a full load of picks, including their first first-rounder since 2016. Some believe it could even be quicker than that: What if the right move comes along for their quarterback, their No. 1 receiver or for the best player in football (who also happens to have a no-trade clause)? To be clear, the executives who spoke this week also indicated that those three players could also be “Rams for life.” Or, what if their head coach wins more games than expected, just like he did back in 2017? What if he wins less?


If it’s the latter, the self-admittedly impulsive McVay now openly repeats: Discipline, without the emotion that can also skew decision-making. Gratitude for the process. He’s on a journey too, don’t forget it.



“How can we have the wisdom and the discipline to be able to focus on the things that we can control, and apply it the right way?” McVay asked. “You don’t take things for granted, that maybe I had (for) the previous five years. I’m really looking forward to applying it in the right way.”



Added Snead — about his head coach, but also about his team — “Everyone is evolving, everyone is a tree. The tree grows up.



“I mentioned many times last year: We have to go through this. … You can’t microwave wisdom.”





Jourdan Rodrigue covers the Los Angeles Rams for The Athletic. Previously, she covered the Carolina Panthers for The Athletic and The Charlotte Observer, and Penn State football for the Centre Daily Times. She is an ASU grad and a recipient of the PFWA's Terez A. Paylor Emerging Writer award (2021). Follow Jourdan on Twitter @JourdanRodrigue

[Futureshock]

Sean McVay expects healthy Matthew Stafford to rebound in a big way

Posted by Charean Williams on April 3, 2023, 7:57 PM EDT

Getty Images

Sean McVay said last week that his quarterback, Matthew Stafford, will have “no limitations” when the offseason program starts.

Concussions and a spinal cord contusion limited Stafford to only nine games last season, but for the first offseason in two years, Stafford will be healthy. McVay said Stafford already is throwing after not fully participating in the team’s offseason program in 2022 while working his way back from a right elbow procedure.

McVay expects Stafford to rebound in a big way in 2023.

“I think just the competitor that he is,” McVay told SiriusXM NFL Radio. “He loves the game. He loves to be able to go play. He loves to go compete. I think when you look at some of the things that he had to navigate through last year, he’s motivated to come back and respond and lead. That’s what he’s done for such a long period of time. He certainly elevates everybody that he’s around. I think this is the first offseason in a long time that he’s actually feeling good. He’s been able to throw. He’s been able to kind of start his rhythm and routine a little bit earlier than previous years. He’s got a good look in his eye, and I’m glad he’s leading the way for us.”

Stafford, 35, completed 68 percent of his throws for 2,087 yards with 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions in his limited playing time last year.

[Futureshock]

Right now, would you rather be the Colts or the Rams?

Posted by Mike Florio on April 3, 2023, 4:50 PM EDT

USA TODAY Sports

In the early 1970s, Carroll Rosenbloom and Robert Irsay traded the Colts and Rams franchises. That swap came to mind for me this morning when perusing Peter King’s Football Morning in America column.

King shared a quote from Robert Irsay’s son, Jim, regarding the manner in which the Rams of recent years have done business, and where it has left them.

“There was an article recently saying the Rams mortgaged their future and now they’re paying for it after they won the Super Bowl and had all that success, with the draft picks not being there,” Irsay said. “To me, that’s what you have to be careful about.”

Irsay’s remarks land on the wrong side of the line the unspoken line regarding public comments by owners regarding other teams. Regardless, he has a point. The Rams have been trading away high-round draft picks for proven players for years now. They last used a first-round pick in 2016, when the surrendered draft capital to get up to No. 1 and select Jared Goff — a quarterback they’d eventually: (1) overpay; and (2) give up a first-round pick (as a practical matter) to clear from the roster.

So King asks a question, focusing on some tangible factors. Which team would you rather be?.

“The Rams, 49-33 in the last five regular seasons with two conference titles and one Super Bowl championship, $5.1 million under the cap (per overthecap.com), with a franchise quarterback, with 11 draft picks overall this year and three in the top 100?

“Or the Colts, 41-40-1 in the last five regular seasons with zero conference titles and zero Super Bowl championships, $12.5 million under the cap, searching for a franchise quarterback, with nine draft picks overall this year and three in the top 100 — albeit the fourth overall pick?”

The Rams, as King notes, have appeared in two of the last five Super Bowls. The Colts, in contrast, have won a single playoff game (vs. the Texans in the 2018 wild-card round) since 2018.

The NFL is constantly a looking-forward league. And, looking forward, I’d rather be the Colts. For starters, the Rams continue to struggle to truly make SoFi Stadium the “Rams House.” In Indy, they pack the place even when Irsay throws a dart into a crowd of former players and hires the one it hits to be the interim head coach for more than half the season.

Also, “franchise quarterback” is a bit of a stretch right now for Matthew Stafford of the Rams. He’s an old 35. His contract is way too expensive, with another $57 million becoming fully guaranteed last month. (And, yes, they would have traded him if they’d gotten a viable offer to do so.)

Even though he’s healthy enough to participate in the offseason program, Stafford is the epitome of the lather, rinse, repeat cycle that involves a player fighting to get to 100 percent and then inevitably getting injured again. He’s tough, he’s gritty, he plays through bumps and bruises. But he gets too many bumps and bruises, which eventually become injuries that limit his effectiveness and, ultimately, ability to play.

The Rams, despite recent successes, are currently in the early stages of paying the rookie-meal bill for their “f–k them picks” Super Bowl win. And they know it. Their head coach seriously considered abandoning ship until he received sufficient internal and external pressure to not run away from the mess he helped create.

In L.A., the stars have started leaving and it’s going to continue. This likely will be defensive tackle Aaron Donald‘s last year with the Rams. Stafford’s contract eventually will create a cap mess, whenever the Rams cut the cord.

Still, the Rams are in the NFC, which is clearly the easier conference to navigate at this point. The Colts are in a division that hasn’t been great in recent years, but the Jaguars have emerged and the Titans are the Titans and the Texans inevitably will be better than horrible. Beyond the AFC South, powerhouses like the Chiefs, Bengals, and Bills are lurking, and there are few cupcakes.

The draft will make a difference in the perceived prospects of both teams for 2023 and beyond. Yes, the Rams have 11 picks and three in the top 100. But the Colts have the fourth overall selection. The Rams gifted the sixth overall pick to the Lions, as part of the Stafford-for-Goff hot potato trade.

It’s good that the Rams won Super Bowl LVI, obviously. But the Rams have fallen faster than any Super Bowl winner ever has. Looking forward, there’s a chance it will be a challenging few years for the Rams, as they deal with the hangover from the drunken excess that carried them to the top of the mountain.

The Lombardi Trophy won’t ever be taken away. But the Rams have ample work to do to become the consistent contenders they were from 2018 through 2021. If the Colts end up with a true franchise quarterback via the fourth overall pick (it’s hardly a guarantee at this point), they can become the consistent contender that they were with Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck.

[chemiclord]

"Listen, listen, I know winning the Super Bowl is important and all that... but have you considered NOT winning a Super Bowl? Wouldn't you rather be THAT team?" - Summary of that article.

[Cody_Russell]

Would you rather be the Colts or Rams going forward? Probably the Rams despite their roster being thin. NFC clearly has an easier path to the Super Bowl. You don’t have to deal with the goliath of top 10 franchise QBs from the AFC. Healthy Stafford, Kupp, and Donald gives the Rams a shot… they better fix the OLine!

Would you rather be the Colts or Rams in recent history? Rams, duh. They won a Super Bowl 14 months ago!!