 A DIALECTICAL INQUIRY INTO THE PRESENT STATE OF
THE RAMS--- OR, SO HOW THEY DOIN'? BY RAMMED FOR LIFE (Nov 21) |
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THE
UPSHOT. I *love* the way this team is being built. It is going to be a fun
ride---not just this year, but for the next several years! DEPTH: This is an exciting time for the league as new teams and new players emerge. But all these damn writers can do is pine for the good old days. And what about this crap: "Even with the ever-increasing salary-cap ceiling, teams are hard-pressed to find good backups. With depth lacking, the on-field product suffers." This is pure manure. Charley Armey is personally teaching the league how to develop depth in the salary cap era. The PD had an article recently mentioning how we upgraded our D mostly with home-grown players-draft picks like Wistrom, McCleon, Bly, Allen, and Coady, and rookie free agents like Fletcher and Jenkins. And Little isn't even in the rotation yet! You know what is dying? The belief that great teams are built by buying 3-4 high priced FAs. We brought in TG, AT, and M Faulk, yes, but the foundation of this team is built on the draft and street-level FAs like Jones and Agnew. We didn't draft Fletch, did we? Of our last couple of drafts, look who is contributing--- Pace, McCleon, Wistrom, Holc, Az, Willians, Holt, Bly, Coady etc. And, again, this doesn't include Little. The Jets lost Vinny in game 1. We lost TG in PRESEASON and we never skipped a beat. We were prepared. On numerous occasions this year, we have lost someone: Lyle, McCleon, Allen, Nutten, Proehl, Holc, Horne, even Faulk for part of one game. We have always had the depth to play without drop off-Bush, Coady, Allen, Bly, McCollum, Thomas, Hodgins, Carpenter, Watson.... Frankly, these pampered front-running teams make me sick with their whining! Grow up and learn to build a team with depth! Hell...we did! THE NEW VERMEIL.Vermeil learned 2 things in his 1st 2 years back: 1. You no longer gain an edge on opponents by outworking them. Everyone works hard. 2. The body has a point of diminishing returns. Push a highly trained body too far and the result is not INCREASED performance, but deadness, weariness, lack of speed and strength. So, Vermeil has learned the value of freshness! And the results are fabulous. Not only is team morale sky-high, but the fresh legs let these guys play with explosion. Of course, talent acquisition AND the success on the field are part of the equation. It is hard to say whether the fresh legs are producing the wins or the wins are producing the opportunity to have fresh legs. It's obviously a combination of many factors. All I am saying is that the freshness issue is a key component of the equation. All of thise bodes well for the playoffs. That Philly team had just barely enough left to beat the Cowboys with its last gasp. The Super Bowl was beyond it and the next year, it exhibited every sign of burn-out. It wasn't just Vermeil! Our team is likely to go into the playoffs refreshed, exuberant, and still hungry! The peak is AHEAD of us, not behind us! Whatever you want to say about Vermeil, you MUST give him credit for this transformation. He was willing to learn from the testimony of the horrible year last year AND from the protests of the team. Realizing that he himself would always be obsessive, he crated an innovative position for Mike White--turning all responsibilities for scheduling practice to some one else. It was exactly like an alcoholic giving the keys to the liquor cabinet to someone who can be trusted with them. Smart move! That willingness to learn is a major virtue in my book. Another change. I think Vermeil has always had a dream of the hard-working underdog beating the stars. This goes way, way back. And it is the one weakness in his handling of personnel. He has that thing about believing in hard-working guys or developmental projects. He always wants those guys to prevail in the end. I think that this has made him hesitant to see the value of the big-play guy. He thinks of himself as a blue-collar coach who will win with good guys. To some extent, that worked in Philly, but not all the way to the top. Now, he is adjusting to the need for superstars. He has said that Ram players from 97 and 98 could have played in the 70s, but he slowly realized that they can't today. I think he has also realized this year that superstars are worth having (if they are solid guys like Faulk and Bruce). I have a sneaking, speculative suspicion that Vermeil has been personally amazed by the way the year started off--and not just concerning Warner. I think the team with Faulk + Bruce + Warner + Martz have opened Vermeil's eyes about what is possible----you can achieve a level of dominance that does NOT demand obssessive hard work to get victories. In a way, I think this season is stretching Vermeil. I mean, clearly it is, but I am thinking of an identity thing. For the first time in his career, he is the HC with all the horses who DOES NOT have a talent deficit to make up for. [Vermeil has said this is the most talented team he has ever been associated with.] So, I guess I think that he has overcome some personal hesitancy in going out and getting premier athletes. And his ability to make that adjustment, too, does him credit. STILL GROWING. I love the way the team is shaping up. We are spotty running, but our pass O is just about unstoppable now---and will get more efficient as we grow into our identity. Our O is built on a very-tough-to-stop passing game. As an old OL-man, the running game has a dear spot in my heart, and I ALREADY agree with those who will say that you must be able to run, too. Of course--you need balance. But an O generally grounds itself on one clear strength. Ours is based on quick, vertical passing. That strength is perfectly positioned for success in today's NFL. It is the hardest O to stop. And, it is the O you want to have late in the game when you are behind. Twice this year, we have trailed late. Twice, the O did enough to get back into the game. Wilkins was wide right and McCleon gave up the 4 and 26, but the O under pressure DID execute sufficiently to have won those games. Granting all that, this O and its OC are still searching, I think, for their identity. Madden commented shrewdly on that when we struggled early in SF. We pick and pick at various things, looking for the base on which to build the O. Currently, that is elusive. Also, this O is a very young entity. Remember how we always say it had to gel? We were ultimately right. And the blowouts concealed some ABSENCE of gelling! This team has a long way to grow. Example---here's my short take on the O Sunday against SF. I think Martz called a good game (except for the ends around!). I have no problem with what we were doing. Faulk was running beautifully and we dominated the Whiner D. When a team plays deep like that---we'll run 'em to death. The thing is, though, the mistakes: the penalties, the dropped balls. We had 6-7 drives cooking, only to be stopped by flags and crap. This must stop! It's a young team. And still finding itself! Still improving! That's a difference from ATL last year. They played perfect football to get where they were-while we're just learning this game! |
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