 THE TIGHT ENDS---HOPES & REALITIES, BY
NITTANY RAM (March 9) |
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THE HOPE. The Rams WR's may
take a pounding next year. To help alleviate this, the Rams HAVE to get the TE's more
involved with the offense. I'm looking for a guy who's a little more athletic TE. A guy
who can block, but who is also a great receiver. A guy who can run after the catch...a TE
the other team has to scheme for. They need a *two dimensional* TE...a guy who is a great
blocker and a great receiver. IMO this offense won't realize its full potential until it
has a great TE. Think what a great TE could have done against the Bucs in the championship game. The Bucs were just sittin back in their cover 2, waitin' to come up and pop our little WR's. And our WR's took a beatin' too. TE's are built to take that beating. And an athletic TE like a Gonzalez can make a team pay by breaking tackles and going the distance. THE SITUATION. Roland Williams just doesn't cut it for me. He did ok last season, but he doesn't scare defenses. He's not gifted enough of a receiver to make a defense playing this scheme pay for it. He's not a tough runner, and isn't great at making adjustment to the ball. And his blocking is terrible. [Note: Since NR wrote this, the Rams have indicated they might trade Williams. ZN.] He's half dimensional. Robinson is strictly a role player. He'll always have a place on the team because of his long snapping duties, but he's not the answer at TE. He's also half dimensional. Conwell missed most of last season and was never really 100 percent when he came back. Therefore he didn't get used much. When he did play, he didn't do a lot. He should be completely healthy this year...so, I don't know...maybe he can be the kind of complete TE the Rams need. He's a very good blocker, and is a tough runner after he makes a catch. However, I question his hands and his ability to adjust to a throw. At best he's 1.5 dimensional, not 2 dimensional. That may be good enough, but he's got to be every bit of that to be the kind of TE the Rams will need this season. THE PROSPECTS. Bubba Franks and Anthony Becht are the best TE's available. There's a big drop off in ability after that. Franks will go in the middle of the first round, so taking him is out of the question. Everybody has Franks ranked higher, but Becht always comes in second, and some "experts" have him as a *close* second. In fact, it looks like Anthony Becht is the biggest AND most athletic TE in the draft. He already goes 260 pounds or so and has a frame that would easily allow for another 20 pounds without a loss of speed. He's a gifted receiver, has good hands, is an excellent "in-line" blocker, although he needs to improve on his blocking in space. He could be the two dimensional TE the Rams need. Unlike Williams and Robinson, he'd force a team like Tampa to cover him. All of a sudden that cover 2 defense couldn't account for everybody. Throw him in with Faulk, Bruce, Holt, Hakim and all of a sudden a defense like Tampa's starts to look human. Pair him with Conwell, and you'd have the best TE combo in the league! THE REALITY. Problem is, while Becht would probably still be available at #31, if the Rams are planning on trading down, as has been reported, they probably won't be able to get him either. After Franks and Becht, I don't think there's a TE in the draft who could be considered an upgrade over what the Rams currently have. |
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