Bruno Boys Fantasy Football

There is a quote by the late John Wooden that reads, “If you don’t have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?” For the St. Louis Rams, the time to do it over is now. After years of horrific drafting (Jimmy Kennedy, Tye Hill, Adam Carriker, Brian Leonard, Joe Klopenstein, Jonathan Wade, and on and on and on), the team has gone 6-42 over the last three seasons and is in the difficult position of having to rebuild by tearing down all remnants of the past and starting over from scratch.

Frankly, the Rams simply lack talent, and it will take a number of years for them to get back to a level of play that has them contending for the playoffs. One look at the numbers will bear that out. They were 20th in the NFL in 2009 in rushing yards per game, but were 28th in passing, 29th in total offense, and dead last in scoring offense. On the defensive side of the ball, the Rams were 25th against the pass, 27th against the run, 29th in total defense and 31st in scoring defense.

KEY ADDITIONS

Fred Robbins (DT) – Robbins was signed as a free agent to be part of a rotation at defensive tackle. He knows head coach Steve Spagnuolo’s defense from his days with the Giants, so the 33-year-old should fit right in. He may be able to provide a bit of a pass rush, because despite the fact he had only 2.0 sacks last season, he had 5.5 in each of the three previous year.

Na’il Diggs (LB) – The Rams’ linebacking corps is extremely young, with the 31-year-old Diggs the oldest in the unit by about five years, so his veteran presence should help. Diggs will likely take over a starting spot on either the weak or strong side next to middle ‘backer James Laurinitis, with another recent addition, former first-round pick Bobby Carpenter, likely taking the other spot to form an all-Ohio State starting linebacker trio.

KEY DEPARTURES

Marc Bulger (QB) –  Bulger was a somewhat polarizing figure in St. Louis since he took over in 2002 because, well, his name wasn’t Kurt Warner. Nonetheless, Bulger had some very good seasons in the Gateway City, including two Pro Bowl berths, and three seasons of at least 20 touchdowns and 3,800 passing yards. He had just become too gun shy in recent years after taking numerous hits, and he started making poor decisions with the ball.

Alex Barron (OT) – Barron was never well-received in St. Louis because he lived up to the attitudinal billing he had coming out of Florida State as a first-round pick in 2005: he didn’t really love football, and his head wasn’t totally in it despite immense talent. That was evident when you consider that no offensive lineman has been flagged for more penalties since 2005 than Barron. In fact, he has some 20 more than the next closest player. Still, when he wasn’t holding or false-starting, he offered solid protection and the Rams are now forced to turn things over to rookie second-round pick Roger Saffold.

ROOKIE TO WATCH

Sam Bradford (QB) – At some point this season, Bradford will take over as the team’s starting quarterback. Whether that’s in the preseason or in Week 10, nobody knows. The No. 1 overall pick in the draft has uncanny accuracy and seemingly all the intangibles to succeed, but rookie quarterbacks, with few exceptions, take awhile to get productive, especially from a fantasy perspective.

Mardy Gilyard (WR) – Gilyard was the team’s fourth-round pick, and the playmaker from Cincinnati could inject some life into the Rams’ moribund passing attack. He had consecutive seasons of 80+ catches, 1,100+ yards and 11 touchdowns for the Bearcats, and in 2009 he also scored twice on kick returns and once on a punt return. The Rams have a plethora of options at wideout, and Gilyard will likely see some time, but not enough to make a fantasy impact.

Need help organizing your fantasy draft? We’ve got you covered….

NFC WEST:  ARI  |  STL  |  SF  |  SEA

NFC SOUTH:  ATL  |  CAR  |  NO  |  TB

NFC NORTH:  CHI  |  DET  |  GB  |  MIN

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The Bruno Boys have once again teamed up with Commish Kit to sell fantasy football draft boards. The 2010 draft boards are available for purchase and you can pick one up here… DRAFT BOARDS

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