After what had been a very healthy training camp the Rams have caught the injury bug, and one injury could be a very costly one. Wide receiver Donnie Avery will be out at least a month with a foot injury that he suffered in the Friday night scrimmage. Head Coach Steve Spagnuolo said that Avery's injury is probably, "a four to six week injury." If you are doing the math at home that means that best case scenario Avery could be back for the season opener in Seattle but that is only in the best case.
Apparently Avery experienced soreness in his left foot when he woke up on Saturday morning after the scrimmage. The doctors looked at it and found no break in the foot but with an MRI they found something more that will cause Avery to miss the rest of the preseason.
Anyone who follows the Rams knows that the wide receiving corps, was to put it mildly, is very thin. With the injury to Avery it gets worse. The top three receivers if Avery can't go on opening day are probably Ronald Curry, Keenan Burton and Laurent Robinson. One word comes to mind for me....YIKES.
There are already people calling to get Plaxico Burress, Marvin Harrison, Matt Jones or someone of that ilk. Since we are in the first week of August the pickings are very slim at wide receiver. Do not expect the Rams to go out and make a desperation trade or try to sign one of those players mentioned. The Rams have been consistent this offseason saying they are building for now and for the future and they are not going to A) Sign players that don't fit into their plans for this season and beyond and B) Sign players that don't adhere to the "four pillars."
If things go right for the Rams Avery will be ready to go for opening day and if not they will try to limp through the first couple weeks. What all Rams fans need to remember is that other teams will be cutting players as they get down to their final 53. There will be wide receivers that become available that the Rams can do something with. The common belief in the NFL is that you can find wide receivers that can produce. They may not be of the top tier but you can find a solid wide receiver more often than you can find a solid offensive lineman on the waiver wire.
In a couple of other injury notes: safety Eric Bassey was placed on the injured/waived list because he suffered a season ending knee injury in Friday night's scrimmage. Bassey had been working his way up through the special teams and was expected to fill that role again in 2009. It is believed that the Rams will bring in another defensive back to replace Bassey on the roster.
Defensive Lineman Adam Carriker also injured himself in the scrimmage on Friday but will not be out nearly as long. Carriker suffered a sprained ankle and is expected to miss the next two weeks. The other injury of note was safety Craig Dahl who went out with a hamstring injury on Friday.
The Rams did also bring in a defensive lineman to take a look. Shaun Smith was with the Cleveland Browns for the past two seasons but was released on Saturday. Smith took a physical but has not signed a contract. Smith's release from the Browns is mired in a little bit of intrigue. Smith reportedly got in a fight with Brady Quinn in December of last season which reportedly wound up with Smith punching Quinn. The Browns asked Smith to come in weighing lighter and he did just that coming in at 325 pounds. Smith is a guy, that much like Hollis Thomas, could be a low risk high reward type of signing.
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Comments
"...Matt Jones or someone of that ilk."
Faith, character, core values and team.
If you have faith, you are obliged to forgiveness. Character is built by overcoming obstacles and being better for the experience. Holier than thou doesn't look good on anyone. Perfection is reserved for only One.
Fair enough Mark.
You make valid points but it seems the rest of the NFL does not have a belief that Matt Jones has made the changes in his life to be given another chance. The NFL, as we know, is not a league of choir boys but they aren't going to take a chance on a guy who has not taken the steps to change his life. I suspect Jones will be given a chance somewhere but I would be floored if it is here in St. Louis.
What would you (Rams) have Matt Jones do to become worthy?
As far as the Rams are concerned I am not sure there is anything Jones can do to get on the roster. The Rams have positioned themselves as a team that is going through a rebuilding process and they can't afford to take charachter chances. They believe that to build a winner here they can't afford that luxury at this point.
If Jones is going to get a clean slate in the NFL, he first must get clean, and then convince an NFL GM that the shenanigans that went on in Jacksonville are in the rear view mirror. I believe he will get another chance but he has to be proactive to make that happen.
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