[Legends]

Yeah, you guys are right, but free-agency is like an auction it gets emotional. Some teams are going to be sorry blowing so much cap space. Honestly, I am quite proud of what the Rams are doing. They have in my opinion been pretty conservative. Seems the McSnead relationship is pretty strong and don't forget Wade Phillips, he might just be the glue.

[/zn/]

center is such an uber important position that the rams finished 2nd in offensive scoring with a 6th rounder (sully) manning the post, hell the patriots finished 1st in offensive scoring with an undrafted guy snapping the ball to brady.

Center is one position where the round you take a player in has no relationship whatsoever to how important that position is.

It's just conventional wisdom in the NFL that you can get good centers lower in the draft.

The Rams last really great center, Doug Smith, was a UDFA in 1978. Rich Saul, the great center before Smith, was an 8th round pick (and was a linebacker when he was drafted). In fact the Rams have a long history of good center play (with some obvious exceptions) but in their long history going back to 1960 only drafted 1 in the 1st round (Brostek in 1990). McCollum was a UDFA cut by New Orleans and picked up by the Rams cheap in 1999. The 99 superbowl center, Gruttadauria, was a UDFA cut by Dallas the Rams picked up in 96. In fact counting Sullivan the Rams have had several good centers who they picked up for next to nothing as cheap or street free agents let go by other teams.

So taking a center low in the draft does not mean you think the position is unimportant. It just means you know you can get good centers low in the draft. That;s also because starting centers tend to play longer than most positions in the NFL and so you have time to try out various replacements taken lower.

Sometimes there are centers coming out of college who are already really good and warrant being picked high (rounds 1 and 2). In fact from 1960 to 2015, the hit rate on centers drafted in rounds 1 and 2 is exceptional--one of the best if not the best hit rates for any position drafted in those rounds. But it's not common to take one that high because everyone knows you can get a good one by picking low and developing the guy. Pretty obviously, you take one high if you want to fix a need with a rookie capable of starting.

[ramsrams]

Personally, I think the Rams dropped the ball on this one....


....don’t you wait until today, St. Patricks Day, to sign a guy named Sullivan?

Got me a couple of Guinness ready for later, and my shamrock ( no, it is not a four leaf clover, Mr. Trump ) socks on.

a1, hear ya on the not spending a lot of capital on the centre position, but you don’t have a good one until you do, if that makes any sense. I quite enjoyed not being taken to the woodshed at that position last year. Gurley summed it up, quite nicely, I thought, and he makes a living behind Sully’s ass.

[RamsFanSince82]

The Rams signed the better player and probably gave him less money than Pouncey.