TGFJB (Thank Goodness for Josh Brown)

As callous as it sounds, I have never been one to respect and/ or honor kickers very much. But seeing just how often Josh Brown has been called into duty and responded has created in me a great deal of gratitude for his, and the service of all kickers. Now, as I have said before, when your kicker's performance is consistently the high point of your team's performance there are substantial problems. Clearly it does not take a football genius to assess the awfulness of the Saint Louis Rams this season, however, it might take a professor of the pigskin to fix the problems with this franchise. This franchise needs to open up its collective checkbook and sign one or two stellar offensive linemen in this offseason before the draft. Shoring up the offensive line will allow Steven Jackson to return to the form he dazzled the NFL with just a couple seasons ago. By enabling Jackson to produce, Marc Bulger will not be as mistake prone since defenses will no longer be able to tee off on him. If the entire offensive unit runs smoothly, this will also give the Rams' defense a greater chance to succeed. See, it's that simple. Even with the pieces this team has in place right now, this franchise can win next season if the front office makes the right moves this offseason. Since it appears that many of the fans and players themselves have checked out of this season, I believe it is appropriate to begin looking to the collegiate ranks for help. If the Rams are able to acquire quality veteran offensive linemen, this team will automatically be in much better shape. I believe that Marc Bulger, who will only be 32 at the start of next season, still has a great deal to offer this team, that is, if he is protected and not jittery in the pocket. Even if Bulger is able to return to Pro- Bowl caliber form, this team has to look towards to future at the quarterback position, especially if the Rams are forced to play young o-line draft picks. Let's face it, neither Trent Green nor Brock Berlin are the future of this franchise at quarterback. Perhaps this team needs to restructure the offense yet again and move towards a more collegiate spread- style attack. Pundits question this scheme's viability in the NFL, but with the right draft pick at QB, this team already has many of the players needed to succeed. Imagine Graham Harrell of Texas Tech, Tim Tebow of the Florida Gators, Colt McCoy of the Texas Longhorns, or even... Chase Daniel of the University of Missouri in the shotgun formation running this offense with Steven Jackson, Torry Holt, and Donnie Avery! Realistically, the Rams and most other NFL franchises will stick with a convential dropback quarterback, but all of the afforementioned young men will get drafted (either this spring or next depending on when Tebow/McCoy declare for the draft). There is no denying the advantage of having a mobile quarterback, as is evidenced by the inability of Bulger to consistently make plays with his feet (or his arm for that matter). It will certainly be interesting to see what moves the Rams make with their offensive line and how that will ultimately ripple to the rest of the team. But at least we have Josh Brown locked up for the next four seasons; so if all else fails, the Rams can count on 6-12 points per game.