St. Louis Rams’ Top 4 Post Free Agency Needs

Dec 15, 2013; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Rams strong safety Darian Stewart (20) leaps over New Orleans Saints wide receiver Lance Moore (16) as strong safety T.J. McDonald (25) looks on during the second half at the Edward Jones Dome. Mandatory Credit: Scott Kane-USA TODAY Sports

Not to say there still aren’t any good free agents left, for the most part free agency is coming to an end and all the big moves have been made. Any players that come to teams at this point will be aging players that will provide an added depth or have something left to prove.

For the Rams, that will be the case, as they don’t really have the cap to go after any of the big names still available, but do have cap to go after the guys that will add that extra depth or have something to prove.

Most of how the Rams address their needs at this point will be through the draft and with nine picks, which could be more with compensatory picks and trades, doing that is very possible. Here are the needs that the Rams still have to address.

Guard

The Rams were lucky enough to snag Rodger Saffold in free agency for at least another three years that could turn into five years. Still, they are missing a guy to play on the other side of Saffold after the team was unable to re-sign Chris Williams or more importantly, Shelly Smith.

The Rams will most likely be looking to address the starting guard position in the early rounds of the draft with a player like David Yankey from Standford or Xavior Su’a-Filo from UCLA, but could very well still sign a depth guy like Davin Joseph on the open market.

Cornerback

Cornerbacks Janoris Jenkins and Trumaine Johnson look to be the future of the Rams’ defenders on the perimeter, but general manager Les Snead would still like to add some depth behind them as it is uncertain what Brandon McGee can do.

Luckily, the draft is arguably deepest at the cornerback position with premier cornerbacks in the first round as well as quality starters in the second and third rounds. Adding a guy to compete with Jenkins and Johnson, or at the very least, McGee, won’t be difficult.

Safety

The Rams secondary is by far the thinnest, and therefore the weakest spot on their defense specifically on the back end. Rodney McLeod isn’t going to be the next Earl Thomas, but isn’t a bad depth and special teams player. Signing a veteran like Chris Clemens or adding a Clavin Pryor or Ha Ha Clinton-Dix in the draft, would go a long way for the defense.

T.J. McDonald is missing a ball hawk to play next to him and either of those three guys mentioned could be just that. The safety position has been limited in free agency and is limited in the draft, therefore if the Rams will need to make it a priority.

Offensive Line Depth

As mentioned earlier, the Rams need a guard, but they also could use some depth at the other offensive line positions as well. Whether or not Jake Long is ready for week one is uncertain, and you can almost expect Saffold to get hurt at some point.

If any of those scenarios were to happen, Jake Long not being able to start or Saffold getting hurt, the Rams don’t really have any quality players to fill in for any significant amount of time.

Adding a guy like Joseph could be beneficial, but the draft is also pretty deep at the offensive line positions. The Rams don’t necessarily have to go after a Greg Robinson,Jake Matthews, or Taylor Lewan in the top-1o, but they should consider taking a couple of offensive lineman in the draft at some point.

Like Snead has said, the Rams don’t have any “glaring” needs, except for maybe safety. However, upgrading and adding depth is just as much of a need, and if the Rams are finally able to be doing that, it certainly means Snead and Fisher have the Rams on the right track, and that the Rams have some quality pieces in place.