St. Louis Rams: A Look Into The Preseason

It has been a long offseason to say the very least, it always is. However, we have survived yet another offseason and believe it or not, Friday was the last Friday of the summer without football. Tomorrow will mark the year’s first preseason game as the hall of fame game kicks things off.

Although many consider the preseason for the most part meaningless, this is a time for young players, and players that normally won’t get a chance to play, to showcase their talent. Here is a look at the St. Louis Rams’ preseason.

Week 1-  New Orleans Saints- Friday, August 8 at 7PM CT

The St. Louis Rams will kick their preseason off this upcoming Friday against what many consider to be one of the top teams in not only the NFC, but the league, the New Orleans Saints. The Rams surprised the Saints last season by defeating them with backup quarterback Kellen Clemens.

Although that is far behind everybody, and that this game basically means nothing, this will be the first time that we will get to see Sam Bradford in a live game setting, the first time we will get to see Michael Sam, and we can’t forget that it will be the first time “Sack City” takes the field at home.

Although it is a preseason game, this will be one that you may at least want to somewhat pay attention to.

Week 2- Green Bay Packers- Saturday, August 16, 3PM CT

Once again the St. Louis Rams will be matched up against one of the NFL’s best, the Green Bay Packers. Many pundits and experts criticize the preseason and the length of it, and don’t get me wrong it is longer than it probably needs to be. However, there are things that can be taken away from a game like this against the Green Bay Packers.

Aaron Rogers is one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks and although he may only be on the field for a series or two and the Packers surely aren’t going to open up their playbook in the preseason, this will be a test for the Rams’ young secondary.

The Rams’ secondary may be the weak point of their defense and certainly to go up against two of the best air attacks in back to back weeks will provide quite a challenge and test for the Rams young cornerbacks and safeties.

Week 3- @Cleveland Browns- Saturday, August 23, 7PM CT

Can anyone say Johnny Ram-ziel? The Rams had two opportunities in the draft to take the exciting quarterback and they decided to pass and take Greg Robinson and Aaron Donald instead. Not a bad trade-off. Manziel is a mobile quarterback and the Rams play in a division with two of the best mobile quarterbacks.

Although Manziel and the Browns are nowhere near the level of Russell Wilson and Colin Kaepernick, this will be good practice for the Rams defense especially because the third game of the preseason is considered the dress rehearsal to the regular season and the starters will get a bulk of the work.

The Rams struggled against the Browns last year in the preseason, lets hope this time is different.

Week 4- @Miami Dolphins- Thursday, August 28, 6PM CT

Week four of the preseason is when the preseason begins to take its toll and the anticipation of the regular season really begins to wear on the fans. The starters likely won’t see a lot of time giving the younger players and players looking to make a roster spot a chance to play.

That is the very reason why this game is one to watch however. This is the last chance for some of these players to make the roster or the last chance to get ahead in their position competitions. It can be painful to watch a game that will star Garrett Gilbert and Matt Moore at quarterback, but watching these young players go at it can be quite exciting as it may be the only time you get a chance to see them this season.

The preseason is often criticized, as it should be, but there will be plenty of things to watch this preseason with Sam Bradford coming off of his injury, Michael Sam,  and the various competitions that have arisen during camp. The only thing that we can hope for is that Brian Schottenheimer doesn’t keep the offense too Vanilla, we wouldnt want that.