Oct. 09, 2011; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Kansas City Chiefs offensive tackle Barry Richardson (67) watches the game from the sidelines against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory credit: Michael Hickey-US PRESSWIRE

With OTAs up and running, the Rams decided to make a couple of moves to add some depth. The team agreed to deals with LB Mario Haggan and OT Barry Richardson, and the duo are both expected to be on the field for Wednesday’s workout.

Both of these are solid signings, but I really like the move to bring Richardson in. Tackle is a big question mark right now, so adding a guy who has started all 32 games over the last two seasons is big. I’ll be the first to admit that he has had some ups and downs during his career with Kansas City, and Chiefs fans will certainly back that up. But we don’t know how Jason Smith is going to work out, and we needed a backup plan that is experienced. The added bonus is that Richardson is still pretty young and he has room for development.

Haggan worked out for the team last week, and considering the extreme lack of depth at linebacker, it makes plenty of sense to bring him in. He’s a little bit older at 32, but he’s versatile and we needed another body. He’s probably not going to dominate, but he will help.

Rams Ink Richardson, Haggan - Ramblin' Fan - Ramblin' Fan - A St. Louis Rams Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more.

Aug 26, 2010; Foxboro, MA, USA; St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke on the sideline prior to game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stew Milne-US PRESSWIRE

The details for the Rams proposal to upgrade the Edward Jones Dome were released as promised, and they were eye-opening to say the least. The retractable roof story wasn’t exactly accurate, but the plan does call for an operable roof panel to let natural light in and it calls for the eastern half of the Dome to be demolished and rebuilt over what is now Broadway.

The entire proposal is projected to cost somewhere in the neighborhood of $700 million, which seems high until you consider that most new stadiums cost close to $1 billion or so. I know that doesn’t make anyone feel better, but it’s true.

The potential new stadium would feature much more natural light, which looks to be a focal point for the plan. For those of us who are regulars at the current Dome, we know that’s a good thing. The new east side would be a glass wall, which would be very nice. There would also be more seating and wider concourses.

This is a lot to take in. The price tag is high, but the new Dome would be an exciting facility for a fraction of the price of building a new one. The CVC almost certainly won’t accept the proposal, however, so the quest will continue on.

Rams Dome Plan Revealed - Ramblin' Fan - Ramblin' Fan - A St. Louis Rams Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more.

May 11, 2012; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Rams defensive tackle Michael Brockers (90) runs during mini camp at ContinuityX Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-US PRESSWIRE

The Rams finished up their two-day rookie “orientation/don’t call it minicamp” on Saturday afternoon, and much like Friday head coach Jeff Fisher spoke afterwards and had plenty of good things to say. Before I get into Fisher quotes, it sounds like several members of this draft class have really been impressive over the last few days. I’ve heard from a few different people who were in attendance that Brian Quick and Janoris Jenkins were both highly impressive Saturday. It also sounds like Isaiah Pead and Michael Brockers had a nice weekend, and other than cramping at the end of Saturday’s workout, Chris Givens was also good. Jenkins was the name I heard most by those who were there, as he must have looked like he was light-years ahead of all of the other corners in attendance and he also reportedly caught the ball very well.

Now, here is some of what Fisher had to say after Saturday’s session.

“We were very impressed. Since we talked last, we had a three hour meeting last night and installed a bunch more offense and defense and then again did the same this morning. The offense came out and had a walk-thru. The defense did not. I thought both sides responded pretty well.”

“This is a good class. They’re working good together. We’re going to meet this afternoon. We’re going to do some more orientation and then obviously they’re going to stay. Then on Monday they’ll pick the work up, just the rookies, and then Tuesday we’ll have our first OTA with everybody together.”

(On Quick): “We expect him to play and be a big part of our offense. We don’t think about it any other way than that. That’s why we drafted him, and we expect him to do it. It’s a long time between now and the opener, so we feel like he’s got a chance to continue to develop and become more comfortable with what we’re doing. We wouldn’t have taken him at the spot where we took him were we not convinced that he was one of those guys that could learn fast and help us very early in the season.”

(On Brockers): “I would say just his quickness for a big man, his change of direction. It’s hard to measure his strength out here, other than on the bags, but he’s got great quickness and long arms. He’s going to be an impact player for us.”

(On upcoming OTAs): “As we told the varsity this past week, we’re going to start again from Day One with the installation, and by the time we’re done in mid-June, we will have installed absolutely everything. Then we’re going to do it again when training camp starts. So when they come and report to training camp, they’ll know exactly what to expect through camp. The only difference is we’re going to put some pads on at times.”

Rookie “Orientation” Day 2 Recap - Ramblin' Fan - Ramblin' Fan - A St. Louis Rams Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and more.