Now, I don’t know how much stock the decision-makers put into tonight’s game as far as roster spots are concerned, but I thought a few guys stepped up and made a ncie showing in their final game. Greg Salas was pretty solid, and I liked what I saw from Jerious Norwood more than Keith Toston. Danario Alexander had a nice catch for big yardage (although he dropped one too), and Donnie Avery looked like a real weapon with the ball in his hands. Thad Lewis was outstanding again, and I really think he is pushing AJ Feeley to be the team’s backup. On the other side, I don’t think Mardy Gilyard helped his cause with a drop on special teams and another on offense. The roster will be down to 53 on Saturday, so it’s going to be a couple of tense days for a bunch of guys.

In other roster news, the team also released safety John Dempsey and defensive end Kenneth Charles, who were both unrestricted free agent signings. Again, nothing really shocking here, and the Rams still have to make three more cuts by 3 p.m. this afternoon. The interesting cuts are going to come later in the week after the preseason game when the team has to get down to the final 53.

On the injury front, Laurinaitis is still being slowed by that pec injury, and he was limited today. Al Harris had some knee swelling, and the rest of the guys who missed are pretty much the same as it has been: Fred Robbins, Keith Toston, Mikail Baker, Illini Mike and Drew Miller. Baker tried to go but the hamstring just isn’t ready yet, and Robbins should be fine after some rest. Toston needs to get on the field as much as possible this week as he battles with Jerious Norwood for that third running back spot, so I would expect to see him play Thursday in Jacksonville.

The Rams gave Mardy Gilyard plenty of playing time both returning kicks and in the slot with the 2nd and 3rd team offense. I don’t want to say I wrote him off before the season started, but well, I had pretty much written him off due to his inability to grasp the offense last year, you’ve got have physical skills to play at this level obviously, but you have to have the Football IQ too.  I have to say, he showed some flashes of what the Rams must have envisioned when they drafted him, making some nice moves with 2 catches for 21 yards, and having a decent night returning kicks (except for one drop on a kickoff, forcing him to take the touchback). Let’s not kid ourselves, the competition is stiff at this position, and certainly has a fight on his hands to earn a spot.  What I am saying is that he is not going to just go quietly into the night.

The running game from all parties looked very good.  The O-line consistently opened holes for Cadillac Williams, Jerious Norwood and Keith Toston.  Williams had 11 carries for 40 yards, including one TD, and Norwood had 8 carries for 37 yards.  Keith Toston ran like a guy who knows he’s playing for his job, because, well, he is.  Toston had 11 carries for 64 yards and ran with an aggressiveness that absolutely made you take notice.  If he keeps running this way, it’s going to be very hard for the Rams to cut him. 

Austin Pettis must have the jitters. After playing well in practice he had a poor showing at the scrimmage last weekend, and in this game he was targeted twice, neither resulting in a catch.  On one I’ll give credit to the DB for excellent coverage but on the other, it was just a bad drop on what should have been an easy catch.  The story on him at Boise was that he had great hands, with a wide catching radius, catching the ball away from his body well. Now of course it’s just been one preseason game, but if he’s getting performance anxiety he needs to get over it, and quick, there’s too much competition at this position to start distinguishing yourself in a negative way.  The good news for him is that he was the team’s 3rd round pick. As such, he’s going to get every opportunity to make a positive impact and produce (including three more preseason games) I hope he takes advantage.

Robert Quinn had no sacks and I don’t have a number for how many hurries, but he looked good. Yes, I know most of his playing time was aginst less than stellar talent, but quickness is quickness and he showed it.  With Chris Long having his best year last year after moving to the left side, if Quinn can flash his skills quickly, we will have an impressive pass rush tandem.

Last thought – Josh Brown from 60 yards.  60 yards!  He also drilled a 53 yarder that passed through with plenty of room to spare.

Of course, it’s very early, and there’s a long road ahead, but so far so good.  I just hope we can stay healthy.