[safer]

To me, this is his one year, prove it deal. He is still young and has improved. I hope he comes in stronger and up in weight.
I agree with Canuck, that up til now he hasn't proven to be even average at center. But I still think he has a 50/50 chance of becoming a sound starter for us. He's gotta do it this year.
Little risk and a decent chance at a much bigger return.

[actionjack]

Agree with pretty much all of that. I think he was close to average last year and that could be good enough if they get the rest of the line straight.

Did you guys rewatch the rams-chiefs tonight? It was amazing to watch our o-line in that game, Goff had so much time to survey the field, WR’s were wide open

[aeneas1]

i think the rams will be fine with blythe at center.

[norcalramfan]

Appears to be a bit of an overpay for Blythe, but I like the plan to keep the OL in tact and hopefully develop into a strength. Big Whit comes back for one year allowing Noteboom's apprenticeship to continue.

Blythe looked good at center and Brian Allen will not become the back-up. Corbett looks to be a starting caliber OG and Edwards looks the part as well. Lets hope Havenstein can rebound and I think the OL can be a strength.

Evans and Noteboom as back-ups along with Allen and what was once viewed as a position of need becomes set. In the draft I can see Snead going RB, LB, DB and WR.

[PARAM]

Appears to be a bit of an overpay for Blythe, but I like the plan to keep the OL in tact and hopefully develop into a strength. Big Whit comes back for one year allowing Noteboom's apprenticeship to continue.

Blythe looked good at center and Brian Allen will not become the back-up. Corbett looks to be a starting caliber OG and Edwards looks the part as well. Lets hope Havenstein can rebound and I think the OL can be a strength.

Evans and Noteboom as back-ups along with Allen and what was once viewed as a position of need becomes set. In the draft I can see Snead going RB, LB, DB and WR.

In a perfect world.

I agree THEY don't seem to be as down on the OL as many Ram fans. There's still the draft and post draft free agency so they may add to that list. Either way, even if they draft a lineman and it's not done in the first couple of picks they make, they're saying the same thing. We're set. If they sign an inexpensive vet same thing, though that depends on who it is and how much money they give him.

Everyone knows how I feel about the OL. I (and many others) saw progress early with the original 5 and progress later with their backups. Is it possible they saw the same thing?

[/zn/]

Everyone knows how I feel about the OL. I (and many others) saw progress early with the original 5 and progress later with their backups. Is it possible they saw the same thing?

Admittedly, some of that's mitigated by who they played at the end. Still, while they didn't fare well against Dallas, they regrouped from that and held their own against SF.

I happen to have seen numbers on this.

From PFF pass blocking efficiency.

In the last 6 games, the Rams OL ranked 22nd. In the last 4 games, they ranked 16th. In the last 3 games, they ranked 14th.

Now that's with 3 injury replacements with a total of one game's prior experience among them combined (and 2 of the 3 were rookies).

And also with AW and Blythe both playing hurt (and needing off-season surgery).

So the idea that they could improve even more with some stability? It's simply not far-fetched. (Assuming there's a season.)

[snackdaddy]

i think the rams will be fine with blythe at center.

I agree. He was much better at center than he was at guard. And a much better center than Allen. I'm good with Blythe as our starting center.

[CanuckRightWinger]

Not a fan of this signing.
Question: So did we get a One Year Warranty from the Surgeon that BOTH shoulders would be 100% by September?

I am still hoping we draft a Big Uglee OC in 4 weeks. Here's why...

See, in my view, I see us joined at the hip with Jared $100MilGuy Goff for the foreseeable future. Mr. Goff's numbers decline markedly when he has foreign bodies in his face, or otherwise on his person. I actually witnessed that phenomenon during most of the 2019 season.

So it behooves McSnead IMHO to properly protect our big Investment in Jared Goff ......and signing last year's so-so RG/OC Blythe for $3.5 Mil ($3.9 Mil max) looks well....lazy to me.

Late in the season, McVay was rolling Goff out alot to have him miss out on those tsunamis of invading opposing DLs blasting in thru our Interior OL. Is that what the plan is for Goff in 2020......IE. Roll Out & Run? Because opposing DCs will catch on to that pretty quickly.

FWIW, I do not hate Blythe.....I just thought McSnead would be more inventive in finding a solution. Who knows, maybe they still will in 4 weeks at Draft time.

Finally, regarding the surgically repaired Whit and Blythe......sometimes the off-season repairs go well and the player looks demonstrably less labored than during the previous season when he was playing nicked-up...
BUT....
sometimes you get like what we had with Roger Saffold's first 2 or 3 surgeries (before some cutter finally got it right).....more nagging injuries that cost the Rams missed starter games! Here's another name from the
SurgeriesGoneBackForRamsOLinemen....
Kyle SuddenRetirement Turley.
.....any old timers remember how Martz's Second Rounder to finally plug the hole at RT turned out???
I do.

In the biggest game in Blythe's life, SB LIII, Bill Billicheck targetted the Sullivan-Blythe Gap....and it worked out for the Patriots like the Fallaise Gap worked out for the Allies in the summer of 1944.

We have some agreement though......I believe Blythe to be a superior NFL OC to Brian NoPush Allen. No arguments there!

[PARAM]

So it behooves McSnead IMHO to properly protect our big Investment in Jared Goff ......and signing last year's so-so RG/OC Blythe for $3.5 Mil ($3.9 Mil max) looks well....lazy to me.


FWIW, I do not hate Blythe.....I just thought McSnead would be more inventive in finding a solution. Who knows, maybe they still will in 4 weeks at Draft time.


We have some agreement though......I believe Blythe to be a superior NFL OC to Brian NoPush Allen. No arguments there!

I hear your concerns.

The one question I'd ask is who.....instead of Blythe......should they have signed and for how much? I don't know....haven't been following what free agents are available. I just wonder if being inventive and signing someone other than Blythe might have required actually inventing someone else. But I don't know and I don't know whomever was available and how much they wanted.

IMO, everything they've done seems to point to the possibility they are happy with who they have on roster.

On the, Whitworth signing, I believed if not him, then Castanzo (Indy) but he got 33 mil for 2 years @ 16.5 per year. We didn't have the cap room for that.

On Blythe I don't know what OCs were available or perhaps they valued him a bit higher because he can play both C and G?

Again, it all points to the possibility they are happy with who they have.

Whitworth, Blythe,....no learning the playbook needed......Havenstein, Noteboom, Edwards, Evans, Corbett, Allen and then further down the depth chart....(C's) Shelton, Trewyn, (G) Brewer, Kolone, Demby.

There's always the chance they draft an OL or two (I think the latter would be a stretch) but they've certainly got to find another RB, maybe TE, DL, LB, CB (can never have enough of them) and S. They need a reliable PK too and I would not be opposed to them using a draft pick on one.

[safer]

Canuck, to your super bowl point, Sullivan was well past his prime too. IF Blythe has Corbett and Edwards by his side, then I think his play will be better too. Granted, he is way to light to hold his ground as an OG. I think the avg weight on the starting NFL centers is about 313 pounds--most are more quick, than big.