SB Nation St. Louis - Rams Offseason Moves: St. Louis Cuts 5 Veterans

Rams GM Les Snead Hires New Director Of Pro Personnel, Director Of College Scouting

2012-05-10T14:33:02Z

St. Louis Rams general manager Les Snead executed his first NFL Draft for the Rams this season, but there will be a new staff supporting him next time around. Vice president of player personnel Mike Williams and two scouts -- Russ Bolinger and Brandon Schwab -- have been let go by the Rams, John Mancini has been demoted to assistant director of college scouting and two front office members that previously worked with Snead for the Atlanta Falcons have signed on in St. Louis, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Ron Carthon -- who worked as a pro scout for the Falcons in 2008 -- has been hired as the new director of pro personnel, and Taylor Morton -- who also worked as a scout for the Falcons -- has been named the new director of college scouting. Things are changing rapidly in St. Louis as Snead and head coach Jeff Fisher put their stamp on the organization, and hopefully they are building a solid foundation for sustainable success that starts with scouting and pro personnel and flows onto the NFL field and into the win column.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit Turf Show Times. Visit SB Nation NFL for more news and notes around the league.

Rams Transactions 2012: St. Louis Cuts 5 Players

2012-04-30T21:49:20Z

In order to stay under the 90-man offseason roster limit, the St. Louis Rams cut five players on Monday. They are:

. . .CB Chris Smith, RB Quinn Porter, DT John Henderson, CB Nate Ness, and TE Demarco Cosby.
— Jim Thomas (@jthom1) April 30, 2012

Some additional information from SB Nation's Rams blog, Turf Show Times:

The players released were: TE DeMarco Crosby, DT John Henderson, CB Nate Ness, RB Quinn Porter, CB Chris Smith. All five were on the fringes of the roster. Porter is the one fans would be most familiar with as he saw some reps due to injuries at the position last season.

Randy Moss's Comeback Would Be My Favorite St. Louis Rams Storyline Ever

2012-03-06T14:48:42Z

Les Snead Hired As Rams GM

2012-02-14T17:40:42Z

After interviewing 10 different candidates over the course of several weeks, the St. Louis Rams have hired Les Snead as their new general manager. Snead previously worked for 13 seasons in the player personnel department of the Atlanta Falcons and spent the last three years as the director of player personnel. He helped to sign or draft 16 different players that went on to earn Pro Bowl honors, and he will replace former Rams GM Billy Devaney, who was fired after a disastrous 2-14 season and a 10-38 record in three seasons.

Snead will immediately take over all aspects of the the football operations in St. Louis, and Rams Executive Vice President of Football Operations/C.O.O. Kevin Demoff had this to say about the hiring to the team website:

"Les Snead is a rising personnel star whose passion for scouting and innovation differentiated him throughout the search process," Rams Executive Vice President of Football Operations/C.O.O. Kevin Demoff said. "His vision for making the Rams a sustained winner resonated with our entire organization and the energy and leadership he brings to our building is infectious. He has spent 15 years preparing for this opportunity and we are confident he will deliver the results our organization and fans deserve."

Snead will "direct all aspects of football operations and, working with Head Coach Jeff Fisher, will have final authority over all personnel decisions related to the signing of free agents, the selection of players in the NFL Draft, trades, terminations, and related decisions."

quotes via Nick Wagoner of stlouisrams.com.

An introductory press conference is scheduled for 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

Rams GM Search: St. Louis Hires Les Snead, According To Report

2012-02-11T20:59:23Z

The news came out on Saturday afternoon that one of the two finalists for the vacant St. Louis Rams general manager position, George Paton, had accepted a position as the assistant general manager for the Minnesota Vikings.

A short time later, Alex Marvez of FOX Sports reported that a source indicated the Rams hired the other finalist for the job, Les Snead. Snead was formerly the director of player personnel with the Atlanta Falcons organization.

Paton was rumored to be the early favorite in the process, but his promotion within the Vikings organization took him out of the running immediately. The Rams will hope to install a new GM in time for the NFL Scouting Combine and before the start of free agency in March.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit Turf Show Times. Visit SB Nation NFL for more news and notes around the league.

Rams GM Search: George Paton Out Of The Running As He Becomes Vikings Assistant GM

2012-02-11T20:20:17Z

The St. Louis Rams had reportedly narrowed their search for a new general manager down to two final candidates. The early news on Saturday was that Minnesota Vikings director of player personnel George Paton had emerged as the favorite to get the job.

Later on Saturday, the Vikings officially announced that Paton had been promoted to be Minnesota's assistant general manager.

"George has been an integral part of our personnel department since he arrived in 2007," Vikings General Manager Rick Spielman said on Saturday. "His work ethic, leadership , professionalism and keen eye for identifying talented football players will continue to be a major asset for our organization as we take on the challenges of competing in the NFC North and winning the Super Bowl."

Now that Paton is out of the running, it may be an inevitability that the other finalist for the Rams job, Atlanta Falcons director of player personnel Les Snead, will be offered the GM position.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the St. Louis Rams be sure to visit Turf Show Times. For updates and perspective on the Minnesota Vikings, head on over to The Daily Norseman or SB Nation Minnesota. Visit SB Nation NFL for more news and notes around the league.

Rams GM Search: George Paton Of The Vikings Emerges As The Favorite, According To Report

2012-02-11T14:57:17Z

The St. Louis Rams have been deliberate and thorough in their search for a new general manager, but now your organization has finally narrowed their list of candidates down to two men. Minnesota Vikings director of player personnel George Paton and Atlanta Falcons director of player personnel Les Snead are the two finalists, and both have returned for second interviews already, but now it appears the team is focusing in on Paton as the lead candidate for the job. According to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, multiple sources within the organization have said that "it's Paton's job to lose."

What makes Patton -- who has spent the past five seasons as the director of player personnel with the Minnesota Vikings -- the best man for the job? Ryan Van Bibber of SB Nation's Rams blog, Turf Show Times, provides the context to the latest development in the GM search:

And what has Paton standing above the other candidates? His reputation for working with others has reportedly earned him an endorsement from new head coach and football czar in St. Louis, Jeff Fisher. His work as a personnel man in Minnesota speaks well of his ability too, despite the Vikings' miserable record.

Paton made the move to acquire Jared Allen. He also let the oft-injured, but super talented Sidney Rice walk away in free agency rather than tie up big bucks to keep him. That qualifies as making a tough decision, something he would likely have to do with the Rams as the new staff turns over some big contracts on the roster.

Arizona's Steve Keim had some inside the organization lobbying for him.

The Rams had interviewed nine different candidates for the job, but Jim Thomas noted that the other seven men have been eliminated from consideration and the team has notified all seven that they are no longer in the running.

Rams General Manager Search: George Paton Gets 2nd Interview; St. Louis Also Will Meet With Tom Gamble

2012-02-06T23:54:27Z

Interviews continue for the St. Louis Rams' vacant general manager position, and according to Jim Thomas, St. Louis brought George Paton back for a second interview Monday. The team also will speak with Tom Gamble of the San Francisco 49ers.

49ers director of player personnel Tom Gamble interviews for Rams GM job Tuesday; Minnesota's George Paton got second GM interview Monday.
— Jim Thomas (@jthom1) February 6, 2012

Paton's second interview came a week after his first meeting with the Rams.

Gamble has 24 years of experience working in the NFL, and he's spent the last seven with San Francisco. He was promoted to director of player personnel in February of last year.