NFL Mock Draft 2013: St. Louis Rams' extra pick makes protecting Sam Bradford crucial

The St. Louis Rams will have two first-round picks in the 2013 NFL Draft, which makes it hard to justify not selecting an offensive lineman.

Sam Bradford Injury Update: St. Louis Rams' Offense Still Terrible

Sam Bradford Injury Update: Rams QB Out Against San Francisco

The St. Louis Rams were hoping to have quarterback Sam Bradford as they face the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday afternoon, but the team recently announced that he'll be inactive for the game. Back-up Jay Feeley is starting in place of Bradford, who continues to deal with a high ankle injury that's plagued him for weeks.

Bradford initially injured his ankle in Week 6 while facing the Green Bay Packers, and he apparently re-aggravated the injury last week while playing against the Arizona Cardinals. He was limited in practice for essentially the entire week, and the lack of optimism from the Rams' coaching staff over the past few days indicated that this decision was forthcoming.

The odds were already small that the Rams would be able to pull off an upset of San Francisco this week, but they probably just got even smaller with Bradford's absence.

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.

Sam Bradford Injury Update: St. Louis Rams May Start A.J. Feeley Sunday

As if the St. Louis Rams needed any more obstacles for Sunday's road matchup against the San Francisco 49ers, the team is starting to prepare for Sam Bradford missing Week 13 with an ankle injury. Bradford originally suffered left high ankle sprain in Week 6 against the Green Bay Packers, after which he missed two games, and now he re-aggravated the injury in the Week 12 loss to the Arizona Cardinals. 

Bradford was walking with a limp in practice on Friday, and did very limited work with the first team offense before giving way to veteran quarterback A.J. Feeley, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The team is making subtle preparations for having to play Feeley on Sunday as well, resigning QB Tom Brandstater to the practice squad to help take the scout team load off of Feeley for Friday's practice. 

Head coach Steve Spagnuolo didn't sound optimistic about Bradford on Friday:

He was very limited. Didn't do much at all. He's still a little sore. So we'll see where we are (Saturday), and as always, this will be a day-to-day deal...We wanted to make sure we didn't play him until we knew he could get himself in and out of trouble, so that'll be part of the decision.

via Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

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.

St. Louis Rams Injury Report, Week 13: WR Danario Alexander Says He's Ready, S Darian Stewart Is Out

The St. Louis Rams are going to need every bit of help if they want to pull of an upset in San Francisco against the 49ers on Sunday, but it turns out they will be without starting strong safety Darian Stewart. The only good news is that after missing five weeks, speedy wide receiver Danario Alexander may return to the lineup and give the offense a vertical threat it has sorely lacked over the past few weeks.

Stewart, a second-year safety from the University of South Carolina, who has been dealing with concussion symptoms since the Week 12 loss to the Arizona Cardinals, revealed that he would not play on Sunday against the 49ers, saying:

It's just one of those things where you have to be safe and be smart, and I feel like it's best that I don't go this week....With those concussions, it's my first, and I know that it's something that can keep coming back from what people tell me. So I want to be smart with it.

via the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Meanwhile, Rams' wide receiver Danario Alexander, who has 20 receptions for 306 yards and one touchdown on the season, says he is ready to return to the lineup on Sunday:

I went out there and basically practiced almost every snap. It's a good sign. I'm ready for the game.

via the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.  Alexander has been dealing with an injury suffered back in Week 7 against the Dallas Cowboys.

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.

San Francisco 49ers Injury Report, Week 13: Frank Gore Probable

San Francisco running back Frank Gore has been hampered all week with an ankle injury, but he is listed as probable for Sunday's game against the Rams according to the 49ers' Friday injury report. Gore was limited in practice for the third consecutive day on Friday.

The running back leads San Francisco with 909 yards rushing and five touchdowns on 203 carries.

Wide receiver Braylon Edwards did not participate in practice for the third consecutive day and is listed as questionable. Fullback Bruce Miller, offensive guard Adam Snyder, cornerback Chris Culliver and offensive tackle Anthony Davis fully participated in Friday's practice and are listed as probable for Sunday.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more updates on the Rams and all matters St. Louis. For more on Sunday's game, check out Turf Show Times, SB Nation's St. Louis Rams blog, and Niners Nation, SB Nation's San Francisco 49ers blog.

St. Louis Rams Injury Report, Week 13: Sam Bradford, Chris Long Questionable

The St. Louis Rams' exhaustive injury report has become official:

Out

LB Josh Hull
OT Mark LeVoir

Questionable

QB Sam Bradford
DE Chris Long
DT Justin Bannan
S Darian Stewart

Probable

P Donnie Jones
LB Chris Chamberlain
CB Justin King
WR Dominique Curry
FB Brit Miller

Chris Long and Sam Bradford -- key elements to the Rams' chances in Week 13 -- both missed practice earlier this week with re-aggravations of their respective ankle injuries. Bradford has already missed two games, forcing the Rams to start A.J. Feeley twice in his place this season.

Long, the Rams' leading pass rusher with 10.0 sacks, has not missed a game in 2011, but would be followed by DE Eugene Sims if he cannot go on Sunday.

The Rams have already ruled out backups Josh Hull and Mark LeVoir, who are suffering from hamstring and pectoral issues respectively. Meanwhile, starter Justin King and Brit Miller seem poised to play on Sunday, barring any unforeseen setbacks.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more updates on the Rams and all matters St. Louis. For more on Sunday's game, check out Turf Show Times, SB Nation's St. Louis Rams blog, and Niners Nation, SB Nation's San Francisco 49ers blog.

San Francisco 49ers Injury Report, Week 13: RB Frank Gore Once Again Limited On Thursday

The San Francisco 49ers continue to prepare for Sunday's game against the St. Louis Rams, and the team's injury report for Thursday practices is out. It's identical to yesterday's report, but I'll show it below in case you forgot:

Full Participation

- CB Chris Culliver

- OT Anthony Davis

Limited Participation

- RB Frank Gore

- OG Adam Snyder

- FB Bruce Miller

Did Not Participate

- WR Braylon Edwards

Getting Gore back for Sunday is key for the 49ers offense, but the team will go with rookie Kendall Hunter if he's unable to go. Hunter, a 23-year-old out of Oklahoma State, has ran for 298 yards and two touchdowns on 69 carries. He's also caught seven passes for 106 yards, although he's never had more than 11 carries in a game.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more updates on the Rams and all matters St. Louis. For more on Sunday's game, check out Turf Show Times, SB Nation's St. Louis Rams blog, and Niners Nation, SB Nation's San Francisco 49ers blog.

St. Louis Rams Injury Report: Sam Bradford, Chris Long Miss Practice

The news could hardly be worse for St. Louis Rams fans. Not only has starting QB Sam Bradford suffered a setback this Thursday with his healing high ankle sprain, but starting DE Chris Long has also re-aggravated his ankle injury:

The Sam Bradford injury may thrust veteran QB A.J. Feeley back into a starting role for the third time this season, but Long has not missed a game yet this season and presently leads the team with 10.0 sacks. If Long cannot play on Sunday, the Rams figure to start second year DE Eugene Sims in his place.

In addition to Long and Bradford, SS Darian Stewart continues to suffer from concussion symptoms and was limited in practice today. Also, P Donnie Jones suffered an ankle injury as well, but was able to participate in practice.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more updates on the Rams and all matters St. Louis. For more on Sunday's game, check out Turf Show Times, SB Nation's St. Louis Rams blog, and Niners Nation, SB Nation's San Francisco 49ers blog.

Sam Bradford Injury Update: St. Louis Rams QB Suffers Setback, Misses Practice

According to the St. Louis Rams official twitter account, the Rams QB Sam Bradford missed today's practice after re-aggravating his ankle injury:

The Rams (2-9) played without Bradford in Week 7 and Week 8 after he suffered a high ankle sprain against the Green Bay Packers in Week 6.

Bradford has thrown for 1,971 yards this year with a 72.3 quarterback rating -- a not-impressive array of stats, but given the 68.3 QB rating of backup A.J. Feeley, the Rams likely prefer having the Bradford injury go away. If Bradford indeed cannot go on Sunday, the Rams will again be forced to start the 34-year-old Feeley for the 18th time in his NFL career.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more updates on the Rams and all matters St. Louis. For more on Sunday's game, check out Turf Show Times, SB Nation's St. Louis Rams blog, and Niners Nation, SB Nation's San Francisco 49ers blog.

San Francisco 49ers Injury Report, Week 13: RB Frank Gore Limited On Wednesday

The San Francisco 49ers suit up on Sunday as they hope to bounce back after last week's loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Thanksgiving Day, but their offense may not be at full strength when this happens. Running back Frank Gore was limited in practice on Wednesday, while wide receiver Braylon Edwards didn't participate due to a knee injury.

The full injury report can be found here, but it's shown below:

Full Participation

- CB Chris Culliver

- OT Anthony Davis

Limited Participation

- RB Frank Gore

- OG Adam Snyder

- FB Bruce Miller

Did Not Participate

- WR Braylon Edwards

Obviously Gore is the big name here. He's been exceptional for the 49ers this season, rushing for 909 yards and five touchdowns on 203 attempts. He was dominant over a five-game stretch earlier in the season, rushing for 634 yards over the period while scoring in four of the five games, but he's rushed for just 127 yards on 44 carries over the three games since that run.

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more updates on the Rams and all matters St. Louis. For more on Sunday's game, check out Turf Show Times, SB Nation's St. Louis Rams blog, and Niners Nation, SB Nation's San Francisco 49ers blog.

St. Louis Rams Injury Report, Week 13: Sam Bradford Limited, Darian Stewart Out On Wednesday

The St. Louis Rams are preparing for a big game against the NFC West-leading San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, and they recently released an injury report for Wednesday's practices. Star quarterback Sam Bradford was on the field, but according to head coach Steve Spagnuolo he only took half of his normal reps as a precaution. Second-year safety Darian Stewart also missed practice while he deals with issues from a recent concussion.

Here's the full injury report, which can be found here:

Limited Participation

- QB Sam Bradford

- WR Dominique Curry

- RB Brit Miller

- LB Chris Chamberlain

- CB Justin King

- DE Chris Long

Did Not Participate

- S Darian Stewart

- DT Justin Bannan

- OT Mark LeVoir

- LB Josh Hull

- P Donnie Jones

Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more updates on the Rams and all matters St. Louis. For more on Sunday's game, check out Turf Show Times, SB Nation's St. Louis Rams blog, and Niners Nation, SB Nation's San Francisco 49ers blog.

Danario Alexander Injury: Alexander Expected To Practice, Maybe Play This Week, For Once

In a sense, given this team's propensity for it, the simple fact that the St. Louis Rams' most fragile player hasn't yet appeared on the injured reserve is a major victory. But even with the knee apparently healthy, the Danario Alexander injury train rolls on—this week, it looks like the former Mizzou star will practice on his gimpy hamstring, with the goal of making his return Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers. Alexander hasn't played since October 23, when he caught two passes for nine yards in Dallas. 

For Alexander it will be a chance to end what was nearly a breakout season on a less frustrating note. Through the Rams' first five games Alexander was perhaps Sam Bradford's most dangerous target, catching three balls for 122 yards and a long touchdown in Week 2's Monday Night Football loss to the New York Giants and catching six for 91 yards in the Rams' frustratingly barren loss to  the Green Bay Packers. 

But his legs couldn't handle the beating, and ever since his quiet performance in Dallas he's been inactive. Short of Brandon Lloyd he remains the Rams' most dangerous wide receiver, but if they can't expect him to play on a regular basis he might not be long for the NFL, even with all that potential still apparent. 

Sam Bradford Injury: Bradford Aggravates High Ankle Sprain, Expected To Practice

Sam Bradford aggravated his high ankle sprain Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals, bringing back into the spotlight an injury that cost him two games in October, but the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that he isn’t expected to miss any practice, let alone playing time, after this latest recurrence.

Bradford, who played every snap in 2010, has given way on four occasions to A.J. Feeley this season. Feeley, who prior to this year hadn’t appeared in a regular-season game since 2007, has gone 41-for-75 for 392 yards, a touchdown, and an interception this year.

Bradford, in his disappointing 2011, has actually topped last year’s numbers on a per-attempt basis—he’s averaging 6.0 yards per attempt in 2011, identical to last year’s mark, and 5.7 yards per attempt adjusted for his extremely low touchdown and interception rates, up from last year’s 5.4. But I don’t think Josh McDaniels will be including this next to those Kyle Orton seasons on his résumé, if I had to guess.

St. Louis Rams Injury Report: Sam Bradford Hurts Ankle, Danario Alexander Expected Back

The St. Louis Rams have reported that QB Sam Bradford has aggravated his high ankle sprain, but the injury does not sound too serious.