Last Saturday on Turf Show Radio (listen here) the boys from Turf Show Times and I were discussing Sam Bradford. Mainly because we're unoriginal hacks, but also because the dude is approaching the half-way of point of his rookie season and he's exceeded even the wildest expectations the St. Louis Rams had. (See: opening day starter, debate, Feeley, A.J.)
And while Van Ram and 3K were still ruminating over the loss of Mark Clayton and the emergence of Danny Amendola as a valuable weapon on the Rams offense I wondered out loud if the Rams receiving corps was a product of hard work. Or is Sam Bradford way better than we're even giving him credit for?
No offense to Mark Clayton, but he was a bust in Baltimore. He was going to struggle to make the Ravens in 2010-11 and when they traded for The Housh before the season started, Baltimore jumped at the chance to get a better draft pick for Clayton.
Cut to St. Louis and through 5 weeks, Clayton was having a Pro-Bowl caliber year.
Danny Amendola, while not a premium pick bust, is still a guy who before 2010 was most notable for being the scrappy white guy Jerry Jones didn't really want to cut a couple years back on HBO's Hard Knocks. Considered by most scouts to be undersized, under-talented and under-everything, Amendola has emerged as Bradford's favorite target and most reliable WR.
A look up and down the depth chart of the Rams at WR and you'll find our old buddy Slim and his sidekick Pickens. Laurent Robinson, Brandon Gibson, Danario Alexander? Maybe they have some talent. Most likely they won't be around if the Rams make a legit run at a Super Bowl. Mardy Gilyard and the injured Donnie Avery still have much to prove.
There isn't a standout on this team. There is nary a stud. But Bradford hasn't looked worse for wear. He still has a respectable yards per game average and is working on a 20 touchdown season.
So I submit to you that the Rams not only have a below average WR corps—they have the worst WR corps in the NFL. And if Samuel Bradford wasn't slinging the pill in the backfield for the Rams, this team wouldn't have a single win.
Crazy, right?
Considering what he's done with Clayton and Amendola, I don't think so.
I believe that their seasons are a product of Bradford's talent, and not vice-versa. So here's the really great news—get #8 a wide receiver on par with MegaTron or Andre Johnson and WHOA! I think we're going to be having fan-gasms pretty much every Sunday.
Hell, we might even get two players you wouldn't be completely embarrassed for drafting in the first round of your fantasy league.
And we all know that's really the most important thing, right?