St. Louis Rams Need Lance Kendricks To Perform In 2012

Nearly everyone on the St. Louis Rams disappointed to some degree in 2012, but of all the players who looked solid in the preseason before things collapsed around them as the regular season started, second-round tight end Lance Kendricks was the worst offender. He caught 28 balls for 352 yards in 2011, after catching 11 for 155 and three touchdowns in the preseason alone. With Michael Hoomanawanui injured most of the year again, that was all she wrote for Josh McDaniels's plan to focus on tight end play. But as Ryan Van Bibber notes on Turf Show Times, the Rams still need Kendricks to blossom, and he'll have a full offseason and a new offense with which to do it.

As a player brought in specifically for the last regime's purposes, Lance Kendricks also needs a breakout season for himself. His patron, Josh McDaniels, is completely out of the picture; if he can't impress Jeff Fisher and new Rams offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer in 2012, he might not get another chance before he has to cold-call the New England Patriots looking for depth work.