Rams President of Football Operations Jay Zygmunt joined Bernie Miklasz and Randy Karraker on the Roll Home on Team 1380 Monday to talk about the Draft. Zygmunt said they are very comfortable with the health of Glenn Dorsey, and he also indirectly said that they will be working on a contract for Steven Jackson soon.
The Rams' goal right now is to get a real impact player who can come in and change the team.
"(We) have the second pick in the draft; (we) have to get a dominant player," Zygmunt said.
Jay said that if two guys are similar talent you have to go with the character guy, but there are all different factors.
Zygmunt said he wants to make sure they aren't in position to have such a high pick again for a long time. He thinks they might get some calls for the #2 pick, but it is very hard to predict.
Jay said, "It's always a possibility. We are open-minded to anything that gets us better."
If Miami gets a deal done before the draft, he said the Rams will literally be on the clock. The key is finding the right player, and judging the talent. The financial implications are almost causing teams to underwrite risk towards the top of the draft. You'd like the player to be as perfect as he can be, but there are no guarantees.
"We feel pretty good with where we are. The end justifies the means, and we need to put an impact player on this football team."
The Rams' war room guys started talking last Friday about general scenarios of what could happen, and they will keep doing it all week while looking at different trade possibilities for players who might be available. Jay said they have had conversations with a couple teams at this point, but it's hard to see how sincere they really are, but it will change throughout the week.
"It's basically down to a few players, and we are trying to get everybody's support (for one). It's just a matter of refining it and thinking it through. You look at the list of players so intensely. It's an art and not a science."
When asked who will have the final decision on Draft Day, Zygmunt said that everything will be decided during the week, and they will have a board and the player the Rams take will be the player at the top who Miami doesn't take.
Jay said, "Billy Devaney has been great, having to hit the ground with his feet running. He has a wealth of experience, and he's a really good guy to work with and knows how to facilitate the process."
When asked if the financial implications of such a high pick has any effect on Steven Jackson being re-signed, Jay said that they hope to get something worked out in the near future.
They also talked about other salary cap implications, and how some entry level guys will be making more than pro-bowl players.
The Rams' goal right now is to get a real impact player who can come in and change the team.
"(We) have the second pick in the draft; (we) have to get a dominant player," Zygmunt said.
Jay said that if two guys are similar talent you have to go with the character guy, but there are all different factors.
Zygmunt said he wants to make sure they aren't in position to have such a high pick again for a long time. He thinks they might get some calls for the #2 pick, but it is very hard to predict.
Jay said, "It's always a possibility. We are open-minded to anything that gets us better."
If Miami gets a deal done before the draft, he said the Rams will literally be on the clock. The key is finding the right player, and judging the talent. The financial implications are almost causing teams to underwrite risk towards the top of the draft. You'd like the player to be as perfect as he can be, but there are no guarantees.
"We feel pretty good with where we are. The end justifies the means, and we need to put an impact player on this football team."
The Rams' war room guys started talking last Friday about general scenarios of what could happen, and they will keep doing it all week while looking at different trade possibilities for players who might be available. Jay said they have had conversations with a couple teams at this point, but it's hard to see how sincere they really are, but it will change throughout the week.
"It's basically down to a few players, and we are trying to get everybody's support (for one). It's just a matter of refining it and thinking it through. You look at the list of players so intensely. It's an art and not a science."
When asked who will have the final decision on Draft Day, Zygmunt said that everything will be decided during the week, and they will have a board and the player the Rams take will be the player at the top who Miami doesn't take.
Jay said, "Billy Devaney has been great, having to hit the ground with his feet running. He has a wealth of experience, and he's a really good guy to work with and knows how to facilitate the process."
When asked if the financial implications of such a high pick has any effect on Steven Jackson being re-signed, Jay said that they hope to get something worked out in the near future.
They also talked about other salary cap implications, and how some entry level guys will be making more than pro-bowl players.