St. Louis Rams: Friday's Rams News and Notes at Noon

Welcome to Friday's St. Louis Rams "News and Notes at Noon," the one stop spot for all major Rams headlines and other items of interest to Rams Nation.

Where the Rams Are Most Improved 

Mike Sando of ESPN offers his take on what position the Rams and every NFC West team has potentially improved upon the most at this point of the offseason.

With the Rams, Sando explains why he feels the defensive line is the position likely to see the biggest improvement in the above-linked piece.

In looking at the Arizona Cardinals, Sando feels that they have the greatest opportunity to improve at wide receiver, particularly after selecting Michael Floyd in the 2012 NFL draft.

Great Article On Les Snead From Albert Breer for NFL.COM

Albert Breer of the NFL Network wrote a dazzling piece on St. Louis general manager Les Snead here. Breer talks with Snead about various topics, including the fact that Snead is just now finding a place to live. 

I strongly suggest taking a few moments to read this fine, in-depth submission regarding the new Rams GM. 

Rams Release Four Players on Thursday

According to a report from Ron Clements of CBSSports.com, the Rams released four players on Thursday: cornerback Marquis Johnson, wide receiver/special teams standout Dominique Curry, cornerback Brian Jackson and offensive lineman Thomas Welch. 

It is not terribly surprising to see any of these names on the cut list. However, Dominique Curry is widely regarded as an exemplary special teams performer.  On the other hand, he has offered next to nothing as a wide receiver.

St. Louis Rams: One Big Question 

In this piece for ESPN, Mike Sando asks what St. Louis is going to do at outside linebacker. 

Earlier in the offseason, the Rams added free-agent linebacker Jo-Lonn Dunbar.  Dunbar will likely earn the starting strong-side linebacker position. 

That leaves a hole at the opposite OLB spot, one that appears to be up for grabs right now.  If the Rams' season started tomorrow, former seventh-round selection Josh Hull would likely be the favorite to lock down a starting role. 

Although nothing is certain, I would not be surprised to see St. Louis add an outside linebacker after the June cuts or following preseason play.  

Will Kicker Greg Zuerlein Be Rams Most Impactful Offensive Rookie? 

According to Rob Rang of CBSSports.com, former Missouri Western State University kicker Greg Zuerlein could be the Rams' most impactful offensive rookie, particularly early on. 

In his article, Rang offers reasoning as to why he feels Zuerlein could be leaned upon heavily in 2012 by St. Louis head coach Jeff Fisher.  

Zuerlein's right leg is a bit of a wonder, as discussed by Nick Wagoner of StLouisRams.com here. 

NFC West Adds Weapons With Sights on End Zone

In another piece from Mike Sando for ESPN, Sando breaks down how each team in the NFC West apparently added weapons with the end zone in mind. 

St. Louis, who only averaged 12.1 points per game in 2011, desperately needed to do just that. 

Sando looks at what each team in the division did in a supposed effort to score more touchdowns in 2012. 

Jeff Gordon's St. Louis Sports Chat 

Earlier this week, Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch answered a plethora of St. Louis-based sports questions here, including several regarding the Rams. 

You will need to scan the chat to find the Rams-related inquires and answers, but there are a good number of them scattered throughout the above-linked question and answer session.

St. Louis Rams Sponsor Luncheon for Scholar Athletes

In yet another example of how the Rams continue to expand their outreach into the St. Louis community, the Rams recently held their inaugural event honoring scholar athletes from the St. Louis public schools.

In this Rams-sponsored event, 311 outstanding student athletes were honored, as reported in this piece via StLouisRams.com. Eight-time Pro Bowl participant Aeneas Williams chipped in, as did former St. Louis Cardinals world champion Rick Horton.

Several other famous St. Louisans and media members contributed to the event, including Bryan Burwell, Bob Ramsey, Jim Thomas and Howard Balzer. 

It is good to see the Rams continuing to expand their impact upon St. Louis and the region—something that all of St. Louis can be proud of. 

Have a great day as always, STL Rams Nation. 

Follow @ShaneGmoSTLRams

Shane Gray covers the St. Louis Rams daily as a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. You are encouraged to check out the rest of his work here. Gray also owns and operates stlramscentral.com.