Top 10 St. Louis Rams Who Have a Shot at the 2011 Pro Bowl Team
No, not all 10 of these players will make it.
One could get injured, one could regress or one could just get beat in the election by another player from a different team.
But there is a good chance that more than one of these players will be winning a trip to Hawaii after the 2011 season.
And if some of these guys don't make it in 2011, then there's a decent chance that their day will eventually come.
10) the Young Tight Ends
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The Rams made one thing clear when they used their 2011 second-round pick on tight end Lance Kendricks. Their passing game is going to put an emphasis on the middle on the field.
And since they don't have a dominate receiver on the outside, it gives the young tight ends Mike Hoomanawaui and Kendricks a chance to create some serious production.
Hoomanawanui, the second-year player out of Illinois, has been able to produce when he's actually been healthy. And more importantly, he's been able to get into the end zone.
Kendricks is a hybrid player that will catch passes out wide—from the backfield and from the traditional tight end position.
Kendrick's versatility and speed, combined with quarterback Sam Bradford's accuracy, give him a chance to put up decent numbers even as a rookie.
They might not reach a milestone like the Pro Bowl this early in their careers, but it's certainly possible in the future.
9) Bradley Fletcher (Cornerback)
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Cornerback Bradley Fletcher was able to make significant improvements during his second year in 2010.
He was the starter for 15 of the Rams' games last season, and he proved that he has completely recovered from his knee injury that he obtained seven games into his rookie campaign in 2009.
Fletcher has decent size for a corner (6'0", 198 pounds). He's also a solid tackler, and he had four interceptions in 2010.
Fletcher's ceiling likely tops out at him being an above-average starter, but if he continues to develop at a rapid pace, then anything is possible.
8) Jason Brown (Center)
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The Rams signed center Jason Brown during free agency prior to the 2009 season.
They signed him to a five-year contract worth $37.5 million, which makes him one of the highest paid centers in the game.
Brown played at a very high level in 2009, but fans assumed that his abilities were simply overlooked due to him being on a team with a 1-15 record.
This view is supported by the fact Brown made USA Today's 2009 All-Joe team, which is basically their own Pro Bowl roster, except roster spots are generally awarded to underdog players who were overlooked by the Pro Bowl voters.
Unfortunately, Brown's play regressed in 2010, as the Rams' interior offensive line was less than spectacular in the run game.
But fans should not be so quick to dismiss Brown.
The team is back on the map, so if Brown returns to his original form, then there's a good chance he won't be overlooked this time around.
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7) Robert Quinn (Defensive End)
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The Rams used their 2011 first-round pick to draft Robert Quinn 14th overall.
They did so because of Quinn's uncanny ability to rush the quarterback, and fortunately for Quinn, the sack total of a defensive end is basically the only thing Pro Bowl voters look at.
Quinn will likely share playing time at right-end with veteran James Hall, which will hurt its chances at putting up gaudy stats as a rookie.
However, Chris Long demands a lot of attention on the left side, and a distraction as dominate as Long could certainly propel Quinn into a double-digit sack total, even as a rookie.
6) Rodger Saffold (Offensive Tackle)
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Out of all the top tackles from the 2009 draft class (Russell Okung, Trent Williams, Brian Bulaga), it is pretty clear that the Rams' Rodger Saffold was better than all of them in 2010.
Not only was he the best of his draft class (so far), but he was also the best offensive lineman for the Rams last season.
In some ways, Saffold's chances of making a Pro Bowl correlates with the development of Sam Bradford.
If you protect the blind side of a top-tier quarterback, then you're certainly going to get some props if the quarterback was standing upright for most of the season.
But on the other hand, regardless of Bradford, Saffold seems to have a bright future ahead of him.
5) Danny Amendola (Wide Receiver)
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The Rams will be looking to hand some of the return duties to someone other than Danny Amendola, which will allow him to stay fresh and focused as strictly a wide receiver—perhaps by signing Darren Sproles in free agency?
If that happens, then we probably won't see Amendola lead the NFL in all-purpose yards for a second consecutive season.
But that would certainly help him to elevate his game as a slot receiver.
Despite having only 689 yards for the Rams in 2010, Amendola still had 85 receptions.
If his attention is completely focused on being a receiver, then 100 receptions is certainly a possibility in 2012, and a good way for any receiver to make a Pro Bowl is by catching 100 passes in a season.
4) Sam Bradford (Quarterback)
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We saw quarterback Josh Freeman make the Pro Bowl last February as an alternate, despite 2010 being only his second season, so we know it's possible for a sophomore quarterback to be a Pro Bowler.
Quarterback Sam Bradford will attempt to build on his promising rookie season, and he'll look to take the next step towards becoming an elite quarterback.
The Rams certainly found him some help in accomplishing that.
The first move was hiring Josh McDaniels as their new offensive coordinator, as he is typically known for executing high octane offensive game plans, so that will give Bradford a chance to inflate his statistics.
The Rams also used their second, third and fourth-round draft picks on Lance Kendricks (TE), Austin Pettis (WR) and Greg Salas (WR). So it's clear that they are trying to surround Bradford with reliable targets.
Given the offseason additions, it wouldn't be too outrageous for Bradford to produce borderline Pro Bowl numbers during his sophomore season.
3) James Laurinaitis (Middle Linebacker)
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If you voted for players in the 2010 Pro Bowl voting using the NFL.com ballot, then perhaps you noticed that they featured an image of James Laurinaitis in the background.
A little unfitting, considering the Rams' middle linebacker didn't qualify for the Pro Bowl, but St. Louis fans are surely grateful for NFL.com's attempt to send him some votes.
But everyone should take Laurinaitis' image on the ballot as a sign of things to come, because he's the real deal.
The Rams went from having the 29th ranked defense overall in 2009, to having the 19th ranked defense in 2010, and Laurinaitis is the keystone of the new and improved defense.
St. Louis' new franchise middle linebacker has 234 tackles, five sacks and three interceptions in his first two seasons combined.
Considering that players rarely hit their ceiling within their first two seasons, it's likely that Laurinaitis will continue to improve, which means that a trip to Hawaii is almost inevitable.
2) Chris Long (Defensive End)
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In 2010, the Rams' 34-year-old defensive tackle Fred Robbins had six sacks, and the 34-year-old defensive end James Hall had 10.5 sacks.
Both Robbins and Hall should be given the proper credit, as they did have monster seasons that were against the odds.
But their success was not so much about how good they were. Instead, it had more to do with how good defensive end Chris Long was.
Long's 8.5 sacks in 2010 is not going to overly impress anyone, but he is much more than his sack total.
His motor is absolutely relentless, which results in him wearing down opposing offensive lines.
Offensive line coaches that faced the Rams centralized their focus on Chris Long, which allowed linemen such as Robbins and Hall to break free.
The Rams just added defensive end Robert Quinn to their arsenal last April with the No.1 overall pick, and his pass-rush abilities will make it hard for teams to focus solely on Long, which is why his numbers will likely improve to a Pro Bowl level in the near future.
1) Steven Jackson (Running Back)
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No one has a better shot at making a Pro Bowl in the future than the guy who's already been there on multiple occasions.
St. Louis Rams running back Steven Jackson, despite having a lot of miles on the odometer, is still playing at a high level, and the 27-year-old is still in his prime.
Jackson just wrapped up his sixth consecutive 1,000-yard season, as he finished the 2010 season with 1,241 rushing yards. And he also just played in his third Pro Bowl last February.
Quarterback Sam Bradford may be the long-term keystone for the Rams' offense, but the current centerpiece is still Steven Jackson, and it will likely remain that way in 2011.
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