mark: there is no doubt Ferotte is on the take and threw
the game.The throw to Bruce in the dirt from 10 yds.
then the fumbled snap.come on

Jeff Gordon: The shame for Gus is, he did a lot of good things, too, within the conservative offense. But those two plays were haunting.

john: Hi Jeff..

what a weekend for sports! from the Friday night Arkansas/LSU game to the Patriots/Eagles Sunday night thriller, incredible entertainment was to be had by fans everywhere.

the Rams leave me in a quandary. all that wasted talent on both sides of the ball just floundering on the field like fish out of water. this makes 5 straight home losses, and another wasted year in the great careers of Holt & Bruce.

that's just not going to cut it.

We also have that big Steven Jackson contract extension coming up, how will that affect our decisions during the offseason?

Would an all-pro running back who can't pass block be worth a big time extension?

The way I see it, Action Jackson gets hand offs on first downs & sometimes gets a second down chance. Then he heads off to the sidelines for the third down play while Brian Leonard steps in to handle pass blocking chores. I think this makes our offense very vanilla and extremely easy to counteract. What made Marshall Faulk so effective was his knack for pass blocking and nabbing that extra guy heading into the pocket. This freed up receivers for big plays down the field when the QBs were playing with confidence. Any running back with decent blocking seems to give their teams a nice edge.

Why can't Steven Jackson excel in this area?

At 6'3" & 235 pounds, SJ should be able to manhandle all but the most dominant blitz situations. I know some of the problems this year are related to all the injuries along the offensive line. However, during 2006, several of the more brutal hits on poor Marc Bulger were directly related to Jackson's inability to pass-block. He gets beat bad...and he even had a few missed blocks during today's Seattle game. This drives me bonkers.

I see this as a major problem.

The other issue I have with Action Jackson has to be his maddening propensity for losing yardage on running plays. For every long run he breaks, there will be two plays where he will be dropped well behind the line of scrimmage. I will give a few mulligans for the offensive line woes the past couple of years, but what is the deal here? Is this part of the scheme?

Are there any sort of stats on negative yardage running plays? How does SJ stack against other elite running backs in that regard?

time will tell if SJ gets that big contract he wants...but after getting a look at Jackson for 4 seasons now, i think it might be time to move in a new direction. or maybe bring Marshall Faulk in to coach him up on the finer points of pass blocking during the offseason!!

What's your take Jeff?

Jeff Gordon: Jackson is such a good receiver that he could really help in passing situations. But if the other team knows he isn't much of a blocker -- and opponents know that -- then they attack the Rams and force Steven to do something he doesn't do well. Given his physical dimensions, yes, he should be a fine blocker. If Faulk could learn to block well, then Jackson should as well.

Brad: Although the early season success is great, I am dumfounded at the lack of scoring by Weight, Stempniak, & Backes. These were guys we were counting on to put the puck in the net 15-30 times apiece but at current pace may not get that many as a trio. Is there hope of a rebound or is Weight done, and the other two overrated?

Jeff Gordon: Stempniak is a solid scorer. Backes is a sturdy power forward type with a good offensive feel; I don't know if he'll ever big a big goal scorer, but he is a solid asset. Weight has lost a step or two, but he should still produce more at even strength. It would be interesting to see what the addition of one more Boyes-type playmaker/shooter could do for the whole group.

Jordan: Given that trading Scott Rolen would probably be giving him away, it doesn't make sense to me to do so. Personalitites aside, he's still one of the best defensive 3rd basemen in baseball, and when he's healthy, he can hit a good bit as well. It seems to me, looking around the league, that there's no one who we could replace him with that would be an equal player on any level. Your thoughts?

Jeff Gordon: Replacing Rolen's glove would be very difficult. So the team doens't want to give him away and, so far anyway, the team is also unwilling to eat a chunk of his salary. So there is a chance Rolen could still be a reluctant Cardinal come spring training. It would be difficult for the Cards to make a move without getting back a young 3B.

Brian Carter: What are the Cardinals doing in regards to pitching. I really don't want to see another patchwork rotation. Duncan already will have his hands full with Pineiro, Looper and the continuing development of Wainwright. With Mulder attempting to regain form, and Carpenter out for awhile, what do you see in the free agent market or via trade that will possibly fill out the rotation?

Jeff Gordon: The free-agent market still has to settle. The Cards refused to set the market by bidding high on a middling free agent like Silva or Lohse. There is no money for that and it violates DeWitt's view of franchise management. So after the market settles a bit, look for the Cards to add a couple of veteran arms with 12- to 14-win potential. Nothing sexy.