dominic: Hey Jim:
1)I dont know how much he has left,but if you offer a 2 year contract,does Grady Jackson excite you as a stopgap runstuffer until we can find and groom one?
2)And will you be going to the Scouting Combine later this month?
3)Who do you think will make the tough calls to release high-priced veterans on this team?
See ya next week!

Jim Thomas: 1.) It's at least worth exploring. Under the old regime (Haslett), the thought was they needed a run-stopping wide body to be part of the rotation. They weren't necessarily looking for a star.
2.) Yes, I'll be at the combine.
3.) It will be a combination of Devaney and Spagnuolo.

ctramsfan: Jim, any news on the free agent market? Do you know of anyone the Rams may be targeting?

Thanks for your time.

Jim Thomas: Quiet here so far. Spagnuolo is just putting the finishing touches on his staff. And then I'm sure he'll switch over to personnel. Now that Demoff is in place as the cap guy, the negotiations will start with the Rams own free agents. (Bartell, Atogwe, etc.) Late last week, Devaney started doing some free agent work.

ctramsfan: Jim, have the Rams made any attempt to begin nogotiations with Bartell or Atogwe? These guys are two valuable centerpieces of this defense and the Rams can't afford to lose them. Seriously don't make the same mistake as you did with London Fletcher, Dre Bly, Ryan Pickett, Ryan Tucker, etc.

Thanks for your time.

Jim Thomas: As I mentioned, with Demoff in place as the cap guys, I'm sure negotiations will get rolling. I agree with you on Bartell and Atogwe. They are two ascending players, they are rare draft picks that hit, and the key to personnel is to start by keeping your own core players.

Team First!!!: First let me say thanks for answering our questions.

Any updates on Setterstroms health? And do you think Spags will give him a shot at the starting LG spot due to Bells weight loss and overall poor play? Devaney did say he wants to get bigger and Setterstrom is a monster. When do you think Spags will actually meet with the entire team for the first time?

Jim Thomas: No update on Setterstrom. Some players come in for treatment or to workout, but it's pretty quiet around here at this point in terms of players being around. If Setterstrom's healthy, I'm sure he'll have the chance to show his stuff in training camp. I wouldn't say Bell played poorly, he actually was better over the last half of the season. And Bell plans to add some pounds in the offseason. But if Setterstrom is healthy, then I think you have four good options for the guard position with Bell, Incognito (assuming he's tendered as a restricted free agent and returns), Bell, and Greco. The problem then becomes center.
I don't think Spagnuolo will meet with the team until the offseason conditioning program _ at the earliest. And because those workouts technically are "voluntary," he may not even be allowed to by league rule. But they get an extra minicamp _ three _ since he's a new head coach with the Rams, so at the very latest it'll be the first minicamp.

vanvaley1: Why all the talk about getting a wide receiver and/or QB when it won't do any good if the quarterback in kissing the turf because there's no sustained effort by the offensive line to protect the QB?

Jim Thomas: Well, to me that's the issue. To me, the Rams need a new starting center and a new starting tackle at a minimum for the line next season. I don't know if you saw the stat during the Super Bowl, but Bulger has been sacked something like 190 times over the past five seasons, the second-highest total in the league over that period. So it starts there. And despite all the talk about "muscle ball" being the way to win in the NFL, Arizona is a passing team, and Pittsburgh certainly didn't run the ball much in the Super Bowl. If you can't pass the football, you're not going to win in the NFL. Now saying that, if the Rams sign a tackle or even a center in free agency, then why not consider Crabtree at No. 2 overall? Under that scenario, you could even re-sign Pace to a restructured contract and possibly even keep Barron as your No. 3 tackle. (His cap number isn't very high next season.)