Ram-Man: Hey Jim,

Hopefully you will be able to answer this question for me.
Why is it that so many fans bash Bulger, but refuse to give little if any blame to the offensive line? So many fans are upset the Bulger is back being the Ram's starter, even though he gives the best chance of winning. Now, I am not saying that his play hasn't declined, because it has. I think after getting about three seconds to get rid of the ball has reduced his confidence a bit. Not to mention all the sacks. The change at HC and the fact he probably is a little ticked for having to sit last week, is most likely going to set a little fire under his butt this week. Anyway, I was just wondering how come fans give the O-line a free ride and the QB is always the one to come unto fire. Is it because fans see the result and not the cause? Or is it because he is getting paid over 60 mill that he should be able to achieve invisibility? It's not like the Rams don't pay the O-line a lot of money too.

Jim Thomas: For one, Bulger has had a tough act to follow in Kurt Warner. Not only did Warner take the team to two Super Bowls with a spectacular offense, he also did it in a folksy, media (and fan) friendly way. That's just not Bulger. He's very reserved. Doesn't get a particular kick out of dealing with the media. It's just the way he is. But I think the performance by Trent Green against Buffalo _ and nothing against Green _ should show that there are more issues at work than just the quarterback play. The Rams still scored only 14 points, and Green's passer rating for that game (64.1) was lower than Bulger's season average (73.2).

Jim_in_PA: Jim,
Is the it true that Scott Linehan was awaken by a phone call at 1:00am to be fired?

Jim Thomas: Uh yeah. We reported that a week ago.

Fletcher: What is the likelyhood Of Chip R. making a very strong effort to get Marty S.in here. Who are the top 3 Gm's we could hope to get in your opinion? Will the search for a quality Gm slow up our race in getting a top notch coach like Marty?. Meaning won't the coach want to know who's in place and that persons vision before he agrees to come?.........How is our offensive line, in your opinion, it seems hard to gage from my standpoint? Thanks!

Jim Thomas: Don't count Billy Devaney out of the mix as GM.

Tackleberry: Do you anticipate major changes in the secondary after this season? Isn't it time to pay for a proven #1 cornerback and time to find a hard-hitting safety to replace Chavous?

Also, do you think the Rams will ever address the need for a true middle linebacker?

Jim Thomas: Those would probably be two good places to start.

dnags: Hey Jim,

Thanks again for hosting these chats! I was wondering if you could comment on Jay Glazer's report during the Fox NFL Pregam show this past sunday. He said that the Rams hired a PR firm to help them handle the firing of Scott Linehan but that it was totally bungled and that Linehan was treated rudely being woken up at 1:00 am and told to come to a meeting immediately. He also reported that Jim Haslett threatened his coaches in the first post-linehan meeting, saying in effect, "if any of you feel loyal to Linehan then pack your bags."

What do you make of his report. Do you think the Rams treated Linehan poorly with the way he was fired? Are there coaches loyal to Linehan on this team and it will that mean the "poisonous" environment we all read about has not changed one bit?

Jim Thomas: To me, there was nothing earth-shattering in the Glazer report. As soon as the decision was made to fire Linehan, they informed him. It just so happened to be at about 1 a.m. as the Post-Dispatch reported a week ago. Would it have really been more "humane" to wait until 8 a.m., 9 a.m. Linehan is being paid about $2 million a year. He still gets that money _ this year and next. That's one of the reasons why coaches get paid that much, because the endings rarely are pleasant. Keep in mind, Glazer is one of Linehan's "guys." The dude used to be allowed to work out in the Rams weight room when he was in town!! As for staff issues, sure there are some guys brought in that were Linehan guys, most recently offensive line coach Steve Loney and running backs coach Art Valero. But they're veteran coaches who have worked for plenty of other coaches before. I don't see a problem.