EARTH CITY, Mo. -- The free-agent market is scheduled to open March 10 and teams may begin negotiations with those poised to hit the market beginning March 7. We'll count down to that with a position-by-position look at what the St. Louis Rams have in place, who is set to hit the market, what they might need and who might fit the bill.
Under contract: Sam Bradford
Pending free agents: Shaun Hill, Austin Davis (restricted)
What's needed: Strange as it may sound with two of the three quarterbacks on the current roster coming up on free agency, it's the one under contract that will determine what happens with the other spots. The Rams would like to reduce Bradford's contract. That's an on going process that comes with no guarantees. But everything the Rams have done and said this offseason indicates Bradford will be back. Even if that occurs, the Rams plan to add to the position. General manager Les Snead likened it to loading up on pitching in baseball. Get as many arms as you realistically can and let it shake out.
Including Hill and Davis, the Rams could sign or draft as many as three quarterbacks behind Bradford. Chances are good that they'll keep Davis since they mostly control his rights and Hill could be brought back as the veteran option though it would appear there's only room for one of them at most on the roster. It's still unclear what form it will take but the Rams are going to increase their choices one way or another this offseason.
Possible fits: There really isn't much on the free-agent market that would move the needle or represent much of an upgrade over Bradford. But the question will be if there's someone the Rams believe could be an upgrade over Hill and Davis. With Chris Weinke installed as the quarterbacks coach, the Rams might be more open to some outside fits. Weinke has worked with a couple of notable free agents in Christian Ponder and Josh Freeman at IMG Academy. Don't rule out the possibility that the Rams will consider some of those types with Weinke's input.
There are, of course, other names that could hit the market though all seem to fit into the category of underwhelming. Brian Hoyer, Blaine Gabbert, Jake Locker, Mark Sanchez, Ryan Mallett, Matt Moore and Colt McCoy are some of the signal callers poised to hit the market. If the Rams prefer to try the trade route, names like Chase Daniel. Ryan Fitzpatrick and Mike Glennon are thought to be attainable. Those Nick Foles rumors are also out there though the Rams' supposed interest has been exaggerated a bit.
Verdict: Although I expect the Rams to explore the market and look closer at a variety of different quarterbacks, the guess here is that the only quarterback the Rams add from outside the building comes from the draft. They've expressed enough interest in Davis and Hill that I believe they'll bring both back with a tender offer for Davis and another one-year deal for Hill. From there, the Rams will turn their attention to one of the incoming rookies with an eye toward developing him for the future.
