So the Rams had to make five cuts before the final preseason game against the Chiefs. That won't be very important will it? Wrong. The Rams blew that out of the water by trading 2006 first round draft pick Tye Hill to the Atlanta Falcons and then cutting, fellow fan whipping boy, tight end Joe Klopfenstein from the roster. While the Klopfenstein cut was not surprising, the timing was. It made quite a statement that the Rams would dump two former high round draft picks in the same day. If that didn't send a message loud and clear to everyone in the locker room I don't know what will. That message will be heard loud and clear and should be taken over into tonight's game against the Chiefs. Here are the five things to be looking for tonight....
#1 Cornerback Play
Congratulations to Jonathan Wade, Bradley Fletcher and 
Justin King. Not only did all three of you do enough to give the Rams confidence to essentially give Tye Hill away, but now all three of you have officially been thrown into the fire. All three will have to do enough to keep the Rams from being picked apart by quarterbacks around the NFL. All three will get a lot of reps against the Chiefs offense and it will be interesting to see how they compete with the knowledge that the Rams are continuing to look to upgrade the position.
#2 Adam Carriker
That wakeup call that was heard all through Rams Park on Tuesday should have reached another former #1 draft pick in a hurry. Adam Carriker has been a non-productive player for the Rams the past two seasons, due in a lot of cases, to injury. Carriker again has been injured in the preseason and this game against the Chiefs will allow Carriker the opportunity to try and regain his starting spot. When a first round pick is in danger of losing his position to an undrafted defensive tackle that was picked up off the street before camp (Gary Gibson) then there is a problem. There is an old saying that you can't make the club if you're in the tub. Carriker better get healthy real quick or his days in St. Louis may be numbered.
#3 Antonio Pittman vs. Kenneth Darby
The Rams continue to say that the backup running back competition is still wide open. I believe that Samkon Gado is going to be safe because of what he has done. That means that it could possibly come down to Antonio Pittman vs. Kenneth Darby. Which running back will perform better tonight against the Chiefs could tip the scales to one player being employed or one player looking for work this weekend.
#4 Brock Berlin vs. Keith Null
I wrote about this situation earlier in the week. I believe the Rams have only one decision to make but it appears it is not as clear cut as I believe it to be. The play of the two has been pretty even this preseason. I believe the Rams have to keep Null and let Berlin go. We'll see if the play on Thursday might sway some decisions.
#5 Jason Smith
This has been an ongoing storyline this summer. The progression of Jason Smith. Will he do enough in this final game to show that he is worth starting in the opener in Seattle? When you are the number two pick overall this should not be a question, in my opinion, but the Rams coaching staff is handling it right in that if he is not immediately ready at this point then make sure he is ready when he is thrown in there. The Rams can't afford to get any more quarterbacks killed by poor offensive line play.
The Rams have had a fairly successful preseason in terms of the games. It would be nice to get a win tonight against the Chiefs but the most important thing is just to get through this game healthy. Marc Bulger will not play tonight and rightly so. Don't expect to see much out of Steven Jackson, if at all, as well. The game starts at 7 pm tonight but because of the ridiculous NFL blackout rules the game will be on a tape delay basis at 10:30 pm.
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