St. Louis Rams team report: Options dwindling at offensive tackle
The Rams' options are dwindling at offensive tackle.
After yielding 2½ sacks to Seattle's Chris Clemons in 2½ quarters, it's unlikely undrafted rookie Kevin Hughes will get the starting assignment at left tackle Sunday against Calais Campbell and the Arizona Cardinals.
The Rams signed tackle Thomas Welch off the Buffalo practice squad. Welch played most of this season with New England, appearing in three games with one start, and is very familiar with the offensive scheme of coordinator Josh McDaniels (which to a large degree is the Patriots system).
But if the Rams aren't comfortable with throwing Welch into the lineup after three practices, starting guards Jacob Bell and Harvey Dahl have played tackle before in the NFL, although it's been a few years back for both players. If one of those guards kicked out to tackle, it's possible Jason Brown could come off the bench to play guard.
No matter who shakes out as the starting left tackle, it's not a welcome development because the Rams have had trouble scoring, pass protecting, and developing any consistency in the passing game. And they have some of the league's toughest defenses remaining on the schedule in terms of total defense in Pittsburgh (2nd), Cincinnati (6th), and two games against San Francisco (8th).
For the first time in two weeks, WR Danario Alexander (hamstring) practiced Wednesday, albeit on a limited basis.
