The Rams most likely won't be tested by the Titans' most dangerous player. Chris Johnson continues his contract holdout.

This week the Rams turn their attentions away from their nice game against the Colts, and toward the Tennessee Titans, who come to town for the second preseason game of the year this Saturday. Here's a quick reset to focus our attention as well.

Quick hits in Tennessee

NFP: Chris Johnson is holding out for a monster contract, and Steven Jackson is a telling comparable.

Andrew Brandt points out that the market for running back contracts has been essentially unchanged since Jackson got his extension with the Rams. The relatively cash-poor Rams under transitional owners Chip and Lucia Rosenbloom gave Jackson $21 million guaranteed, a deal neatly mirrored by the Panthers with Deangelo Williams.

No surprise, but Johnson wants a good deal more. And he isn't reporting to camp until that contract is done, taking a huge weapon off the field for the Rams' defense to contend with. In the meantime, intriguing handcuff runner Javon Ringer gets the spotlight.

Total Titans: Relatively few roster spots are available in Tennessee.

Andrew Strickert is Bloguin's main correspondent for the Titans, and he's been getting a first-hand view of the new coaching staff as they go through multiple camp practices. And his view of the roster situation sees a lot of starting jobs all but locked down. Most of this roster is pretty anonymous to me as a Rams fan and NFC West watcher, as we haven't faced Tennessee since 2008, but it's worth noting that their first year of the post-Jeff-Fisher era isn't necessarily filled with lots of roster churn.

Interestingly, one of his camp observations notices that the team borrows from Steve Spagnuolo in terms of positioning their safeties. This puts a little more significance on the first-half matchups between each team's first-team units. 

Total Titans: Jake Locker looks pretty good as a pro, so far.

It would be tempting for Rams fans to focus on the Titans' signing of Matt Hasselbeck as their veteran stopgap, and appreciate the opportunity to pay tribute to this venerable NFC West starter by watching our defensive line ragdoll him across the field. But the future of the franchise is in the hands of another former Seattlite, rookie QB Jake Locker.

The early returns from his first preseason action were pretty positive. He showed accuracy and "poise," that all-important buzzword for rookies, and recovered from a bad snap exchange to heave a 45-yard touchdown to Yamon Figurs.

Mobile, strong-armed quarterbacks -- even those with a cloudy sense of accuracy, such as Troy Smith -- have proved to be a problem for the Rams in the past. It will be interesting to see how they gameplan for young Mr. Locker. 

An aside: Oddly enough, Total Titans appears to be that rare blog without a Twitter handle, though Football Outsiders' Tom Gower (@ThomasGower) does write for them on occasion. So if you're looking for a new follow, there you go.

With the Rams hard up against the cap, who's on the bubble?

NFL.com's Jason La Canfora published a list of all 32 NFL teams' standing against the salary cap this morning. A surprise on the list? The Rams, not the free-spending Redskins or Eagles, are the only team of the bunch currently over the cap.

$822,036.00 over, to be precise.

Firstly, is this a bad thing? Not in my opinion. The Rams have been aggressive and precise in this year's free agent frenzy, addressing key positions of need (G, DT, FS) and acquiring depth all over the place. Meanwhile, each of our competitors in the NFC West has more than $14 million left to spend, but little more than the likes of Terrell Owens and Daunte Culpepper to spend it on.

But this does intensify camp battles, especially among veteran players making more than the minimum. The way the reconfigured salary cap works, only the top 51 salaries on the roster count toward the $120 million limit. So cutting a guy making $450k in a year doesn't save much if you're replacing him with a guy making $425k.

To get where the Rams want to be -- approximately $1 million under the cap, according to today's chat with Jim Thomas -- a couple of veterans must fall. Here's a look at three players potentially at risk.

In his seventh season and working with his seventh offensive coordinator, Alex Smith is still no closer to becoming a legitimate starting quarterback.

There's something going haywire in San Francisco, and I'm not talking about the BART riots. (Seriously, did the whole city fall into a Cory Doctorow fever dream?) The San Francisco 49ers, arguably the most talented team in the NFC West, are on a fast track to the bottom of the division.

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Keep hearing that #49ers are the favorite according to Vegas-that really shocks me. Might put them 4th. D will go backwards. Passing Game??

After a decent draft that landed them pass-rush project Aldon Smith, a legitimate change-of-pace runner in Kendall Hunter, and potentially their quarterback of the future in Colin Kaepernick, there was reason to believe that new coach Jim Harbaugh had this team heading in the right direction. All the team had to do to contend was maintain the dominant strength of the defense, and sprinkle some of his magical pixie dust on the offense, and this team would become a formidable contender.

Instead, they're quickly turning into a joke.

Free agency foibles

If the best way to strengthen your team is to start up the middle, then surely it's also the quickest path to weakening it. And the Niners have gotten weaker on both sides of the ball, inexplicably letting stalwart nose tackle Aubrayo Franklin go, and letting their starting center get poached in free agency. Their solution to both problems? Fill from within by sliding semi-skilled backups (DE Isaac Sopoaga and G Adam Snyder) out of position.

They've gone sideways or worse with a number of free agent moves, perhaps improving only at receiver with the addition of Braylon Edwards. But with Michael Crabtree not participating in training camp practices for a third consecutive year, they may be squandering their high-upside talent just as fast. 

And their latest "plan" in free agency, after an ugly opening start for Alex Smith's offense (2-7 passing for 10 yards, getting sacked and fumbling twice once while earning one first down in five series): bring Daunte Culpepper back from the UFL in for a visit. (Jeff George was apparently not returning phone calls.)

Early returns are not very positive. Snaps are on the ground, gaping holes are opening in the running game for backs like the Saints' Mark Ingram, and the offense, if anything, looks worse than before. A post on Niners Nation about the awfulness of Alex Smith's very first throw of the preseason ignited a firestorm of more than 500 comments from angry and bewildered fans.

Granted, it's only the first preseason game for a brand new coach. But the coach is sounding dangerously out of his depth.

Lance Kendricks catches the game's first touchdown pass. AP photo, Tom Gannam.

The Rams' first preseason game was an unqualified success, and their incoming class of rookies made contributions, top to bottom. Let's review and highlight some performances of note.

Lance Kendricks emerges as a weapon.

In practice, we've seen Lance Kendricks line up all over the field, even taking carries as a fullback on occasion, a prominent demonstration of Josh McDaniels' concepts of offensive versatility. But against the Colts' vanilla cover-two defense, we saw little in the way of fancy fomations.

Kendricks didn't need them; he was able to line up as a plain old tight end and flat out beat people.

Kendricks led all receivers with six targets, many on third down, and converted them into five catches for 47 yards and the game's first score. That first reception showed off his speed, strength and sure-handedness as he lined up next to right tackle Jason Smith, but darted across the middle of the field, cutting in front of helpless middle linebacker Gary Bracket, who was stuck defending the zone and failed to follow in coverage. Bradford delivered the ball perfectly, as Kendricks began to angle around Bracket and toward the front corner of the end zone, building momentum toward the goal line that would allow him to power through two would-be tacklers and in for the score.

Bradford now has a plethora of third-down targets, with Kendricks joining perennial target Danny Amendola and fellow rookie Austin Pettis, who also got two third-down looks. When Greg Salas returns from injury, presumably he adds yet another. 

Preseason is officially underway. Even if one has not seen a game or has been living in a cave the last few months this weekend left no doubt that football is back.  You need to do nothing more than turn on ESPN, NFL Network or any other program this morning and you’ll see an analyst breaking down the 4^th Quarter action between the number 4 QB going up against, at best, the 3^rd and 4^th string opposing defense.  None of whom will be on either roster come the regular season.

The preseason should not be about Wins & Loses for the Rams. It should be about seeing what the Rams have, what the Rams need and what they need to work on.  As such some of the biggest plays and biggest decisions in the preseason can be seen both on and off the field. Who plays and who doesn’t, and who they play with. Is the 1’s or 2’s, special teams, etc.?  The grouping of players can be as big a decision as any play that is actually called.

That being said there were big plays and big decisions made yesterday in the Edward Jones Dome. Here are some that stood out from the rest. (A few almost immediately)

• On just the 2^nd snap for the Defense new Rams safety Quintin Mikell intercepted Colts QB Curtis Painter and returned it 25 yards.
• Newly acquired RB Cadillac Williams goes for 11 yards on his 1^st carry as a Ram setting up Sam Bradford 6-yard touchdown pass three plays later to 2^nd round draft pick Lance Kendricks.  (This could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship)
• The second interceptions by the Rams D, this time by Craig Dahl set up Josh Browns first FG of the day. This one from 23-yards.
• Spagnuolo decided to go for it on 4^th & 1 handing it off to FB Brit Miller who got the first down. The decision to go for lead to Cadillac Williams’ 1-yard touchdown run.
• Going in to the game not many expected Bradford and most of the 1’s to be out there for much more than one or two series let alone four.  The play of the offensive line, and the fact they Dahl, Saffold and company allowed no sacks of Bradford gave Spags the confidence to leave them in.
• A missed play lead to perhaps the biggest play of the day. An incomplete pass from A.J. Feeley lead to Josh Browns 60-yard FG to close out the first half and give the Rams a 23-3 lead.
• Big plays were a big part of the Rams new backfield.  The decisions to hold out Steven Jackson allowed the spotlight to be on Williams, Jerious Norwood and Keith Toston.  Toston’s 5-yard touchdown run capped off his impressive 64-yard total on the day.
• Not to be outdone again Josh Brown added a 53-yard FG to bring his total for the day to four FG’s and 154-yards.
• In my opinion the decision to have Gilyard involved in the action as much as possible might have been the biggest decision of the day. He made plays on returns, showed the ability to run after the catch and had a great YAC on a pass to him behind the line of scrimmage. For a guy trying hard to make the team Gilyard made some big plays and Spags made the decision to keep running him out there.
• Robert Quinn showed big play flashes getting into the backfield and had it not been for slipping on the turf at the Ed would have had a safety.
• Big plays were made all night by the defensive line. Keeping the Colts offense completely ineffective on 3^rd downs.

I apologize to any Rams players if you were left off of this list. But keep it up and you’ll find yourself here soon enough.

The Rams' preseason was only a few plays old when one of the team's new defensive signings and one of their players on the bubble made their presence felt, as CJ Ah You pressured Colts backup quarterback into an looping throw that sailed over his intended receiver and into the hands of new free safety Quintin Mikell. Mikell grabs the highlight, but the play was the result of an exquisite rush designed by Spagnuolo and executed by a mix of starters, reserves, and new players.

> Watch the play at NFL.com.  

At the Snap

The Rams' starting defensive line on the day consisted of Chris Long (91), Fred Robbins (98), Ah You (99) and George Selvie (67). On this play, a 3rd and 8 from deep in the Colts' end of the field, Spagnuolo jammed the box with two extra rushers, starting middle linebacker Jush Hull (56) and nickel defensive back Darian Stewart (20).

The Colts countered with a 3-WR, 2-RB setup with Painter in the shotgun. Mikell, not pictured here, was lined up in the deep left quadrant. The key plays on the rush were made by Ah You and Stewart, who I've highlighted in yellow. 

The first 2011 preseason game is in the books and we have our first look at the new and improved Rams who beat the Colts 33-10. Like any beginning of the preseason, there are only glimpses of the first team offense and defense but here is my first set of grades for the team: 


Quarterbacks: B
  
Sam Bradford started the first few series of the game and looked solid, finishing seven of 12 for 45 yards and a touchdown. AJ Feeley completed 10 of 14 passes for 100 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions and Thaddeus Lewis saw some garbage time play. The expectation was to see a limited version of the offense after a shortened offseason, but it was confusing to see McDaniels stick to more of a short passing attack instead of taking his trademark shots down field.

Running backs: A+

As a byproduct of the offensive line play, the running backs had open lanes all night and seemed to be taking advantage of the Colts’ small defensive line. New additions Cadillac Williams and Jerious Norwood racked up 77 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown while Keith Toston made a case to make the final roster with some tough running for 64 yards on 11 carries and a touchdown. The void at running back finally looks filled and a position of extreme weakness for the Rams last season is now a strength.

Wide Receivers: D

The wide receiving corp was incredibly underwhelming tonight. Granted it takes a while to pick up McDaniels’ offense but none of the pass catchers made a real case to separate themselves from the pack. Austin Pettis had some ugly drops and Greg Salas was held out with an injury. Besides a couple of nice plays from DX and Mardy Gilyard, the whole night for receivers fell short of expectations.

Tight Ends: A

This grade is built on the success of Lance Kendricks alone. The rookie second round pick scored the first touchdown of the game on a six yard pass from Bradford and led the team with five receptions for 47 yards. Kendricks will be an incredible weapon in the McDaniels offense and a red zone threat week in and week out.

Offensive Line: A

The offensive line looked nastier and opened up consistent running lanes while keeping Bradford upright most of the time. The addition of Harvey Dahl seemed to infuse the group with a needed mean streak as they steamrolled for big running gains on both sides of the line. The backups looked relatively good too even though they faced mostly the second and third string defenders.

Defensive Line: A

The defensive line looked to be beating the Colts offensive line off the ball all night. Free agent signee Justin Bannan blew up a couple of plays in the backfield and the Colts starting running backs were limited to 23 yards rushing. Robert Quinn looks like a beast in the making after forcing a three and out in the first half and flashing great pass rushing moves. It looks like Spagnuolo has assembled a talented group that could be a strength like his 2007 unit in New York.

Linebackers: B

The linebackers looked good despite the void left by an injured James Laurinaitis. Newcomers Zac Diles and Brady Poppinga combined for three tackles with Poppinga making a few nice plays in the backfield. Na’il Diggs also had a tackle and provided nice pressure on the Rams’ second interception. St. Louis has nice linebacker depth that will continue to develop as the season goes on.

Cornerbacks: D

This grade is a victim of circumstance after the Rams lost Jerome Murphy for the season and Ron Bartell and Al Harris were held out with injuries. The defense had to rely on several guys signed only a week ago and Justin King was exposed a few times in coverage for 202 yards passing by the Colts backup quarterbacks. King should be used exclusively in the slot until he matures into a more physical corner in the Spagnuolo mold, evidenced by a big play he gave up to Pierre Garcon. This position could be an area of concern all season unless Bradley Fletcher and Bartell can stay healthy.

Safeties: A

The safety corp made plays from the first whistle as Quintin Mikell picked off Curtis Painter in the first defensive series of the game. Starters Mikell and Craig Dahl were solid in pass coverage and played a big part in supporting the run. Dahl and fifth round draft pick Jermale Hines also had interceptions in the game. Hines looked like he was usually in position and flashed some defensive and athletic ability.

Special Teams: A

The special teams play was solid and may have been the most consistent of the three phases of the game. Josh Brown bagged four field goals, including an incredible kick from 60-yards out. Brown has only made nine 50+ yard field goals in his time as a Ram. Chris Chamberlain continues his dominance as a tackler and Jabara Williams looked like he will develop into a special teams playmaker.