According to beat writer Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Rams are seriously considering trading for Michael Vick this offseason, although Thomas didn’t provide much detail outside of that.

If Thomas is right, the question now becomes whether or not Vick is a good fit for the Rams. On one hand, he provides an upgrade over Marc Bulger just based on his athletic and playmaking ability. Bulger hasn’t resembled a starting caliber quarterback since 2006 and even though Vick hasn’t taken a meaningful snap since that year, at least he would instill some life into the position.

On the other hand, who knows how Vick would handle a full season under center. Again, he hasn’t played since 2006 and he only attempted 13 passes this season for an average of 6.6 yards per attempt. And quite frankly, he wasn’t that good of a passer even when he was a regularly starter.

That said, the Rams are so devoid of talent that acquiring Vick just from that standpoint would be a good move. And unless they view Jimmy Clausen as a franchise quarterback (which is possible), then whom else are the Rams going to get? Bulger is a has been and Kyle Boller was a never was. At least Vick could run around and make a couple of big plays on the Edward Jones Dome carpet.

Of course, that’s a simplistic take on the topic. The real question would be whether or not head coach Steve Spagnuolo would adjust his offensive philosophy and take the shackles off of coordinator Pat Shurmur if the Rams did acquire Vick. Since the advent of the 16-game schedule in 1978, only five teams (the ’92 Seahawks, the ’91 Colts, the ’98 Eagles, the ’00 Browns and the ’06 Raiders) have scored fewer points than the Rams (175) did this season. Fans like to blame Shurmur’s play calling for that, but keep in mind that as soon as Spagnuolo took over, he instilled a ball controlled offense that focuses on the run. He handcuffed Shurmur all season and the 175 points was a result of that.

There’s no point in acquiring Vick just to put him in a ball-controlled offense. He needs to be in an offense that will take advantage of his running abilities and that will allow him to roll out and make throws on the run. Even though he would come cheap, it wouldn’t make sense for the Rams to acquire a player of Vick’s skill set, just so that he can turn around and hand the ball off to Steven Jackson 30 times a game. Bulger or Boller could continue to do that.

Rams’ GM Billy Devaney is familiar with Vick from their days in Atlanta, so a trade between St. Louis and Philadelphia for the troubled QB isn’t far-fetched. Considering how far the Rams have to go in terms of producing a winner, a Vick-St. Louis marriage makes sense but only if Spagnuolo adjusts his offensive philosophy and allows Shurmur the freedom to get creative with his play calling.


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