A snow storm moving into the St. Louis area might have been enough to keep Jacob Bell in St. Louis for a little while. But that won’t go nearly as far as the six-year contract he agreed to with the team on Monday evening.
The Rams and Bell agreed to terms after a getting-to-know-you session that lasted most of Monday afternoon, according to team sources. The athletic guard comes to St. Louis from Tennessee, where he earned a reputation as one of the league’s fastest-rising young players on the interior of the offensive line.
Bell immediately fills a void on the offensive line and should help form one of the most athletic left sides in the game next to tackle Orlando Pace. At 6’4, 295 pounds, Bell isn’t the mauler type, but that doesn’t mean he can’t hold his own as a run blocker in addition to his nimble feet in pass protection.
The Titans drafted Bell in the fifth round of the 2004 NFL Draft and Bell has been an ascending player since. He has been a starter for three of his four seasons in the league In that time he has played in 55 games with 46 starts.
The left guard position has been ravaged by injury in recent seasons as starter Mark Setterstrom was lost to a season ending knee injury. Bell has started 43 games at left guard but also has experience at tackle where he has started a trio of games on the right side.
According to one team source, Bell was the highest rated interior lineman on the team’s free agent list heading into the offseason.
Terms of the contract were not immediately available. Bell is expected to be introduced as a Ram officially on Tuesday in a 10 a.m. news briefing at the Russell Training Center.
The Rams and Bell agreed to terms after a getting-to-know-you session that lasted most of Monday afternoon, according to team sources. The athletic guard comes to St. Louis from Tennessee, where he earned a reputation as one of the league’s fastest-rising young players on the interior of the offensive line.
Bell immediately fills a void on the offensive line and should help form one of the most athletic left sides in the game next to tackle Orlando Pace. At 6’4, 295 pounds, Bell isn’t the mauler type, but that doesn’t mean he can’t hold his own as a run blocker in addition to his nimble feet in pass protection.
The Titans drafted Bell in the fifth round of the 2004 NFL Draft and Bell has been an ascending player since. He has been a starter for three of his four seasons in the league In that time he has played in 55 games with 46 starts.
The left guard position has been ravaged by injury in recent seasons as starter Mark Setterstrom was lost to a season ending knee injury. Bell has started 43 games at left guard but also has experience at tackle where he has started a trio of games on the right side.
According to one team source, Bell was the highest rated interior lineman on the team’s free agent list heading into the offseason.
Terms of the contract were not immediately available. Bell is expected to be introduced as a Ram officially on Tuesday in a 10 a.m. news briefing at the Russell Training Center.
Monday, March 3, 2008 By Nick Wagoner Senior Writer St. Louis Rams.com
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