Chris

Long

We have a hard time believing the Rams could let Long get by them at No. 2 considering their gaping hole opposite Leonard Little, but stranger things have happened. St. Louis is known to be high on Vernon Gholston. Long’s father, Howie, played for owner Al Davis during the Raiders’ glory days.

Jake’s was for five years, $57.75 million; Ryan’s is $72 million over six. In the end, Chris is likely to end up with more than Jake, but don’t be surprised if the Rams have a long training camp holdout on their hands. Each side will think it has tons of leverage. A deal may not be struck until Darren McFadden is slotted, and we saw last year how efficient Oakland is with top picks.

Long was open and honest with the team about his status throughout the offseason, and he’ll finally hang them up after winning two Super Bowls -- one with the Patriots and one with the Eagles -- over the last three seasons. More so than his standout career on the field, Long was well known for his actions and amazing deeds off of it, including being named ‘Walter Payton Man Of The Year’ in the City of Brotherly Love. He finishes a successful and menacing 11-year career with 70 sacks and 15 forced fumbles over 162 games played.

"[Football is] too hard on my body, my family, on everyone else to kind of go through it for a role that’s far from perfect,” Long said on the Philadelphia Enquirer’s Eagles podcast. “I told [the team] this maybe a month ago: ‘Hey, listen, plan like I’m not going to be back.” The Eagles want Long to take a pay cut prior to his $2 million roster bonus hitting his bank account in May, but the back-to-back Super Bowl champ is contemplating retirement instead. Philadelphia’s first pick on Thursday could be telling of Long’s future.

“From the looks of things they’re going to make it hard for me in my favorite city,” Long continued. “We’ll see.” It sounds like the Eagles want Long to take a pay cut. He is currently scheduled to make $3.5 million with a $2 million roster bonus due in May. That bonus will be the deadline for a decision.

As TurfShowTimes.com has reported, Long’s 2012 cap figure is a whopping $18.1 million. The Rams could clear quite a bit of cap space if they signed Long to an extension. Long, who turns 27 later this month, has increased his sack total in each of his four NFL seasons. He set a career high with 13 in 2011.

Long leads the team with 10.0 sacks and would be replaced by Eugene Sims, but Long has said that he expects to play. He will attack the right side of the Niners’ offensive line, which has struggled mightily without RG Adam Snyder (hamstring). Snyder is probable to play, but has some risk of an in-game aggravation.

Both players will be “monitored closely” throughout the week after receiving treatment on Tuesday. Bradford’s passing and mobility were clearly hampered by the injury, but the Rams don’t have a viable alternative with “no change” on A.J. Feeley’s (thumb) status this week.

Both players are in contract years. As ESPN’s Mike Sando notes, Demoff’s father, Marvin, is Long’s agent. So we’d have to believe those talks will go smoothly. Laurinaitis is severely underpaid with a $620K salary in the last year of his rookie deal. Re-signing both players should be priorities for the Rams.

Although details are not yet available, FOX Sports reporter Jay Glazer characterized the money as “huge.” Long, the second pick in the 2008 draft, has panned out unlike many of St. Louis’ pre-Fisher and Snead selections. The 27-year-old Long’s sack total has increased in each of his NFL seasons, and he topped out with a team-high 13.0 in 2011. Long could stand to improve his run defense, but he’s quietly developed into a premier NFL edge rusher.