St. Louis Rams Place Brandon McGee on IR, Promote Jemea Thomas

The St. Louis Rams finally made a move Saturday that was seemingly imminent for weeks, placing cornerback Brandon McGee on injured reserve and promoting rookie cornerback Jemea Thomas from the practice squad to fill his roster spot.

The 23-year-old McGee, a fifth-rounder last year, played in only two games this year. He played primarily on special teams in the opener, and then saw his most extensive action of the season in Week 2 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, picking up four tackles while playing the nickelback spot in place of the injured Lamarcus Joyner.

McGee has been held back by a foot injury all season, and he tried to return to practice this week but then re-aggravated it shortly after. It was a bit of a mystery why the Rams didn’t bite the bullet and place him on IR earlier, as McGee had been passed up on the cornerback depth chart by rookie E.J. Gaines and probably would have needed a few weeks of practice to rehabilitate his form before he would ever be able to contribute from scrimmage.

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Thomas, a 5-foot-10, 195-pounder, was selected out of Georgia Tech in the sixth round by the New England Patriots this year. He also had a short stint with the Dallas Cowboys following his release by New England. Thomas has been on the Rams’ practice squad since September 19.

The rookie will likely dress on Sunday in Kansas City as an emergency depth guy and special teams contributor, as veterans Trumaine Johnson, who has only gotten scout team work while recovering from an injury suffered in the preseason, and Janoris Jenkins, who missed practice all week after suffering a knee injury, are not likely to suit up. Three rookies–Gaines, Marcus Roberson, and Lamarcus Joyner–are likely to comprise the group of corners who sees action from scrimmage tomorrow.

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