Former St. Louis Rams DT Matt Conrath Signs with Pittsburgh Steelers
The long but unspectacular Matt Conrath era in St. Louis officially ended on Friday, as the defensive tackle signed to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offseason roster. Conrath, a 6-foot-7, 306-pounder, had spent the past three years in the Rams’ system, coming in as a highly-regarded undrafted free agent in 2012. The defensive lineman was the only one of the nine players’ on the Rams 2014 practice squad that was not signed to the offseason roster for next season.
Conrath was thought of so positively by the Rams’ coaching staff that he saw reps with the first team during the first training camp practice of his professional career, and he continued to impress during camp and the preseason as a rookie. However, he fell behind as a rookie due to a late preseason injury and ended up playing in just one regular season game.
2013 was the most productive season of Conrath’s career in a Rams uniform, as he was part of the 46-man gameday active roster against run-heavy offenses and played in eight games, recording seven tackles and a sack. Clearly, the Rams weren’t overwhelmed with his performance, as they signed pass-rushing defensive tackle Alex Carrington as a free agent to take Conrath’s spot on the roster.
After a somewhat intriguing preseason performance this year, the Rams decided to keep Conrath in the program, signing him to the practice squad. He was elevated back to the active roster after Week 1 when the team put Chris Long on short-term injured reserve, but Conrath was returned to the practice squad after wide receiver Stedman Bailey returned early from what was initially expected to be a four-game suspension in Week 3.
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With Conrath gone, it should be interesting to see what the Rams do at defensive tackle next year. Starters Michael Brockers and Aaron Donald will be back, but beyond them, things are unclear.
Kendall Langford has one more year left on his contract, though it’s unlikely that the Rams would bring him back to play limited reps as a role-playing backup at a $6 million-dollar salary. Carrington, who signed a one-year contract last offseason, is unlikely to be back after having an extremely quiet 2014 season.
The Rams added Doug Worthington, a veteran of five seasons who has played for five different teams, to their practice squad near the end of the 2014 season, and they’ve since signed him to the offseason roster. Considering Worthington’s track record (or lack thereof), it’s probably not the smartest idea to go into 2015 with him on the projected opening 53-man roster.
The team could also opt to give one final shot to Mason Brodine, who has been in the organization since 2012 but has yet to play in a game. Brodine, a 6-foot-7 freakish athlete, spent the 2012 and 2013 seasons on the practice squad, beefing up and transitioning from defensive end to tackle. After the Rams acquired Donald and Carrington in the spring of 2014, however, Brodine began transitioning to tight end, and as a result, he spent the large bulk of his time practicing on offense before suffering a season-ending fractured ankle in the preseason opener last year. Like Brockers, Langford, Carrington, and Conrath, Brodine has the height and athleticism that defensive line coach Mike Waufle seems to desire in his defensive tackles, though he has yet to prove anything on the field when it matters.
It’s likely that the Rams will have to bring in competition for those two, if they are even realistic options for the roster in the first place. Those players will probably come from free agency or the draft.