Three Former St. Louis Rams Have Chance at Super Bowl Victory

Though this will mark 13 seasons since the St. Louis Rams have appeared in a Super Bowl, there are a few players with ties to the organization who have a chance to experience a career-changing moment on Sunday.

New England Patriots tight end Michael Hoomanawanui and Danny Amendola are both former Rams, with Hoomanawanui having played the first two years of his career in St. Louis in 2010 and 2011, while Amendola turned from a practice squad player to a player worthy of a five-year, $31 million dollar contract from the Patriots while playing with the Rams from 2009 to 2012.

Neither player has been exceptionally productive during 2014. Despite the fact that Amendola was healthy in all 16 regular season games for the first time since 2010, he caught just 27 passes, by far his lowest single-season total unless you count the five catches he had before suffering a season-ending injury in the 2011 opener.

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Hoomanawanui, who frankly has exceeded expectations, becoming a valuable bit player with the Patriots after failing to stay healthy in St. Louis, has three catches for 44 yards while serving primarily as a blocker this season.

While both Amendola and Hoomanawanui probably would have preferred to do more this season, it will be huge for both if they’re able to win a Super Bowl ring. Just the fact that Amendola came into the league as an undrafted free agent and ascended through the practice squad ranks, while Hoomanawanui fought his way to a second chance after getting off to a rough start, should be enough to make the experience extremely impactful for both. The fact that both experienced such troublesome times in the NFL, playing on a 2-14 Rams team in 2011, should heighten that feeling of accomplishment even more.

Another former Ram, Garrett Gilbert, won’t be playing in the big game, but he’ll be on the sidelines for New England and has a chance at a Super Bowl ring if New England emerges victorious. Gilbert was a sixth-rounder out of SMU in this year’s draft, but he was released after losing to Austin Davis in a battle for a 53-man roster spot during training camp. He was with the Rams as a member of the practice squad until October 30, when Case Keenum replaced him there, and he went on to join New England’s practice squad on December 17.

In addition, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who filled the same role on the Rams’ staff in 2011, and defensive assistant Brendan Daly, who was the Rams’ defensive line coach from 2009 to 2011, will get the opportunity to earn a ring. Seattle’s lone on-field ties to St. Louis come in the form of assistant special teams coach Nick Sorensen, who was a backup defensive back and special teams ace for the Rams in 2001 and 2002.

Next: Who Makes the Most Sense as Rams' Next Offensive Coordinator?

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