Fisher agreed with several coaches and scouts that Manziel has the potential to be a phenomenal quarterback with exceptional competitive qualities.
However, the coach remained committed to Bradford (the No. 1 overall pick in
the 2010 NFL Draft), who was off to a strong start last season before tearing his ACL in
an October defeat to the Carolina Panthers.
At a Wednesday night event for season-ticket holders held at the team's indoor training facility, Snead and Fisher each joined Bradford onstage and
pledged allegiance to the quarterback, a clear signal that the
Rams would not be drafting Manziel second overall. Shortly after heading home Wednesday night, Fisher laid out his philosophy while sharing his strategy for the first round.
"I've got three hellacious defensive fronts in my division, and I want some big, strong maulers who go right at Seattle and San Francisco's linebackers and let us pound the ball," Fisher explained. "To survive in the NFC West, we have to win in the trenches. That's what this draft is about."
"I'm gonna go out and get the best (offensive) lineman in the draft," Fisher said. "And then I might go get another at 13."
Notre Dame's
Zack Martin was the secondary target, though Fisher and Snead were legitimately worried that each of the three players they liked at that spot --
Martin, Donald and Alabama linebacker C.J. Mosley -- would be off the board. In that scenario, St. Louis would have tried to trade down into the 20s, where they'd be able to land an offensive lineman a bit lower on their board.
