Orlando Pace was a fixture at left tackle for the St. Louis Rams for more than a decade, but he was released by the club during the off-season and signed by the Chicago Bears. With the No. 2 overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, the Rams selected a guy many think will eventually fill Pace's position in lineman Jason Smith. The team, however is taking a long look at Alex Barron, a former first-round pick himself, on the left side and may plug in Smith at the less-critical right tackle position to begin his rookie season.
Regardless of who plays on the right or the left, the offensive line as a unit must play much better than they did in 2008. The loss of Pace hurts from an experience standpoint, but he battled injuries the past two seasons and may be showing signs of breaking down physically.
St. Louis also made a big addition to the middle of their line by signing free agent center Jason Brown, one of the better young linemen in the league. With the additions of both Smith and Brown, there should be a noticeable improvement overall, which should be great news for quarterback Marc Bulger.