good early news on Rams new receivers

LA Rams’ rookies steal the spotlight

Vinny Bonsignore,

http://www.dailynews.com/sports/20160802/bonsignore-la-rams-rookies-steal-the-spotlight

IRVINE >> The figure Duke Williams cut as he slashed across the back of the end zone Tuesday was probably noticeable off nearby Newport Harbor.

Big, physical and imposing.

He certainly caught the eye of Rams rookie quarterback Jared Goff, who immediately unleashed a tight spiral that Williams gracefully went to his knees to corral for a touchdown during 7-on-7 drills on the Rams’ first day in full pads.

In what was a bit of a theme on the day, Goff, Williams and fellow rookies Tyler Higbee, Nelson Spruce and Michael Thomas looked polished, athletic and productive against a Rams defense many consider on the cusp of being a top 10 NFL unit.

On a day the old dogs on the defense were supposed to bark loudest, it was the Rams’ puppies making the plays drawing the most ooohs and ahhs from the fans on hand.

“We’re young and fresh,” Williams said, smiling. “We’re letting the veterans take us under their wing and we’re trying to help get the defense better.”

They did more than that, actually. In fact from top the bottom, the entire offense looked good Tuesday.

And for an organization that desperately needs its offense to show an actual pulse outside of running back Todd Gurley, the surprising development was as pleasant as the soothing breeze coming off the Pacific Ocean just a few miles away.

“I like the group of receivers, young group of receivers,” Rams head coach Jeff Fisher said, “Coach (Mike) Groh’s doing a really good job with them. I think I said, you change the numbers, they’re all tall, they make plays, they elevate.”

Goff will play his part in making that happen — and his workout Tuesday was by far his best of the first four days of training camp — but it sure would help if a couple of playmakers can emerge around him.

Gurley has a chance to lead the league in rushing in his second season and Tavon Austin is an ace on the perimeter and screen and run games.

But the Rams need to add some power and productivity on the outside, and a go-to target Goff — or Case Keenum if he wins the starting job — can turn to on a consistent basis.

Enter Williams and Higbee, a pair of rookies who certainly look the part of the a pair of must-have assets Goff and the Rams need to turn a morbid offense into a respectable one.

The 6-foot-6, 250-pound Higbee is a fourth-round tight end out of Western Kentucky whose already getting run with the first-team offense. Higbee was considered a second-round talent before getting arrested April 10 on suspicion of second-degree assault, evading police and public intoxication after an altercation outside a bar in Kentucky that left Nawaf Alsaleh, 24, unconscious and bleeding from the mouth.

Higbee’s next court hearing is in September.

“I made a mistake and it’s something I’m still learning from,” Higbee said. “But it’s also something I’m not going to let define me. I’m just moving on.”

On the field, he’s unusually fast for his size and is easy to spot cutting across the field. And over the first four days of camp has shown an ability to get open and make himself a big target for Goff and Keenum.

“I’m just trying to get better every day,” said Higbee

Said Fisher: “Better every day. … Made a lot of plays, acted like he’s played before.”

Not thinking too far ahead, but the skill-set is there to be a match-up nightmare for smaller linebackers and safeties.

Williams, an undrafted free agent out of Auburn, adds a commodity sorely missing on the Rams the last few years. A big, fast, physical wide receiver who can take the top off a defense and make plays in the red zone. At 6-2, 215 pounds, that’s the sort of package Williams brings.

And he’s already opening eyes.

“I like Duke,” said Rams cornerback Trumaine Johnson.”Just a big wide receiver. I like Duke a lot.”

For Williams, the positive day Tuesday followed a dreadful Sunday afternoon in which he dropped five passes. That’s not exactly the kind of impression you want to make trying to fight your way from the very bottom the roster.

Especially when you arrive with the kind of baggage Williams is carrying. Two years ago he was considered one of the best NFL wide receiver prospects in the country, but his reputation and draft status took a beating after a series of off-field incidents and rules violations got him kicked off the team at Auburn.

“Just complete immaturity on my part,” Williams said. “But it’s behind me. I look at life completely different now. All of that stuff, it’s in the past.”

Nevertheless, his amends weren’t enough to repair his reputation. He went undrafted as a result. In a low-risk, high-reward roll of the dice, the Rams signed him as a free agent on a prove-it or move-on basis.

“Duke came in, knew he had a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity based on some of the things that happened in his history,” said Fisher. “We gave him the opportunity. He took advantage of it. Went off in the summer, came back, took a lot of weight off.”

Only for him to drop everything in sight the first chance he got on Sunday.

“It was a day I just had to mentally take on,” Williams said.

But it ate at him the rest of Sunday.

“It was in my head since since it happened,” he said. “It was like, ‘I can’t have a day like that again. I’m hurting myself, I’m hurting the offense. I’m hurting my teammates.’”

He rose out of bed on Monday determined to change the narrative, then went into beast mode during physical special teams practice in which me made like a battering ram against anyone he encountered.

“We saw a different side of Duke,” said Austin.

The momentum carried over into Tuesday, with Williams fighting to get open and hanging onto the ball whenever targeted.

“It’s just learn from my mistakes,” he said. “Today I came out and dominated. I had to come out here and forget about those drops, put them behind be. Nobody wants to drop a ball.”

As a result, on a day the defense was supposed to own it was the offense commanding the action.