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Rams rookie DT Aaron Donald shares his appreciation for working alongside veterans Chris Long and Robert Quinn throughout the offseason.
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Greg Robinson talks about his familiarity of the playbook, preparing for training camp and adjusting to the speed of the game.
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No summer vacation for first-rounders Robinson, Donald• By Jim Thomas
Among the Rams’ 2014 draft class, seventh-rounder Michael Sam has garnered more headlines than anyone because of the history-making nature of his quest to become the first openly-gay player to make an NFL regular-season roster.
But when all is said and done, first-rounders Greg Robinson and Aaron Donald will have much more to say about the success of the Rams this season and beyond.
And after the traditional NFL summer break following the conclusion of practices in June, offensive lineman Robinson and defensive tackle Donald reported for training camp this week raring to go.
As is the case with most NFL players, there really wasn’t much of a break during their time away from Rams Park.
Donald said he took a grand total of three days off to relax with his family, including a brief stop in Toledo, Ohio, to visit his brother Archie.
“I went jet-skiing,” Donald said.
(Yes, nothing says “summer vacation” better than jet-skiing in Toledo.)
Other than that, it was all work for Donald back in his hometown of Pittsburgh, working with a local trainer.
“It was a lot of speed work, lot of explosive stuff,” Donald said.
As if he needed to get any quicker.
Donald was so impressive during workouts in June that offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer called him the team’s defensive MVP of the spring. Donald picked up where he left off during the Rams’ rookie practices Tuesday and Wednesday at Rams Park.
To a large degree, Donald was unblockable during one-on-one pass-blocking drills Wednesday. Try as they might, a handful of reporters couldn’t get Donald to brag about himself.
When it was playfully suggested that perhaps Wednesday’s drill was designed to let Donald through untouched, he just chuckled.
As for the Schottenheimer remarks, Donald said: “I didn’t hear it. It’s a good thing just to see that the coaches are starting to see me on the field.”
Oh, they see him all right, and can’t wait to have Donald take his turn in what potentially could be a formidable defensive tackle rotation. Donald’s summer work was designed to help him make the most of his opportunities once the games began.
He did “band” work, in which he worked on his “get-off” — those first steps off the line of scrimmage with the equivalent of a huge rubber-band tied to him to provide resistance.
“We tied it around my ankles. We tied it around my waist. We did a lot of crazy stuff,” Donald said. “Once you take (the band) off, you feel a lot faster. That’s the point of doing it.”
Donald’s summer training regimen also included long-distance running for conditioning, and “parachute” work to help with quickness. (Like a smaller version of the parachutes used to stop high-speed jets when they land.)
“I know we did a lot of barbaric stuff,” Donald said. “If you’d seen it, you wouldn’t believe the stuff we did.”
As for Robinson, he did a lot of traveling over the Rams’ summer break, but it didn’t involve smoking cigars and drinking cocktails on a beach. He split his training time doing work in Oregon, Houston, Florida and his hometown of Thibodaux, La.
Robinson’s month-long break from Rams Park began with work at a Bo Jackson Nike facility in Oregon. Next, he headed down to south Florida, where Rams rookie running back Tre Mason is from, to work out with his former Auburn teammate.
Then came Houston to work with offensive tackle Trent Williams. a two-time Pro Bowler for Washington and former teammate of Sam Bradford at Oklahoma. Williams also was at the Nike facility, hit it off with Robinson and then invited Robinson to work out with him in Houston. Williams is a Texas native. The “facility” where Robinson and Williams worked out wasn’t one of those high-tech performance institutes.
“It was at a junior high,” Robinson said. “We just needed the field. It was pretty cool. I learned a lot from him.”
There was nothing fancy about the Florida workout venue with Mason, either. Robinson called it, “just a little field. … It don’t matter where you get (the workout) in, as long as you get it in.”
Last stop in the Robinson training tour was Thibodaux.
“When I went back home, I just did my own thing (training-wise) and did what I was instructed to do by Coach Rock,” Robinson said.
Every Rams player leaves Rams Park for the summer break with a set of personalized instructions on what they need to work on, compliments of strength coach Rock Gullickson and the Rams’ athletic training staff.
Overall, Robinson said, “there were a lot of different things I worked on, but it was good to just work with different people and learn from multiple people. Some of it was just doing cardio, just trying to stay in shape, and some was more offensive line drills.”
Mentally, Robinson said his head was spinning during earlier practices, not just because of the switch to guard but also learning the playbook. Pass protection schemes can be complex in the NFL, and Auburn did very little passing while Robinson was there.
“It was something new for me, and I did struggle,” Robinson said. “But now I’m at the point where I just stop thinking and just play. It started out kind of difficult but now I’m starting to pick up the plays a lot better.”
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Road show prepared Rams’ Robinson for campAP – Sports
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/road-show-prepared-rams-robinson-235217705–nfl.html
ST. LOUIS (AP) — Greg Robinson didn’t stay put the month after the St. Louis Rams cut players loose in mid-June. Wherever he was, the second overall pick of the draft stayed in preparation mode for training camp.
”It was good to just work with different people and learn from multiple people,” Robinson said Wednesday. ”It doesn’t matter where you’re getting it in as long as you get it in.”
The 6-foot-5, 332-pound Robinson was a key component in Auburn’s national runner-up season at left tackle and figures as immediate help at guard for the Rams (7-9).
After OTAs ended in mid-June, Robinson worked out a bit at home in Thibodaux, La. He spent time at Bo Jackson’s Nike camp at the University of Oregon, worked out with a trainer in Miami, Fla., and got pointers from Redskins Pro Bowl tackle Trent Williams in Houston.
Williams knows plenty about protecting Sam Bradford’s blind side, given they were Oklahoma teammates. The two met at the Nike camp.
”He’s a Pro Bowler so many years and he asked me to come out, so I thought it was a good idea,” Robinson said. ”It was pretty cool, I learned a lot from him.”
With Robinson leading the way, Auburn led the nation in rushing and had two players gain 1,000 yards for just the third time in school history. He’s still blocking for Tre Mason, a Heisman Trophy finalist drafted by the Rams in the third round.
Getting picked No. 2 has made Robinson the provider for a fractured family; his dad died in 2012 and two of his siblings have spent time in jail. Though his mother is pushing for a new house and an exit from a tough neighborhood, he’s patiently assessing options for upgrades across the board.
One exception might be the bling earrings he sported at the second rookie workout Wednesday.
”I’m not budging, I’m taking my time,” Robinson said. ”I’ve been talking to a lot of people as far as homes and stuff for my mom and buying cars for myself.
”I have the money to do it but I’m not rushing into anything.”
For now, the Robinson home has become a bit of a mecca. Fame and fortune can do that.
”Things are similar but I can see a difference, a lot of people surrounding the house and stuff like that,” Robinson said. ”It’s a great feeling that I did something positive and I inspired a lot of people.”
Now, he said, the priority is laying a foundation for his career. His future undoubtedly is at tackle, but for now he’s trying to become more comfortable at guard.
”It started out kind of difficult,” Robinson said. ”But now I’m starting to pick up the plays. Now, I’m at the point where I just stop thinking and just play.”
During the rookie workouts, Robinson often went against fellow first-rounder Aaron Donald, a defensive tackle. The two prepared for the combine working out in Arizona.
”We still crack a couple jokes and laugh,” Donald said. ”It’s good to get around guys like that, that I’m close to already.”
Veterans are due to arrive Thursday and the first full-squad workout is Friday afternoon.
NOTES: The Rams announced single-game tickets will go on sale Friday, plus a promotional schedule that includes honoring the 15th anniversary of the franchise’s lone Super Bowl championship team for the Monday night game against the 49ers on Oct. 13. There also will be Robert Quinn and James Laurinaitis bobble head giveaways.
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=============Donald already impressing at Rams camp
July, 24, 2014
By Nick Wagoner | ESPN.com
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/9850/donald-already-impressing-at-rams-camp
EARTH CITY, Mo. — The St. Louis Rams 2014 training camp hasn’t even officially begun, but rookie defensive tackle Aaron Donald already is drawing rave reviews.
Taking part in two practices with his rookie teammates earlier this week, Donald was an instant scene-stealer, especially when taking part in some one-on-one pass rush drills.
During a handful of snaps in Wednesday’s workout, Donald was so quick off the ball that there were moments it looked like some of the rookie linemen were going at walk-through speed while he was going at full speed. Only No. 2 overall pick Greg Robinson seemed to have any success consistently getting his hands on Donald, though even that didn’t slow him down much.
“We are definitely learning a lot,” Donald said. “When they say everybody in the NFL is good, so far I have been seeing that. Guys can move a lot better and once they get their hands on you, they’ve got you, so I’m just making sure I work on my technique so they can’t grab me and get their hands on me.”
Aaron Donald has impressed the Rams coaching staff since he was drafted in the first round in May.It’s probably safe to assume that when the veterans report for the actual first day of training camp on Friday, Donald will see more linemen who do get their hands on him and more consistently serve as more than a glorified speed bump on his way to the quarterback. The true test will come not only against the veteran linemen such as Rodger Saffold and Davin Joseph, but also when the pads come on next week.
Donald played so well during organized team activities that offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer named him one of the most impressive players on the field without solicitation. In the time since Donald departed from the offseason program, he doesn’t appear to have lost many steps.
Donald took three days off to go jet skiing at his brother Archie’s house in Toledo, Ohio. After that, he returned to Pittsburgh for what he calls “barbaric” workouts with a personal trainer. Those workouts included daily sessions consisting of everything from working with bands tied around his ankles, knees, feet and waist, to distance running for endurance, to working with a parachute for resistance training.
All of it was done with the intent to make Donald even quicker.
“(It was) a lot of different things, but helps me being more explosive,” Donald said. “We do a lot of stuff, a lot of crazy stuff.”
Beyond the conditioning and physical work, Donald also paid his usual precise detail to working with his hands. It’s been a borderline obsession for Donald since his time at Penn Hills High, just outside of Pittsburgh. There, Penn Hills defensive line coach Demond Gibson offered regular reminders of the importance of hand technique for defensive linemen.
Gibson knew the value of hand usage as well as anyone after a career in which he played college ball at Pittsburgh and spent some time with the New Orleans Saints in the NFL as well as stints in the CFL and AFL.
With Gibson helping him hone his technique even after going on to college, Donald has always been advanced in his ability to use his hands to gain an advantage. Although Donald is small compared to other defensive tackles at 6-feet and 285 pounds, his heavy hands combine with the aforementioned quickness and leverage to make him a tough block.
“It’s great (to have) hand speed, but at the same time I’ve got the jitters to juke, do a little move and use your hands, it always is going to get those big guys off you,” Donald said.
For a player who thoroughly dominated at the college level, Donald now faces his greatest challenge. The Rams are hopeful that the No. 13 overall pick in May’s draft can contribute right away, even if he’s not technically listed as a starter. In need of pass-rush help from interior of the line, Donald should get plenty of opportunities to get after quarterbacks right away, and he might even be able to avoid the constant double-teams teams threw at him at Pitt.
While Donald’s offseason performance has been enough to draw the attention of coaches and teammates, the soft-spoken Donald has remained focused on the task at hand.
“It’s a good thing just to know the coaches are starting to see me on the field,” Donald said.
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