One week in, Fisher likes what he sees
By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football/professional/one-week-in-fisher-likes-what-he-sees/article_d0489633-f238-5e6e-9657-abbd69bc9fa6.html
With a week of training camp under their belts and the Lindenwood scrimmage come and gone, the focus shifts and the intensity ratchets up for the Rams this coming week.
“It’s a week already?” said linebacker James Laurinaitis. “You just lose track of days. I don’t even know what day it is anymore.”
Beginning with Friday’s preseason opener in Oakland, the Rams have a game every week — with the exception of their bye in mid-October — for the next 21 weeks. The team departs Thursday for the West Coast and will be gone for a week, following up the Raiders’ exhibition opener with three days of practice in the Los Angeles area — including two days of sessions with the Dallas Cowboys.
So far, so good says coach Jeff Fisher.
“We haven’t played anybody else yet, and I’m not going to put a lot of stake in the first preseason game, but I’m pleased with where we are,” Fisher said.
In particular, Fisher said he was pleased with the decline in practice penalties compared to last year in camp.
“That’s a point of emphasis for us,” Fisher said. “We’re not having the false-start things — the frequency of them that we’ve had over the years. And then, just the discipline things down the field with the contact, and the holding, and the hands to the face. All those things that we emphasize. So that’s encouraging for me.”
Fisher made those comments prior to Friday’s work at Lindenwood, and perhaps he spoke too soon. The Rams brought in some college referees to work the Lindenwood session, and gave them plenty of reason to throw their flags Friday.
There were numerous false starts and offsides penalties, and overall it was a sloppy practice before a crowd estimated at 4,000. There were also lots of dropped passes, many more than have been seen on the practice fields earlier in camp at Rams Park.
After couple of the drops, and what was generally sputtering work by the offense, a “boo” or two could be heard from the fans at Harlen C. Hunter Stadium, home of Lindenwood’s NCAA Division II Lions.
Fisher, in a good mood to begin with Friday after the contract extension for quarterback Nick Foles, gave the Rams an “E” for effort at Lindenwood.
“I just saw a lot of hard work, a lot of focus, a lot of concentration,” he said. “We executed well, protected each other. Didn’t have any physical issues out there. We just practiced hard, and it was a good night.
“It was great to have the fans. It was a really good group of people that were out, and I’d like to think they saw some good things.”
As usual, Foles saw lots of things from the Rams’ defense. Perhaps spurred on by the stadium setting and extra fans, the defense — particularly the pass rush — looked even more menacing than usual.
Obviously, full contact with the quarterback isn’t allowed in practice, but Foles has gotten plenty of work operating with hands in his face, defenders coming at him and the pocket collapsing.
That’s a byproduct not only of the talent on the defensive front, but also the blitzing schemes of defensive coordinator Gregg Williams — schemes which are worked on with, uh, regularity on the practice field.
Foles has no complaints.
“It’s awesome,” he said. “It’s great for a quarterback. It’s great for our offense to go against pressure like that. As a quarterback, your eyes have to really see what’s going on. You have to recognize it.
“It’s a lot of different looks. It’s great for me. It’s great for our young O-line, and great for our receivers for their route-running. We’re helping them out, they’re helping us out, and that’s what you want. We’re sharpening each other up.”
That young O-line Foles referred to saw a lot of defensive tackle Aaron Donald on Friday, usually running by them into the backfield. The NFL’s defensive rookie of the year was a blur, be it stuffing running plays or harassing Foles.
“I’m just trying to do my job, you know,” Donald said, almost with a shrug. “Trying to work together. We’re out there getting each other better.”
The troubles with the defensive front notwithstanding, Fisher likes what he’s seen from the team’s young blockers so far in camp.
“You can look at our right tackle (Rob Havenstein) and right guard (Jamon Brown) right now, and they look like they’ve been here for a while, and that’s good,” Fisher said. “That’s good to have that feeling inside that you have confidence in both Rob and JB that they can line up and play. And it shows with the pads on.”
With the exception of cornerback E.J. Gaines, who may have a plantar fascia (foot) issue, the Rams are in good shape injury-wise so far. They’re a little light at the moment at corner because Brandon McGee is sidelined again with a foot injury that plagued him during the OTAs in June. But it could be a lot worse.
Foles is getting the playbook down as the Rams go through their second installation of the offense; the first came during OTAs. And to anyone watching the Lindenwood practice, it is clear that Foles is quickly developing a rapport with tight end Jared Cook. He looks his way often.
“He’s making me look good out there with the catches that he’s making,” Foles said. “He has a great feel when he’s running routes. He’s got a big catch radius. He’s a guy that we’re gonna have to get the ball to, but we’re gonna spread the ball around.
“We have a lot of playmakers on offense, and the guys are doing a really great job. We’re still getting comfortable. We’re still bonding, so that’s what camp’s about.”
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Agamemnon
