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Boudreau discusses Rams’ new-look OL
Aug 11, 2015 | 10:54 am
http://www.scout.com/nfl/rams/story/1572973-boudreau-discusses-rams-new-look-ol
ST. LOUIS — Rams offensive line coach Paul Boudreau expressed his surprise following Monday’s evening practice session that a group of reporters would be interested in speaking with him.
“Usually they talk to me after a bad sack day,” Boudreau joked.But the veteran line coach is in the spotlight this training camp as he works to get the Rams’ young and inexperienced group ready for the regular season.
Four players who started up front for last season’s regular season opener are no longer with St. Louis. In their place are two rookies in right tackle Rob Havenstein and right guard Jamon Brown, one second-year player in left tackle Greg Robinson and the three players competing for the center spot, Tim Barnes, Barrett Jones and Demetrius Rhaney.
“We have a bunch of young guys just learning how to play and the good thing is we drafted guys that are smart and tough, so that’s the first thing, and it’s kind of jelling together,” Boudreau told reporters. “It’ll be a good example to see how we’ve taught Friday night and the work against Dallas is going to be invaluable. We get tired of hitting ourselves and it’s a new defense, a new style of defense. The big thing is every day, just don’t take a step back — you either get better or you get worse. You never stay the same. Just try to keep working hard and find the good things and point them out.”
The Rams will open the four-game preseason schedule on the road against the Oakland Raiders on Friday and then head to Oxnard, Ca., to have joint practices with the Dallas Cowboys.
Those should help the young Rams — the coach noted that this is the deepest group they’ve had up front — get a good taste of what they are in for this season. But they are also getting good looks every day in practice against defensive coordinator Gregg Williams’ group, which features one of the best defensive lines in the league.
“We have more meeting time and we have more meetings, kind of walk-through meetings,” Boudreau said. “With Gregg’s defense, I don’t think they are going to face too much different as the course of the year goes along. He throws everything at you. The communication is the big thing, making sure you understand what the next guy to you is doing and making sure that even if we’re wrong we’re doing it the same way and we can adjust it.”
Boudreau said the first challenge the youngsters will face when making the transition to the NFL is the speed of the game.
He noted that while they may have faced a player the caliber of 2014 No. 1 overall draft pick Jadeveon Clowney in college, they wouldn’t have faced a player like that every single day like they will in the NFL.
“The other thing is the way the movement is,” Boudreau said. “If you’re coming from a team that runs the read-option and all those things where you are in a two-point stance, it is a major adjustment. So, luckily for us, Rob (Havenstein) coming out of Wisconsin has played in a pro offense. Louisville plays in a pro offense. So the guys we’ve drafted have played with their hand in the ground.
“It’s like Greg (Robinson) last year. It was an adjustment for him because Auburn played in a two-point stance all the time. Luckily for us, his line coach, J.B. Grimes, … every time they practiced they had their hand on the ground. That’s a big adjustment for these guys. Even from high school, some of these guys have never put their hand in the dirt.”
Robinson, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2014 Draft, started 12 games as a rookie a year ago, first at left guard but then at left tackle after Jake Long suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Still just 22 years old, Robinson is actually younger than some of the rookie offensive linemen the Rams drafted a few months ago. Boudreau likes the progression his starting left tackle has made.
“It’s like night and day,” he said. “Usually the biggest transition for a lineman is between that first year and the second year. The offseason is invaluable. You can’t see them until April anymore, but the fact that he was injured he was here every day, he was watching tape and it was really good for him because he was in the building. He didn’t go away and all of a sudden he comes back in April and he’s thinking about football. He was thinking about football every time he was in rehab.”
The offensive line coach noted the mental challenges Robinson faced as a rookie after playing in a more-simplified offensive scheme at Auburn.
“It’s well documented they had about six plays,” Boudreau said. “They had two slide protections and they had four runs and two of the runs he didn’t block anybody because it was read-zone. It was all new to him and we had to start from scratch. We had him at guard and it was probably a disservice to him. But the good thing for him was he used how to use his hands better because he was at guard, because when you have Justin Smith on your head you better get your hands up because he’s going to make you look bad.”
Now Robinson is one of the players with experience who is helping the rookies like Havenstein and Brown make the adjustment to the NFL and helping them learn the offense.
Those rookies have made a favorable impression on the veteran coach.
“Every day they do something to impress me,” Boudreau said. “Rob doesn’t say much. He’s serious as a heart attack. The good thing about Rob is in the offseason when we went on vacation they were here (and) he was having meetings in the room and they were going over the cutups that we had on the iPad. He’s kind of taken that role on. He and J.B. He and Jamon are working really well together.
“Jamon is physical as hell. He was at tackle but he’s really suited to be a guard. He’s got great quickness. Playing against Aaron (Donald) every day has helped him out as far as leverage and balance because Aaron doesn’t take a play off. So it’s really helped him. I even threw him at left guard yesterday just to see him pull and he pulled around on a power and just blew it up. So he gives me some flexibility (being) able to play on the left side as well.”
The rookies look like they have already secured their spots in the starting lineup, but the same can’t be said about the center spot.
Barnes, Jones and Rhaney have been rotating at that position with the first team throughout practice sessions and have been taking turns working with starting quarterback Nick Foles in drills.
Asked what he is looking for out of the player who emerges there, Boudreau said he wants to see improvement but also who can take the pressure off the quarterback by making the calls up front.
“So who’s gonna take control, who’s gonna get us in the right protection? That’s No. 1,” Boudreau said. “No. 2, it’s a leverage game. You can not get knocked back in the middle because the guys in the middle set the depth of the pocket. The tackles set the width. If you have a guy that’s not strong enough to play against the (Brandon) Mebanes of the world, you’re going to have an issue because you’re going to get flushed out of the pocket.”
The Rams don’t seem to be in a rush to pick a starting center. Those three players will continue to get opportunities in practices and in the preseason games to go out and win the job.
“I have confidence in whoever wins this job, it’s going to be because he earned it,” Boudreau said. “It’s not because of longevity or we drafted a guy. I don’t give a (crap) about that. Excuse me. It’s one of those deals where you get into the game and you want the best five up there. Who’s gonna keep it all calm? Who’s gonna make the right call? Who’s gonna make us get in the right protections as far as going in the game and knowing what to do?”
Boudreau noted that the Rams don’t have much experience with the players competing for that spot … or really anywhere else along the line.
“Timmy has played four games,” he said. “Barrett has played none. And Meech has played none. I’ve got one guy (Robinson) that’s played 12 games. One guy (Rodger Saffold) that’s played six years but he’s only been healthy one. I had Garrett (Reynolds) in Atlanta; he started 27 games for me. After that we’re a bunch of rooks. It’s going to be new for everybody and we’re gonna all learn together, but the good thing is the last two days we’ve made money. We’ve made money and I’m anxious to see how they go out there without us standing behind them in the huddle on Friday and playing some real football.”
This looks like the transcript to Boudreau’s missing video.
AgamemnonNice article. I enjoy reading Boudreau stuff.
I hate trying to spell his name though.Maybe they draft a Center next year
in the top rounds, if they cant
get much out of the three they have.w
vThey could. They have an extra 2cd round choice.
I think a healthy Jones will do fine. Maybe next year, Rhaney is the best center?
Agamemnonhttp://theramshuddle.com/topic/some-videos-looking-at-the-center-position/
This post contains all my stuff on centers. If you have to have an NFL body, then you will have to try to convert a physical guard to play center. It is hard to find or draft that type of player.
Agamemnonhttp://www.sprayberryfootball.com/page/show/292837-nfl-player-specs
NFL PLAYER SPECIFICATIONS ________________
The following are physical attributes, personality traits, and other characteristics for Offensive, Defensive, and Special Teams positions that professional scouts look for in draftees and recruits.
Adapted from Pro Football Weekly NFL Prototypes (Draft Guide 2011, Spring 2011).
AgamemnonSafeties 6’0″ 207.6
Linebackers 6’2″ 246.3
Defensive Tackles 6’3″ 309.8
Defensive Ends 6’4″ 283.1
Cornerbacks 5’11” 193.4
Centers 6’3″ 306.2
Tight Ends 6’4″ 254.7
Running Backs 5’11” 215.3
Guards 6’4″ 314.5
Quarterbacks 6’3″ 223.8
Wide Receivers 6’1″ 202.6
Offensive Tackles 6’5″ 313.5
This is from 2 years ago. These are NFL averages.
AgamemnonSt. Louis Rams
http://www.stlouisrams.com/news-and-events/article-1/Saffold-Robinson-Anchor-Left-Side/5f44d030-2f86-4847-b90d-5bbf5c8ad895
Saffold, Robinson Anchor Left SidePosted 20 minutes ago
Austin Lankford Digital Media Intern @AustinLankford3
The focus of the offensive line through training camp is mostly on its youth and whether the rookies on the right side will be ready for the season opener. But there is also a lot to be said about the left side, anchored by Rodger Saffold and Greg Robinson.
Saffold is heading into his sixth season with the Rams after playing most of last year with a bad shoulder. He underwent surgery during the offseason and is now feeling back to normal.
“It feels good, it really does and it’s definitely a burden off my shoulders,” Saffold said. “It’s good not having to worry about it. It was always something where if my arm was twisted a certain way it would just go out on its own without even the slightest pressure. It was always in the back of my mind and it’s going to be great this year to see what I can do with two arms instead of one.”
The left guard spent much of the offseason in St. Louis going through rehab, which resulted in a lot of time spent with Robinson who was nursing a toe injury.
“I watched him pay a lot of attention to what we did just in our own time in film study,” Saffold said of Robinson. “I think he’s learning a lot more and I expect to see a big improvement out of him. And if they put me next to him, then I plan on helping him out so we can really lock down on that left side.”
Head coach Jeff Fisher spoke after Sunday’s practice about the importance of linemen being able to effectively communicate and said the time Saffold and Robinson spent together will benefit everyone.
Fisher said Robinson spent ample time with offensive line coach Paul T. Boudreau and OL assistant Andy Dickerson watching film and working on technique, which is putting him ahead entering 2015. Robinson played both guard and tackle his rookie season and the fact that he is able to focus solely on playing tackle this year will help.
Boudreau explained that while Robinson was at Auburn, linemen essentially ran six plays. He described it as two slide protections and four runs and Robinson didn’t block in two of them because it was a zone read. A pro-style scheme was brand new to Robinson last year, but he has come a long way.
“It’s like night and day,” Boudreau said. “And usually, the biggest transition for a lineman is between that first year and the second year — the offseason is invaluable. You can’t see them until April anymore, but the fact that he was injured [meant] he was here every day. He was watching tape and it was really good for him because he was in the building. He didn’t go away and then all of a sudden in April he comes back and he’s thinking about football. He was thinking about football every time he was in rehab.”
Offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti praised Robinson for the dedication and progress he has made heading into his second season.
“You just look at the difference a year makes for these young guys, and you look at Greg and he’s in great shape,” Cignetti said. “Once again, he put in the time and effort in the offseason and the summer time. Coach Boudreau and coach Dickerson have done a great job with Greg, as has [head trainer] Reggie Scott. And you see it carry over out here on the field.”
Robinson said he came to an agreement with himself that staying in St. Louis for most of the offseason was the best option in terms of physically preparing for the season. Saffold played a crucial role in helping his fellow lineman along the way.
“That was very positive and Rodger is a great teammate,” Robinson said. “I appreciate the work he put in as far as pushing me in the weight room and challenging me to stay a little extra during the offseason.”
Both Robinson and Saffold were limited in OTAs due to their injuries so the reps they are getting together during training camp are valuable. It seems as if the guard and tackle are gaining ground heading into the preseason.
“This is probably the strongest that me and Greg have ever been,” Saffold said. “For me to have that shoulder surgery and then come back and be able to do the things I’m used to doing, and for him to be able press and get that toe better, there’s a lot of good stuff happening. We’re still getting a lot of the rust off and it’s still only been a week since we started playing again, but I have nothing but high hopes for the future. As long as he trusts what I’m doing and I trust what he’s doing we’ll be good.”
Agamemnon
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