tweets & articles & photos from camp day 1, 7/29

As camp opens, Trumaine Johnson knows the end is near between him and Rams

By RICH HAMMOND

link: http://www.ocregister.com/2017/07/29/as-camp-opens-trumaine-johnson-knows-the-end-is-near-between-him-and-rams/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

IRVINE — Trumaine Johnson wore a Rams jersey Saturday. He talked about winning games for the Rams. He signed a couple hundred autographs for Rams fans, and even greeted one who heckled him.

Yet there’s a subtext now clear to everyone. Johnson won’t be with the Rams after this season.

The Rams, for a second consecutive offseason, tagged Johnson as their franchise player, a designation that included a guaranteed one-year contract worth almost $17 million. Johnson often said he hoped to sign a long-term contract with the Rams, but that deadline quietly passed on July 17.

“I wanted it. I wanted it big-time,” Johnson said. “I believe the Rams are going in a different direction at the end of the season, and that’s out of my control. So I’m here, and I’m putting my jersey on, and I’m still lacing up my cleats. I’m happy. I’m here to win games and help this team win games.”

On a day when star defensive tackle Aaron Donald officially began his training-camp holdout, as his agent negotiates a new, massive contract, the Rams welcomed Johnson, even if things are a bit awkward.

A divorce between the Rams and Johnson, their top cornerback, is imminent, but the first day of camp at UC Irvine showed that the sides seemed to have reached an understanding. The Rams will pay Johnson well — nearly $17 million — and he be a good teammate and won’t verbally snipe at the team.

That’s not to say Johnson is thrilled. Asked, in several different ways, about his mindset, Johnson said, “I’m here to win games,” a phrase he repeated eight times in a four-minute interview.

“Overall, any player would want a long-term deal,” Johnson said. “I just didn’t get one. I’m not about to feel sorry for myself or be mad at it and be selfish about it. It’s not about me. It’s about this team and winning games. That’s what I’m here for.”

Johnson could have become a free agent after the 2015 season, but the Rams used their franchise tag on him then, and again in 2016. In the process, the Rams lost starting cornerback Janoris Jenkins to free agency, but made it clear they hoped to sign Johnson, a Stockton native, to a new contract.

It appears that never got close. Rams officials said, during the offseason, that they wanted to wait to see how Johnson “fit” in the team’s new defense before they made a long-term commitment, and no deal got done after OTA practices ended in June.

The Rams technically could resume contract talks with Johnson after the final game of this season, but that seems unlikely, especially to Johnson. Asked why he believed, so firmly that the Rams are going in a different direction, Johnson told a reporter, “You’re smart. You’re very smart, man. I mean, come on.”

The disappointment didn’t seem to impact Johnson on the field Saturday. He celebrated with teammates during what was a strong practice for the Rams’ defensive backs, and at one point, during a break of practice, Johnson caught ear of a fan who heckled him to “earn his money.”

Johnson walked over to the fan and shook his hand, then spent nearly 30 minutes after practice signing autographs for fans who lined the field.

“I like playing with the fans,” Johnson said. “I don’t mind it at all. I like interaction, bad or good. I don’t let that phase me at all. I smile and give them a handshake. `God bless you.’ It’s all good.”

NO SHOW

As expected, Donald did not attend Saturday’s practice and officially has been listed by the Rams as “active/did not report.” Coach Sean McVay said he did not have any update on the Rams’ negotiations with Donald.

“Any time your best player is not there, you always would feel better if he was,” McVay said, “but I don’t think the players were affected by it. We certainly would love to have Aaron here. That’s something we’re constantly working on to try to resolve and find a solution, but I don’t think him (not) being here affected guys’ ability to compete and try to be their best today.”

PHOTOS: Rams Training Camp Day 1

http://www.therams.com/photos/photo-gallery/PHOTOS-Rams-Training-Camp-Day-1/e3c4f39d-ac47-4316-b4b6-1ada084f992f

Day One of the Rams new season has a soap opera feel

By VINCENT BONSIGNORE

link: http://www.ocregister.com/2017/07/29/day-one-of-the-rams-new-season-has-a-soap-opera-feel/

July 29, 2017 at 10:04 pm
The day should have been all about new head coach Sean McVay officially putting his imprint on the Rams and the progress of second-year quarterback Jared Goff and all those shiny new pieces added through the draft and free agency.

But when the Rams opened training camp Saturday at UC Irvine, the focus was instead on the very important piece to their puzzle that wasn’t there and the lock down cornerback who showed up in mind but perhaps not spirit.

That would be All-Pro defensive lineman Aaron Donald and cornerback Trumaine Johnson. The former is officially a camp hold out mired in a contract dispute while the later has sized up his own contract situation and decided his Rams future is rapidly coming to an end.
And in Johnson’s case, he wasn’t shy Saturday about saying so out loud.

It didn’t exactly turn the bright blue skies hovering over UC Irvine ugly. But the Rams obviously have two tenuous situations on their hands that need attending and managing. And if they don’t do it deftly, they could pay a steep price.

The absence of Donald wasn’t a major jolt, of course. His hold out was established the day before when he didn’t report with the rest of the Rams veterans, the result of months of contract talks that haven’t yet yielded an acceptable new contract. And while there is strong indication both the club and player are determined to find the common ground necessary to keep Donald in the Rams fold for a very long time, there are enough complicated dynamics and nuances involved in this kind mega NFL contract that the finish line may not come into focus anytime soon.

Especially with the situation coming to a head a bit earlier than anticipated. Donald still has two years remaining on his rookie contract, but he’s played so above and beyond the value of the contract over his first three seasons he earned a bigger payday sooner than anyone originally imagined.

Still, there doesn’t appear any panic that something won’t eventually get done.

Yet, anyway.

Johnson, on the other hand, is a bit more complicated and potentially dangerous.

The two-year contract dance he’s done with the Rams hasn’t resulted in the long-term marriage he hoped for. And just as he played last year under the franchise tag distinction he’ll do so again this year.

He’s hardly happy with the prospect, making it abundantly clear Saturday he desperately wanted a long-term deal with the Rams.

“I wanted it big time,” Johnson said.

The lack of securing one after taking two bites at the apple isn’t lost on Johnson, and he can only draw one conclusion as a result.

The way he sees it, the Rame no longer view him as a long-range asset. And as far as he’s concerned, there’s really no point in pretending that isn’t the case.

“I believe that Rams are going in a different direction at the end of the season,” Johnson said, matter-of-factly.

And what leads him to believe that, he was asked.

“You’re smart,” he told the questionnaire.

He didn’t have to explain anything further.

Two straight offseasons without a long-term contract – including the last one in which the Rams openly admitted they wanted to assess Johnson’s fit under new defensive coordinator Wade Phillips during OTA’s before even entertaining negotiations on one – have gone nowhere fast.

That doesn’t happen by accident.

So in Johnson’s mind, it means the Rams aren’t interested in keeping him around beyond next season.

There are mathematical reasons in play as well as practical, of course.

By this time next offseason the Rams should have Donald under contract long term – and the major upgrade in pay to go with it – and emerging middle linebacker Alec Ogletree will be a high priority to lock down long term too.

There’s only so much money to go around under the iron clad salary cap structure of the NFL, and difficult decisions have to be made in order to fit the priority pieces of the puzzle within the payroll guidelines.

Johnson, who followed a seven-interception season in 2015 with a one-pick season in 2016 may have played his way out of a priority spot. At least with the Rams.

He seems resigned to that reality.

And for now, he is handling it professionally. At least outwardly.

“I’m here, still playing football, still lacing up my cleats still putting the Rams jersey on,” he said. “I’m blessed. I’m here to win football games, that’s my goal. Point simple blank.

“I’m not going to be selfish about it,” he added. “It’s not about me. It’s about this team and winning games. And that’s what I’m here for.”

As long as that remains Johnson’s mindset, he and the Rams can co-exist through 2017 and then part ways next March. And who knows, with Johnson knowing he’s auditioning for 31 other teams the Rams could get the best of him they’ve ever seen. Certainly the most motivated.

But words and feelings have a way of changing as seasons unfold. Who knows what tune Johnson will be singing if the Rams struggle again this year or his play takes a step back or his role gets diminished?

What’s manageable on the last day of July might be unacceptable come October.

At the very least, it bears monitoring.

That, prospect, coupled with a contract situation with Donald no one can guarantee will end happily, shouldn’t be the focus on the first day of a new year.

But it was.

Five Takeaways from Day 1 of Training Camp

Myles Simmons

http://www.therams.com/news-and-events/article-1/Five-Takeaways-from-Day-1-of-Training-Camp/db031a2d-0a09-4db8-ba28-f5dab964df70

The Rams began training camp with a lively practice on Saturday afternoon. Here are five takeaways from the session.

1) Everyone was amped

It might be obvious to say, but there was a lot of energy for the first training camp practice of Sean McVay’s tenure as Rams head coach. Because the players were not yet in pads, McVay said the session felt comparable to what the club was doing during OTAs and minicamp. But the fans provided a different energy to the action.

“I thought it was a great atmosphere out here,” McVay said.

“First day out here, however many fans we had, it was awesome,” quarterback Jared Goff said. “I think I speak for a lot of guys, everyone was a little bit anxious, everybody’s going a little bit fast. It was a good first day of camp.”

It wasn’t the first time McVay’s been on the field with the team as its head coach, but the first day of training camp did represent a checkpoint on the calendar as the regular season gets closer.

“I think going back to the team meeting last night and thinking back to our first team meeting in the offseason program, it feels like it is a little bit closer to reality,” McVay said. “That September 10th date and then getting to play the Cowboys in the preseason opener is really what you do this for and I think everybody has got a little bit more excitement.”

2) Johnson aiming to help the Rams win

Cornerback Trumaine Johnson will be playing the 2017 season under the franchise tag for the second year in a row. Once the July negotiating deadline passed, that became official.

Speaking to the media for the first time since, Johnson was asked about his contract situation. While he acknowledged being disappointed about not receiving a long-term deal, he said his mindset hasn’t changed.

“I’m here, still playing football. I’m still lacing up my cleats. I’m still putting my 22 jersey on,” Johnson said. “I’m blessed. I’m here to win games — that’s my goal. Point, simple, blank — I’m here to win games. I’m not worried about after the season. I’m here right now and my focus is on winning games.”

“Any player would want a long-term deal. I just didn’t get one,” Johnson added. “I’m not about to feel sorry for myself, be mad at it, and be selfish about it. It’s not about me — it’s about this team and winning games. And that’s what I’m here for.”

Wide receiver Tavon Austin went against Johnson in a few one-on-one drills during Saturday’s practice and said he hadn’t noticed any difference in the cornerback.

“Tru’s always going to be solid,” Austin said. “I feel like he doesn’t let anything else get to him when he’s on the field. We just play football, just like everybody else out there. That’s the main thing I like about Tru.”

3) Goff opening it up early

One noticeable element of practice was Goff throwing a number of deep passes. As one reporter pointed out during the quarterback’s press conference, that wasn’t really the case early on during last year’s training camp.

“We did a bunch in one-on-ones and I threw, I think, a couple during team [drills],” Goff said. “It’s a big part of my game and part of my game I like to think I’m pretty good at. I enjoy throwing the ball deep.”

Still, Goff acknowledged he’ll have to get the timing down with his receivers on those deep throws. He noted that with the first day of camp, his adrenaline was running and that may have been a factor for a couple of overthrows.

Nevertheless, there was one deep crossing route to wideout Robert Woods where Goff put just enough touch on it to get the ball over the defense and into the hands of his target. That play was likely a product of the time Goff and Woods put in during the summer, working out together in order to build chemistry.

4) Changing the terminology

Running back Todd Gurley kept it simple on Saturday when asked to take stock of what’s gone on in his first two seasons.

“It’s football. Everybody that’s been playing football [in the NFL], we’ve been playing our whole lives,” Gurley said. “It’s football — you catch it, you don’t turn it over, you score points, and you stop people from scoring points. That’s about it, honestly.”

True as that may be, when there’s a new head coach implementing a new offense, there’s plenty to learn — the different terminology being one example.

“Yeah, obviously this is a whole new system. We just had that five or six weeks off, so obviously things are rusty to everybody,” Gurley said. “That’s why we are having training camp and we are in meetings all day every day and on the field. We all made mistakes today. We’re going to learn from them and come back out here and make sure that we don’t make the same mistakes that we did yesterday and just keep getting better.”

It’s early and players are not in pads, so take the following with a grain of salt. But the offensive line created what appeared to be a few solid holes for the running back to rush through during the first practice on Saturday afternoon.

5) No update on Donald

Defensive lineman Aaron Donald remains absent from training camp as the Rams negotiate with his representatives on a contract extension. McVay said after Saturday’s session that there was no update as to when Donald may be back.

“I’m sure that when I go back and talk to [general manager) Les [Snead], [E.V.P of football operations] Kevin [Demoff], and [senior assistant] Tony [Pastoors] they’ve probably been in contact with [Donald’s representatives,” McVay said. “As of right now, we’re keeping those things in house and we’re optimistic and we’re really striving to find a solution to this.”