Hayes close to return after offseason in body shop
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football/professional/hayes-close-to-return-after-offseason-in-body-shop/article_95d30210-8ff8-5de1-9d48-201136743da1.html
Let’s hope William Hayes got a volume discount, because he’s recovering from not one, not two, but three offseason operations.
As defensive line coach Mike Waufle tells his players, they’re like high performance sports cars. “And you’ve got to have those Porsches fine-tuned,” Waufle said.
After all the surgery on Hayes, Waufle joked, “He’s got a new body. A new frame. He’s got a new set of wheels. He’s got a new engine. He got a complete overhaul. So he’s excited.”
And ready for another 100,000 miles.
“My body’s just been beat up a little the past two years,” Hayes said. “So I just wanted to go into this season healthy. And I feel great right now. I feel probably better than I did since my third year in the NFL.”
Hayes, 29, had relatively routine surgery on both his collarbone and ankle in January. Then came the big one — hip surgery. Specifically a labrum tear in the hip that led to groin issues.
The kicker in all this is that Hayes says the hip has been bothering him since he signed a free-agent deal with the Rams before the 2012 season.
“I’ve had that torn labrum probably the last three years, and I just played through it,” Hayes said.
Which makes his production all the more impressive in 2012 (seven sacks, 38 tackles) and 2013 (five sacks, 36 tackles, one interception). Hayes said he didn’t want to let his teammates down by missing playing time.
“So I just wanted to fight through it,” Hayes said.
Hayes considered hip surgery between the 2012 and 2013 seasons but decided to put it off.
“But last year it got to the point where I just couldn’t go through another season like that,” Hayes said. “Before the games, just feeling the tightness in my groin was killing me. Every time I was running I felt like I was about to snap a testicle. No joke.”
Doesn’t sound pleasant, does it?
So Hayes’ offseason was constant rehab and training for the upcoming season whether he was in St. Louis, which was most of the time, or back home in North Carolina, where he had a trainer. Or up to New York to visit doctors.
“So I really haven’t had a break this offseason,” Hayes said. “I wanted to make sure I came in healthy. That was my biggest issue.”
His only getaway was a trip to see teammate Robert Quinn in the Pro Bowl, which was made before the hip operation. Hayes went on his own dime.
“For me, I felt like it was a privilege to go see him do his thing,” Hayes said. “If Chris Long goes there next year, I’ll go again.”
Hayes said he could practice tomorrow if the training staff and coaches would let him. But they’re slowly phasing him in, and Hayes should get some preseason game work in before the season opener Sept. 7 against Minnesota.
Hayes has done individual drill work in practice but no team periods so far in camp. On Tuesday, the first day in pads for the full squad, Hayes worked on the side for about 10 to 15 minutes, going up against both left tackle Jake Long — who’s working his way back from knee surgery — and starting right tackle Joe Barksdale.
“At the end of the day, the big thing is getting ready for Minnesota,” Hayes said. “I know I’ll be ready for Week 1. There’s no question about that. Like I said, I feel like I can easily go practice right now and it wouldn’t be an issue.”
Hayes spent his first four NFL seasons in Tennessee, playing for Jeff Fisher there in 2008, ’09 and ’10. (Fisher was gone, taking a year off from football in 2011.) As a highly productive third defensive end, he rates as the best free-agent pickup for the Rams during Fisher’s three seasons here.
“Once he crosses that white line, he’s got a little bit more of a nasty, aggressive attitude that the guys love and feed off of,” Waufle said. “Everybody’s a starter once they get out there and that’s the way we look at it with him also.”
Hayes can be a jokester in the meeting room and the locker room. But he’s also one of the emotional leaders on the team when he’s on the field. What makes Hayes successful on the field?
“It’s temperament, No. 1,” Waufle said. “And the second thing, he’s so strong. And he’s versatile. You can play him all over the place. And we do.”
Hayes has been very effective for the Rams sliding inside to defensive tackle during passing situations over the past two seasons. And there’s no reason to think that won’t be the same in 2014, now that Hayes has had his 100,000-mile overhaul.
But none of Hayes’ goals for 2014 is personal in nature.
“I want to get in the postseason,” Hayes said. “That’s what it’s all about. I’m a team guy. I don’t care about accolades. If that was the case, I could have went somewhere and been the starter.
“I want to see this team grow. I want to see a big stride — like a huge leap. I want to win the division. I want to have a home (playoff) game.
“I just want to bring the pride back to St. Louis. That’s my biggest issue. Because that stadium can get to rockin’ if we get to winning. And that’s for sure.”
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