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August 14, 2014 at 8:20 pm #4000
RamBillParticipantRams Camp Report: Day 15
By Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/10521/rams-camp-report-day-15EARTH CITY, Mo. — A daily review of the hot topics coming out of St. Louis Rams training camp:
The Rams continued to turn up the dial on the physical approach to practice Thursday as coach Jeff Fisher indicated they would earlier this week. Fisher said his team needs work on the run game and they certainly got that work in this practice. That’s been a familiar sight in the past two weeks as the Rams try to turn it up before the regular season arrives.
Some quick injury news. … Fisher said left tackle Jake Long will not play this week against Green Bay but they are targeting next week against Cleveland to get him some game action. That falls in line with the plan for him from the beginning. … Cornerback Janoris Jenkins got back to work Thursday and though he might not play this week, he went through team drills and is close to ready. … Rookie center Demetrius Rhaney had the scariest moment of the day when he stayed down after his knee buckled on a field goal drill. Rhaney had to be taken off on a golf cart. Fisher said the initial indication was that Rhaney’s injury wasn’t as serious as first feared but he would still need an MRI. … Fisher also said right guard Rodger Saffold is “close” to returning from a stinger injury.
On the field, there were some big plays and plenty of heavy collisions. Tight end Justice Cunningham continues to find himself in some of the bigger collisions in running drills. Lining up at fullback, Cunningham and end Eugene Sims had a train wreck during one drill in which the pads could be heard from about 100 yards away. Cunningham is certainly making his presence felt as a blocker. Quarterback Sam Bradford had a couple of nice hookups on deep balls, one down the sideline to receiver Brian Quick and another, better throw to tight end Lance Kendricks down the seam. Tight end Brad Smelley, who just joined the team earlier this week went up for a tough over the shoulder catch for a touchdown in the corner of the end zone.
Former NFL quarterback Jeff Blake, father of Rams receiver Emory Blake, attended Thursday’s practice. He had to be a proud papa when he saw the younger Blake rise up for the catch of the day, snatching a touchdown out of a Cody Davis and Marcus Roberson double team. Linebacker Ray-Ray Armstrong was quick to voice his displeasure with the defense’s inability to stop Blake.
Funny moment of the day: Quick tipped a ball to himself on a pass to the corner but came down out of bounds as the defense closed in around him. Tight end Jared Cook was nearby and quickly chastised Quick for not tipping the ball back to him. He was joking, of course but the delivery was perfect deadpan. Maybe you had to be there.
The Rams have no practice Friday as they finished preparations for Saturday’s preseason game against the Green Bay Packers.
August 14, 2014 at 9:28 pm #4010
znModeratorFisher said left tackle Jake Long will not play this week against Green Bay but they are targeting next week against Cleveland to get him some game action. That falls in line with the plan for him from the beginning. … Cornerback Janoris Jenkins got back to work Thursday and though he might not play this week, he went through team drills and is close to ready. … Rookie center Demetrius Rhaney had the scariest moment of the day when he stayed down after his knee buckled on a field goal drill. Rhaney had to be taken off on a golf cart. Fisher said the initial indication was that Rhaney’s injury wasn’t as serious as first feared but he would still need an MRI. … Fisher also said right guard Rodger Saffold is “close” to returning from a stinger injury.
The ups and downs of the long ongoing minor injury saga.
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August 14, 2014 at 9:46 pm #4014RamBillParticipantRams report: Fisher expects Bradford to play at least a quarter vs. Packers
• By Joe LyonsQuarterback Sam Bradford will see his first game action Saturday when the Rams take on the Green Bay Packers Saturday at 3 p.m. at the Edward Jones Dome.
“We’re going to play him a quarter, maybe more,” Rams coach Jeff Fisher said following Thursday’s training game session at Rams Park in Earth City. The practice drew 369 fans.
Bradford, who has looked strong in camp, hasn’t played since going down with a knee injury Oct. 20 against the Carolina Panthers.
Fisher expects cornerbacks Trumaine Johnson and Brandon McGee to play after sitting out the preseason opener against New Orleans. He’s no so sure about starting corner Janoris Jenkins, who returned to practice Thursday after missing a week and a half with a sore hamstring.
Fisher also said that left tackle Jake Long, coming off knee surgery, would not play until next weekend in Cleveland.
As expected, the Rams put a heavy emphasis on the run game during Thursday’s workout. Some key pass plays during practice included a 25-yarder down the right sideline from Bradford to Brian Quick and a well-placed pass down the middle from Bradford to tight end Lance Kendricks.
In the same “team” session, safety Rodney McLeod nearly picked off a Bradford pass intended for Quick and rookie free agent defensive end Ethan Westbrooks batted down an Austin Davis pass at the line of scrimmage.
During a field goal drill, rookie offensive linemen Demetrius Rhaney went down with a knee injury and was carted off. Fisher didn’t think it was serious but the Tennessee State product will get an MRI.
In a later “team” session, Bradford hooked up with Quick on a pass to the outside but then overthrows Kendricks on a pass picked off by McLeod. Tight end Brad Smelley showed some nice hands, coming down with a Shaun Hill pass in traffic.
Late in the practice, wideout Emory Blake came down with Garrett Gilbert pass between defenders Cody Davis and Marcus Roberson.
RAM-BLINGS
Longtime NFL quarterback Jeff Blake was at practice Thursday, getting a look at his son, receiver Emory. The elder Blake still looks like he’s in playing shape and said he still throws passes to Emory and nephews, but wants no part of getting hit anymore.
Jeff Blake, who also made a trip to watch the Rams in OTAs, spent 13 seasons in the NFL. He enjoyed his most success with Cincinnati, earning a Pro Bowl berth in 1995.
Emory Blake, who was on the practice squad a year ago, has looked good in camp and was among the Rams’ leading receivers against New Orleans with three catches for 41 yards.
“I think he’s finally starting to feel comfortable,” Jeff Blake said. “And once that happens, you can just go out and play football.”
• Former Rams tight end Ernie Conwell was also on hand Thursday.
• The Rams are down to two open-to-the-public workouts _ 3:30 p.m. Tuesday and 3:30 p.m. Wednesday.
• Demand is up slightly for Rams’ tickets on the secondary market according to StubHub. The Rams are 24th in sales this year after ranking 29th a year ago. The hottest tickets for Rams’ home games are Sept. 21 against the Dallas Cowboys and Nov. 16 against the Denver Broncos.
On the road, the biggest demand is the Nov. 2 contest at San Francisco.
A few other StubHub tidbits: Dallas is the top-selling team overall and for home games. The top-selling road squad is San Francisco.
The top-selling single game is the Sept. 7 contest featuring the 49ers at the Cowboys.
(Jim Thomas of the Post-Dispatch contributed to this report.)
August 14, 2014 at 10:28 pm #4020RamBillParticipant
Rams Day 15 Camp Report
Nate Latschhttp://stl.scout.com/2/1434150.html?
ST. LOUIS — The Rams got some good news Thursday with the return of cornerback Janoris Jenkins to the practice field after dealing with a recent hamstring injury and may have escaped injury to rookie offensive lineman Demetrius Rhaney.
Rhaney, one of the Rams’ seventh-round picks, was injured while blocking during a field goal session late in practice and had to be taken off the field on a cart. But Rams coach Jeff Fisher said after practice that the injury wasn’t as serious as it may have looked at first.“All indications right now are preliminary that Demetrius is going to be OK, which is encouraging,” Fisher said. “We’ll have to do an MRI but it looks like the interior of the knee is good, so that’s good news.”
Rhaney has been working as the Rams’ third-string center recently, behind Scott Wells and Tim Barnes, because Barrett Jones is still out with an undisclosed injury. After Rhaney went down on Thursday, the Rams used Mike Person as the third-string center.
• Fisher said that left tackle Jake Long would not make his preseason debut on Saturday against the Packers.
“I’m going to wait another week for Jake,” he said. “Jake’s doing a great job out here, but we’re going to wait another week for Jake and that’ll be the case with a couple other guys.
• Defensive tackle Kendall Langford and running back Isaiah Pead got some good work at practice. Offensive lineman Rodger Saffold and defensive end William Hayes both remain out with injuries but did get some work on the side.
• Among the players who remained out of action because of injuries were middle linebacker James Laurinaitis, defensive tackle Michael Brockers, offensive linemen Jones and Brandon Washington, safety Matt Daniels, cornerback Darren Woodard and fullback Kadeem Jones.
• Fisher announced that quarterback Sam Bradford would play at least one quarter on Saturday against Green Bay.
“Well, we’re going to play him a quarter maybe a little bit more and (look) for him to continue doing the same things he’s doing out here, push the ball down the field,” Fisher said. “It’s an opportunity to work against someone else and work with our receivers that he’s been working very well with right now. ”
Bradford had some nice throws during 11-on-11 work on Thursday, including a toss down the seam to Lance Kendricks and a strong throw to Brian Quick along the right sideline. He also had an overthrown ball that Rodney McLeod intercepted.
• Wide receiver Emory Blake’s father, former NFL quarterback Jeff Blake, was among the onlookers on Thursday. The younger Blake had one of the highlights of the day when he hauled in a touchdown pass while being double-covered.
• Backup quarterback Shaun Hill had nice connections with Stedman Bailey and newly signed tight end Brad Smelley.
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