Recent Forum Topics › Forums › The Rams Huddle › the secondary is looking good?
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July 31, 2017 at 11:58 pm #71604
znModeratorBoisterous defensive backs continue to shine at Rams training camp
By RICH HAMMOND
IRVINE — When they’re not slapping hands, encouraging each other and trash-talking receivers, the Rams’ defensive backs are huddled in practice, laughing about a frozen water bottle.
Through three days of training camp at UC Irvine, the Rams’ secondary has made noise on the field as well. The defense clearly has been ahead of the offense, which isn’t atypical for the first week of pass, and on Tuesday, E.J. Gaines returned a Jared Goff tipped pass for a touchdown.
The secondary, not surprisingly, responded with cheers. These guys are happy, because the Rams’ new system, under coordinator Wade Phillips, encourages them to be aggressive and make plays.
“Some defenses are definitely designed for different groups,” Gaines said. “I think Wade’s is designed for the secondary. (Former coordinator) Gregg Williams’ defense was pressure, pressure, pressure, so we had a lot of sacks and our D-line was very productive. This defensive scheme is completely different, so I’m enjoying it, honestly. It’s allowing us to be more free and definitely make plays.”
The Rams added to that collection of potential playmakers during the offseason when they signed cornerbacks Kayvon Webster and Nickell Robey-Coleman to a group that already was fairly deep.Trumaine Johnson, presumably, is locked into one starting spot, and Robey-Coleman’s main role figures to be as a nickel back. That means, entering camp, the primary competition seems to be between Gaines and Webster for the other starting cornerback job.
The Rams listed Webster, who played under Phillips in Denver, as a projected starter before camp, but Gaines shouldn’t be written off. He has dealt with injury issues, and missed all of the 2015 season, but last year he started 10 games and had 56 tackles.
“There’s not really tension in the room,” Gaines said. “It’s just competition, so everybody is enjoying it.”
That’s noticeable, in an audible sense. Perhaps it’s no surprise, considering that new cornerbacks coach Aubrey Pleasant also brings a lot of energy to the field, and Gaines agreed that the secondary clearly is the loudest of the Rams’ position groups.
“I don’t know why, but it’s normally the defensive line,” Gaines said. “With (former Rams) Will Hayes and Eugene Sims it was just a loud group. But with the new guys that came into the secondary, it’s just the competition and the energy is just crazy in the room. Everybody is enjoying it.
The secondary also periodically gets some “help” from Coach Sean McVay, age 31, who likes to jump into drills and cover receivers and tight ends at times. Asked how he would grade McVay’s cover skills, Gaines laughed loudly and said, “ I’d give him about a 3, and you can tell him I said that.”
Gaines then added, “He’s definitely in tune with the practice. He’s a young guy, like us, and he’s full of energy. All of the coaches are, really, so it’s exciting.”
August 1, 2017 at 12:07 am #71605znModeratorA fit and healthy E.J. Gaines makes big plays in Rams training camp
Gary Klein
http://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/la-sp-rams-training-camp-20170731-story.html
A foot injury that required surgery and sidelined him the entire season two years ago is completely healed. So are the hamstring issues and other problems that slowed him in 2016.
Rams cornerback E.J. Gaines is finally unencumbered and free to make plays.
Gaines showed his fitness Monday when he intercepted a Jared Goff pass that tipped off the hands of receiver Pharoh Cooper during a seven-on-seven drill. Gaines grabbed the ball and sprinted toward the end zone.
It was exactly the kind of play new defensive coordinator Wade Phillips expects, Gaines said. Phillips ran the Denver Broncos’ defense the last two seasons and helped them win a Super Bowl.
“When you go back and watch a lot of the Broncos film and Wade’s defense, man, it’s full of tipped passes and tipped balls for the secondary,” Gaines said. “I think it’s part of the defensive scheme and I’m excited about it.”
Phillips was not at practice Monday because he was attending to a family situation, coach Sean McVay said. But upon review of the practice tape, he will no doubt be pleased to see Gaines’ play.
Gaines, a sixth-round draft pick from Missouri in 2014, started 15 games as a rookie and appeared on track for a valuable role in 2015.
But he suffered a foot injury during the first week of training camp and underwent surgery. Last season, the training and coaching staffs brought Gaines along slowly. He started 10 games but never appeared physically sound.
Now he is competing with Kayvon Webster — who played as a backup under Phillips in Denver — and others to start opposite Trumaine Johnson.
“This is the best I’ve felt since probably my rookie year,” Gaines said. “So I’m just trying to get back into it and not do everything at one time. I think that’s been my problem the last couple years.”
Gaines said he was enjoying the competition and the energetic environment that McVay and his staff have created.
McVay, the NFL’s youngest coach, occasionally jumps into drills to cover receivers.
Asked to rate McVay’s coverage skills, Gaines laughed.
“Man, about a 3, honestly,” he said. “You can tell him I said that too.”
August 1, 2017 at 10:10 am #71624
PA RamParticipantThey need to be good. That’s the key to this defense. If you have a crappy secondary it won’t work.
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. " Philip K. Dick
August 1, 2017 at 11:01 am #71629
joemadParticipantThey need to be good. That’s the key to this defense. If you have a crappy secondary it won’t work.
they need A. Donald back… you need a great pass rush to make your secondary look good…. you rarely have a good secondary without a decent pass rush….
August 8, 2017 at 11:29 am #72096znModeratorKayvon Webster locks down starting CB job for Rams
By Alden Gonzalez
Kayvon Webster spent four years buried in the depth chart of a Denver Broncos secondary that was among the game’s best. He started only two games during that stretch, both as a rookie.
From 2014 to ’16, Webster received a mere 247 defensive snaps, sitting behind the likes of Aqib Talib, Chris Harris and Bradley Roby while forced to make his mark almost exclusively on special teams.
The Los Angeles Rams see him differently.
“Unless something changes, he’s starting,” Rams coach Sean McVay said of Webster following Monday’s practice. “… He’s a starting corner that’s going to be very important for our defense moving forward.”
Heading into training camp, Webster appeared to be in competition with E.J. Gaines for a starting job on the outside opposite Trumaine Johnson. Gaines had a solid rookie year in 2014, then spent the entire 2015 season recovering from a foot injury and dealt with a few lesser ailments last season. But Webster’s play and his familiarity with Wade Phillips, also his defensive coordinator with the Broncos these last two years, ultimately gave him the edge.
The Rams will scale back Webster’s demands on special teams because they want him playing every snap for them on defense.
“He’s been a huge addition to our secondary,” McVay said. “You look at he and Trumaine Johnson, they offer a nice pair at the corner spot. I love the way that he works, and he’s been a joy to be around.”
August 25, 2017 at 1:17 am #73204znModerator
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