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znModeratorbeastlykev08
Training Camp Observations August 2nd
1) Isaiah Pead looks really good, quick cuts and looks to be in terrific shape. Really wow-ed me in drills.
2) Nick Foles doesn’t have quite the same pop on his throws as Bradford but has a better feel for speed on balls. Looks somewhat slow in pocket but who knows they were in just t shirts and shorts today.
3) Havenstein looks huge, won’t comment on his quality of play because in t shirts and shorts you can’t tell but good lord he’s massive. Kind of reminds me of Jake Long’s build.
4) EJ Gaines went down for a little bit and was helped off the field by trainers, was able to put weight on the foot which is a very good sign. Most likely an ankle sprain.
5) Marcus Roberson looked awesome. Joyner flashed a little bit.
6) Quick made some wow catches and has a crazy vertical.
7) Bailey looked great made a couple really nice catches, definitely did not lose his hands over the off season. Also Austin showed some pretty good burst running the ball.
znModeratorThe hill drill pic.twitter.com/MjxuTOc8R0
— Jim Fadler (@jimiramsboy) August 3, 2015
— Jim Fadler (@jimiramsboy) August 3, 2015
znModerator“He just understands what he has on his bench in terms of players
and he understands what each player can bring to the team
and he uses those players to the advantage…”Well, we keep reading this about Cignetti.
We’ll see.w
vIt’s kinda funny, they are saying Cignetti’s name, but I get a weird feeling they are indirectly talking about Schott.
I think a lot of people think that. Whether it’s true or not.
znModeratorTortoise.
Had a great time at Rams Park.
Bailey was incredible! I wish I was able to get some pics of his catches. His hands are amazing. I am really hoping he is featured more this season.
That said, most of Bailey’s catches were awesome because the throws were not on target. Foles was not on today. I don’t know if he is still getting his timing down with some of the guys or if it is an accuracy issue. The other thing that was pointed out and discussed was – If the first read isn’t there, he gets happy feet and struggles with his 2nd and 3rd read. He is holding the ball WAY too long when going through the progressions. Is it because he is still learning the playbook and doesn’t know automatically where the receivers are supposed to be? I sure hope so.
Mannion had the best day for the QBs. He had an interception, and a couple of (well) overthrown balls, but for the most part he was on target. If he can keep this up, #2 QB is his.
Britt had a good day. He made some really nice catches, and most of the passes to him were right were they were supposed to be.
Quick had several good catches. – one with a defender draped all over him (I believe it was Joyner). He used his size perfectly to box the defender out.
Tre Mason was looking really good. Nice burst of speed hitting the hole.
Alex Bayer is an easy guy to forget about. He made a nice catch and I had to look at my roster to see who 82 was. He made 2 more nice catches, one of which almost took his head off. Mannion threw him a ball with some extra sauce on it. It was almost on top of Bayer before he came out of his break. I still don’t know how he got his hands up to catch it in time. If it were me, I’d still be in surgery having a football removed from my throat!
Pead. This guy pisses me off. All of the talent in the world, and a ‘woe-is-me’ attitude. For 2 years I’ve wanted him cut from this team. If he keeps doing what he did today, that won’t be happening this year either. Bennie better step up his game because Pead was bringing it. Did I mention he pisses me off? Grrr.
The defense in general had a great day. It would be hard to single any of them out. They were in the backfield on most plays – that includes most of the nice plays that I referenced up above. In a real game, those plays never would have happened because the QB would have been buried in the turf. I hope that changes once the pads come on. I have zero concerns about them being ready to go on week 1 (with exception to Gaines’ injury – tbd).
Joyner had a rough start, but about 1/2 through the practice, he started making some really nice plays.
Gaines got tangled up with Britt and went down. He was laying on the field being attended to by the trainers for several minutes. You could tell he was really hurting. He was able to walk off the field on his own, but it didn’t look good.
Emory Blake was down on the far sideline for a long time. He was having his foot/ankle looked at. I didn’t see when/how he got off the field.
T.J. McDonald got man-handled on one play and didn’t care for it. There was a couple extra shoves after the whistle. That lead to a punch – I believe by Cook – that would make Isaiah Battle proud. At that point, neither was backing down and 3/4 the team swarmed in. It was hard to tell what all was happening but McDonald ended up getting taken down. I read someone else thought Jamon Brown was in on it too? I can’t say for sure. These guys are ready to put the pads on though.
Offensive Line.
This is a hard one. They aren’t in pads, so it is very hard to judge where they are.
Havenstein got beat on the edge pretty bad on a play. Other than that, I didn’t notice him. (That is a good thing) I didn’t see the D coming from that edge while he was there.
Jones got pushed around at center quite a bit. I wasn’t impressed with Barnes with the 1 on 1 drills. I tried to follow Rhaney, but with everything going on, I only watched a few plays and he held his own.
Washington, Bond, D. Williams and Wang were turnstiles.
Reynolds seemed ok.
I think that this season is going to hinge on the offense and if the line can come together, and Foles has to get the ball out quickly and accurately – even if it is to his 2nd or 3rd read. After seeing practice today, I have concerns.
Just my take on the day. I’m hoping to make practice Tuesday.
znModeratorJoyner is kindof a forgotten man for a lot of us.
He seemed a bit lost last year.
I wonder what kind of player he’s gonna be?
Is he just another guy — or is the little guy an impact player?w
vIt has to play out in real games, of course, but one of the repeat themes from OTAs on this year is that the light has come on for Joyner. Fisher, in talking about Joyner, said something about what a difference a year makes.
People forget that in college, Joyner was considered the leader of one of the best if not the best secondaries in college football. Last year it didn’t translate because, apparently, his head was swimming.
FISHER: Lamarcus has come on as well, not only outside, he can play inside and on the slot and the nickel. You know Lamarcus situation… what a difference a year makes for a young player to come back in year two and finally just get it. He gets it now. He’ll be productive for us.”
That kind of talk started in OTAs. Back in OTAs I think it was Gregg Wms who said something about how Joyner was light years ahead of where he was last year. Joyner was saying the same thing:
“I feel like my approach is different and that’s probably coming from the more understanding I have, the more wisdom I have and just knowing what I’m doing,” Joyner said. “Instead of running out there like a blind dog in a meat house and you don’t know which way to go, I know what I’m doing, so now I can pretty much contribute to the defense.”
I ain’t promisin nothin. But the talk about Joyner at this point this year reminds me of the talk about Quick at the same point last year.
.
znModeratorPractice Report 8/2: Strong Offseasons Paying Off
Myles Simmons
While the Rams’ defensive strength is well-known, perhaps one of its more underrated components is the secondary.
But with a bevy of young and growing players, many of St. Louis’ defensive backs could have breakout years in 2015. So far in camp, head coach Jeff Fisher has noticed that some hard work in the offseason by many of those players has displayed some clear improvement.
“I can give you a long list of guys who had their best offseason to date,” Fisher said, mentioning cornerbacks Janoris Jenkins and Trumaine Johnson by name. “The guys who weren’t rehabbing, they just stayed here. And they just worked. And it’s paying off for them now.”
It’s still a little early to know exactly how the results manifest themselves once the games commence, but the head coach sounded encouraged about how the work in the offseason could pay dividends with a better record to begin the year.
“Once we get closer and we start talking about it, it’s very, very important to get off to a good start,” Fisher said. “Three of our first four games are against playoff teams from last year. But we’re not going to look past Seattle. We know where the challenges are there.
“We’re a long ways away,” Fisher continued. “I think three or four days from now, these guys will look forward to working against someone else rather than themselves.”
Another young defensive back who has impressed the staff has been Maurice Alexander. A fourth-round pick out of Utah State in 2014, Alexander contributed on special teams last year, but has progressed to the point where he could push for some defensive time.
“He’s playing really fast right now, and that implies that he knows what to do,” Fisher said. “He’s sure, he’s decisive, he makes good decisions, and he’s reacting. He’s very athletic and he’s playing fast. He’s going to make a lot of plays for us.”
GAINES DAY-TO-DAY
Cornerback E.J. Gaines exited practice early, walking off the field with trainers after he was stepped on in a drill.
“We’re going to have to do some tests,” Fisher said. “He got stepped on, which is encouraging as opposed to the other things. We’ll do some tests, and we’ll find out.”
Fisher added that right now, the training staff doesn’t seem to be too concerned about Gaines’ injury.
“He’s very sore, but that’s typically can happen when you get stepped on the way he did,” Fisher said.
A sixth-round pick out of Mizzou last year, Gaines led the Rams with 14 passes defensed in his rookie season. For now, his status is day-to-day.
GETTING THE PADS ON
With the three-day acclimation period coming to an end, the Rams will put on shoulder pads for the first time tomorrow in the club’s closed special teams practice. And then the full squad will wear them for Tuesday’s session.
“What we’ve done in the past is we’ve had our first padded practice with special teams,” Fisher said. “The rest of the guys will be doing some recovery stuff, but we’ll have a good session in the morning for about an hour with pads. And then we’ll recover tomorrow afternoon, and Tuesday will be out first day with shoulder pads on.”
Fisher also said that the team appears ready to get the gear on.
“We need to put pads on, especially up front,” Fisher said. “Even the quarterbacks — quarterbacks need to get used to throwing the ball with shoulder pads on. So we’ll have some good work throughout the week.”
As Fisher referenced, the pads will aid in noticing the progress from young O-linemen like Rob Havenstein and Jamon Brown.
“It’s so hard to evaluate an offensive lineman without pads. The defense clearly has the advantage out there,” Fisher said. “I’m suspecting that JB and Rob — and the whole crew for that matter — will look a lot different once the pads go on.”
COOK’S EXCITED
Tight end Jared Cook has been quite productive in his two seasons in St. Louis, leading the team in receptions last year. But this upcoming year has him feeling a little bit better than ever before.
“This is probably the most excited I’ve been about a season since I’ve been in the NFL,” Cook said on Sunday.
znModerator#RamsCamp Practice Report: Day 3
Rams Insider Myles Simmons talks about E.J. Gaines injury and competition at the defensive back position from Day 3 of Training Camp.
znModeratorBeing that I have a real hope that an American hero makes the team, I want to mention that Daniel Rodriguez was fielding punts again and Jeff Garcia stayed after to throw to him, like they were friends.
For more on Rodriguez, see this thread:
CoachO’s 3-day report is here:
http://theramshuddle.com/topic/coacho-camp-report-covering-731-82/
Jimi’s 8/2 twitter report is here:
http://theramshuddle.com/topic/jimis-tweets-from-camp-82/
Previous camp reports are here:
http://theramshuddle.com/topic/camp-reports-81/
http://theramshuddle.com/topic/camp-report/
http://theramshuddle.com/topic/ramview-73115-training-camp-report-long/
znModeratorRamzFanz
My take on the day:
My player of the day is… Bailey. Dude is a stud. Forget about it. He BETTER be featured this season. Every time I looked up he was hauling in a pass. He’s all in every play.
Honorable mention goes to Mannion. Bold prediction, he’s our #2. I’m not kidding. He’s accurate, athletic, a fast release, and the least intercepted of the 3 non-starters.
I’m sorry, I’m not going to comment on the O line at all. It’s just too early and too complicated for me. They made great plays and also got crushed by the best D line in the NFL. The Center debate will have to wait for a better mind BUT I will add that no one was calling out Rhaney like previous centers.
Speed goes to the D-line. Forget about it. They must be holding back sometimes because when they go all out, it’s not one guy in the backfield, it’s three or four. That isn’t a slam on the o-line, these guys are twisting an turning themselves into the backfield.
This was Foles worst day in my mind, but it was still very good at times. Dude can throw. The consensus I heard was either his skills take a nose dive after the first read or he’s not familiar enough with the playbook yet. Let’s hope it’s the later. Still, he’s a threat every down. He would have been hammered by this D-Line which is a good thing.
Being that I have a real hope that an American hero makes the team, I want to mention that Daniel Rodriguez was fielding punts again and Jeff Garcia stayed after to throw to him, like they were friends. He hasn’t dropped a pass or a punt that I’ve seen all camp. Dude is all motor. I smell an upset on the 53.
znModeratorRams Head Coach Jeff Fisher- 8.2.15
(On how the first few days have been in the heat)
“Well, it’s been great. Yesterday was a good experience for them. I think it caught up with them towards the end. It could’ve been because we were a little bit earlier, but tonight was great. So, we’re three days into it now. We’ve exhausted the acclamation period, so we’re three days in to it. We’ll have pads on tomorrow. What we’ve done in the past is, we’ve gone the first padded practice with special teams. The rest of the guys will be doing some recovery stuff. But we’ll have a good session in the morning for about an hour with pads and then we’ll recover tomorrow afternoon. Then Tuesday will be our big day with shoulder pads on.”(On CB E.J. Gaines’)
“Don’t know. We’re going to have to do some tests. He got stepped on, which is encouraging, you know, as opposed to the other things. So we’ll do some tests and we’ll find out. Right now they’re not too concerned. He’s very sore, but that typically can happen when you get stepped on the way he did.”(On if he gets the impression that the team is ready to be in pads after today’s practice)
“Yeah, I mean I think so. It got a little heated. It got a little competitive, but it happens. I’m surprised it took until the third practice, but we got it straightened out. So, they’re fine. You know they are. We need to put pads on especially up front. So they can get used to it, even the quarterbacks. The quarterbacks need to get used to throwing the ball with shoulder pads on. We’ll have some good work throughout the week. We’ll go Tuesday, Wednesday they’re off, and then we’ll do some work Thursday. Then of course Friday we’re going to go over to Lindenwood and we’ll have pads on so we’ll get a really solid workout Friday night.”(On if he’s ever been in a situation where he’s had to get a young offensive line ready so quickly)
“There was a time back when we had two tackles that we played early, and they did fine. So I’m not too concerned about it. We’re creating competition. They’re getting the work done. Again, ask about three, four days from now once they get the pads on. It’s so hard to evaluate an offensive lineman without the pads. The defense clearly has the advantage out there. I’m suspecting that ‘J.B’ (G Jamon Brown) and (T) Rob (Havenstein), and the whole crew for that matter, will look a whole lot different once the pads go on.”(On CB Janoris Jenkins)
“Well you know the first offseason he disappeared and came in a little light. It took him a while to get caught up. Last year was productive for him and I think his play reflected that. I can give you a long list of guys that had their best offseason to date; those young guys. You know Janoris, ‘Tree’ (LB Alec Ogletree), Trumaine (Johnson), all those guys. Even those guys that weren’t rehabbing. They just stayed here and they just worked and it’s paying off for them now.”(On ‘if the players’ offseason work will help the team get off ot a good start)
“Once we get closer and we start talking about it. It’s very, very important to get off to a good start. We’ve got three of the first four games against playoff teams from the last year, but we’re not going to look past Seattle. And we know were the challenges are there, but we’re a long ways away. I think three or four days from now these guys are going to look forward to working against somebody else rather than themselves.”(On S Maurice Alexander)
“You know he is playing really fast right now and that implies that he knows what to do. I mean he’s sure He’s decisive. He makes good decisions. He is reacting, he’s very athletic and he’s playing fast. He’s going to make a lot of plays for us.”(On him starting with the center rotation like in OTAs and how long he thinks it will it take before a decision is made on who the center will be)
“I’m not going to put a date on it or a deadline on it. We’re going to let him do it. I think it’s important when you’re in those situations that you don’t overwork any of them. We’re going to rotate them and give them the reps. It’s hard enough nowadays to get the reps, but you know, when we feel comfortable with it and make a decision, we’ll let you know. But I’m not going to say it’s week three in preseason or week four or whatever. You know you want to get it done as quickly as you can, but we have three guys that are capable, two that have played. You know Tim (Barnes) has played more than Barrett (Jones). Barrett played a solid 24-28 plays against Kansas City, but Demetrius (Rhaney) has a couple of preseason games under his belt from last year. So we’ll just see.”(On what he looks for most in a center)
“Well, you know, obviously it’s getting everybody lined up and making the ID calls and making the subtle adjustments on the line of scrimmage, communicating with the quarterback. We have two snaps. We have the shot gun snap and we have the snap under center that are vitally important. They have to be…you know, often times that’s taken for granted. I remember a couple of times last year when (former Rams’ C) Scotty’s (Wells) ball skipped over his head and it cost us the game. So the snap, the exchange thing is very, very important. Then it’s the ability to understand, recognize what they’re doing and make the calls and hang in there in a one-on-one situation. Their ability to help, that’s the most important thing. You know when you’re playing different configurations of fronts, your center is going to be quick to go help at some plays. He needs to be right when he goes to help.”(On QB Nick Foles not taking many snaps under center with at Philadelphia and if he thinks that’s something the average fan may take for granted)
“Yeah, I think the number was less than 30, so you’re right. There were not a lot of under center snaps. We’re getting much better at it now. We haven’t had any problems in a couple of days. We had one in walk-thru today, but it wasn’t Nick. It was just a communication thing, so those are things that you can’t afford to take for granted. You can’t have the ball on the ground. Nick is conscientious about it and so are the guys, and for the most part, the ball placement has been outstanding as far as all three of the guys.”(On what he thinks about the story of Special Teams Coordinator John Fassel being a hero on his vacation)
“Well, I heard it first I guess when you guys heard because he hadn’t quite gotten back to work yet and I just kind of heard the reports. We let him tell the story in the staff meeting and then I had him tell the story in front of the players. It was quite an experience. Quite an opportunity. He’s a tremendously conditioned individual, that not many people could probably do what he did.”znModeratorCodeMonkey
I don’t have a lot to add beyond what others have already posted. Just a few notes:
One guy that jumped out at us as the Oline was doing the hill drill was Isaiah Battle. My son commented how he was the biggest one.
Again today we saw Foles under a lot of pressure. I will say this though, while the pass protection is behind (or appears so) from where we would like the run blocking is excellent.
two most positive takeaways for me…
1) Our defense looks good…very.
2) We will be able to run the ball. I saw some very nice running lanes out there and we certainly have the horses.
znModeratorRams cornerback E.J. Gaines leaves practice with injury
Nick Wagoner
EARTH CITY, Mo. — One day after answering questions about the competition at cornerback between E.J. Gaines and Trumaine Johnson, St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher responded to queries of a more worrisome nature.
Gaines departed Sunday evening’s practice with an apparent leg injury, limping off the field early in the workout and not returning. After practice, Fisher offered as much of an update as he could without having a lot of information available.
“We don’t know (yet),” Fisher said. “We’re going to have to do some tests. He got stepped on, which is encouraging as opposed to the other things. So we’ll do some tests. Right now, they are not too concerned. He’s very sore but that typically can happen when you get stepped on.”
Gaines appeared to be in quite a bit of pain as he limped off the field, at one point pulling his jersey over his head to hide his anguish. But there’s no reason to jump to conclusions at this point, as the Rams will do the tests and more will be known by Tuesday at the latest.
In the meantime, Johnson got plenty of opportunities with the first team in what is a hard-to-miss role reversal from last year. It was a knee injury to Johnson that opened the door for Gaines to claim a job that he would not relinquish. Time will tell whether Johnson will get the chance or, if given the chance, be able to do the same.
Marcus Roberson also got some chances Sunday night and made the most of them. In 7-on-7 and team drills, Roberson came up with at three interceptions. He’s a young player to keep an eye on as this camp and the preseason progresses.
The Rams will put the pads on for the first time Monday for a special teams workout, with the first fully-padded team practice set for Tuesday afternoon. That’s probably a good thing, as Sunday’s practice was extremely spirited. It included the first skirmish of camp, mostly involving the pass catchers and the secondary. It was hard to tell where the fight started but safety Rodney McLeod, safety T.J. McDonald, Johnson, tight end Jared Cook, receiver Kenny Britt and guard Jamon Brown all had some level of prominence in the mix. At one point, Brown tossed McDonald to the ground.
After it was over, the trash talking continued, as Cook and Johnson spent some time chirping at each other. Johnson reminded Cook that “pads come on in two days” and Cook responded in kind with “You say that every year. Get some new material.” Britt and Stedman Bailey followed with some (mostly) good-natured taunts for McDonald.
The list of those sitting out Sunday’s practice remained the same. End Chris Long (back), guard Cody Wichmann (calf), cornerback Brandon McGee and safety Mark Barron (knee) did not participate. Running back Todd Gurley (knee) remains limited to individual drills.
As expected, Demetrius Rhaney took his turn with the first-team offense at center. The Rams continue to rotate Rhaney, Tim Barnes and Barrett Jones. Fisher said after practice he doesn’t have an exact date he wants to make a decision, so it appears the contest will roll on for a while.
Roberson wasn’t the only corner to come up with an interception Sunday. Lamarcus Joyner bounced back after a couple of rough moments to jump an out route from Nick Foles intended for receiver Brian Quick and snare a pick. Joyner ran it back for a would-be touchdown had the play been live.
Although there were some interceptions, a few of the quarterbacks had some success, particularly in red zone drills. Case Keenum fired a nice strike down the seam to receiver Bradley Marquez and lated darted one in between defenders to tight end Alex Bayer for a touchdown. Foles and Sean Mannion had a couple of touchdown tosses as well, including a great throw from Foles to Bailey on a comeback route for a score.
The Rams will have a special teams practice Monday at 11 a.m. ET, a session which is closed to the public.
August 2, 2015 at 8:54 pm in reply to: journalists on camp, 8/1 … articles, tweets, vids (starting with JT & Wagoner) #27961znModerator#RamsCamp Day 2 Hype Highlights
Watch the best highlights from the second day at Training Camp.
znModeratorThe camp reports from 7/31 are here:
http://theramshuddle.com/topic/camp-report/
So far, there’s 10 total from both days combined.
August 2, 2015 at 1:28 pm in reply to: jimi walks to camp part 2 this time with narration…+ jimi's 8/1 camp tweets #27949znModeratorWe will see if Michael is still camera shy today. When I replayed it after we got home he almost pushed me out of the way so he could see himself.
Lol. Nice looking kid.
znModeratorRevFarrakhan
Snapshots From Camp – Aug 1 2015
zn note: click here to see all of rev’s pics:
http://www.realramsfans.com/viewtopic.php?t=86799
I include an example below…there are a lot more like itDay two was a little easier on temperature but similar. Shells again. The crowd turnout was strong but not packed.
– The offense struggled to get in sync today. Lot of drops and bad throws. Hard to say about the running game without full pads on.
– I don’t really see Foles going to Austin a lot yet, to be honest. I see a lot of Cook and Bailey, a little Quick.
– Cunningham is making the most of his opportunities as a change of pace to Mason. He has shown great feet and finds ways to stand out.
– I think our secondary could really have improved and added great depth, I’m excited to see them in real action.
– Man does Nick Foles like a good fistbump. He’ll walk up, talk to receivers, give em a fist bump. Glance over and find a DT standing next to you? Fist bump. Hey coach, whattya think, how bout a fistbump. Backup QB, I’m stealing your rep this time, but hey, here’s a fist bump. And on and on.
– The short game looked stronger for the offense, but at the same time was usually completely smothered by the defense the moment they caught the ball.
QB Nick Foles fakes on the jet sweep play action to WR Tavon Austin.
znModeratorthe zohan
This was my first training camp. I loved it. Everyone I talked to said the same thing, Gurly is taller than I thought.
My man crush is on Rodriguez. Dude catches everything and goes 100%. He is leaving it all on the table.
Man Chris Givens is fast. Everyone still scratching their head on why he disappears in games.
I talked to as many of the guys working as I could to get their feel of the mindset of the team so far. The consensus is focused and ready to change peoples perception. One of the guys said all the talk and focus is game 1 Seattle. He said the players are chomping at the bits for the Seahawks. He said alot of talk around the team about not starting slow and setting the tone for the season against Seattle. I loved hearing how bad they are wanting to play Seattle in just day 2 of camp.
Alot of fans talking about Mannion and how big he is. He passes the eye test physically.
Watching Hecker punt, wow. You can hear him booming the ball and damn he is big. When he was standing by Ogletree it just gives you the realazation of his size.
Quick made some beautiful catches. It is amazing how far he has come from his surgery. He isnt close to midseason form yet, but damn he is coming off a major injury and looks damn good. He was close to the sideline doing warm ups and I yelled at him that I could feel it, this is his season. He turned to me smiled gave a thumbs up and said damn straight it is. Gotta love the man.
I get that everyone is on Tavon because of his draft status but man Bailey to me just out shines him. Why Bailey doesn’t get more looks is beyond me. He runs good routes and just knows how to catch the ball.
Watching Tavon return punts I was shaking my head. It’s like he cant grasp North and South he is always high stepping and what I like to call jitter bugging. With his speed I wish he would get in behind his blockers and just go, instead of jitter bugging east and west. I was more impressed with Rodriguez returning punts. My love for Tavon is fading.
I never got to see Bradford in camp. A couple guys I talked to were telling me its night and day between Bradford and Foles on the practice field. They were telling me how Bradford just wowed you on the practice field with his arm vs Foles but there is a very definite positive feel or energy with Foles and the team vs Bradford. Several comments on how Foles just seems to be more of a leader and taking charge on the field.
I spent alot of time watching the O-line. Im just not as worried as I was before about having so many rookies starting. In my opinion its going to be a very good thing. They really seem to be bonding and really pushing each other. Sure there is going to be mistakes but just seeing these guys fresh and not coming in with injuries and different philosophies from other NFL line coaches is going to be a positive. Boo is forming these guys the way he wants them so there isnt the baggage of learning his way. This O-line is going to be badass in a couple seasons of growing together. Guys we have some size on this line now and they want to be great. I came away feeling very positive with the direction Fish is going with the O-line.
I’m still not sure about our secondary. Jenks is fun to watch but the whole time your waiting for him to get burned. Several guys even made jokes about it. He is definitely high risk, high reward. Mcleod seems to be coming along and im still not sure about Joyner. Dude is small. I saw our WR’s make some beautiful catches on the secondary.
The D-line is a thing of beauty. We really got the steal of the draft with Donald. Love watching him work. The man is all motor. One of the guys I was talking to made the comment that his neighbor is a huge Lions fan and that he was told by his neighbor that Suh said that talent wise Fairley is better, that he just has to get his head straight.
Sorry I dont have the analytics of the other guys posting. Like I said this was my first camp so I was pretty overwhelmed. The team seems leaner and faster to me than last year. The vibe is definitely that this team is going to be special this year and we are going to be in the thick of it in the NFC West. Once this O-line comes together look out because our Rams are ready to put the SOSAR crap in the grave and make a statement to the NFL.
I think im going to stick around for tonight’s practice. I drove two and a half hours down to watch the team and ended up getting a hotel room ( gotta support the bonds with the hotel tax 😉 )
znModeratorThey still need to fill the very vital “Assistant to the Quality Control Assistant’s Assistant.”
Until they fill that supremely important spot I can’t say I see a Superbowl happening anytime soon.
Seattle doesn’t have one of those.
So…I dunno how important it is.
znModeratorCounting the head coach, the Rams’ coaching staff now consists of 27 coaches.
They’re including strength and conditioning types as “coaches.”
When you strip out the strength/conditioning guys, Rams have 24 coaches. Seattle also has 24.
Rams actual coaching staff:
Jeff Fisher, Head Coach
Dave McGinnis: Assistant Head Coach
Frank Cignetti: Offensive Coordinator
Rob Boras: Assistant Head Coach/Offense
Chris Weinke: Quarterbacks
Barrett Trotter: Offensive Assistant, Quarterbacks
Paul T. Boudreau: Offensive Line
Andy Dickerson: Assistant Offensive Line
Ray Sherman: Wide Receivers
Jeff Garcia: Offensive Assistant, Wide Receivers
Kenan Smith: Offensive Assistant, Wide Receivers
Andy Sugarman: Offensive Quality Control, and Tight Ends
Ben Sirmans: Running Backs
Gregg Williams: Defensive Coordinator
Chuck Cecil: Senior Defensive Assistant
Mike Waufle: Defensive Line
Clyde Simmons: Assistant Defensive Line
Frank Bush: Linebackers
Joe Bowden: Assistant Linebackers
Brandon Fisher: Defensive Backs
Dennard Wilson: Defensive Backs
Jeff Imamura: Defensive Quality Control, & Secondary
John Fassel: Special Teams Coordinator
Paul F. Boudreau: Assistant Special TeamsAugust 2, 2015 at 3:10 am in reply to: jimi walks to camp part 2 this time with narration…+ jimi's 8/1 camp tweets #27931znModeratorright click on the time stamp. then select copy link location.
Thank you.
Here’s Jimi’s pic of Boudreau overseeing the hill drill.
August 2, 2015 at 12:33 am in reply to: journalists on camp, 8/1 … articles, tweets, vids (starting with JT & Wagoner) #27929znModeratorFoles looks good early in camp
By Jim Thomas
Nearly five months since the Sam Bradford trade brought him to St. Louis from Philadelphia, it has been an extended honeymoon for quarterback Nick Foles.
“I love it here,” Foles said. “I love the players. I love the coaches. It’s a great place to play, and I haven’t even played a game here yet.”
The feeling evidently is mutual because the Rams are talking about a contract extension for Foles — you know, the guy who has yet to play a game in St. Louis.
“There’s some discussion, and that makes sense,” coach Jeff Fisher said.
In fact, general manager Les Snead told reporters Thursday that it was “definitely realistic” that an extension could be worked out by the end of the 2015 regular season. On the pecking order of re-signing prospective Rams free agents, it’s safe to say that Foles is at the top of the list, probably followed by cornerback Janoris Jenkins.
That doesn’t mean anything will get done. Sometimes, if deals don’t get done early in camp or before the start of the regular season, they just don’t materialize. And in the case of Foles, it’s difficult to know his value given the fact he’s had only 24 NFL starts and his third year (2014) wasn’t nearly as good as his Pro Bowl second year.
For his part, Foles is focused more on reading defenses than dollar signs at this point.
“Honestly, I just zone it out,” Foles said. “That’s why you hire agents, because my thing here is to be with these guys, to be a player, to be their quarterback. We have to win games.
“We hire agents so that clears the clutter out of our brain. And you know, I trust them to do the job. … That will take care of itself. I’m just excited to be out playing.”
Some players don’t like the distraction of contract negotiations once the regular season begins. Foles doesn’t sound like that guy.
“It’s never been a distraction,” he said. “I’m one of those guys that I enjoy playing the game. I know that we’re fortunate to play this game, so whatever happens, happens, and we’ll go from there.”
Foles has had a good start to training camp the first two days, in stark contrast to his first week of OTAs in June — which was just a couple steps shy of a train wreck. At that time, his accuracy was off and the Rams’ pass rush was all over him.
But Foles didn’t panic or get down on himself. That doesn’t seem to be his nature. He just kept working and got better every week. That trend continued Friday on the first day of camp.
“Usually the first couple days of camp you tip your hat toward the defensive side — they have the advantage,” Fisher said. “That wasn’t the case. Nick did a nice job.”
It was more of the same Saturday, although the defense had its moments, including a sparkling interception of Foles by safety Rodney McLeod on an intermediate pass Foles tried to feather into tight end Jared Cook.
Foles has shown good arm strength on out routes, and more than enough arm for deep balls. The emphasis has been on screens and quick throws to a large degree early in camp as the team goes through its offensive installation.
“I feel really comfortable (with the playbook),” Foles said. “A lot more comfortable than I did during OTAs. But that’s a daily thing. There’s so much to an NFL playbook that you’re always adding stuff, you’re always critiquing stuff. There’s better fundamentals you can do. … So I’m feeling good, just gotta keep going.”
But as was the case in the spring, job No. 1 for Foles is getting to know his teammates. Not just getting in sync with his receivers — which takes time — but establishing his leadership with the squad. A successful quarterback has to have a presence, and Foles set about the business of establishing his presence from his first day at Rams Park.
“It’s not like he had been the quarterback for two years, you had a case of first day at school, hello to everybody … he kind of took charge there,” Snead said.
“He’s done a nice job building relationships with his partners per se. I think that’s the biggest thing I can say about him.”
Those relationships still need to be forged. And the Rams have yet to see how Foles reacts under pressure in a game situation or when something goes wrong. But Snead is encouraged by what he’s seen so far — Foles knows how to relate to teammates, be they wide receivers or the big guys up front trying to block for him.
“I think that’s just his personality,” Snead said. “If you knew a little bit about his family, his dad is a restaurateur and really successful but started probably in the kitchen somewhere.
“I’m not going to relate the O-line to the dishwashers of your team, but you know what I mean? Nick kind of fits in the locker room.”
And for starters, that’s not a bad place to be.
“The way you win games is you’re a family,” Foles said. “That’s it. It’s as simple as that.”
znModeratorRamzFanz
What a great day!
First, my daughter came with me and loved it! She’s ready for tomorrow. She INSISTED we stay long after the crowds were gone to get Gurley’s autograph on a full sized signature ball, and I’ll be damned, she got it! He only signed for about 2 minutes and hers was the very last signature he gave.
What? Football? Oh yeah, that too:
I won’t be doing a report other than a few observations but I will be posting much better pics and gifs as soon as I can get them together. Coach O made some points about Foles holding the ball too long, and he was. He also threw balls into coverage he better not throw in real games. However, it’s TC and he was accurate with his passes.
Foles is having trouble with decisions after his first read, but by then he’s surrounded or on the run. This IS the Rams D pass rush vs Rookies in TC day 2 with no pads. Things need to shake out here. I feel bad for the o-line every snap. It’s hard enough for them without Quinn doing back bends and donald pulling a transporter act.
I’m willing to say though, there are definitely glimmers of hope from the o line with this D and their advantage without pads.
There was a LOT more passing today than yesterday.
Britt and Quick look the part of a real dynamic duo. Seriously. Bailey was Mr. hands and TA was Mr. slippery. Cook may just be Foles’ favorite target and they have clicked all TC. With Quick not in the 11 on 11, they used TA outside and, despite him making a few nice catches, it’s not a good idea at all. He’s not getting separation and he’s just too small. Kendricks looks slimmer and his hands have been amazing.
The o-line worked very hard all day. Drills on the hills 20 feet from us. One on ones. LOT’S of coaching and teaching going on.
The D line is the D line. In their face all day. Quinn was bending like stretch armstrong.
Anyways, great day.
Oh, and my new favorite subject, Daniel Rodriguez. I’m serious. Dude is Tavon’s height but built! He fielded punts with TA and caught every one that came his way. Can’t wait to see if he can return punts. He stayed after and Garcia was passing to the rookies! Dude can still throw. Rodriguez hasn’t dropped a pass in camp yet out of dozens. I think this guy might be a special teams/WR sleeper. There’s no doubt he’s a standout at this point. He has a MOTOR on him. He was fielding punts like he did it all his life (no returns) and caught every catchable pass. He got called over several times for autographs. I don’t mean to overstate him, he’s a longshot, but he’s definitely getting noticed.
Must mention that Mannion might just be the real deal. I know it’s early and not real yet, but I can’t wait for preseason! He outshined the competition yet again but Keenum and Davis looked better than yesterday. Keenum has a better ball than Davis.
…………
Some examples of what Gurley is doing.
He looked like he was doing 1/10 of what he is ready to do. You should see him in drills. I will post some if I have them.
(The shirtless guy is Daniel Rodriguez.)
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Foles v. the Rams DL.
August 1, 2015 at 10:19 pm in reply to: It's very early but…observations from camp posts on Mannion #27926znModeratorI think he told someone on ROD that he would post later.
I will be sure to add him to this thread then, when he does. In fact I look forward to it.
Other guys will be chiming in too…and, I will gather their Mannion comments here.
Every camp, something real happens people see, and it;s always interesting. Last year it was Quick lighting it up. That was big and it held up.
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August 1, 2015 at 10:16 pm in reply to: It's very early but…observations from camp posts on Mannion #27924znModeratorWhat’s notable here is that a few different regular observers–Jimi, Mike Franke, and hammer—all see the guy doing good things. They have all been good observers over the years, but my thing is, if they are all 3 seeing something, I would be surprised if there were nothing to it.
CoachO has some good insights.
Yes. He’s a good one too, no question. He’s apparently not posting camp stuff now, though. So my list just included the guys commenting on Mannion this year. It’s just the guys I quote in this thread on Mannion. My basic answer to “is hammer a good observer” (paraphrase quote not real quote) is “well yeah but what’s notable is 4 different camp reporters have said similar things.” I would like to hear from the Coach on Mannion, but so far he isn’t one of the regulars saying things. But hearing simultaneously from Mike, hammer, and Jimi counts for something, to the degree the first week of camp gives you anything.
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August 1, 2015 at 10:10 pm in reply to: It's very early but…observations from camp posts on Mannion #27922znModeratorThanks and wow tough crowd.
That’s just the PD board. It’s not really moderated, so conflicts can fester and turn posters into enemies with long memories. My “ignore” list there is so big I lost count. It’s like the wild west. There’s swamps and hostile natives and bears and wolves and tornadoes, but, also, you can get in some good trapping and fishing and sleep under the stars while you’re there.
August 1, 2015 at 10:01 pm in reply to: It's very early but…observations from camp posts on Mannion #27918znModeratorWhat is the issue with hammer? Does hammer have good insight at training camp? Imagine paying Mannion as a starting QB while winning ala Wilson and the Seahawks!
Over the years there have been a few good regular camp observers. All of them have their tendencies and ways of seeing things. None of them are always right, though they will tell you that themselves. What’s notable here is that a few different regular observers–Jimi, Mike Franke, and hammer—all see the guy doing good things. They have all been good observers over the years, but my thing is, if they are all 3 seeing something, I would be surprised if there were nothing to it.
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August 1, 2015 at 9:50 pm in reply to: It's very early but…observations from camp posts on Mannion #27913znModeratorthehammer
watching Mannion I felt like John Sutter finding gold At Sutters Mill..much leaner/quicker then Foles, always surrounded by coaches, getting solid reps as the #2…lot to like..I thought hammer wasn’t posting anymore.
He sent that into private circulation and then a guy posted it at ROD…and then a guy copied THAT and posted it on the PD board.
Speaking of which, I figure he has a right to ask me to take it down if he wants.
znModeratorRams Head Coach Jeff Fisher – – August 1, 2015
(On T Isaiah Battle and what he liked about him and what is the plan for him)
“Well obviously, a lot went into the film study, and into the decision. Unfortunately for him, there was a few things that took place that created an opportunity that made him available. We discussed different options, potential different picks and we just felt with the projection and athletic ability, where he would have come out next year, we felt like we would at least be competitive with the fifth. As it turned out, we got him. He’s got some work to do, as we’ve told him. It’s not about next September, it’s about this September. If he’s on the roster, if he’s on the 53, he’s a couple of snaps away from playing, so he’s got to get himself into shape and get ready. Thus far he’s done pretty good. He’s clearly behind the rest of the group just because he hasn’t been here, but in the short period of time I think he’s holding his own. We’ll see how it is the next couple of weeks.”(On how much the whole point of the offseason was creating an atmosphere of competition, in particular along the offensive line)
“Well it wasn’t necessarily competition, it was just improve the position. We’ve been talking since we got here about, ‘Gosh, how nice would it be to be able to go out and draft three or four offensive linemen in the same draft?’ This year we were able to do that, and five with Isaiah (Battle). It’s an area that we had to focus on. It’s an area that we expect to be good for a long time. I can’t tell you how it’s going to unfold right now or who is going to end up starting. But like we said yesterday, we have no concern about starting young people up front. If they are playing, they are ready to play.”(On if the depth at running back allows him to take it easy with RB Todd Gurley)
“No, our approach with Todd is just that it’s a common sense, medical approach. That includes everybody. So, it has nothing to do with what we have on the roster or what we don’t have on the roster. We’re going to take care of Todd and get him ready to play. All of those decisions are based on information and progress and his commitment and where we think he is, not where I think he is from a head coach’s standpoint, but collectively from (Director of Sports Medicine and Performance) Reggie (Scott) and through the doctors and everybody.”(On how good RBs Tre Mason and Benny Cunningham were last season)
“Well yeah, we were pleased. As we’ve talked about before, Tre was somewhat of a slow starter last year. He got going. Playing without the ball is really important. Once we felt comfortable with where he was, we cut him loose and he was really productive for us. Benny knows all aspects of our offense, so there’s no issues there. It’s great to have (RB) Isaiah (Pead) back and (RB) Chase (Reynolds) and (RB) Trey (Watts), obviously we’re going to lose Trey for a little bit, but it’s a good group. So it’s just a matter of playing good defense and being able to hand it off.”(On how it feels to have WR Brian Quick back on the field after his shoulder injury)
“Yeah, it is remarkable what he’s overcome. The damage he sustained to his shoulder was significant and there was some talk early on that it might’ve been career ending, and that he might not have been able to come back. He just kept fighting through each stage of the rehab, one week after the next, and he kept getting better. We sent him back down to see Dr. James Andrews and he was amazed at his progress. So he’s not there yet, you can tell. We’re keeping him off the ground, but he’s running. He’s still got a little bit of motion and flexibility to work on and some strength. But by all means, we expect him to be back. It was a pretty impressive offseason of rehab that he committed to and that he got from our medical staff.”(On the competition and offseason that CBs Trumaine Johnson and EJ Gaines had)
“Yeah, EJ is a little bit behind right now. Obviously, he finished up but he’s a little bit behind particularly because he was dealing with some physical issues. Trumaine is not behind. Trumaine’s in as good of condition as we’ve seen since he’s been here. It’ll be great competition. We’re going to just kind of alternate them every day and see what happens. It’s a win-win for us. We’ve got a rookie from last year that played really solid defense for us. We’ve got a starter that unfortunately suffered a significant injury in the preseason and really never made it back other than some sub stuff towards the end. Both of them have the flexible to play inside, play outside so it’s a good position to be in.”(On the competition at cornerback, the depth at the position and on CB Lamarcus Joyner)
“We are pleased with it, yeah. Lamarcus has come on as well, not only outside, he can play inside and on the slot and the nickel. You know Lamarcus situation… what a difference a year makes for a young player to come back in year two and finally just get it. He gets it now. He’ll be productive for us.”(On backup QB Austin Davis working himself into the picture with QBs Nick Foles and Case Keenum)
“Well, we’re going to allow him to play. Unfortunately for them, Nick’s going to probably get a few more reps than he ordinarily would particularly because he’s new in the offense. But we’re going to allow them all to play, we’ll allow them compete and we’ll see what happens. Case has won games, (QB) Austin (Davis) has won games. They both have a good feel for what they’re doing. They’ve got a tall slender rookie that’s breathing down their necks right now. It should be a good battle.”August 1, 2015 at 9:35 pm in reply to: journalists on camp, 8/1 … articles, tweets, vids (starting with JT & Wagoner) #27908znModeratorRams cornerback competition revving up
Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/19906/rams-cornerback-competition-revving-up
EARTH CITY, Mo. — A year ago at this time, the St. Louis Rams appeared to have their cornerback duo of the present and future in place with Janoris Jenkins and Trumaine Johnson.
Then Johnson suffered a knee injury in the third preseason game that thrust E.J. Gaines into the starting job. The rookie sixth-round pick stepped in and looked every bit the part of experienced veteran, never looking back on his way to holding on to the starting job for most of the season.
With Johnson healthy and Gaines with a good season under his belt, the Rams enter this camp with a legitimate battle brewing opposite Jenkins.
“It’ll be great competition,” coach Jeff Fisher said. “We’re going to kind of alternate them every day and see what happens. It’s a win-win for us. We have a rookie from last year that played really solid defense for us and we’ve got a starter that unfortunately suffered an injury [last year] in the preseason and really never made it back other than some sub-stuff toward the end … it’s a good position to be in.”
While Gaines finished the season (save for the concussion that cost him the final game) as the starter, he’s actually a bit behind from a physical standpoint at the start of this camp. Fisher said Gaines had health issues he was dealing with but Johnson showed up in better shape than he’s been in any of his previous three seasons.
So far, Gaines and Johnson have split work with the first-team defense much as they did during organized team activities. It would seem Gaines would be the preferred choice to win the job given that he is still under team control for three more seasons and Johnson is set to be a free agent after the year. But so long as the reps are being divided evenly, there’s a chance for Johnson to reclaim his job.
If Johnson does win out or even if he doesn’t, the Rams are in the fortunate position of being able to move Gaines into the slot to play the nickel much like he did at times last year.
Either way, Fisher and the Rams are happy with what they have at the position. They just need the preseason to sort it all out.
Barrett Jones took his turn working with the first-team offense at center Saturday. Tim Barnes did the honors Friday, which means Demetrius Rhaney will take his turn next. That’s the same pattern the Rams followed in the spring.
Receiver Brian Quick was quite emotional when talking about how long and difficult his recovery from shoulder surgery was. Quick said he took a moment to savor the chance to be back in the game he loved when walked on the field Friday for the first practice. Fisher said there were initial concerns from medical personnel that the injury might be career-threatening. Quick said he did rehab every day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the road back.
A few highlights from the day. … Safety Rodney McLeod came up with an impressive one-handed interception in team drills, picking off a floater from quarterback Nick Foles. … Quick made a nice adjustment on a deep ball from Sean Mannion to come down with it despite tight coverage from Gaines. Quick is easing back toward full speed but looks sharp for someone just getting back from a serious injury. … Gaines had a nice interception in 7-on-7 when Case Keenum attempted to hit Bradley Marquez on a deep out. Gaines read the route and broke on the ball with no wasted movement for the pick.
As expected, all signs point to Akeem Ayers being the presumptive leader to handle starting duties at strong side linebacker. He’s getting most of the reps with the first team with Jo-Lonn Dunbar working more as the second-team middle linebacker.
The Rams are back at it Sunday night with practice set for 6:30 p.m. ET. It’ll be the final practice of their “acclimation” period before putting the pads on Monday.
znModeratorAnd there’s this one too:
http://theramshuddle.com/topic/jimi-walks-to-camp-part-2-this-time-with-narration/?view=all
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