The Rams are for real
By Palmer Alexander
For the St. Louis American
This past weekend, the St. Louis Rams completed their veteran mini-camp. Overall, I liked what I saw out at Rams Park. There was a lot of competition for positions, mainly in the secondary, offensive line, and of course special teams.
Some of the most fierce battles will be for a spot in the Rams secondary. The Rams added some depth with the addtions of Mike Stone, Mike Hawthorne, and Terry Fair.
The most interesting name I just mentioned was Terry Fair. He was one of the premiere corners in the NFL. Also, he was an oustanding member on special teams while playing for the Detriot Lions.
Fair is a dark horse to make the team because of injuries to his ankle. Nevertheless, if he does indeed make the roster some bodies may end up hitting the floor.
Mike Stone and Mike Hawthorne also help provide the secondary with plenty of experience. Even though neither one of them were shut-down guys for their former teams, they will do great as role players for the Rams.
On the offensive line, rookie tackle Alex Barron struggled a little bit. Head Coach Mike Martz said that they intentionally threw him in the fire to see if he could handle it. He did struggle some, as most rookies do.
Former St. Louis Football Cardinal and Hall of Famer Dan Dierdorf had a different take on Barron’s early troubles. “When I first got started as a rookie, I was ready to quit. I couldn’t take it anymore.” As they say, the rest is history.
Barron also lockers next to Orlando Pace. Trust me, he is picking Pace’s brain constantly.
Before you know it, the Rams will have two bookends on the offensive line. Guard Scott Tercero is back, and with the addition of Rex Tucker the interior part of the offensive line will be as strong as ever. If all of this holds true the Rams will return to the glory days when they scored 500 points three seasons in a row.
Marc Bulger told me that is very happy with all the new faces that he sees around here. He also mentioned that having Roland Williams back with the Rams helps the offense a lot. “He already knows what to do and he gives us an extra weapon in the red zone,” Bulger said.
Speaking about the red zone, Coach Martz said that is something that will get fixed this year.
“One of the main problems that we were up against was we just couldn’t run the ball effectively. It was our achilles heel,” Martz said.
“You have to be able to run the ball in the red zone. Punch that baby in.”
I wish you could have seen Steven Jackson. His nickname is “The Train,” a well-deserved name. He is running faster than he did a year ago. It could be because he has a little more confidence and his knee is feeling good. Marshall Faulk took it easy during mini-camp and is content with his lesser role in the offense.
At wide receiver, rookie Dante Ridgeway has been very impressive so far. All the coaches rave about his ability to run routes without breaking stride. He also has soft hands. He is by far the heaviest of the wide receivers on the roster. This could put Dane Looker on the bubble again. Looker is a good receiver, he just lacks the speed to get downfield. Kevin Curtis and Shaun McDonald are steadily getting better.
The Rams spent a lot of time on special teams, something I did not see a lot of last season. There is a lot more enthusiasm from the Ram players when they talk about special teams. You could not say the same thing last season. Tyoka Jackson said that he feels very good about this Rams’ team from top to bottom. I can concur with that sentiment.
Barring injuries, this could again be one of the most electrifying teams in the NFL.
The only players that did not participate in camp were Isaac Bruce and Tony Hargrove, who saw limited duty because of a sore knee. The Rams released right guard Kyle Turley after he failed a physical.
Do I think this team is capable of going all the way? Sure, but somebody thinks that about each of the other 31 teams in the NFL, including the Arizona Cardinals. Sorry, Uncle Rudy.
Any questions or comments, please email me at Livnlegend@hotmail.com.
