St. Louis Rams new defensive coordinator: Put on the pads, turn on the lights
Ken Flajole, the Rams’ new defensive coordinator, prefers to wait until the pads go on and the curtain goes up before making any firm decisions on his players.
“I think pads are the tell-tale. Then you’ve got to get them out underneath the lights when the pressure’s on,” Flajole said Saturday, the final day of minicamp at Rams Park. “Right out here (on the practice fields), if you make a mistake it’s not going up on the scoreboard. I don’t know if you feel the same sense of urgency. I’m always interested to see how guys react when its show time and the lights come up.”
That said, Flajole is pleased with what he’s seen so far.
“I think we’re growing. We’ve got maybe about 70 to 75 percent of what we do installed,” he said. “Haven’t had a lot of reps at it, because you try to get everything that you’re going to run in training camp in before the end of everything (in the spring). But I think we’ve been encouraged. We’re making some mistakes, but that’s understandable. Every day when you’re installing three or four new pressures or a coverage or a front or something, it starts getting all muddled together a little bit. But we’re working through it.”
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Notes & quotes:
*Here’s Flajole on CB Tye Hill: “We’ve been pleased with Tye. He came back from battling that knee. I think he’s getting better every week. I’m cautiously optimistic about Tye.”
*Chris Draft, who had been working exclusively in the middle , took some reps at strongside linebacker on Saturday. That could be a prelude to second-round draftee James Laurinaitis moving up to the first team at or near the start of training camp.
*DE Leonard Little, hampered by a torn hamstring last season and a toe injury in 2007, has had a strong spring. “He’s done a great job. He’s a great leader,” Flajole said. “We’re going to knock on wood and . . . hope he doesn’t get hurt.”
*Don’t tell offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur that he needs a veteran to complement his stable of young WRs. “I like the guys we have,” he said. “They’re working hard to get open and they’re really working hard at catching the football. I think they’re all trying to think of themselves as playmakers, and that’s what you want.”
*OTAs resume Tuesday and run through June 17. Then the players will be free until reassembling for training camp in late July.
All for now . . .
If I was mayonnaise, I couldn’t cover a peace of bread.
The Perfect Storm approaches..soon all the daily Ram news updates will go down with the ship until mid July. We’ll be like a junkie not getting his daily fix. I’ve been there before as most of us have. It will seem like a year of waiting.
Each year when this time comes around, we starve for Ram info.
Maybe this year the down-time will be focused on the Rams future home.
I still doubt a local group can get aproval from the NFL owners without a new, state of the art stadium….. and if even if a new owner planned to build one, would the revenue from the stadium justify the cost AND pay to the NFL owners in a cash flow bracket as one of the 8 top teams specially in the NFL charter that requires such.
That’s a load for any owner and the projected income stream probably will make the decision for whoever hopes to keep the team in STL. For me, I actually like the stability of team to remain there…but, I would also like to actually see the games as I did in LA. So, either way I still win.
Doesn’t matter what I’d like or anyone else in STL, it will be a decision made by the guys in the “club”.
Every day we get progress reports about the team thigs just seem to get better. I love it. It is even now what we all knew the team needed to do..get new management, new quality coaches, additional new players and a new system.
I wonder if Shurmur is an eternal oppomist or company man. I wonder how good they are. As always we will see. Hopefuuly not hurtfully. We know that you can’t make chicken salad out of chicken stuff.
I don’t understand why the fans are concerned over the lack of experience at the wide receiver position.This is the same system that Philly runs.In this sysyem the wideouts aren’t that important,as long as they can catch the ball.With the exception of T.O. , Phillt made it to numerous NFC title games with,average at best, wideouts.
I think our WRs will be fine. I never worried about them. Burton is going to suprise everyone this year.
And … does everyone that is a forum sheep have to always add the irratating “at best” BS? Don’t be a sheep.
Yes, that’s about the tenth time you’ve told that Tye Hill ‘joke’ on different articles. Getting a bit ******** boring now don’t you think ?