Rams Practice Reports 8/31: Roster Trimming Begins

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RamBill

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Practice Report 8/31: Roster Trimming Begins
Myles Simmons

View: http://www.stlouisrams.com/news-and-events/article-1/Practice-Report-831-Roster-Trimming-Begins/a7ec06e3-e555-47ff-b455-31ae4955f434


As head coach Jeff Fisher put it, Monday was a tough day around Rams Park as the team reduced the roster from 89 to 77 players.

“We just appreciate all of the young guys’ efforts,” Fisher said. “They came in here, they got opportunities, and they got better. They should feel good about what they did. They helped us become a better football team.”

St. Louis waived or released 11 players, and placed cornerback E.J. Gaines on injured reserve on Monday. Wide receiver Isaiah Ferguson had previously been waived/injured by the team, which brings the active roster to 77. The team will have to make a couple more moves to put the roster at 75 players by the deadline tomorrow afternoon.

While being cut is never a fun experience for any player, Fisher makes the process as empathetic as possible, ensuring he speaks to each individual on the team’s decision. He said the younger players are understanding and appreciative of their opportunities.

“They got to put a body of work on tape for the rest of the league. And that was our commitment to them when we signed a lot of these guys after the draft, was we’re going to let you play in preseason games,” Fisher said. “They did and they played well. So they’ll be exposed to the rest of the league tomorrow and we’ll just see what happens.”

Imoan Claiborne is one such player who stood out in camp and put some good plays on film, but due to numbers, the team made the decision to part ways with the rookie cornerback.

“He played good, he made plays,” Fisher said. “He’s a potential practice squad candidate, but just because of the other positions and numbers, it just didn’t work out for us.

“We’ve got depth there,” Fisher continued of the cornerback position. “The other two young guys are doing good. Those are our decisions. We have to stand by our decisions.”

Part of the decision-making process has to do with playing time in the final preseason contest. The head coach already said on Sunday many of the starters may be held out of it for precautionary reasons. And around the league, the game is mainly played by those on the bubble for making a 53-man roster

“That’s why some of the moves ended the way they did, is because you have to take into consideration playing the fourth preseason game -- the end of the game, how you finish, your numbers, and things like that,” Fisher said. “We spent a lot of time on it and felt like we made the best moves in the interest of the organization.”

For a complete breakdown of the roster moves, check out our story and special Rams Report here.

ON THE DEFENSIVE LINE

The Rams have assembled a strong group from top to bottom on the defensive line. While there may be some tough decisions to make for that position group in the coming days, Fisher said on Sunday he’s been impressed with both Louis Trinca-Pasat and Matt Longacre.

“Matt’s playing both ends. Trinca-Pasat’s playing both tackles. They just make plays,” Fisher said. “They shock and shed people and get off blocks and penetrate and put pressure on the quarterback, so it’s been great to have them here.”

Longacre told stlouisrams.com on Monday that with all the talent around him, he landed in a good spot for training camp.

“It’s been great, I couldn’t have asked for a better situation from that aspect,” Longacre said. “They’re all veteran guys and some of the best at their position.”

Plus, having defensive line coach Mike Waufle as a resource has been invaluable.

“He’s had a huge impact on me, but he’s one of the best coaches in the league for the D-line,” Longacre said. “The knowledge he has -- you can’t put a price on it.”

We’ll have more on the young defensive linemen and their potential impact in the final exhibition matchup in the lead up to Thursday’s 7 p.m. kickoff.

ON THE OFFENSIVE LINE

There’s still competition along the O-line, as the rotation at the center spot continued in Monday’s indoor practice.

Lineman Demetrius Rhaney has been moving around a bit on the offensive line. He’s one of the players in consideration for starting center, but has also spent significant time at guard -- including starting Saturday’s game there.

“He’s been playing well at both positions, especially productive on the second level in the screens and downfield,” Fisher said. “He’s very athletic and made some really good blocks.”

“The beauty with him is he came in to every meeting and he took notes on center and he took notes on guard,” offensive line coach Paul T. Boudreau told stlouisrams.com. “He played guard and center in college, so I knew he had some flex in him.”

With the team going to more zone-style running plays in the upcoming season, Rhaney said he’s feeling comfortable working on concepts that are similar to what he did in college.

“My biggest thing has just been getting the playbook down pat, and being ready whenever my name is called,” Rhaney said.

For more on the O-line, check out Dani Klupenger’s one-on-one with Barrett Jones below, and stay tuned to stlouisrams.com for our position battles feature on the unit.
 

RamBill

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Rams get back to practice on what Jeff Fisher calls a 'difficult day'
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-ra...ice-on-what-jeff-fisher-calls-a-difficult-day

EARTH CITY, Mo. -- The St. Louis Rams had their first official practice since Saturday's preseason loss to the Indianapolis Colts. It was a quick, one and a half hour workout but it came after one of Rams coach Jeff Fisher's least favorite activities: cutting players.

Fisher annually makes it a point to break the news to the players in person when they're being released. He did so again Monday when the team trimmed its roster to 77 players through a mix of roster moves. They still have two more moves to make to get to the league-mandated total of 75 by Tuesday.

"We just appreciate all the young guys' efforts," Fisher said. "They came in here and they got opportunities and they got better and they should feel good about what they did. They helped us become a better football team. Cutdown day is a tough day."

The Rams made 12 roster moves Monday, releasing 10 undrafted rookies, terminating the contract of wide receiver Damian Williams and placing cornerback E.J. Gaines on injured reserve. Fisher said the moves can be difficult to make this week because there's still a final preseason game to play on Thursday night. Since many of the starters won't play at all or will be limited in their work, that means many of the players released Monday would have played prominent roles on Thursday.

That puts the onus on the coaching staff to figure out who they can release and who they need to keep to make the numbers work.

"That was why some of the moves ended the way they did because you have got to take into consideration playing the fourth preseason game, the end of the game, how you finish, your numbers and things like that," Fisher said.

The only player qualifying as even a mild surprise on the initial cuts was cornerback Imoan Claiborne, who had played well in preseason games and was known for landing a punch on Dallas receiver Dez Bryant in joint practices with the Cowboys almost two weeks ago.

"He's played good," Fisher said. "He's a defensive practice squad candidate but just because of the other positions and numbers, it just didn't work out for us. We've got depth there, the other two young guys are doing good. Those are our decisions. We have to stand by our decisions."

The Rams have two more immediate decisions to make to get to 75 and then will make 22 more by Saturday at 4 p.m. ET when they must get down to their initial 53-man roster.

The Rams practiced indoors Monday because of lightning in the area. Fisher said the Rams' rule is that anytime there is lightning in a 12 to 15 mile radius, the team will practice inside.
Among those not practicing: RB Tre Mason (hamstring), CB Brandon McGee (foot), OL Andrew Donnal (finger), G Jamon Brown (ankle), LB Daren Bates (knee), G Rodger Saffold (shoulder), DT Michael Brockers (shoulder), LB Jo-Lonn Dunbar, DT Doug Worthington and DT Nick Fairley (collarbone).
Without projected starters Saffold and Brown, the Rams used Demetrius Rhaney at right guard and Garrett Reynolds at left guard with the starting unit. Tim Barnes took his turn as the top center.
Safety Cody Davis had yet another interception on a deflected pass in team drills. He's been getting one seemingly every other day in practice for the past couple of weeks. ... Receiver Brian Quick and quarterback Case Keenum connected on a deep ball over cornerback Trovon Reed for a would-be touchdown.
The Rams have one more practice Tuesday before a Wednesday night walk through at Scott Air Force Base and Thursday's preseason finale.
 

rams24/7

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Maybe cutting Claiborne could signal us going heavy at another position (like RB)
 

RamBill

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Reporter Dani Klupenger gives us a clue as who was cut from the roster this week, as well as gives us an updated injury report on who sat out practice this Monday.

Watch Rams Practice Report
 

LACHAMP46

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Cody Davis continues to get his hands on the ball...CoachO said as much...Man, I wonder who the last 2 guys could be?
 

-X-

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Cody Davis continues to get his hands on the ball...CoachO said as much...Man, I wonder who the last 2 guys could be?
Cody's not going anywhere, IMO. He's really good on special teams and he's a fundamentally sound safety.
Not the most gifted athlete or anything, but you can certainly count on him to fill in and not screw up.
 

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LACHAMP46

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something say to me @-X- he's scared to hit...just doesn't fly around....Wonder how his blog is doin?
 

hotanez

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Wow I don't see any of those things in Davis. I just see bad angles and bad instincts. He must be one of those players that looks good in practice but below average in real games. He is a very good STs player.
 

-X-

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Wow I don't see any of those things in Davis. I just see bad angles and bad instincts. He must be one of those players that looks good in practice but below average in real games. He is a very good STs player.
Trippin'.
 

Elmgrovegnome

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Cody Davis will be competing with Christian Bryant, and Joyner should be a candidate to back up Free Safety too. With emphasizing other positions and just plain old more talent at some others, Davis could be cut. Right now Trinca Passat and Longacre won't last on the practice squad and have more potential impact. The Rams may have to keep extra DTs. Fisher has talked about their versatility and likes them both.

I think they keep Pead until Watts is eligible. Otherwise they will have to carry 6 RBs, counting Reynolds. That is a lot. If they worry about position depth they could put Brown on the PS. At this point I wonder if Chase R. Is worth the spot. The roster crunch is getting tighter. The NFL really needs to expand a few spots IMO.

Who are the other two corners that outplayed Imoan Claiborne?
 

LACHAMP46

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At this point I wonder if Chase R. Is worth the spot......Who are the other two corners that outplayed Imoan Claiborne?
I wonder about Chase as well...esp. with the injury issues at Rb..I mean, we may actually like need the backup RB to like, run the rock in a big game....
Claiborne was outplayed by Roberson on the field, and McGee from the tub & tape (game)....
 

Elmgrovegnome

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I wonder about Chase as well...esp. with the injury issues at Rb..I mean, we may actually like need the backup RB to like, run the rock in a big game....
Claiborne was outplayed by Roberson on the field, and McGee from the tub & tape (game)....

The tub and tape? Funny. Claiborne was too slow. I thought there was another corner in the mix. An UDFA.
 

DaveFan'51

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Cody Davis will be competing with Christian Bryant, and Joyner should be a candidate to back up Free Safety too. With emphasizing other positions and just plain old more talent at some others, Davis could be cut. Right now Trinca Passat and Longacre won't last on the practice squad and have more potential impact. The Rams may have to keep extra DTs. Fisher has talked about their versatility and likes them both.

I think they keep Pead until Watts is eligible. Otherwise they will have to carry 6 RBs, counting Reynolds. That is a lot. If they worry about position depth they could put Brown on the PS. At this point I wonder if Chase R. Is worth the spot. The roster crunch is getting tighter. The NFL really needs to expand a few spots IMO.

Who are the other two corners that outplayed Imoan Claiborne?
I like where your coming from, But IMHO
* I'd keep Cody Davis before Christian Bryant.
* The Rams carried 9 D-Lineman last year and can this year, But They won't be able to carry both T-P and Longacre, I think Long acre gets Cut.
* I'm not sure, but I believe we carried 5 RB last year, so I don't see us carrying 6 this year. This is where the hard cuts will come from. IMHO
 

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I like Bryant and all but this secondary has plenty of big safeties that can bring it. IMO Davis' skills are probably best for the team at the bottom of the depth chart with his teams play and ball skills.