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- Jun 20, 2010
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- The Dude
[hil]"He's probably got the most potential of any rookie I've seen since I've been in the NFL."[/hil]
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Tom Timmermann
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football ... z1xbHhFxcd
[wrapimg=left]http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/fc/4fce69f2-f9e6-5ad8-a8af-11d0e0c5005b/4fadabad0e98f.preview-300.jpg[/wrapimg]The education of first-round draft pick Michael Brockers continues this week with the Rams' final minicamp before everyone heads off for summer vacation.
And when it comes to an on-field education, Brockers is someone who takes it seriously.
"That's one thing I like about him," fellow defensive lineman William Hayes said. "He's definitely good at taking criticism. You can talk to him and say, 'Mike, do it this way,' or 'Try it this way,' and it's not like, 'I already knew that.' He takes everything in. He's an OK-type guy. Everything you hear is, 'OK, I'll try to work on this.' "
"He's grasping the concepts very well," added defensive tackle Kendall Langford. "He's one of those guys you don't have to tell him over and over. He makes a mistake, you tell him the correct way to do it, the correct play, he seems to adjust right now. He gets it done."
That's a big deal for the Rams, who have plenty of holes to patch up after a 2-14 season. Unable to get the wide receiver they wanted with the No. 6 pick, the Rams traded down and picked up Brockers, who played three seasons at Louisiana State, with the 14th pick overall.
Brockers has been so focused on studying his playbook and looking at game film that he said he didn't even think to call his mother immediately after signing his four-year contract with the Rams on Thursday. He signed the papers and got back to work.
He's finding the NFL to be a new experience, but one he's getting the hang of.
"I'm feeling pretty good," he said. "Everything's coming pretty smoothly. At first, I was hit with a lot of different plays, different techniques. But as I go on, through OTAs and minicamps, I feel I'm getting better and better every day. I'm getting off the ball, learning techniques they're teaching, understanding what to do.
"I feel like the adjustment from college to (the first) minicamp was tough. I was tired, sweating profusely. Now I feel pretty good. I'm not too winded. I understand what I have to do and I have to play my part."
Brockers talks of new techniques he's learned from defensive line coach Mike Waufle — "You can't get too much individual work with your position coach at this point," coach Jeff Fisher said — and the help he's gotten from veterans such as Hayes and Langford, both of whom were signed as free agents in the offseason. And Hayes and Langford have both been impressed by what they have seen from Brockers.
"I think he's coming along fast," Hayes said. "He's got a lot of ability. He's big, strong, fast, and he's really athletic for his size and he's a really smart player.[hil]He's probably got the most potential of any rookie I've seen since I've been in the NFL.[/hil] He's got a lot of skills that a lot of guys have to work for that are just natural for him."
"He's very coachable," Langford said. "That's one of the most important things you can be as a professional athlete. He comes to work every day and works hard. He asks questions. He's not afraid to ask questions. That's a plus also. He's open to learning."
While Langford sees Brockers as a "complete package," Brockers feels he needs some work on his pass defense after spending his college days in the run-heavy SEC. "I want to be a dominant player," Brockers said. "I think my pass game defense will come."
"Playing the run for him is really, really natural," Hayes said, "and it comes really easy for him. That's one thing I can say, when it comes to his run game, he's on point. He's up there with us. I just think, learning a new system is slowing everybody down a little. ... That's a big thing with rookies, they're a bit further behind, but he's right there with everybody. You ask him a question, he's real alert of knowing the answer. I like him a lot. He's got a lot of good stuff going for him. He's going to be real good for this defense."
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Tom Timmermann
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/football ... z1xbHhFxcd
[wrapimg=left]http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/4/fc/4fce69f2-f9e6-5ad8-a8af-11d0e0c5005b/4fadabad0e98f.preview-300.jpg[/wrapimg]The education of first-round draft pick Michael Brockers continues this week with the Rams' final minicamp before everyone heads off for summer vacation.
And when it comes to an on-field education, Brockers is someone who takes it seriously.
"That's one thing I like about him," fellow defensive lineman William Hayes said. "He's definitely good at taking criticism. You can talk to him and say, 'Mike, do it this way,' or 'Try it this way,' and it's not like, 'I already knew that.' He takes everything in. He's an OK-type guy. Everything you hear is, 'OK, I'll try to work on this.' "
"He's grasping the concepts very well," added defensive tackle Kendall Langford. "He's one of those guys you don't have to tell him over and over. He makes a mistake, you tell him the correct way to do it, the correct play, he seems to adjust right now. He gets it done."
That's a big deal for the Rams, who have plenty of holes to patch up after a 2-14 season. Unable to get the wide receiver they wanted with the No. 6 pick, the Rams traded down and picked up Brockers, who played three seasons at Louisiana State, with the 14th pick overall.
Brockers has been so focused on studying his playbook and looking at game film that he said he didn't even think to call his mother immediately after signing his four-year contract with the Rams on Thursday. He signed the papers and got back to work.
He's finding the NFL to be a new experience, but one he's getting the hang of.
"I'm feeling pretty good," he said. "Everything's coming pretty smoothly. At first, I was hit with a lot of different plays, different techniques. But as I go on, through OTAs and minicamps, I feel I'm getting better and better every day. I'm getting off the ball, learning techniques they're teaching, understanding what to do.
"I feel like the adjustment from college to (the first) minicamp was tough. I was tired, sweating profusely. Now I feel pretty good. I'm not too winded. I understand what I have to do and I have to play my part."
Brockers talks of new techniques he's learned from defensive line coach Mike Waufle — "You can't get too much individual work with your position coach at this point," coach Jeff Fisher said — and the help he's gotten from veterans such as Hayes and Langford, both of whom were signed as free agents in the offseason. And Hayes and Langford have both been impressed by what they have seen from Brockers.
"I think he's coming along fast," Hayes said. "He's got a lot of ability. He's big, strong, fast, and he's really athletic for his size and he's a really smart player.[hil]He's probably got the most potential of any rookie I've seen since I've been in the NFL.[/hil] He's got a lot of skills that a lot of guys have to work for that are just natural for him."
"He's very coachable," Langford said. "That's one of the most important things you can be as a professional athlete. He comes to work every day and works hard. He asks questions. He's not afraid to ask questions. That's a plus also. He's open to learning."
While Langford sees Brockers as a "complete package," Brockers feels he needs some work on his pass defense after spending his college days in the run-heavy SEC. "I want to be a dominant player," Brockers said. "I think my pass game defense will come."
"Playing the run for him is really, really natural," Hayes said, "and it comes really easy for him. That's one thing I can say, when it comes to his run game, he's on point. He's up there with us. I just think, learning a new system is slowing everybody down a little. ... That's a big thing with rookies, they're a bit further behind, but he's right there with everybody. You ask him a question, he's real alert of knowing the answer. I like him a lot. He's got a lot of good stuff going for him. He's going to be real good for this defense."
