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Rams Practice Report 10/30: Playing Within the Division
By Myles Simmons
View: http://www.stlouisrams.com/news-and-events/article-practicereport/Practice-Report-1030-Playing-Within-the-Division/50ae01c7-08f9-48ef-9bd4-8ac76093e3bb
So far in 2015, the Rams have done a nice job of competing within the NFC West. They have won both of their divisional matchups -- Week 1 against Seattle and Week 4 at Arizona -- playing well in all three phases.
Sunday’s contest will bring in the third team, San Francisco, into the Edward Jones Dome. And even though the 49ers have a new coaching staff, the Rams still have a good amount of familiarity with them. That’s especially because the players and the systems they’re running haven’t changed too much.
“You know the personnel well, you know the scheme well,” linebacker James Laurinaitis said. “So a lot of times, you’re not getting surprised by anything.”
“You know San Fran is going to get in a certain formation and run power,” Laurinaitis continued. “You know they’re going to do it, and they say, ‘OK, try to stop it.’ And it’s just man-on-man kind of stuff. You have to win your individual matchup.”
That’s part of why the team has such respect for the 49ers. With all the knowledge each team has of one another, a game can swing either way.
“This is a division game,” defensive coordinator Gregg Williams said. “They know us, we know them. We always play in a dog fight and always play hard. Believe me, our guys have been very respectful in all the meetings and all the practices this week because they know how good that team is.”
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
Punter Johnny Hekker received some national recognition on Thursday when he was named NFC Special Teams Player of the Month. Hekker averaged 48.3 yards on his 16 punts in October, including three punts inside the 20-yard line against the Browns on Sunday. He also had punts of 56 and 57 yards over the course of the month.
“It's a huge honor to be recognized for an entire month of production,” Hekker said Friday. “Frankly, I wasn't super astonished with the way I played. I have to chalk it up to my teammates -- just the way they were able to keep me comfortable out there. It's easy to sit back there, relax and punt the ball when everyone is doing their job very, very well. Our punt team is protecting really well.”
Hekker is only the second punter in franchise history to receive the honor.
“The recognition is great to have, but more so than personally, I think it speaks to how my teammates have been preparing this last month,” Hekker said.
FROM THE OTHER SIDE
It’s easy to see why anyone would be impressed with the way running back Todd Gurley has played. There’s clearly a reason he was named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month.
But while everyone notices what Gurley does on Sundays, Williams said his demeanor behind the scenes is even more impressive.
“He brings a big smile to my face, yes he does,” Williams said. “Leadership has no age. You can be a leader at any age of your life. But you better [set] a good example, and you better go about doing things the right way. And behind the scenes, he does things the right way, too.”
The defensive coordinator said Gurley’s humility was easy to notice from the day he entered the building. And that’s part of why the running back has so quickly earned the respect of his teammates and coaches.
“Everybody likes him when he’s out there and you can see him doing those things -- I like him behind the scenes, too,” Williams said. “He’s a good young man.”
BIG PLAY HAYES
Defensive end Will Hayes spent time filling in for an injured Chris Long last year, and did well in the role. Now he’s doing the same for a few weeks while Long deals with a knee injury, and Williams has been impressed with the returns. Hayes had two sack/fumbles on Browns quarterback Josh McCown in last week’s victory.
“He’s super important,” Williams said. “He’s a tough player when he plays. It was fun to see him rise up and take ownership of that position, because no longer was he rotating with Chris Long. He had to get ready to rise.
“And he did a great job last year,” Williams added. “He was our production leader last year for the entire season. He won that award. So, it’s always fun to see him do that.”
Behind the scenes, Williams says Hayes is one of the best players to help boost morale. And that’s part of what makes him such a key contributor to the defense.
“He’s constantly keeping things stirred up,” Williams said. “He does do a great job in the training room, in the classroom, all those things.”
A LITTLE COMPETITION
Finally, the Rams ended practice Friday as they do every week with some competition between the first groups on offense and defense. The team runs three plays inside the 5-yard line and the objectives for both units is clear on each play. For defense, prevent a touchdown. For offense, get one.
On this Friday, though, there was a bit of a dispute as to who won.
“It was 2-1, defense,” Williams said -- saying one catch was out of bounds, and there was holding on another. “I’ll give them the third one.”
“The offense won 3-0,” head coach Jeff Fisher said, adding he gets the final vote on that. “But I’m not fudging at all. They got in three times.”
“They got beat last week, too, so that’s a good sign,” Fisher added.
As Williams put it, it’s a good way to finish the week with high spirits.
“The fun part about it, you see their interest and their ‘swag’ pick up just competing -- just competing and having fun,” Williams said. “And the camaraderie back and forth on offense and defense -- it’ll still be going on in the locker room.”
By Myles Simmons
View: http://www.stlouisrams.com/news-and-events/article-practicereport/Practice-Report-1030-Playing-Within-the-Division/50ae01c7-08f9-48ef-9bd4-8ac76093e3bb
So far in 2015, the Rams have done a nice job of competing within the NFC West. They have won both of their divisional matchups -- Week 1 against Seattle and Week 4 at Arizona -- playing well in all three phases.
Sunday’s contest will bring in the third team, San Francisco, into the Edward Jones Dome. And even though the 49ers have a new coaching staff, the Rams still have a good amount of familiarity with them. That’s especially because the players and the systems they’re running haven’t changed too much.
“You know the personnel well, you know the scheme well,” linebacker James Laurinaitis said. “So a lot of times, you’re not getting surprised by anything.”
“You know San Fran is going to get in a certain formation and run power,” Laurinaitis continued. “You know they’re going to do it, and they say, ‘OK, try to stop it.’ And it’s just man-on-man kind of stuff. You have to win your individual matchup.”
That’s part of why the team has such respect for the 49ers. With all the knowledge each team has of one another, a game can swing either way.
“This is a division game,” defensive coordinator Gregg Williams said. “They know us, we know them. We always play in a dog fight and always play hard. Believe me, our guys have been very respectful in all the meetings and all the practices this week because they know how good that team is.”
PLAYER OF THE MONTH
Punter Johnny Hekker received some national recognition on Thursday when he was named NFC Special Teams Player of the Month. Hekker averaged 48.3 yards on his 16 punts in October, including three punts inside the 20-yard line against the Browns on Sunday. He also had punts of 56 and 57 yards over the course of the month.
“It's a huge honor to be recognized for an entire month of production,” Hekker said Friday. “Frankly, I wasn't super astonished with the way I played. I have to chalk it up to my teammates -- just the way they were able to keep me comfortable out there. It's easy to sit back there, relax and punt the ball when everyone is doing their job very, very well. Our punt team is protecting really well.”
Hekker is only the second punter in franchise history to receive the honor.
“The recognition is great to have, but more so than personally, I think it speaks to how my teammates have been preparing this last month,” Hekker said.
FROM THE OTHER SIDE
It’s easy to see why anyone would be impressed with the way running back Todd Gurley has played. There’s clearly a reason he was named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Month.
But while everyone notices what Gurley does on Sundays, Williams said his demeanor behind the scenes is even more impressive.
“He brings a big smile to my face, yes he does,” Williams said. “Leadership has no age. You can be a leader at any age of your life. But you better [set] a good example, and you better go about doing things the right way. And behind the scenes, he does things the right way, too.”
The defensive coordinator said Gurley’s humility was easy to notice from the day he entered the building. And that’s part of why the running back has so quickly earned the respect of his teammates and coaches.
“Everybody likes him when he’s out there and you can see him doing those things -- I like him behind the scenes, too,” Williams said. “He’s a good young man.”
BIG PLAY HAYES
Defensive end Will Hayes spent time filling in for an injured Chris Long last year, and did well in the role. Now he’s doing the same for a few weeks while Long deals with a knee injury, and Williams has been impressed with the returns. Hayes had two sack/fumbles on Browns quarterback Josh McCown in last week’s victory.
“He’s super important,” Williams said. “He’s a tough player when he plays. It was fun to see him rise up and take ownership of that position, because no longer was he rotating with Chris Long. He had to get ready to rise.
“And he did a great job last year,” Williams added. “He was our production leader last year for the entire season. He won that award. So, it’s always fun to see him do that.”
Behind the scenes, Williams says Hayes is one of the best players to help boost morale. And that’s part of what makes him such a key contributor to the defense.
“He’s constantly keeping things stirred up,” Williams said. “He does do a great job in the training room, in the classroom, all those things.”
A LITTLE COMPETITION
Finally, the Rams ended practice Friday as they do every week with some competition between the first groups on offense and defense. The team runs three plays inside the 5-yard line and the objectives for both units is clear on each play. For defense, prevent a touchdown. For offense, get one.
On this Friday, though, there was a bit of a dispute as to who won.
“It was 2-1, defense,” Williams said -- saying one catch was out of bounds, and there was holding on another. “I’ll give them the third one.”
“The offense won 3-0,” head coach Jeff Fisher said, adding he gets the final vote on that. “But I’m not fudging at all. They got in three times.”
“They got beat last week, too, so that’s a good sign,” Fisher added.
As Williams put it, it’s a good way to finish the week with high spirits.
“The fun part about it, you see their interest and their ‘swag’ pick up just competing -- just competing and having fun,” Williams said. “And the camaraderie back and forth on offense and defense -- it’ll still be going on in the locker room.”
