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<a class="postlink" href="http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/joe-strauss/strauss-rams-discipline-about-carrots-and-sticks-apples-and-oranges/article_12c2a9db-b524-5f5f-95f8-103cf874955d.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/ ... 4955d.html</a>
[wrapimg=left]http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/5/d6/5d6cba06-79e5-5d7e-8b6b-f920c7190bc3/51b7e1fd2456e.preview-300.jpg[/wrapimg]Jeff Fisher has heard the labels but still wonders where they came from. He’s been described as a patron saint of second chances, a risk-taker when balancing talent against character and the guy who enabled the notorious Adam “Pac Man” Jones.
To those who think numbers don’t lie, five of 10 is the more recent indictment. That’s how many among the Rams’ 2012 draft class have since run afoul of league or team rules.
Running back Isaiah Pead and guard Rokevious Watkins are suspended for the upcoming season’s first game. Cornerback Trumaine Johnson several months ago was charged with DUI in Montana, where he was tazed during an alcohol-related arrest in college. Johnson could face one or two docked game checks.
To hear some descriptions, Fisher must favor talent from Attica and Rahway over Alabama and Penn State. At Fisher’s previous stop, defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth received a five-game suspension for stomping on Dallas Cowboys center Andre Gurode while playing for the 2006 Tennessee Titans. Jones was arrested three times in two seasons with the Titans before being tied to a 2007 shooting incident at a Las Vegas strip club that left a bouncer paralyzed.
The Rams are sensitive to suggestions they are soft on character, insisting they removed more than 20 bad eggs from this year’s draft board.
“I can say this for a fact: We’ve done things in the last year nobody else in the league has done. I know that. It’s a number of different things,” insists Fisher, who stopped short of enumerating the practices for fear of surrendering a proprietary edge. “We’re using everything we have. It’s not because of the players (who have encountered trouble). It’s to help all the players. It’s not a one-time deal. It’s over an extensive period of time. Every player is different. Every year is different.”
“We’re not an organization of renegades. We’re not seeking to take players with issues,” asserts chief operating officer Kevin Demoff. “I think the perception is we’ll take anybody, no questions asked. That couldn’t be further from the truth.”
No organization is immune. The severity of the Rams’ recent off-field issues is relatively minor compared to what Fisher encountered inTennessee. But they are there. The number disciplined among the Rams’ Class of ’12 is actually inflated 40 percent by Fisher’s decision last November to suspend rookie receiver Chris Givens and cornerback Janoris Jenkins for violating team rules in San Francisco.
The team could have fined and discreetly punished the pair, left them eligible for a huge division game against the 49ers . Fisher and general manager Les Snead advocated otherwise.
The players ran the steps at Candlestick Park before the game. Jenkins later sought counsel from mentor and former Rams defensive back Aeneas Williams. “It paid off as the season went along,” says Jenkins. “We talked about life and what was going on.”
The Rams say and do this while admittedly taking chances on players previously involved in brushes with the law. (Jenkins had legal issues at Florida before transferring to North Alabama.) They reconcile this by pointing to a comprehensive program designed to offer direction to younger players as soon as they arrive at Rams Park.
The Rams last year initiated a player development program focusing on educating players about staying off a police log, managing money and intelligently using social media. During an approaching six-week hiatus leading up to training camp – “the scariest six weeks of the year,” according to Demoff – staff will randomly text and phone players at late hours.
Snead is an avid student of behavioral science. He notes the volatility created by 22- and 23-year-olds and millions of dollars but also believes in a pro-active program that asks everyone in the organization to form a support system. He uses the analogy of the Lion King: a first-year player gradually maturing from a cub to a leader, a big cat.
“You’re going to be asked to play like a lion and asked to behave a lion and you’re that little kid,” Snead says. “But if at some point we believe it’s going to take too much energy from all the people to a player to meet our standards… then, no.”
It’s impossible to ignore the fact that Fisher and Snead joined an organization that had endured the worst five-year run in NFL history. Predecessor Steve Spagnuolo’s Four Pillars approach brought nothing except an increasingly apathetic fan base and, ultimately, a pink slip. The current regime arrived desperate for talent, pillars or not.
“You can’t win without talent. You just can’t,” Fisher notes. “Second, you have to then go in and find out if there are character concerns. You have to identify players, examine then and then make your decision. There were a lot of players we took off the board. There’s a balance.” Fisher believes “you’re going to win an extra two or three games with the appropriate chemistry in the locker room.”
The Rams enjoyed a good room last season. They played with what Snead calls “a passion” uncorrupted by internal dissent. Truth to tell, the Rams give more weight to a player’s worth as a teammate than whether he got popped for using weed in college.
“To me, as an organization, our tolerance level for taking on risk is probably greater than some other teams. It probably will remain that way,” says Demoff. “You understand eventually you’re going to get burned. You understand how you handle that. Jeff and Les know that.”
When outside linebacker Alec Ogletree plummeted in April’s draft due to a series of off-field incidents at Georgia, the Rams saw it as an opportunity to gobble him up at No. 30. They did so after investigating his background and interviewing him. They concluded that Ogletree offers Pro Bowl potential and minimal risk within a new environment.
“There were issues and choices made. You do your research, which we did, and at the end of the day we ended up picking Alec,” Fisher said. “He’s athletic. He has ability. He has tremendous potential. There were also choices that he made during his college career. He understands that those things aren’t tolerated here.”
Fisher chafes at any hint of professional amorality. The organization invited parents of this year’s draft class to attend May rookie minicamp, where they became familiar with the support system offered by the club.
It was during last spring’s rookie camp that Fisher arranged for a Brinks truck to transport $1 million cash to Rams Park. Armed guards spread the loot on a meeting room table. Fisher then divided the money – this much for taxes, this much for an agent’s commission, so much for immediate family and so much for hangers-on. Only a small fraction remained for the athlete.
Visual aids can also come in handy as disciplinary instruments. During a team meeting Fisher brandished a gas can when relating a player’s supposed vehicle-related tardiness. Fisher then informed the player the can of gas would cost him $19,000.
Private acts of discipline contrast to the public willingness to gamble. The Rams, for example, were alone in placing a waiver claim on troubled ex-Detroit Lions receiver Titus Young. The Rams ultimately elected not to sign Young, since arrested at least three times, including twice in one day.
Merely considering Young may seem like Wild West risk-taking. To Fisher it is nothing more dangerous than exploring any avenue that might enhance his roster.
“We had an opportunity to claim him. We didn’t want him to clear waivers and have to compete with other clubs. We took advantage of the claiming rules to get a talented player who had some issues,” Fisher says. “We brought him in. We evaluated him. He didn’t pass the evaluation.”
In some ways, the evaluation never ends.
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/joe-strauss/strauss-rams-discipline-about-carrots-and-sticks-apples-and-oranges/article_12c2a9db-b524-5f5f-95f8-103cf874955d.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/ ... 4955d.html</a>
[wrapimg=left]http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/5/d6/5d6cba06-79e5-5d7e-8b6b-f920c7190bc3/51b7e1fd2456e.preview-300.jpg[/wrapimg]Jeff Fisher has heard the labels but still wonders where they came from. He’s been described as a patron saint of second chances, a risk-taker when balancing talent against character and the guy who enabled the notorious Adam “Pac Man” Jones.
To those who think numbers don’t lie, five of 10 is the more recent indictment. That’s how many among the Rams’ 2012 draft class have since run afoul of league or team rules.
Running back Isaiah Pead and guard Rokevious Watkins are suspended for the upcoming season’s first game. Cornerback Trumaine Johnson several months ago was charged with DUI in Montana, where he was tazed during an alcohol-related arrest in college. Johnson could face one or two docked game checks.
To hear some descriptions, Fisher must favor talent from Attica and Rahway over Alabama and Penn State. At Fisher’s previous stop, defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth received a five-game suspension for stomping on Dallas Cowboys center Andre Gurode while playing for the 2006 Tennessee Titans. Jones was arrested three times in two seasons with the Titans before being tied to a 2007 shooting incident at a Las Vegas strip club that left a bouncer paralyzed.
The Rams are sensitive to suggestions they are soft on character, insisting they removed more than 20 bad eggs from this year’s draft board.
“I can say this for a fact: We’ve done things in the last year nobody else in the league has done. I know that. It’s a number of different things,” insists Fisher, who stopped short of enumerating the practices for fear of surrendering a proprietary edge. “We’re using everything we have. It’s not because of the players (who have encountered trouble). It’s to help all the players. It’s not a one-time deal. It’s over an extensive period of time. Every player is different. Every year is different.”
“We’re not an organization of renegades. We’re not seeking to take players with issues,” asserts chief operating officer Kevin Demoff. “I think the perception is we’ll take anybody, no questions asked. That couldn’t be further from the truth.”
No organization is immune. The severity of the Rams’ recent off-field issues is relatively minor compared to what Fisher encountered inTennessee. But they are there. The number disciplined among the Rams’ Class of ’12 is actually inflated 40 percent by Fisher’s decision last November to suspend rookie receiver Chris Givens and cornerback Janoris Jenkins for violating team rules in San Francisco.
The team could have fined and discreetly punished the pair, left them eligible for a huge division game against the 49ers . Fisher and general manager Les Snead advocated otherwise.
The players ran the steps at Candlestick Park before the game. Jenkins later sought counsel from mentor and former Rams defensive back Aeneas Williams. “It paid off as the season went along,” says Jenkins. “We talked about life and what was going on.”
The Rams say and do this while admittedly taking chances on players previously involved in brushes with the law. (Jenkins had legal issues at Florida before transferring to North Alabama.) They reconcile this by pointing to a comprehensive program designed to offer direction to younger players as soon as they arrive at Rams Park.
The Rams last year initiated a player development program focusing on educating players about staying off a police log, managing money and intelligently using social media. During an approaching six-week hiatus leading up to training camp – “the scariest six weeks of the year,” according to Demoff – staff will randomly text and phone players at late hours.
Snead is an avid student of behavioral science. He notes the volatility created by 22- and 23-year-olds and millions of dollars but also believes in a pro-active program that asks everyone in the organization to form a support system. He uses the analogy of the Lion King: a first-year player gradually maturing from a cub to a leader, a big cat.
“You’re going to be asked to play like a lion and asked to behave a lion and you’re that little kid,” Snead says. “But if at some point we believe it’s going to take too much energy from all the people to a player to meet our standards… then, no.”
It’s impossible to ignore the fact that Fisher and Snead joined an organization that had endured the worst five-year run in NFL history. Predecessor Steve Spagnuolo’s Four Pillars approach brought nothing except an increasingly apathetic fan base and, ultimately, a pink slip. The current regime arrived desperate for talent, pillars or not.
“You can’t win without talent. You just can’t,” Fisher notes. “Second, you have to then go in and find out if there are character concerns. You have to identify players, examine then and then make your decision. There were a lot of players we took off the board. There’s a balance.” Fisher believes “you’re going to win an extra two or three games with the appropriate chemistry in the locker room.”
The Rams enjoyed a good room last season. They played with what Snead calls “a passion” uncorrupted by internal dissent. Truth to tell, the Rams give more weight to a player’s worth as a teammate than whether he got popped for using weed in college.
“To me, as an organization, our tolerance level for taking on risk is probably greater than some other teams. It probably will remain that way,” says Demoff. “You understand eventually you’re going to get burned. You understand how you handle that. Jeff and Les know that.”
When outside linebacker Alec Ogletree plummeted in April’s draft due to a series of off-field incidents at Georgia, the Rams saw it as an opportunity to gobble him up at No. 30. They did so after investigating his background and interviewing him. They concluded that Ogletree offers Pro Bowl potential and minimal risk within a new environment.
“There were issues and choices made. You do your research, which we did, and at the end of the day we ended up picking Alec,” Fisher said. “He’s athletic. He has ability. He has tremendous potential. There were also choices that he made during his college career. He understands that those things aren’t tolerated here.”
Fisher chafes at any hint of professional amorality. The organization invited parents of this year’s draft class to attend May rookie minicamp, where they became familiar with the support system offered by the club.
It was during last spring’s rookie camp that Fisher arranged for a Brinks truck to transport $1 million cash to Rams Park. Armed guards spread the loot on a meeting room table. Fisher then divided the money – this much for taxes, this much for an agent’s commission, so much for immediate family and so much for hangers-on. Only a small fraction remained for the athlete.
Visual aids can also come in handy as disciplinary instruments. During a team meeting Fisher brandished a gas can when relating a player’s supposed vehicle-related tardiness. Fisher then informed the player the can of gas would cost him $19,000.
Private acts of discipline contrast to the public willingness to gamble. The Rams, for example, were alone in placing a waiver claim on troubled ex-Detroit Lions receiver Titus Young. The Rams ultimately elected not to sign Young, since arrested at least three times, including twice in one day.
Merely considering Young may seem like Wild West risk-taking. To Fisher it is nothing more dangerous than exploring any avenue that might enhance his roster.
“We had an opportunity to claim him. We didn’t want him to clear waivers and have to compete with other clubs. We took advantage of the claiming rules to get a talented player who had some issues,” Fisher says. “We brought him in. We evaluated him. He didn’t pass the evaluation.”
In some ways, the evaluation never ends.
