- Joined
- Jul 31, 2010
- Messages
- 8,874
Rams killer' Hill now ready to help team
By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_33a86b54-0f40-52ed-9dbc-3faeff5eba4e.html
Soft-spoken Shaun Hill seemed almost embarrassed by the notion of his “Rams killer” tendencies in San Francisco and Detroit. Of his 26 NFL career starts, four have come against the Rams — and he’s 4-0 in those games.
“I didn’t put all that together,” Hill said, laughing. “I don’t know how to answer that question. I never thought of it like that.”
Doesn’t matter. Now that he has signed a one-year deal as the Rams’ new backup quarterback, Hill goes from Rams killer to Rams helper following the departure of Kellen Clemens to San Diego.
Hill, 34, hopes to bring leadership, toughness and attitude to his role, while obviously staying ready to step into the lineup if called upon.
“How that comes kinda depends,” Hill said, speaking specifically of the leadership aspect. “Obviously, Sam (Bradford) is the guy, Sam’s the starter. So you kinda have to take a back seat.”
Hill considered signing with the Rams two years ago, making a free-agent visit to Rams Park during Jeff Fisher’s first offseason as head coach. But he opted for a return to Detroit instead. This time around, he decided to leave the Lions for the Rams.
“Took my visit here, and just put all the information on the table and tried to make the best decision,” Hill said Thursday. “My life’s no different than anybody else’s life. Things change relatively rapidly. What makes sense for us this year may have been different than what made sense for us two years ago.”
With a waterfront home on the Lake of the Ozarks, Hill’s permanent residence is much closer to his place of work than it was when he played for the Lions. It’s a 2½-hour drive door-to-door from the lake to Rams Park for the native of Parsons., Kan.
An avid fisherman, Hill bought a house at the Lake of the Ozarks in 2005.
“I’m from southeast Kansas, so I looked around in Oklahoma, Table Rock and Lake of the Ozarks — and that’s the one we kind of fell in love with. We really enjoy it. I don’t get to fish nearly as much as I want to,” he said.
One reason Hill decided to drop his professional line in St. Louis was a chance to work once again with Rams quarterback coach Frank Cignetti.
“We were together for one year (2007) in San Francisco,” Hill said. “We have some familiarity with each other. He knows what I do as a player. And I know how he coaches. He knows how to communicate with me and things like that. I’m very excited to work with him again.”
That familiarity will make learning the Rams’ offensive playbook a little easier for Hill.
“You have a quarterback coach that’s familiar with a system that you’ve been in in the past,” Hill said. “You kind of have a way to learn the new system through the old system, and he can bring you along in the new terminology.”
Hill made three late-season starts under Cignetti in ‘07, winning two of the three while completing 68.4 percent of his passes with a 106.3 passer rating.
Cignetti left the 49ers for a college job (at Cal) after the ‘07 season. But during the ‘08 season, Hill got to work with former Rams head coach Mike Martz, who was the 49ers’ offensive coordinator that season.
“He’s a very sharp guy,” Martz said. “Displayed good leadership. All those intangibles — he’s got ‘em.”
Martz is rarely wrong on quarterbacks, but said that was the case with Hill in San Francisco.
“He was a better player than I gave him credit for,” Martz said. “In practice, he was kind of up and down.”
But in games?
“He just made plays,” Martz said. “I think he’ll be a great addition for the Rams.”
Hill started eight games in ‘08 for Martz in San Francisco, winning five. For the year, he completed 62.8 percent of his passes for an 87.5 passer rating.
By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_33a86b54-0f40-52ed-9dbc-3faeff5eba4e.html
Soft-spoken Shaun Hill seemed almost embarrassed by the notion of his “Rams killer” tendencies in San Francisco and Detroit. Of his 26 NFL career starts, four have come against the Rams — and he’s 4-0 in those games.
“I didn’t put all that together,” Hill said, laughing. “I don’t know how to answer that question. I never thought of it like that.”
Doesn’t matter. Now that he has signed a one-year deal as the Rams’ new backup quarterback, Hill goes from Rams killer to Rams helper following the departure of Kellen Clemens to San Diego.
Hill, 34, hopes to bring leadership, toughness and attitude to his role, while obviously staying ready to step into the lineup if called upon.
“How that comes kinda depends,” Hill said, speaking specifically of the leadership aspect. “Obviously, Sam (Bradford) is the guy, Sam’s the starter. So you kinda have to take a back seat.”
Hill considered signing with the Rams two years ago, making a free-agent visit to Rams Park during Jeff Fisher’s first offseason as head coach. But he opted for a return to Detroit instead. This time around, he decided to leave the Lions for the Rams.
“Took my visit here, and just put all the information on the table and tried to make the best decision,” Hill said Thursday. “My life’s no different than anybody else’s life. Things change relatively rapidly. What makes sense for us this year may have been different than what made sense for us two years ago.”
With a waterfront home on the Lake of the Ozarks, Hill’s permanent residence is much closer to his place of work than it was when he played for the Lions. It’s a 2½-hour drive door-to-door from the lake to Rams Park for the native of Parsons., Kan.
An avid fisherman, Hill bought a house at the Lake of the Ozarks in 2005.
“I’m from southeast Kansas, so I looked around in Oklahoma, Table Rock and Lake of the Ozarks — and that’s the one we kind of fell in love with. We really enjoy it. I don’t get to fish nearly as much as I want to,” he said.
One reason Hill decided to drop his professional line in St. Louis was a chance to work once again with Rams quarterback coach Frank Cignetti.
“We were together for one year (2007) in San Francisco,” Hill said. “We have some familiarity with each other. He knows what I do as a player. And I know how he coaches. He knows how to communicate with me and things like that. I’m very excited to work with him again.”
That familiarity will make learning the Rams’ offensive playbook a little easier for Hill.
“You have a quarterback coach that’s familiar with a system that you’ve been in in the past,” Hill said. “You kind of have a way to learn the new system through the old system, and he can bring you along in the new terminology.”
Hill made three late-season starts under Cignetti in ‘07, winning two of the three while completing 68.4 percent of his passes with a 106.3 passer rating.
Cignetti left the 49ers for a college job (at Cal) after the ‘07 season. But during the ‘08 season, Hill got to work with former Rams head coach Mike Martz, who was the 49ers’ offensive coordinator that season.
“He’s a very sharp guy,” Martz said. “Displayed good leadership. All those intangibles — he’s got ‘em.”
Martz is rarely wrong on quarterbacks, but said that was the case with Hill in San Francisco.
“He was a better player than I gave him credit for,” Martz said. “In practice, he was kind of up and down.”
But in games?
“He just made plays,” Martz said. “I think he’ll be a great addition for the Rams.”
Hill started eight games in ‘08 for Martz in San Francisco, winning five. For the year, he completed 62.8 percent of his passes for an 87.5 passer rating.
