Rams News Recap: August 2

[RamBill]

Rams Notes: Locals Alexander, Hill Enjoy First on-Field Action at Dome –PD
The last time Maurice Alexander worked at the Edward Jones Dome, he was part of the cleaning crew. Saturday, he was there to practice with the Rams.

All Systems Go: Bradford Looks Strong –PD
Yes, it was only practice, albeit in the vast expanse of the Edward Jones Dome. But be it fans, coaches, teammates or media, it was hard to walk away from the FanFest festivities Saturday and not be impressed with the aerial offerings of quarterback Sam Bradford.

Rams FanFest Practice Report –Dr.KingSchultz

Jeff Fisher After FanFest: “We had great attendance” –Video

Jeff Fisher & Sam Bradford Post Practice Press Conference Transcripts: Aug. 2

Coach O’s Rams FanFest Practice Report: Aug. 2

Ram FanFest Recap: Bradford Shows Off –St.LouisRams.com
The third annual Rams Fan Fest went off without a hitch Saturday afternoon, with food, fun, and football for the entire family.

Sam Bradford Pleased with Rams Offense –Latsch
Sam Bradford is pleased with how the Rams offense has progressed so far through the first week of training camp and the 15,723 fans who showed up on Saturday for the team’s FanFest at the Edward Jones Dome got a sneak peak at how it looks.

Rams Report: FanFest at Dome Draws Better Than 15,000 Fans –PD
The Rams put on another strong FanFest event Saturday afternoon, drawing 15,723 fans to the Edward Jones Dome.

Rams Have Bradford on Baseball-Like Pitch Count –AP
Sam Bradford showed improved zip on the ball during the St. Louis Rams’ fan fest scrimmage at the Edward Jones Dome.

Rams Training Camp Report: Day 8 –Wagoner
he Rams held their annual scrimmage Saturday, coming out in full pads for the first time. While none of the principals competed in any live drills, the first-team offense and defense did match up for some extended team drills.

Rams Set for Scrimmage –Wagoner
The St. Louis Rams will get a change of scenery today when they host their annual FanFest, which features something closer to a real football game than anything they do in a normal practice.

Morning Ram-blings: Value of Youth? –Wagoner
The St. Louis Rams have been the youngest team in the league for two seasons in a row. They very well could hold that title again this year.

Twitter Coverage of the Rams FanFest Practice

Trumaine Johnson Enjoying Rams’ New Defensive Scheme –Latsch
Rams cornerback Trumaine Johnson is a big fan of new defensive coordinator Gregg Williams’ attacking and aggressive scheme. “I love it,” Johnson said. “I’m big and I’m physical. It plays right in this defense.”

Nick Wagoner & Jim Thomas Twitter Report From Rams FanFest

Jeff Fisher, Gregg Williams, Brian Schottenheimer Post Practice Press Conference Transcripts: Aug. 1

Rams OC Brian Schottenheimer: “We’re playing fast” –Video

Jim Thomas Training Camp Report –Radio Interview

Kevin Demoff Looks Forward to Saturday’s Scrimmage –Radio Interview

Robert Quinn on How Close the Rams Are to Being a Championship-Level Team –Radio Interview

One-on-One with Rams WR Brian Quick –Video

 

[RamBill]

Morning Ram-blings: Honoring Aeneas
By Nick Wagoner

http://espn.go.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/10141/morning-ram-blings-honoring-aeneas

EARTH CITY, Mo. -- Aeneas Williams spent the majority of his Hall of Fame career in relative anonymity at cornerback for the Arizona Cardinals.

But Williams' impact on the St. Louis Rams at the end of his career left a lasting impression on the team and its fans. It's an impact that is still felt in the St. Louis community where Williams makes his home today and serves as a pastor at a local church.

So while Cardinals fans had every reason to bask in the glow and celebrate Williams' induction into the Hall of Fame on Saturday night, there was another fan base in St. Louis also cheering Williams.

With that in mind, I wanted to begin today's Ram-blings with links to some stories and words about Williams.

First, I only had the privilege to cover Williams for one season, an injury plagued eason that would be his last in the NFL. But I will echo the sentiments of anyone who ever had the privilege to cover him: Williams is the class act of all class acts. It's almost cliche to say someone is a better man than he was a player, but if cliches exist because they are true, Williams is the very definition of why that particular cliche exists. Every plaudit, every kind word you have read about Williams before and today is 100 percent genuine. Congratulations, Aeneas.

On to the links:

Cardinals reporter Josh Weinfuss offers this profile of Williams as he heads to Canton.

Weinfuss discusses Williams becoming the first Cardinal who played the bulk of his career in Arizona to go into the Hall of Fame.

Stltoday.com's Bernie Miklasz offers his memories of Williams.

Jim Thomas explores Williams' impact on the Rams defenses of the early 2000s.

And another from baseball writer Derrick Goold on Williams' impact on his hometown of New Orleans.

FoxSportsMidwest.com writes that Williams is the epitome of a Hall of Famer.

The Times-Picayune, Williams' hometown paper, takes us through Williams' spiritual journey to the Hall of Fame.

There are many more great Williams tributes to be read out there, too many to list here. But just know that you won't find a bad word about him. And though it might be hard to believe, just know that there aren't because there simply aren't any that would be true.

I.C.Y.M.I.

A roundup of Saturday's Rams stories appearing on ESPN.com. ... In the Ram-blings, we began the day with a look at fivethirtyeight.com's study on the correlation between youth and success in the NFL. ... Next, we previewed Saturday's practice and scrimmage at the Rams' annual fanfest. ... Finally, we closed the day with a full report from the scrimmage with notes on players working back from injury and players dealing with new ailments of their own.

Elsewhere:

Also at stltoday.com, rookie linebacker Aaron Hill provides his weekly update on his progress as he tries to make the roster.

Joe Lyons provides his report on Saturday's scrimmage.

At 101sports.com, coach Rick Venturi explains why the Rams' defense could be tough to stop in 2014.

Scout.com's Nate Latsch discusses the progress of receiver Brian Quick a week into camp.