Rams receiving corp are Tavon Austin’s helping hands

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den-the-coach

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Rams’ receiving corp are Tavon Autin’s helping hands

By Ryan Kartje,

[www.dailynews.com]

OXNARD >> When the Rams opted to pick up Tavon Austin’s fifth-year option in May, handing him a salary north of $12 million for the 2017 season, the move was a clear vote of confidence that the diminutive, yet dynamic former top-10 pick would be the team’s top receiving weapon.

It was a logical gamble, given the state of the Rams passing game. Austin has been electric in spurts, and put together his best season yet in 2015, with 907 yards from scrimmage and nine touchdowns. At organized team activities this month, players and coaches alike raved about his playmaking ability. The offense, Rams coach Jeff Fisher said, was “re-designed” in the offseason to get him touches.

But Austin is not your typical No. 1 receiver, and with one of the league’s worst receiver groups around him since the start of his career, he has been limited in his ability to capitalize on his unique skills. Despite being one of the league’s more explosive players, Austin finished last season with just five receptions of 20-plus yards — the same amount as Bucs backup tight end Cameron Brate. Austin’s 52 catches, on average, went for just nine yards a pop, fewer than Rams backup running back Benny Cunningham.

For the offense — and its top receiver — to live up to billing, Austin simply needs more space in which to operate. And to create that space, the Rams desperately need a second — and, ideally, third — option to emerge.

It’s no coincidence then that as OTAs opened May 31, the Rams were carrying 12 receivers on the roster — no more than half of whom will likely make the cut in the fall. It was a diverse group, a mix of high draft picks and undrafted free agents, but among them, a unified understanding of what was at stake loomed over the group throughout.

“(The coaches) didn’t have to make it any more clear,” receiver Brian Quick said. “We know we need to prove it every day.”

After the third day of OTAs, it’s Quick who remains on the practice field, sliding past imaginary defenders, as his teammates trickle away to the locker room. Before long, he’s alone, tracing dig routes in his head, sprinting 10 yards and cutting hard on the grass field.

Among the returners at the position, Quick understands that he has perhaps the most to prove of the dozen wideouts here. The 33rd overall pick in 2012, the Rams saw a jaw-dropping athlete with a 6-foot-4 frame and an untapped wealth of potential. But over four seasons, that vision has only existed in brief, frustrating blips.

In 2014, when a breakout seemed imminent, Quick’s strong first month was derailed by a shoulder injury that nearly ended his career. When he finally returned in 2015, he managed only 10 catches for 105 yards. His reps were slashed. Issues snowballed. Looking back, Quick is blunt about what happened: He simply struggled to adapt to “new things” in the Rams offense, he says.

But in March, the Rams offered him a one-year contract anyway — a “prove-it” deal, Quick called it. When the team called with the offer, he swelled with confidence. He says their trust has him more motivated than ever. The contract, he knows, was a message — “This is your last chance.”

“I just need to be consistent, and that’s it,” Quick said. “I have to adjust and adapt.”

A week later, as OTAs roll on, Lance Kendricks takes his turn as one of the last few on the practice field. But as the team’s unquestioned top tight end (at least, for the moment) Kendricks lingers for a different reason. He’s lost his gold necklace somewhere in the grass.

He paces the field, scanning it up and down. Given offensive coordinator Rob Boras’ new affinity for trying Kendricks in several positions — in the slot, on the line, in the backfield — he jokes he has covered too much ground to pinpoint where his jewelry could possibly be. After a half-hour of searching, his confidence wanes. “I’ve seriously been all over this field,” he says.

Fortifying Kendricks’ role didn’t always seem like the obvious choice. But in March, the Rams released tight end Jared Cook, after three seasons as one of the team’s two leading receivers, and followed that up by sitting out the free agent tight end market. Kendricks saw it as a vote of confidence. In April, the Rams did draft two talented late-round tight ends in Tyler Higbee and Temarrick Hemingway. But in an offense that will feature the position more than in the past — Boras was the tight ends coach, after all — the Rams seem determined to lean on their steady veteran to help lead an offensive rebuild.

Like with Quick, this decision to trust in their own personnel is not without risk. Kendricks’ best season came in 2012, when he finished with 42 catches for 519 yards. Since, he hasn’t eclipsed 260 yards in a season. As far as Kendricks sees it, he’s finally receiving the opportunity to show he can be a top tight end.

“I have to prove that,” Kendricks says, “but I’m up for the challenge. I’ve been up for the challenge.”

How the receivers have responded to such challenges may be the most meaningful aspect of OTAs, where only so many conclusions can be drawn. For rookies, especially, being thrust into such a competition is often a dizzying proposition. When asked how his cadre of young receivers was adjusting, Boras suggested only that “there was a lot of thinking going on.”

But with the receiver depth chart entirely unsettled, early impressions are important. And so far, no rookie has made a better one than fourth-round slot receiver Pharoh Cooper.

Fellow receivers have praised him. Quarterbacks Case Keenum and Jared Goff described how much they enjoying throwing to him over the middle. Rams coach Jeff Fisher raved about how quickly he picked up the playbook. “I expect that he’ll be a household name at some point,” Fisher said.

Watch him run fearlessly across the middle of the field, and it’s not hard to see what could make Cooper a reliable weapon as early as this season. He is a compact, wrecking ball on short-to-intermediate routes. But how he fits with Austin, a receiver of similar stature and position, remains to be seen.

At this point, if we’re being honest, it’s hard to know how any of the pieces fit in a Rams passing game that ranked worst in the NFL last season. There are too many moving parts, all still with something to prove.

The unit hardly seems likely to swing from a weakness to a strength. But where there is uncertainty, there is also opportunity. A whole lot of it.

“We’ve all got to get to the 53-man roster,” Cooper said. “There’s a lot of receivers right now. The competition brings out the best in us. Once you get the opportunity, you just have to take advantage of it.”
 

den-the-coach

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Brian Quick needs to do more than adjust and adapt, he needs to also learn to improvise and overcome. IMO, Quick always seems very slow to grasp new concepts, but the opportunity is there and IMO Mike Groh will look at him with dry eyes as it was former WR coach Ray Sherman that wanted Quick really bad back in 2012.

With Kendricks, he needs to be more consistent catching the football, IMO, they went away from him because of drops, however, he has made some big catches and coming out of Wisconsin many felt were a hidden gem. Kendricks is a block of granite on the line of scrimmage, he just needs to disprove he does not have hands of stone in the passing game.

It will be easy for fans at the Coliseum to yell "Coop." every time Pharoh Cooper touches the football and I am confident the Rams have the right offensive coaches in place now. Rob Boras was always considered to be one of the better coaches on Fisher's staff and now has a full year to put his imprint on the Los Angeles Rams.

I have posted enough on Mike Groh, but I believe he will make a world of difference with this receiving core, new Tight End Coach John Lily comes from Georgia and has worked in every capacity offensively on a coaching staff, including calling plays and new RB Coach Skip Peete bring a no nonsense approach and has been a veteran NFL RB Coach for many years, so it is June Gentlemen and the skies the limit IMHO.
 
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DaveFan'51

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“(The coaches) didn’t have to make it any more clear,” receiver Brian Quick said. “We know we need to prove it every day.”
If any one WR needs to keep this^ in mind this year it's Quick!(y):D He has my best wishes! Or it's .. :death:
 

Rams43

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I feel certain that the Rams will emerge from this WR battle with 6 effective and somewhat dangerous receivers with which Boras and Goff can threaten opposing D's.

But I'm not at all certain that Quick will be among them.
 

LACHAMP46

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After the third day of OTAs, it’s Quick who remains on the practice field, sliding past imaginary defenders, as his teammates trickle away to the locker room. Before long, he’s alone, tracing dig routes in his head, sprinting 10 yards and cutting hard on the grass field.
Quick working hard...As usual....just throw him the damn ball, and watch out...

Brian Quick needs to do more than adjust and adapt, he needs to also learn to improvise and overcome. IMO, Quick always seems very slow to grasp new concepts, but the opportunity is there
Quick is ready to play......I've never understood why they never just threw him out there and learn from his mistakes...Force this kid to adapt on the field.
But I'm not at all certain that Quick will be among them.
Not sure why the guy that averaged 9 ypc is not more scrutinized than the guy that was the leading receiver at one time and has never averaged less than 14 ypc....No way a vet with a deal is not retained...I'd be shocked if he doesn't start.
 

jap

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I would love to see Brian fulfill his great potential. This season is the really critical one since he seems to have a penchant for starting slowly with new schemes. However, with Groh and Boras firmly aboard the U.S.S. Horns, should Brian survive this season, he should see a continuation of the same offense, with the usual additional tweaks as the years roll on. I definitely would love! to see Brian emerge as a savvy route runner and a pass catching suction machine this season. He actually has the potential to reach true #1 WR status.

As far as Lance and his drops are concerned, we would do well to remember that Lance played through a healing dislocated finger the first month of the 2015 season. He may not be flashy, but he is the kind of jack-of-all-trades TE that all teams would love to have.

I am especially intrigued to see what Groh has in store for Tavon. Our Little Big Man finally has a QB with the accuracy to find Austin's tiny frame among the DB/LB "trees," so we should expect more intermediate and long range opportunities for him this season, especially combined with play action passing utilizing fake hand-offs to the Gurley Express!. Our Thunder & Lightning dynamic duo play off each other so well they may start sharing endorsement deals.

Finally, I would truly, truly love! to see GRob finally emerge as a pass rushing stopper of the genus Gregzilla this season. We really could use that blind side gate keeper missing since 'Lando Pace's heyday. I want Jerad/Case to get used to never having to worry about penetration from the port side.

Perhaps by the second half of this season we may begin to witness the emergence of a new kind of GSOT.
 
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RamFan503

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I agree that this is a make it or break it year for Quick. If he is able to bring it this season, I hope the Rams find a way to extend him on a team friendly deal. Otherwise it seems like it will have all been for naught.
 

Rams43

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Quick working hard...As usual....just throw him the damn ball, and watch out...


Quick is ready to play......I've never understood why they never just threw him out there and learn from his mistakes...Force this kid to adapt on the field.
Not sure why the guy that averaged 9 ypc is not more scrutinized than the guy that was the leading receiver at one time and has never averaged less than 14 ypc....No way a vet with a deal is not retained...I'd be shocked if he doesn't start.

Check these career stats out, Champ...

http://espn.go.com/nfl/player/stats/_/id/14914/brian-quick

These are not the stuff of legends.

The guy has struggled. And that's being polite, TBH.

We all hope the best for him, but few of us are holding our breath. He's already had a 4 year runway for his takeoff, so.....
 

LACHAMP46

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The guy has struggled. And that's being polite, TBH.
The offense has struggled...that's being honest....the team hasn't performed. The QB play has been awful for Quick's entire time. I can't place the blame on the feet of a known extremely raw receiving prospect. Not yet....One more year.
 

Florida_Ram

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I feel certain that the Rams will emerge from this WR battle with 6 effective and somewhat dangerous receivers with which Boras and Goff can threaten opposing D's.

But I'm not at all certain that Quick will be among them.

Quick, Givens and Stedman Bailey were all high hopes for us fans.. I bought in and supported all of them but it pains me the most about Quick because he was the first pick of the 2nd round and everyone that knew of him projected he was a big time project 3rd to 4th round talent. I still supported him and waited and waited and waited for him to develop.

Oh and 12 picks later the much more anticipated selection WR Alshon Jeffery was picked by the Bears leaving everyone scratching their heads...:redcard:


2016:
Rams re-signed WR Brian Quick to a one-year deal.
Incentives worth up to $3.75 million, and includes $1.5 million guaranteed. 2015: Recovered from major shoulder surgery but finished the season with a paltry 10 catches for 102 yards 0 TD's. (Quick has a dismal 4 year career receiving line of 64-935-7)

http://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2014/10/27/7078483/brian-quick-likely-out-for-season-per-report
2014: Wide Receiver Brian Quick is likely going to miss the rest of the season after suffering a torn rotator cuff and dislocated shoulder, per Adam Schefter of ESPN. Quick has 25 catches for 375 yards and three touchdowns so far in 2014 -- all career highs -- although he only had four catches over the last three games.


To be honest I'm rooting for this next batch WR's from this 2016 draft class to knock #83 off the Roster but at the same time I do want the best 6 to make the roster.

For my personal disgruntled reasons Quick being the first pick in the 2nd round of the 2012 draft still has me perplexed. His selection HAD 95% of us Rams fans shaking our heads. I think most of us wanted WR Alshon Jeffery if the Rams were set on taking a WR with pick #33. Oh well spilled milk now.........

I Guess QUICK has one LAST fighting chance in camp and preseason.. :boxing:
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