TRANSCRIPT: Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher, 8-1-12

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TRANSCRIPT: Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher, 8-1-12

Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher – Training Camp – August 1, 2012

(On what he tried to accomplish during special teams practice)
“Cleary, special teams is a huge part of our game. We start most every practice session with the special teams group. I’m hoping to have maybe one more of these, but this (practice) was dedicated strictly to special teams. We just got on and off the field. We had an hour. We had a lot of good drills and a lot of good teaching, and of course as you notice we introduced the pads at this practice. Those that were not in here were inside just doing an intensive stretching routine inside the indoor facility.”

(On if potentially having a rookie punter and kicker changes the way he looks at special teams)
“No, as long as they get them off the ground. I’m ok with that. We had a couple stray balls that got from one field to the other, so we’ll get that cleaned up. We’re not concerned. We knew that going in that that may be the case. The interesting thing about both of them, if it works out that way, is they got the right mindset, the right temperament, the right personalities to handle the job.”


FULL TRANSCRIPT: http://www.RamsFans.com

 

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Rams Get a Slight Break Before Pads Come On

Posted by nickwagoner on August 1, 2012 – 4:46 PM
http://blog.stlouisrams.com/2012/08/01/ ... s-come-on/

- The Rams were back on the field for a “morning” practice on Wednesday but the practice was limited to a special teams workout, which essentially gave the players a bit of a break from the regular practice schedule.

- In fact, today’s practice was built in the way it was in an effort to give the team a bit of a buffer zone before the full pads come on and the hitting begins in Thursday’s practice. Quick reminder: the next practice open to the public will be on Friday at 3:30 at ContinuityX Training Center. That practice is also ladies day where the first 200 women to RSVP will be given special admission to a VIP experience for the day. Check this site for more info.

- On the heels of today’s special teams practice, the players get about a three hour break before they must return for meetings to begin at 3 p.m. They’ll then have a walk through and a few more meetings this evening.

- Wednesday, though, was all about the special teams: specifically the punt and punt return units.

“Clearly special teams is a huge part of our game,” Coach Jeff Fisher said. “We start most every practice session with special teams people. This was dedicated strictly to special teams. We got on and off the field in about an hour, had a lot of good drills and a lot of good teachning. Of course, we introduced the pads in this practice. Those that were not in here were inside doing an intensive stretching routine in the indoor facility.”

- The day belonged mostly to punters John Hekker and Tom Malone, both of whom are competing for the team’s punting job. Fisher made mention of a “couple stray balls” but said he was not concerned because there would be a little growing pains for the punters as they get readjusted to camp.

- As for the punt return team, there is still some competition at that spot but right now the guy with the most experience who is the most consistent is incumbent Danny Amendola. He took the first opportunities with the returners followed by CB Janoris Jenkins, RB Isaiah Pead, RB Chase Reynolds and WR Nick Johnson. All signs point to Amendola handling that role in 2012.

“We know Danny can do it,” Fisher said. “Obviously we are looking for a couple backups, guys who we can trust to make those decision.”

- A special guest was in the house today as former Rams LB Pisa Tinoisamoa stopped by for a visit. He still lives in the area and plans to be at Saturday’s FanFest at the Edward Jones Dome.

- The Rams resume practice tomorrow with a full squad workout in full pads for the first time. We’ll have a full report then. In the meantime, stay tuned to the front page of the website for a few stories today, including one on RB Steven Jackson, a notebook chock full of information including a piece on G Quinn Ojinnaka and at some point today or tomorrow a sneak peak at the Rams’ new marketing campaign.