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Welker enjoyed his opportunity with the Rams
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_475119e4-cebd-5d27-87ea-70aea9561ea3.html
The Rams had the best of intentions when they signed veteran Wes Welker in mid-November. They needed help at wide receiver, and they desperately needed help on third down.
The five-time Pro Bowler, who led or shared the NFL receptions lead three times during his career, would help.
“You never really know what to expect,” Welker said. “So you just come out here and work hard and do the things they ask you to do, and do ’em to the best of your ability. That’s all you can really do.”
Alas, Welker had only a modest impact in his eight games with the Rams, catching 13 passes for 102 yards. Among the team’s wide receivers that was more receptions than Brian Quick (seven) or Bradley Marquez (11) over that stretch, but fewer than starters Tavon Austin (24) and Kenny Britt (21).
He averaged only 13 plays per game, easily the lowest participation rate among any of the team’s wideouts over the second half of the season.
“It’s how it turned out,” coach Jeff Fisher said with a shrug. “We’re not an every-down, three-wide receiver team, so it’s hard to get all the guys on the field.”
Welker showed up on the injury report during his time with the Rams because of a calf injury, and that slowed him down some — but only for a week or two. He didn’t miss any games because of it.
“I got it under control and everything, and was able to get back out here,” Welker said. “I think everybody kind of goes through something throughout the season and everything. I was able to bounce back from it.”
Playing for the league’s 32nd-ranked offense and going through a quarterback change after just one game with the team didn’t help matters. But the hoped-for third-down boost never really materialized.
All told, he was thrown to 22 times in his eight games as a Ram, with 12 of those tosses coming on third or fourth down. In those situations he caught four passes that resulted in first downs.
But there were more opportunities. In his first game with the Rams, at least two third-down passes from Nick Foles probably would’ve resulted in first downs but were thrown well off-target.
That was the case as well late in the Baltimore game, when a sideline pass from Case Keenum was thrown off-target. Turns out, Keenum had suffered a concussion one play earlier.
Welker obviously has played on some highly successful teams, including AFC championship squads with New England (twice) and Denver (once). But he sees potential on the Rams’ roster.
“Absolutely,” he said. “I mean, just the talent we have on this team and everybody kind of coming together. Obviously, I was a little skeptical when we lost three in a row there, but we’ve really bounced back.”
Actually, it was four losses in a row. His first game as a Ram came in the 37-13 abomination against the Chicago Bears on Nov. 15. That game marked the second loss in the Rams’ five-game losing streak. But who’s counting?
Welker was around, however, to see the Rams defeat Detroit, Tampa Bay and Seattle in December to salvage some respectability in what was a 7-9 finish. Learning the Rams’ offense on the fly wasn’t an overwhelming obstacle for Welker, and all things considered, he was glad to have the opportunity in St. Louis.
“Yeah, I was happy to get to play football again,” said Welker, whose career appeared in jeopardy a year earlier because of concussion issues. “That was the No. 1 thing. Getting back out there, and being around the guys, and being in the locker room. And just being around football again. I missed it, and love being around the game.”
Along the way, he caught his 900th career pass, becoming just the 20th player in NFL history to do so.
An added benefit for a still-young Rams wide receiver corps was having someone like Welker around to help.
“Wes has done a really good job with the young guys, especially with Tavon in the slot,” Fisher said. “He spends the extra time, not because he feels like he has to — he just loves the game.
“He’s been playing it for a long time. His experience that he has is vast and he’s willing to share it. It’s been good.”
Another beneficiary was undrafted rookie Marquez, who also did most of his work in the slot.
“He’s a true pro in every sense of the word — on and off the field,” Marquez said. “I’ve learned so much from him. And I’m just glad and fortunate to be able to work with him this year. He has just really helped me a lot, especially with the slot position.
“I feel like he kind of created and kind of got the slot position really popular in the league. He was the one who kind of paved the way for that, I feel like, and for the smaller receivers. He’s just been a great mentor.”
Welker probably won’t be back with the Rams in 2016. But at age 34, does he still want to play?
“As long as I feel good and am having fun doing it, I’ll continue to do it,” Welker said. “We’ll just have to see how all that plays out.”
He added with a smile, “The way I was wanting to go about it, is I wanted them to kick me out of the league.”
RAMS EYE DEFILIPPO
The Rams have requested permission to interview John DeFilippo, offensive coordinator at Cleveland, where head coach Mike Pettine has been fired. DeFilippo, 37, has also worked in the NFL for Oakland as well as the New York Giants and Jets.
Fisher said Monday that he hadn’t decided whether or not to make Rob Boras’ promotion to offensive coordinator permanent. By requesting permission to interview DeFilippo for the position, Fisher obviously is exploring his options.
• By Jim Thomas
http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_475119e4-cebd-5d27-87ea-70aea9561ea3.html
The Rams had the best of intentions when they signed veteran Wes Welker in mid-November. They needed help at wide receiver, and they desperately needed help on third down.
The five-time Pro Bowler, who led or shared the NFL receptions lead three times during his career, would help.
“You never really know what to expect,” Welker said. “So you just come out here and work hard and do the things they ask you to do, and do ’em to the best of your ability. That’s all you can really do.”
Alas, Welker had only a modest impact in his eight games with the Rams, catching 13 passes for 102 yards. Among the team’s wide receivers that was more receptions than Brian Quick (seven) or Bradley Marquez (11) over that stretch, but fewer than starters Tavon Austin (24) and Kenny Britt (21).
He averaged only 13 plays per game, easily the lowest participation rate among any of the team’s wideouts over the second half of the season.
“It’s how it turned out,” coach Jeff Fisher said with a shrug. “We’re not an every-down, three-wide receiver team, so it’s hard to get all the guys on the field.”
Welker showed up on the injury report during his time with the Rams because of a calf injury, and that slowed him down some — but only for a week or two. He didn’t miss any games because of it.
“I got it under control and everything, and was able to get back out here,” Welker said. “I think everybody kind of goes through something throughout the season and everything. I was able to bounce back from it.”
Playing for the league’s 32nd-ranked offense and going through a quarterback change after just one game with the team didn’t help matters. But the hoped-for third-down boost never really materialized.
All told, he was thrown to 22 times in his eight games as a Ram, with 12 of those tosses coming on third or fourth down. In those situations he caught four passes that resulted in first downs.
But there were more opportunities. In his first game with the Rams, at least two third-down passes from Nick Foles probably would’ve resulted in first downs but were thrown well off-target.
That was the case as well late in the Baltimore game, when a sideline pass from Case Keenum was thrown off-target. Turns out, Keenum had suffered a concussion one play earlier.
Welker obviously has played on some highly successful teams, including AFC championship squads with New England (twice) and Denver (once). But he sees potential on the Rams’ roster.
“Absolutely,” he said. “I mean, just the talent we have on this team and everybody kind of coming together. Obviously, I was a little skeptical when we lost three in a row there, but we’ve really bounced back.”
Actually, it was four losses in a row. His first game as a Ram came in the 37-13 abomination against the Chicago Bears on Nov. 15. That game marked the second loss in the Rams’ five-game losing streak. But who’s counting?
Welker was around, however, to see the Rams defeat Detroit, Tampa Bay and Seattle in December to salvage some respectability in what was a 7-9 finish. Learning the Rams’ offense on the fly wasn’t an overwhelming obstacle for Welker, and all things considered, he was glad to have the opportunity in St. Louis.
“Yeah, I was happy to get to play football again,” said Welker, whose career appeared in jeopardy a year earlier because of concussion issues. “That was the No. 1 thing. Getting back out there, and being around the guys, and being in the locker room. And just being around football again. I missed it, and love being around the game.”
Along the way, he caught his 900th career pass, becoming just the 20th player in NFL history to do so.
An added benefit for a still-young Rams wide receiver corps was having someone like Welker around to help.
“Wes has done a really good job with the young guys, especially with Tavon in the slot,” Fisher said. “He spends the extra time, not because he feels like he has to — he just loves the game.
“He’s been playing it for a long time. His experience that he has is vast and he’s willing to share it. It’s been good.”
Another beneficiary was undrafted rookie Marquez, who also did most of his work in the slot.
“He’s a true pro in every sense of the word — on and off the field,” Marquez said. “I’ve learned so much from him. And I’m just glad and fortunate to be able to work with him this year. He has just really helped me a lot, especially with the slot position.
“I feel like he kind of created and kind of got the slot position really popular in the league. He was the one who kind of paved the way for that, I feel like, and for the smaller receivers. He’s just been a great mentor.”
Welker probably won’t be back with the Rams in 2016. But at age 34, does he still want to play?
“As long as I feel good and am having fun doing it, I’ll continue to do it,” Welker said. “We’ll just have to see how all that plays out.”
He added with a smile, “The way I was wanting to go about it, is I wanted them to kick me out of the league.”
RAMS EYE DEFILIPPO
The Rams have requested permission to interview John DeFilippo, offensive coordinator at Cleveland, where head coach Mike Pettine has been fired. DeFilippo, 37, has also worked in the NFL for Oakland as well as the New York Giants and Jets.
Fisher said Monday that he hadn’t decided whether or not to make Rob Boras’ promotion to offensive coordinator permanent. By requesting permission to interview DeFilippo for the position, Fisher obviously is exploring his options.
