Burwell: A superb fit for Steven Jackson

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http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/ ... z1kTxtFCMo


[wrapimg=left]http://bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com/stltoday.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/a/4a/a4a00abf-acee-5393-b88a-9b4fb1e567b5/4f1f8c79c1107.preview-300.jpg[/wrapimg]In the world of sports, when it comes to the pairings of players and coaches, there are all sorts of marriages. There's the proverbial shotgun wedding, that awkward connection in which clashing styles and incompatible substance are force-fed by circumstances beyond anyone's control.

Think Bill Parcells and Terrell Owens. Think Duane Thomas and Tom Landry.

But every once in a while, style and substance blend in perfect harmony and a coach and player are a match made in football heaven.

Think Steven Jackson and Jeff Fisher.

Ever since the day he got the news that Fisher had been hired as the Rams' coach, Jackson, the Rams bruising tank of a running back, has been doing a lot of smiling. This is player-coach relationship that should be a perfect fit.

"I have played against his teams a lot and they all come with that attitude and a certain level of play," Jackson said. "They have that 'it.' It's hard to explain what that 'it' is to a ... fan. But it's just something about (the way they play) when they go between those lines. Coach Fisher's teams have a certain something that's hard to put a finger on. But I have to assume it's (his) leadership."

Listen to Jackson long enough and you begin to understand that he believes the football gods intended for this running back and this coach to find their way together.

Fisher likes to ground and pound. Jackson is a grounding, pounding running back.

Fisher loves football with a menacingly brutal edge. When Jackson is at his best, he plays football like he's angry with the world.

So now Jackson gets a chance to mesh with a man whose leadership style is a perfect fit.

"I think he's the perfect coach for a guy who wants to win," Jackson said. "He brings running and an attitude to the way you play the game, all the things I believe in. And what makes this hire so exciting is that coach Fisher has been a head coach in this league. Not to take anything away from (former Rams coaches Steve) Spagnuolo or (Scott) Linehan, who were very good at what they did. They were very good play callers on offense and defense. But being a head coach brings on another element to the game and coach Fisher has that experience."

Here's what has Jackson so happy: Fisher is going to give the Rams a nasty swagger.

Fisher has a well-deserved reputation for the nasty, brutal in-your-face style of intimidating smash-mouth football with which every one of his teams played.

It's long been a part of his football DNA, since his college days when he played in a Southern Cal defensive backfield with notorious hard hitters Ronnie Lott and Dennis Smith.

It continued in his NFL playing days with Buddy Ryan's rabble-rousing Chicago Bears defense.

It's all knuckles in the mud and a punch in the snout. It's ruthless and edgy. It's a take-no-prisoners attitude that finally will insure that Jackson is surrounded by offensive linemen who will play the game like stark-raving, borderline madmen, not genteel sportsmen.

There is no greater insult in the macho world of pro football than to be tagged with the 'soft" label.

Of all the glaring weaknesses that Rams' offenses have shown over the past few years, none have been more glaring than the well-deserved league-wide notion that (with the rare exception of genuine tough guy Harvey Dahl) their offensive line is easily intimidated.

As one NFL player told me recently: "I'm not that big a guy, but I think I could take all of them on. Other than Harvey, who I'm scared to death of, I think the other guys on the O-line I could take, and that's a very bad thing. You want to know what (the Rams) need? More tough guys. A lot more."

The Rams have two very talented young offensive tackles in Jason Smith and Roger Saffold. But they did not play with enough of an edge in this very violent, very nasty world of the NFL. Smith could be a legitimate mauler and road-grading force if coached properly, and Saffold has legitimate Pro Bowl potential. But someone needs to coach him, too, on how to be more ruthless on Sundays.

Fisher is the guy who will do that, and if they can't adapt to his style and adjust their competitive attitudes they will not last long here.

"The teammates I have had a chance to speak to, Sam (Bradford), (James) Laurinaitis and Chris Long, everyone's excited," Jackson said. "We hate that Sam has to learn a new offense, but we all believe in what coach Fisher brings to this team. He brings attitude, he brings an edge.

"He's also going to bring winning back to the city."

 

[Warner4Prez]

I love the line, "We hate that Sam has to learn a new offense." It just says so much more than that. Things like you know who the leaders are of this team, and you know that they are in fact a team and not a collection of egos like you might find on the Jets' or Dallas' rosters.
It's definitely not the most talented collection of guys in the NFL, but they genuinely play as a team and it really shows when they're firing on all cylinders. It's not that Fisher himself gives me a lot of hope, but veteran leadership in general for this squad that really needs it gives me hope.

 

[superfan24]

I love the line, "We hate that Sam has to learn a new offense." It just says so much more than that. Things like you know who the leaders are of this team, and you know that they are in fact a team and not a collection of egos like you might find on the Jets' or Dallas' rosters.
It's definitely not the most talented collection of guys in the NFL, but they genuinely play as a team and it really shows when they're firing on all cylinders. It's not that Fisher himself gives me a lot of hope, but veteran leadership in general for this squad that really needs it gives me hope.

Yea that really struck me too. I'm sure Shotty will be pleasantly surprised that the character of the Rams is nothing like the Jets. They all have each others backs.
Love the core guys of this team.

 

[JdashSTL]

I love the line, "We hate that Sam has to learn a new offense." It just says so much more than that. Things like you know who the leaders are of this team, and you know that they are in fact a team and not a collection of egos like you might find on the Jets' or Dallas' rosters.
It's definitely not the most talented collection of guys in the NFL, but they genuinely play as a team and it really shows when they're firing on all cylinders. It's not that Fisher himself gives me a lot of hope, but veteran leadership in general for this squad that really needs it gives me hope.

Yea that really struck me too. I'm sure Shotty will be pleasantly surprised that the character of the Rams is nothing like the Jets. They all have each others backs.
Love the core guys of this team.

And thats something that makes me appreciate Spags and Devaney even more. Spags had the 4 pillars approach and Devaney bought in. Thats the character they built here.

 

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And thats something that makes me appreciate Spags and Devaney even more. Spags had the 4 pillars approach and Devaney bought in. Thats the character they built here.

I have a feeling that's not going to be as important anymore (character). Who knows if that's a good thing or bad thing - we'll have to wait and see. What makes me say that is the conference call with Greg Williams. He said that its his job (or their job) to get the most out of players and find their strengths - "even the difficult players." It was that last part that brought me to the realization that character is going to be secondary to talent. And hey, that could be good. You just never know. It should be interesting to see how they all mesh together, but that's definitely Fisher's strong suit; getting players all on the same page and whatnot.

Like many others, I'm at the point where I just want some W's. More than L's. Way more than L's.

 

[JdashSTL]

And thats something that makes me appreciate Spags and Devaney even more. Spags had the 4 pillars approach and Devaney bought in. Thats the character they built here.

I have a feeling that's not going to be as important anymore (character). Who knows if that's a good thing or bad thing - we'll have to wait and see. What makes me say that is the conference call with Greg Williams. He said that its his job (or their job) to get the most out of players and find their strengths - "even the difficult players." It was that last part that brought me to the realization that character is going to be secondary to talent. And hey, that could be good. You just never know. It should be interesting to see how they all mesh together, but that's definitely Fisher's strong suit; getting players all on the same page and whatnot.

Like many others, I'm at the point where I just want some W's. More than L's. Way more than L's.

Yeah I look at a player like Cortland Finnegan and believe that theres a strong possibility he could end up here. He has a history of incidents on the field. I believe Fisher can make it work. The Titans didnt resign Albert Haynesworth, they were smart enough to let him go. the Jets are the worst-case scenario when it comes to welcoming all players with character concerns and they couldnt make it work.

 

[Warner4Prez]

Well I do think that was always the next progression in the 4 Pillars philosophy wasn't it? Build that good core of strong character guys to be the heart of the team and when that is in place it was going to be their job to lead the way for some of the 'fringe' type guys?
I'm not sure if they reached their goal, but there is some definite leadership in the locker room, so let's keep our fingers crossed anyway.

 

[Anonymous]

Well I do think that was always the next progression in the 4 Pillars philosophy wasn't it? Build that good core of strong character guys to be the heart of the team and when that is in place it was going to be their job to lead the way for some of the 'fringe' type guys?
I'm not sure if they reached their goal, but there is some definite leadership in the locker room, so let's keep our fingers crossed anyway.

Strong VETERAN leadership is something JF will work hard to bring to the team. The offense has some with SJ but more is needed. The defense needs it bad as it doesn't appear a dominant veteran leader exists. Some point to JL and CL as candidates...perhaps in the future but now it's essential to get such a leader in place to mold the defense with an identity. I guarantee JF is working every possible angle towards it.

 

[-X-]

Well I do think that was always the next progression in the 4 Pillars philosophy wasn't it? Build that good core of strong character guys to be the heart of the team and when that is in place it was going to be their job to lead the way for some of the 'fringe' type guys?
I'm not sure if they reached their goal, but there is some definite leadership in the locker room, so let's keep our fingers crossed anyway.

Strong VETERAN leadership is something JF will work hard to bring to the team. The offense has some with SJ but more is needed. The defense needs it bad as it doesn't appear a dominant veteran leader exists. Some point to JL and CL as candidates...perhaps in the future but now it's essential to get such a leader in place to mold the defense with an identity. I guarantee JF is working every possible angle towards it.

I don't know about all that. Gregg Williams is going to mold the defense, and whoever is on it is going to model their play after *his* style. That's typically what happens. He (GW) said that he's going to rely heavily on the MLB and FS to command the defense, and that's JL and Mikell. You don't get much more cerebral than those two, so who would JF need to bring in to supplant those two as a "strong veteran leader"? And who would you suggest the Rams could bring in via FA to fill that role? Would that player be welcomed as the "leader" amongst the core defensive players? You kind of have to earn that role. It doesn't just get handed to you.

 

[Anonymous]

Well I do think that was always the next progression in the 4 Pillars philosophy wasn't it? Build that good core of strong character guys to be the heart of the team and when that is in place it was going to be their job to lead the way for some of the 'fringe' type guys?
I'm not sure if they reached their goal, but there is some definite leadership in the locker room, so let's keep our fingers crossed anyway.

Strong VETERAN leadership is something JF will work hard to bring to the team. The offense has some with SJ but more is needed. The defense needs it bad as it doesn't appear a dominant veteran leader exists. Some point to JL and CL as candidates...perhaps in the future but now it's essential to get such a leader in place to mold the defense with an identity. I guarantee JF is working every possible angle towards it.

I don't know about all that. Gregg Williams is going to mold the defense, and whoever is on it is going to model their play after *his* style. That's typically what happens. He (GW) said that he's going to rely heavily on the MLB and FS to command the defense, and that's JL and Mikell. You don't get much more cerebral than those two, so who would JF need to bring in to supplant those two as a "strong veteran leader"? And who would you suggest the Rams could bring in via FA to fill that role? Would that player be welcomed as the "leader" amongst the core defensive players? You kind of have to earn that role. It doesn't just get handed to you.

As I said VETERAN leadership it does exist. Doesn't have to "cerebral" either. Tell me Faulk wasn't a strong leader on the Rams BEFORE he ever played a down. You can't because he was a strong leader. Make no mistake about it....JF will have his hand in the defense a lot, especially in molding their identity. Williams won't have the defense he had in NO. JF is a defense minded coach who trusts Williams to field the unit he wants. As for individual players to fill that bill I don't know. That's going to be between JF and the GM.....mostly JF......and I'm sure he already knows the players he wants on a short list. We might see a player traded in exchange for a draft pick. No player will be coddled. Produce or bye bye. The rate at which this team will be staffed will be impressive.

Have to say it's fun reading the hedging on the future of this team with JF in charge. Relax. Observe how the team is turned around. This is a fantastic time to be a Rams fan!

 

[bluecoconuts]

Bradford and JL both won over the locker room as leaders before they played a down as well. We have veteran guys who lead this team, we need some patchwork (DT, OLB) yes, but we have leadership. JL is going into his 4th year, he is a leader, and I feel he should be, and really is, the captain of the defense.

 

[-X-]

Have to say it's fun reading the hedging on the future of this team with JF in charge. Relax. Observe how the team is turned around. This is a fantastic time to be a Rams fan!

I think you're being a little over-sensitive here. I'm not hedging on anything, I was just pointing out what I think is going to be the course of the defensive unit's make-up. I don't need to relax, because I'm not amped up about anything. Obviously Fisher is going to have his hands in the defense. I never disputed that. I only pointed out that signing an arbitrary "veteran leader" on defense was a little open-ended on your part. That's why I asked the follow-up questions.

 

[Anonymous]

Have to say it's fun reading the hedging on the future of this team with JF in charge. Relax. Observe how the team is turned around. This is a fantastic time to be a Rams fan!

I think you're being a little over-sensitive here. I'm not hedging on anything, I was just pointing out what I think is going to be the course of the defensive unit's make-up. I don't need to relax, because I'm not amped up about anything. Obviously Fisher is going to have his hands in the defense. I never disputed that. I only pointed out that signing an arbitrary "veteran leader" on defense was a little open-ended on your part. That's why I asked the follow-up questions.

I'm not "over-sensitive. I'm amused. Never said you were amped. I said "hedging"....as in skeptical or not convinced. So relax. It's going to work.

 

[-X-]

Have to say it's fun reading the hedging on the future of this team with JF in charge. Relax. Observe how the team is turned around. This is a fantastic time to be a Rams fan!

I think you're being a little over-sensitive here. I'm not hedging on anything, I was just pointing out what I think is going to be the course of the defensive unit's make-up. I don't need to relax, because I'm not amped up about anything. Obviously Fisher is going to have his hands in the defense. I never disputed that. I only pointed out that signing an arbitrary "veteran leader" on defense was a little open-ended on your part. That's why I asked the follow-up questions.

I'm not "over-sensitive. I'm amused. Never said you were amped. I said "hedging"....as in skeptical or not convinced. So relax. It's going to work.

Seriously, man?

You told me to relax, so I said I didn't have to because I wasn't "not relaxed." And I know what hedging means too, which would be why I explained how it wasn't happening here. If you take the time to re-read things, you'll see that I was never skeptical of anything. Just curious about your comments, and asked some follow-ups for clarification.

 

[BuiltRamTough]

Just keep feeding him literally stuff footballs down his mouth.

 

[Memento]

And thats something that makes me appreciate Spags and Devaney even more. Spags had the 4 pillars approach and Devaney bought in. Thats the character they built here.

I have a feeling that's not going to be as important anymore (character). Who knows if that's a good thing or bad thing - we'll have to wait and see. What makes me say that is the conference call with Greg Williams. He said that its his job (or their job) to get the most out of players and find their strengths - "even the difficult players." It was that last part that brought me to the realization that character is going to be secondary to talent. And hey, that could be good. You just never know. It should be interesting to see how they all mesh together, but that's definitely Fisher's strong suit; getting players all on the same page and whatnot.

Like many others, I'm at the point where I just want some W's. More than L's. Way more than L's.

Yeah I look at a player like Cortland Finnegan and believe that theres a strong possibility he could end up here. He has a history of incidents on the field. I believe Fisher can make it work. The Titans didnt resign Albert Haynesworth, they were smart enough to let him go. the Jets are the worst-case scenario when it comes to welcoming all players with character concerns and they couldnt make it work.

Am I the only person who wouldn't mind having Finnegan on this team? He plays the game with an edge, much like Dahl. He does cross the line a lot, I admit, but he also has much more talent than people think. And in spite of his on-the-field incidents, he's never had one as serious as Haynesworth, Suh, or Brandon Meriweather (starting a brawl when he was at Miami), and he's never had off-the-field issues.

 

[RamFan503]

Am I the only person who wouldn't mind having Finnegan on this team? He plays the game with an edge, much like Dahl. He does cross the line a lot, I admit, but he also has much more talent than people think. And in spite of his on-the-field incidents, he's never had one as serious as Haynesworth, Suh, or Brandon Meriweather (starting a brawl when he was at Miami), and he's never had off-the-field issues.

No but I would mind having the respectfulness changed. I doubt Finnegan would be allowed to do that. I like his edge as long as he doesn't prove to be more punk than he's worth.

 

[Anonymous]

Have to say it's fun reading the hedging on the future of this team with JF in charge. Relax. Observe how the team is turned around. This is a fantastic time to be a Rams fan!

I think you're being a little over-sensitive here. I'm not hedging on anything, I was just pointing out what I think is going to be the course of the defensive unit's make-up. I don't need to relax, because I'm not amped up about anything. Obviously Fisher is going to have his hands in the defense. I never disputed that. I only pointed out that signing an arbitrary "veteran leader" on defense was a little open-ended on your part. That's why I asked the follow-up questions.

I'm not "over-sensitive. I'm amused. Never said you were amped. I said "hedging"....as in skeptical or not convinced. So relax. It's going to work.

Seriously, man?

You told me to relax, so I said I didn't have to because I wasn't "not relaxed." And I know what hedging means too, which would be why I explained how it wasn't happening here. If you take the time to re-read things, you'll see that I was never skeptical of anything. Just curious about your comments, and asked some follow-ups for clarification.

Fine, don't relax. :what:

 

[-X-]

Have to say it's fun reading the hedging on the future of this team with JF in charge. Relax. Observe how the team is turned around. This is a fantastic time to be a Rams fan!

I think you're being a little over-sensitive here. I'm not hedging on anything, I was just pointing out what I think is going to be the course of the defensive unit's make-up. I don't need to relax, because I'm not amped up about anything. Obviously Fisher is going to have his hands in the defense. I never disputed that. I only pointed out that signing an arbitrary "veteran leader" on defense was a little open-ended on your part. That's why I asked the follow-up questions.

I'm not "over-sensitive. I'm amused. Never said you were amped. I said "hedging"....as in skeptical or not convinced. So relax. It's going to work.

Seriously, man?

You told me to relax, so I said I didn't have to because I wasn't "not relaxed." And I know what hedging means too, which would be why I explained how it wasn't happening here. If you take the time to re-read things, you'll see that I was never skeptical of anything. Just curious about your comments, and asked some follow-ups for clarification.

Fine, don't relax. :what:

You're not the boss of me. :razzed:

 

[RamFan503]

Don't MAKE me come back there!