Rams News

INSIDE SLANT

DRAFT REVIEW -- The St. Louis Rams got almost everything they wanted out of the draft with the
exception of a top-notch offensive lineman.

The Rams filled two of their biggest needs with their top two picks -- Nebraska defensive end Grant Wistrom in the first round and Illinois running back Robert Holcombe in the second round.

The Rams also feel like they got three bargains with Tennessee defensive end Leonard Little in the third round and San Diego State wide receiver Az-zahir Hakim and Syracuse tight end Roland Williams in the fourth round.

"I would say the first five picks definitely have NFL starting ability," Rams coach Dick Vermeil said.
"Now, whether they will end up starting here or not ... hey, sometimes they end up getting beat out by an (undrafted) free agent. I've had third-round draft choices beat out by (undrafted) free agents in my past career. You throw away the draft choice once he gets on the field."

The Rams opted for Wistrom with the No. 6 overall pick after the Chicago Bears took Penn State running back Curtis Enis with the No. 5 selection. Vermeil admitted that the Rams preferred Enis over Wistrom.

"If we would have had the choice between the running back and the defensive end, we would have taken the running back," Vermeil said. "As I've said to some people, when you have two equally graded players, more often than not you go with the guy that you can put the ball in his hands. That didn't happen, but this is not a disappointment."

The Rams were still in telephone contact with the Bears on Saturday morning trying to arrange a last-minute swap of first-round picks.

"They wanted either our second-round pick or (wide receiver) Eddie Kennison," Vermeil said. "As I told Eddie yesterday, I'm not trading him. There have been other people who have asked about Eddie Kennison."

On the second day of the draft, the Rams made a questionable public relations move by taking Hakim. Hakim was arrested last August along with two other San Diego State football players after
an 18-year-old woman claimed to be gang raped during a party at his house on March 3, 1997. The players were held in police custody for two days, but then released because of a lack of evidence.
The case is still open.

"We do real detailed security checks on these guys, so we knew that he would carry this rap, but we knew there was nothing to it," Vermeil said.

Hakim, 20, said he wasn't involved in the alleged rape.

"Two guys from LA, my roommates' friends, had sex with the girl and they took it to another level, I guess," Hakim said. "They said they didn't rape her or anything, but I was feeling pretty bad. It was at my household at the time and everything really came down on me."

Another Rams draft pick, Clemson running back Raymond Priester, who was taken in the fifth round, was arrested in 1996 for charging less than $50 in long-distance telephone calls to an elderly woman in South Carolina.

A closer look at the Rams' picks:

Round 1/6 -- Grant Wistrom, DE, 6-5, 273, Nebraska

The Rams would have preferred Enis, but they're thrilled to have Wistrom, who won the Lombardi Award as the top collegiate lineman in 1997. He also was the Big 12 Conference Defensive Player
of the Year. Wistrom's development into a premier pass rusher should be helped by going against last year's No. 1 overall pick, Orlando Pace, every day in practice. Wistrom is home-grown. He is a native of Webb City, a city of 7,500 in southwest Missouri.

Round 2/37 -- Robert Holcombe, RB, 6-0, 216, Illinois

In Holcombe, the Rams hope they've found a replacement for Lawrence Phillips. He will compete with fellow Houston native Jerald Moore for the job of starting running back next season. The Pittsburgh Steelers offered third-, fourth- and seventh-round picks to move up 19 spots in the draft, but the Rams refused because they hold Holcombe in such high esteem. The 5-11 1/2, 216-pound
Holcombe shattered Illinois' career rushing record with 5,105 yards, despite playing most of his career for bad teams. Holcombe runs the 40-yard dash in 4.54 seconds, but it's his ability to dart in and out of traffic that impressed the Rams.

Round 3/65 -- Leonard Little, DE, 6-4, 240, Tennessee

The Rams envision Little, who runs the 40-yard dash in 4.45 seconds, as a pass-rushing specialist and special teams kamikaze. He had 28.5 sacks during his collegiate career, including 8.5 sacks last season. The Rams gave up a seventh-round pick to the New York Jets to move up two spots in the third round. The move enabled the Rams to get ahead of the Steelers, who were actually on the telephone welcoming Little into their organization when the trade occurred. Good thing Little has call waiting so he could take a call from Vermeil telling him otherwise.

Round 4/96 -- Az-zahir Hakim, WR, 5-10, 179, San Diego State

Hakim averaged 17.8 yards per catch during his collegiate career, and the Rams are excited about his after-the-catch running ability. Hakim also can return punts or kickoffs. He caught Vermeil's eye at the Senior Bowl. He was rated among the top five receivers by many experts, but his brush with the law and lack of size (5-9 1/2, 179 pounds) caused him to slide to the fourth round.

Round 4/98 -- Roland Williams, TE, 65-, 263, Syracuse

Williams caught only eight passes last season and 21 passes for his collegiate career. He actually shared playing time with Kaseem Sinceno. Vermeil said he was confident that Williams could develop into a starting tight end. "The hands you can improve," Vermeil said.

Round 5/129 -- Raymond Priester, FB, 6-2, 240, Clemson

Priester rushed for a school-record 3,904 yards during his collegiate career. The Rams want to turn the 6-2, 240-pound Priester into an H-back, but his blocking is suspect. He was too busy carrying the ball to do much blocking for Clemson. Vermeil said Priester was the best running back at gaining yards after contact in the draft.

Round 6/159 -- Glenn Rountree, OG, 6-3, 309, Clemson

Vermeil called Rountree his team's sleeper pick. The 6-3, 309-pounder had 63 knockdown blocks for Clemson last season. He also paved the way for Priester's record-setting career. He has already graduated from Clemson with a degree in agronomy, otherwise known as farm science. His resume lists being selected All-America first team by Successful Farming magazine.

Round 7/236 -- Jason Chorak, DE-OLB, 6-4, 256, Washington

Chorak was the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year in 1995 with 14.5 sacks and 22 tackles for a loss. His numbers dropped off last season -- seven sacks and 20 tackles for a loss -- playing with a bleeding bursa sac in his knee that needed to be drained two or three times a week. The Rams see the 6-4, 256-pound Chorak playing as an outside rusher on passing downs.

NOTES, QUOTES, ANECDOTES

Wistrom and Holcombe are both represented by sports agent Tom Condon with the International Management Group. Vermeil doesn't think Wistrom or Holcombe will have a prolonged holdout like last year's No. 1 pick, Orlando Pace. Pace, whose agents were Kevin and Carl Poston, missed all of training camp.

"Tom Condon is first class," Vermeil said. "Nobody ever says when you say Tom Condon and his group are representing a player, `Oh my god, how did they get these goofballs?' "

Wistrom is a home-grown Missourian. He is a native of Webb City, a city of 7,500 in southwest Missouri.

"I'm excited," he said. "It's a dream come true. I'm getting to play in my home state and it's going to bring a lot of pride for me and my community and the state itself."

It was Wistrom who preserved Nebraska's 45-38 victory over Missouri by dropping Tigers quarterback Corby Jones for a six-yard loss on the final play of overtime.

"I know there are a lot of Mizzou people around here, especially in this organization," Wistrom said.
"Sorry about that, but we won and that's all that matters."

The Rams have signed 10 rookie free agents. They are: Florida State linebacker Darryl Bush, Auburn wide receiver Tyrone Goodson, Clemson wide receiver Tony Horne, Michigan wide receiver Russell Shaw, Temple tackle Roger Chanoine, Iowa tackle Jeremy McKinney, Nebraska guard Fred Pollack, New Mexico safety Billy Austin, Brigham Young cornerback Omarr Morgan and Vanderbilt defensive end Glen Young.

Wistrom was only the sixth defensive lineman since 1937 taken by the Rams with their first pick.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "In college, I also wanted a chance to play against him. That never worked out for us, but we'll be butting heads about every day in practice now. When you go against a great player, it obviously is going to make you better." -- Rams first-round draft pick Grant Wistrom, talking about going against Orlando Pace in practice.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

Despite drafting Wistrom, the Rams are still interested in free-agent defensive end Clyde Simmons.
They are no longer pursuing free-agent running back Greg Hill.

FRANCHISE PLAYER: CB Ryan McNeil ($3.22M tender).

TRANSITION PLAYER: None.

UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS: OG Ernest Dye (no more than a backup); WR Malcolm Floyd (late addition who didn't really get to show what he can do); QB Will Furrer (Jerry Rhome disciple); LB Britt Hager (a special teamer and backup who will not be re-signed); P Mike Horan (he's 38 and would like to play until he's 50. Expendable after signing of Rick Tuten); C Vernice Smith (will not be re-signed); LB Brett Wallerstedt (won't be back).

RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS: LB Troy Dumas ($$397,000 tender; another in a whole battalion of reserve linebackers); WR Johnny Thomas ($397,000 tender; has big attitude for guy who caught two passes and was inactive 11 games); OG Zach Wiegert ($397,000 tender; initial indication is that his agent wants John Hannah money for mediocre play).

EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS FREE AGENTS: S Billy Jenkins, Jr.; WR Donald Sellers; RB David Thompson; DE Jay Williams (was lackluster as Leslie O'Neal's backup).

PLAYERS RE-SIGNED: OT Ethan Brooks (EFA; terms unknown); QB Will Furrer (UFA; $825,000/2 yrs, SB unknown); RB Derrick Harris (EFA; terms unknown); TE Aaron Laing (RFA; $397,000/1 yr); RB Amp Lee (UFA; $4M/3 yrs, SB unknown); DT Chris Maumalanga (EFA; terms unknown); S Gerald McBurrows (RFA; 397,000/1 yr); S Mike Scurlock (RFA; $397,000/1yr); LB Lorenzo Styles (RFA; $397,000/1 yr).

PLAYERS ACQUIRED: DT Ray Agnew (UFA Giants; $8M/4 yrs, $2M SB); TE Tyji Armstrong (FA); QB Steve Bono (Trade Packers for 7th-round pick in 1999 draft); RB Kevin Bouie (FA); OL John Flannery (UFA Cowboys; $1.175M/2 yrs, SB unknown); LB Eric Hill (UFA Cardinals; $5.25M/2 yrs, $1M SB/$3.125M guaranteed); DT James Manley (FA); WR Ricky Proehl (UFA Bears; $6M/4 yrs, $1.6M SB); P Rick Tuten (UFA Seahawks; $1.9M/3 yrs, $300,000 SB).

PLAYERS LOST: WR Keith Crawford (UFA Falcons; $1.2M/2 yrs, $200,000 SB); DT Bill Johnson (UFA Eagles; $3.9M/2 yrs, no SB/$2.3M guaranteed); DE Leslie O'Neal (cut); QB Mark Rypien (UFA Falcons; $1.8M/2 yrs, $400,000 SB); WR Torrance Small (UFA Colts; terms
unknown).

MEDICAL WATCH: S Toby Wright's rehabilitation after reconstructive surgery on his left knee is going well. Wright's rehab is expected to take at least four more months, meaning he could be unable to practice until early August. He began jogging recently.

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