Rams News

St. Louis Rams
Team Report posted May 15, 1998
by tsn correspondent JIM THOMAS St. Louis Post-Dispatch

There are many reasons why the Rams are 18-30 since moving to St. Louis three seasons ago.

But losing their own free agents isn't one of them. Since the end of the '94 season, the team's last in Southern California, the Rams have lost only one starter they had planned to retain to free agency -- defensive tackle Bill Johnson.

Johnson signed with Philadelphia in February. Over that same span, they have kept wide receiver Isaac Bruce, defensive tackle D'Marco Farr, linebacker Roman Phifer, and safeties Keith Lyle and Toby Wright off the open market by signing them to long-term deals. They also matched Jacksonville's four-year, $10.7 million offer sheet to cornerback Todd Lyght before the 1996 season.

Lyght was designated a transition player at the time. This offseason, the Rams re-signed third-down back Amp Lee, their leader in receptions and reception yards, and placed a franchise tag on cornerback Ryan McNeil to severely limit his options.

Special teams captain Keith Crawford and backup quarterback Mark Rypien both signed with Atlanta, but they weren't players the Rams couldn't live without.

On Thursday, the team signed backup receiver Malcolm Floyd to a one-year deal. Floyd caught four passes in four games before suffering a torn Achilles' tendon in mid-December -- an injury that required surgery.

The team still has lukewarm interest in unrestricted free agent Ernest Dye, an offensive lineman. Dye played in 13 games as a backup, and could provide depth at both guard and tackle. But so far his asking price is too high to suit the Rams, and he hasn't drawn much interest in free agency other than a visit to Pittsburgh. . . .

After playing nine seasons in variations of the West Coast offense in San Francisco, Kansas City and Green Bay, Steve Bono has some catching up to do in St. Louis. "It's just a matter of calling plays different ways, and reading patterns different ways," Bono said.

"It's more of an adjustment than I've had to make in a while." Bono, 36, concedes he was shocked to learn of his trade from the Packers to the Rams in April for a seventh-round draft pick in 1999.

"It was the last thing on my mind," he said. But Bono said there was no truth to reports that he was contemplating retirement or simply not reporting to the Rams. On paper, Bono will compete with Will Furrer for the No. 2 spot behind Tony Banks. But once Bono picks up offensive coordinator Jerry Rhome's system, he probably rates as the favorite for that job, based on experience alone.

Bono was a starter for the Chiefs just two seasons ago. Furrer didn't throw a regular-season pass for the Rams last season and wasn't on an NFL roster in '96. . . .

Troy Dumas, a backup outside linebacker, has undergone shoulder surgery and will miss the team's mid-June minicamp. Dumas suffered the injury during the Rams' post-draft minicamp. . . .

The Rams have cut offensive line candidate Wendall Gaines, who had been assigned this spring to the Scottish Claymores of NFL Europe. . . .

The starting time for the Rams second preseason game, Aug. 15 at San Diego, has been pushed back one hour to 10 p.m. Central time.

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