Rams News

Wright's recovery is ahead of schedule

07/19/98

By Jim Thomas
Of the Post-Dispatch Staff

MACOMB, Ill. -- His mere presence on the field Sunday marked another important step for safety Toby Wright on the road back from reconstructive knee surgery.
``It's good to at least go out and see what I can do, and slowly get into it,'' Wright said.
The Rams had planned to have Wright begin training camp on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, meaning he could not practice. But with his rehabilitation going well, team trainers decided to ease Wright back into the practice routine.
``I did all right,'' Wright said after the Rams' morning practice at Western Illinois University. ``I'm in shape from being in rehab constantly. Now, I've got to turn around and be that football player. Plus, my leg gets tired. I've just got to fight through it.''
Wright said his knee felt ``real sore'' after the morning practice. ``Making those spontaneous-type moves, that's the hardest thing. Sometimes I feel it, sometimes I don't.''
Nonetheless, coach Dick Vermeil was pleasantly surprised. ``A couple of times, he moved as if he had never been injured. But at the end of the movement, he'd slow down and start showing that he's still rehabbing. But on the snap, he moved as if he had forgotten he'd been operated on.''
Wright sat out the Sunday afternoon practice and will practice only once daily during two-a-days. Vermeil hopes to have Wright in the lineup by the third preseason game -- Aug. 22 against Dallas.
Camp Skinny: With only three defensive backs in camp, including Wright, the Rams enlisted wide receivers Tony Horne and Donald Sellers to help in the secondary. Even secondary coach Steve Brown, an NFL cornerback for nine years, donned Wright's jersey (No. 32), and helped at safety in the afternoon. ``I'm looking for that big signing bonus,'' Brown joked. . . .
The hit of the day was applied by safety Kadar Hamilton, a rookie free agent, who flattened tight end Roland Williams, on a short pass over the middle. . . . Running back Robert Holcombe was impressive in pass-blocking drills Sunday morning.

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