Rams News

St. Louis Rams
Team Report posted August 27, 1998
by tsn correspondent JIM THOMAS - St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Among 18 players waived by the Rams Monday and Tuesday were two draft picks, running back Raymond Priester (5th round), whom the Rams were trying to convert to fullback, and offensive guard Glenn Rountree (6th round). Both were Clemson products.

Also going was cornerback Willie Clark, an unrestricted free agent from Philadelphia who had signed a one-year deal worth $700,000 in May. Clark didn't play well enough at corner to beat out veteran Tony Stargell, and didn't play special teams well enough to beat out Mike Scurlock.

But a hip flexor injury to Stargell is bringing Clark back to the roster. The Rams also decided their quarterback situation by waiving Will Furrer in favor of Kurt Warner. They enter the regular season with Tony Banks, Steve Bono and Warner.

Warner made the club after throwing just four passes in the preseason. He's 27. He spent three seasons playing for the Iowa Barnstormers of the Arena League, and was with the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe this past spring.

He played college ball at Northern Iowa, and his only previous camp experience came in 1994, when he lost out to Brett Favre, Mark Brunell and Ty Detmer for one of the Green Bay jobs.

But Warner has impressed the Rams with his poise and ability to throw in tight spaces -- perhaps a positive he brought with him from the smaller Arena League playing fields. . . .

With Ryan McNeil continuing his holdout, second-year corner Dexter McCleon continues to struggle. McCleon was torched last Saturday against Michael Irvin of the Cowboys. Most of Irvin's six catches for 100 yards came at McCleon's expense.

McCleon also was flagged for pass interference against Irvin in the end zone, setting up a Dallas touchdown.

"I learned a lot," McCleon said. "They came after me. It was tough. But I've got to stand up; I've got to respond to the challenge. I'm glad that it was against one of the best in the game."

Without McNeil, McCleon is the Rams' starting right cornerback. And he may be there for a while because McNeil is threatening to sit out several regular season games before agreeing to play for the franchise player tender offer of $3.2 million.

For his part, Dick Vermeil is standing by his man.

"He'll get better. Last year at this time, they were running right by Ryan McNeil. Right by him. In fact, they did it a number of times."

McNeil did struggle last year in the preseason. McCleon can expect opposing offenses to come right at him once the regular season starts.

POSITIONAL ANALYSIS

Offensive line: The cutdown to 60 left the Rams with 10 offensive linemen, one more than they likely will keep once the final cutdown is made to 53 players. The probable player to go is tackle Jeremy McKinney, a rookie free agent from Iowa. But line coach Jim Hanifan likes his aggressiveness, so McKinney may end up on the practice squad.

Without McKinney, the Rams would have three tackles: Orlando Pace, Wayne Gandy and Ethan Brooks. Brooks, a former Atlanta castoff, has been a pleasant preseason surprise.

Quarterback: Tony Banks will play the first half Friday against Kansas City, with Steve Bono following in the third quarter. Kurt Warner may get some mop-up duty in the fourth.

The Rams still want to get Banks -- and the entire first-string offense -- more in sync. Banks has completed a modest 19-of-38 passes for 168 yards. Last week against Dallas, Banks finally engineered his first touchdown drive of the preseason -- two in fact -- although one was against the Cowboys' second unit.

Running back: Friday's preseason finale against Kansas City could go a long way toward deciding the starting running back job. Jerald Moore and Greg Hill are the frontrunners, with rookie Robert Holcombe closing fast, thanks to a 52-yard run last week against Dallas.

Third-down back Amp Lee and starting fullback Derrick Harris are assured of final roster spots as well. That leaves June Henley and David Thompson squarely on the bubble. Thompson, the team's rookie of the year in '97 based on his kickoff return ability, probably needs to make something happen at Arrowhead Stadium.

Receiver: Malcolm Floyd, Johnny Thomas, and rookie free agent Tony Horne are battling for one or two wide receiver spots on the final roster.

Isaac Bruce, Eddie Kennison, Ricky Proehl, and fourth-round draft pick Az-Zahir Hakim have made the club, and the Rams will keep five or six receivers. Horne may have an edge over Floyd and Thomas because he's shown some skill on special teams, not just returns but also coverage units.

Floyd helped his cause with a nifty 46-yard pass play August 15 against San Diego.

Defensive line: Even after the cutdown to 60, the Rams still have 10 defensive linemen on their roster. They can keep eight or nine at the most, a total that includes deep snapper Jeff Robinson.

Most clearly on the bubble here is tackle Chris Maumalanga, whom the Rams plan to play more against Kansas City just to make sure they give him a long look. If the Rams decide to go with only eight defensive linemen, Bryan Robinson, Jeff Zgonina and even veteran Joe Phillips might be in trouble.

Linebacker: Outside linebacker Roman Phifer, who's had an assortment of bumps and bruises, may play sparingly against Kansas City. For that reason, and with Muadianvita Kazadi gone, look for rookie Leonard Little to see his most extensive action of the preseason.

The Rams still have eight linebackers on the roster, so they need to trim one or two more bodies before reaching the 53-man limit. Rookies London Fletcher and Jason Chorak, as well as second-year man Charlie Clemons, are on the bubble.

Defensive back: The first round of cuts left the secondary set, with only nine players, plus a 10th space reserved for holdout cornerback Ryan McNeil. But a hip flexor injury to Tony Stargell, suffered late in Thursday's practice, left the team scrambling for help at corner.

Stargell's injury will sideline him for a while, and would have left the team with only three corners on the roster -- Todd Lyght, Dexter McCleon, and Taje Allen.

So the team got in touch with Willie Clark, who was cut Monday, and planned to re-sign before the preseason finale against Kansas City on Friday.

Special teams: David Thompson, Tony Horne and Robert Holcombe are scheduled to return kicks against the Chiefs. Eddie Kennison and Az-Zahir Hakim will return punts.

The Rams have gotten generally good work from kicker Jeff Wilkins and Rick Tuten, but haven't done a whole lot with their return game. Their longest punt return of the preseason is nine yards; their longest kickoff return 31 yards.

INJURY ANALYSIS

The Rams limped to the conclusion of preseason with mounting concerns at fullback and tight end. The release of Raymond Priester and James Stewart, coupled with the continued absence of Craig "Ironhead" Heyward, has left the Rams with only one fullback on the roster -- Derrick Harris. And Harris suffered a hip pointer against Dallas and has been scratched for the Kansas City game.

The Rams occasionally use tight end Mitch Jacoby in the backfield in a blocking fullback role -- they call it an H-back. But Jacoby is out for at least a couple more weeks after undergoing thumb surgery. He will miss the regular-season opener against New Orleans.

Two other tight ends have nagging injuries. Roland Williams has played through an ankle problem, while Tyji Armstrong missed some practice time this week with a groin injury.

Third-down back Amp Lee will miss his second consecutive game with a foot injury that has been slower to heal than expected.

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