Tag: Rams Rookies

Watch: Go behind the scenes of rookies’ first days of Rams camp

The Rams shared an exclusive look at the first days of training camp for their rookies.

Rams rookies have been at training camp for more than a week now after reporting on July 25. With this being their first taste of an NFL camp, there’s a lot for them to learn and take in at UC Irvine.

The Rams have a new series on YouTube called “Something to Prove” and the first episode goes behind the scenes as rookies move into camp and go through their first day of practice. Troy Warner, Ernest Jones and Jake Funk were among the rookies who starred on the episode, sharing what it’s like to attend camp for the first time and practice with their teammates.

It was great to see Ernest Jones ask Raymond Calais about a route he ran toward the end of the episode as the rookie tries to learn everything he can about covering running backs and being an NFL defender.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt0woXGmtw8

Watch: Rams rookies hang out with Watts youth football team at SoFi Stadium

The Rams’ rookies treated the Watts Rams youth football team to a day at SoFi Stadium, complete with a tour of the locker room.

The Rams have been very active in the community since moving back to Los Angeles in 2016, and one of their initiatives has been to take the Watts youth football team under their wing. The Rams teamed up with the LAPD in 2019 to change the name of the Watts team from the Bears to the Rams, working with the young players in one way or another regularly.

Recently, L.A.’s rookies treated the Watts Rams to a day at SoFi Stadium, helping give them a tour of the field and the locker room.

“I love what the Watts Rams have going on,” Ernest Jones said. “Just being able to help these kids out and give them another platform and somewhere else to kind of get away from those bad things. And for me just growing up, the area was not always good. Seeing something like this just, it inspires me. It makes me want to help these guys, help the Watts Rams out even more.”

Head coach of the Watts Rams, Zarren Thompson, said the program is made up of “inner-city kids from in South L.A. from the ages of 8 to 13.” The goal is to help guide the kids on and off the field, keeping them on the right track.

“Just to get them out, get them busy, it’s very important to get these guys going,” he said.

Check out the full video below to see what an experience it was for the Watts Rams.

Watch: Rams rookies make their picks for Mount Rushmore of sports

Aaron Donald, Calvin Johnson, Michael Jordan and Usain Bolt were among the athletes picked by the Rams’ rookies.

Picking the best players in NFL history to go on Mount Rushmore is difficult enough, but narrowing down the list of the all-time greatest athletes is an even bigger challenge. That’s exactly what the Rams had their rookies do, asking them to build their Mount Rushmore of sports.

First-year players such as Ernest Jones, Jacob Harris, Jake Funk, Ben Skowronek, Earnest Brown IV, Troy Warner and Robert Rochell made their picks in the video below, ranging from Randy Moss to Michael Jordan to Ronaldinho.

A couple of rookies bought themselves some brownie points, too, by mentioning Aaron Donald, Jalen Ramsey and Sean McVay. And for those keeping track of the MJ vs. LeBron James debate, 11 rookies picked Jordan and eight picked LeBron.

Among the other athletes who were picked by the Rams’ rookies were Usain Bolt, Steve Young, Ray Lewis, Calvin Johnson and Jerry Rice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3FVAhyh1bPU

Rams’ Tutu Atwell and Jacob Harris selected to NFLPA Rookie Premier class

Tutu Atwell and Jacob Harris were the only two Rams rookies selected to be part of the NFLPA Rookie Premier class.

The Los Angeles Rams had two players selected to the NFLPA Rookie Premier class this year. Wideout Tutu Atwell and tight end Jacob Harris were named to the 2021 class, which is an honor for both players.

Players are chosen based on their draft position and overall marketability in the NFL. Here’s how the NFLPA describes the selection process, per the official release.

Players are selected as part of the Rookie Premiere class primarily by Panini America based on position, college performance, draft status as well as projected overall demand and marketability. All these factors impact a rookie’s trading card value, even before they have played a down in a game.

Atwell isn’t all that surprising, considering he was a second-round pick and figures to be a dynamic playmaker in the NFL. However, Harris was a fourth-round pick and only has two years of college production under his belt, but he’s a highly athletic playmaker with an elite combination of size and speed.

It’s unclear how much either player will contribute in Year 1, but both could be starters a season or two down the line.

[vertical-gallery id=649170]

Watch: Rams rookies struggle with ’90s trivia in hilarious video

This wasn’t an easy quiz for the Rams’ youngsters.

The Los Angeles Rams added nine players in the 2021 NFL draft, and most of them range from 20-23 years old. They’re some of the youngest players on the roster, of course, with Bobby Brown III even being born in 2000; he’s just 20 years old.

Given their young ages, the Rams’ social media team put their ‘90s knowledge to the test – since most of them were born in the late-‘90s, so they grew up in the 2000s. The Rams showed their rookies photos of the Backstreet Boys, “The Matrix,” “Toy Story,” a Blackberry and “The Sopranos.”

Some players were able to identify them – everyone got “Toy Story” right – but other questions stumped the rookies.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpJm3sQiNZQ

Brandon Staley: Rams rookies not at disadvantage without preseason

The Rams’ new defensive coordinator won’t give veterans an edge based on experience.

The transition from college to the NFL can be extremely difficult for players, especially at positions such as tight end, edge rusher and in the secondary. That jump to the pros is made even more challenging when OTAs, minicamps and the preseason are canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

For all teams, training camp was the coaching staff’s first opportunity to see their rookies on a practice field in person. That would seem to put those first-year players at a disadvantage compared to their veteran counterparts, especially ones competing for starting jobs or roster spots.

The Rams don’t see it that way, though.

Defensive coordinator Brandon Staley doesn’t think rookies are at a disadvantage without a preseason to work through. If a player is good enough to contribute, he’ll get the opportunity to, according to Staley.

“I have heard that, and I can certainly understand that position that people take. I certainly don’t take that position at all. We will have plenty of time to evaluate these players,” Staley said over the weekend. “This process is exactly how it happens in college football. Exactly how it happens, you don’t have preseason games to evaluate your players. You have practice to evaluate your players. So, I don’t agree with that position, me personally. I think that we will be able to get these guys ready to play if they are good enough. And that is just how the NFL, or any other level. If they are good enough then those guys will emerge. They will express themselves and we will get them ready to play. We’ve got a tremendous coaching staff on both sides of the ball and in the kicking game. It is our responsibility to put them through as many experiences as we can before we play in that first game. I know that if a young player is capable of playing, then he will.”

On the defensive side of the ball, Staley has a few rookies to work with, most notably Terrell Burgess and Terrell Lewis – both third-round picks in the draft this year. Both could contribute right away, Burgess as the third safety or nickel corner, and Lewis as a situational pass rusher.

Lewis is even further behind than most rookies after spending more than a week on the reserve/COVID-19 list after testing positive for the coronavirus, missing the early portion of camp. He’ll be available for the padded portion of practices beginning Monday, though, which is the important part.

Rookies will have it tougher than veterans, but at least the Rams will do their best to keep the playing field level for all players.

[vertical-gallery id=636082]

Look: Rams 2020 draft picks officially sign rookie contracts

Cam Akers and the rest of the Rams’ rookies made their contracts official on Monday.

On their first day at the Rams’ facility for COVID-19 testing, rookies took care of another important piece of business. They officially put pen to paper and signed their first NFL contracts, making them members of the Rams.

It was reported earlier that the Rams had agreed to terms with their top four picks, but now all nine of the team’s draftees made their contracts official. The Rams shared photos of each player signing their deals while wearing masks.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CDKbld_J9rm/

Each player will receive a four-year contract and none will have a fifth-year option, which only applies for first-round picks. Cam Akers was the team’s top pick in the second round, while Van Jefferson followed five picks later.

Although it took longer for rookies to sign their contracts this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, it wasn’t because the Rams were busy negotiating with their agents. Players haven’t been able to get in the building until now, which made it difficult to make their contracts official.

Why haven’t the Rams signed any of their rookies yet?

The Rams have yet to sign a single draft pick despite training camp being right around the corner.

While most other teams across the NFL have been working to get their rookies under contract all offseason – increasingly so with training camp around the corner – the Rams have yet to sign a single one of their 2020 draft picks. In recent years, the Rams have signed their rookies by the end of June. But as we all know, this isn’t a typical offseason.

We’re now approaching the end of July and some are wondering why Los Angeles has seemingly dragged its feet on this subject. There are a few possible reasons to explain why the Rams have waited longer than just about every other team.

The first of which is tied to the coronavirus pandemic, which has prevented teams from getting players into the building. There were no OTAs or rookie minicamp earlier this offseason, limiting players to working out on their own.

The Rams usually replace rookie minicamp with a financial literacy course for their draft picks, hoping to prepare them for the rigors of the NFL and the money they’re set to receive from their first professional contracts.

It’s not until after that financial advice class that the Rams sign their draft picks – a tradition set in place by Jeff Fisher when he was head coach. Considering the Rams couldn’t have that class in person this year, it’s possible they’re going to put rookies through it when they arrive for training camp this week or next.

Another factor could be the Rams’ salary cap situation, though it’s nothing that will prevent them from getting their rookies under contract. Before Todd Gurley’s contract came off the books on June 2, the Rams had less than $1 million in cap space – not even enough to sign their rookie class.

Now, they’re sitting on about $5.2 million in cap space, according to Over The Cap, which is enough to cover the expected $1.6 million the Rams need to sign their rookie class.

In all likelihood, it was probably a combination of all the above. The coronavirus pandemic prevented rookies from getting into the Rams’ facility, which probably caused the team to push its financial literacy class back to training camp. The added factor of Gurley’s contract not coming off the books until June 2 didn’t help, either.

This is nothing to be worried about because rookie contracts are all structured based on the CBA and wage scale, but it is interesting that the Rams are one of the only teams that hasn’t signed a single draft pick yet.

[vertical-gallery id=635978]

Rams’ undrafted free agent class ranked 8th in NFL

The Rams came away with a strong class of undrafted free agents.

The Los Angeles Rams were busy on the second and third days of the draft, making nine total picks between Rounds 2 and 7. Their work didn’t end there, though. After the final pick of the seventh round, the Rams got busy signing players who didn’t get selected.

They took a different approach this year in order to expand their reach on the undrafted free agent market, allowing position coaches and scouts to help sign players with the front office giving each group an allotment of money to spend.

The results were strong on paper with the Rams signing several players who could wind up making the 53-man roster, or at the very least, the practice squad. According to Thor Nystrom of Rotoworld, the Rams’ undrafted free agent class ranked eighth in the NFL.

The Rams lacked for early capital in the draft itself — they did not select a player until Cam Akers at 2.52 — but temporarily freed from the handicaps of their own making in the UDFA Dollar Store, GM Les Snead and HC Sean McVay went on a shopping spree. The Rams brought in five prospects in my top-350, with Weber State EDGE Jonah Williams headlining the group at No. 309. 

Beyond Williams, after mystifyingly ignoring a problematic offensive line situation in the draft outside of seventh-round interior flier Tremayne Anchrum, the Rams brought in further competition via ASU’s Cohl Cabral, a smart and lengthy pivot, as well as Syracuse WR Trishton Jackson, who will cook you in a straight line if you’re not careful. The Rams only have John Wolford behind Jared Goff, making the signings of QBs Josh Love and Bryce Perkins, two of the class’ best undrafted signal-callers, intriguing. Good chance one of them makes the opening roster.

The Rams have signed 22 undrafted free agents up to this point, led by recognizable names such as Jonah Williams, Bryce Perkins, Levonta Taylor and Josh Love. Cohl Cabral also has a chance to make the team on the offensive line, while Easop Winston and Trishton Jackson offer intriguing skill sets to a receiver room that’s currently lacking some depth beyond the top four players.

Love and Perkins are two players everyone should watch especially close, though. As Nystrom points out, John Wolford is the only other quarterback behind Jared Goff at the moment. Perkins isn’t a pure pocket passer, but a true dual-threat with excellent running ability. Love has a big enough arm and put up solid numbers at San Jose State, and was someone many people thought would be drafted.

Unless the Rams sign a veteran free agent such as Cam Newton, their backup quarterback won’t have much experience – whether that’s Wolford, or one of the undrafted rookies.

[vertical-gallery id=632076]

Rams rookies begin virtual offseason program Monday

The Rams can begin getting acclimated to the NFL this week.

The NFL has had to tweak its offseason in more ways than one this year due to the coronavirus pandemic. The draft wasn’t held in Vegas as it was planned to be, offseason workouts have been canceled and teams’ facilities remain closed.

As a result, OTAs and minicamps have been altered. Everything is being done online over video conference, which includes the Rams’ offseason program for rookies. That began on Monday, kicking off a seven-week program to help acclimate rookies to the NFL – off the field, of course.

Most of it pertains to classroom work and getting first-year players caught up on the playbook, which is tougher to do without in-person coaching. It’s similar to what Rams veterans have been going through for the last couple of weeks in place of the traditional offseason workout program.

“When it goes to making a plan for this, whether it’s direct communication from the league on what we need to hit, how we need to hit it, I think I’m able to just plug and play, because obviously we’ve had to ramp it up with the technology piece during this time,” director of player engagement Jacques McClendon said via TheRams.com. “But I feel like since we’ve already been using it, it hasn’t really been a hard transition for us. We’ve just had to build upon the foundation, which we already started.”

The 2020 season could prove to be a difficult one for rookies, since they won’t be able to get on the field for minicamp. The adjustment from college to the NFL will be tough without this offseason work, and will be worsened if training camp is impacted this summer.

The Rams’ top four picks – Cam Akers, Van Jefferson, Terrell Lewis and Terrell Burgess all should have an impact in Year 1, but staying healthy and getting up to speed will be their top priorities before they can rise the depth chart.