Rams Can Really Pick ‘Em in Draft : Well, They Know What They’re Doing After First Choice
In future drafts, the Rams might want to pass on their first choice altogether and move right to the later rounds.
The proof is in the picking. In 1986, first-round choice Mike Schad couldn’t quite tackle offensive tackle and spent the year on injured reserve.
He’s back this year posing as a guard.
Had Schad been a late-round choice, he would have likely been cut loose by opening day. But an old scouting department proverb demands that first picks be cut last, if at all.
Which brings the Rams to this year’s model, Donald Evans. In another long-shot choice (Schad remember, did not even learn the game in the United States), the Rams took Evans, a defensive end from Winston-Salem State in North Carolina.
And though Coach John Robinson isn’t publicly saying what the future holds, it appears the Rams have Mike Schad all over again.
So can a trip to the injured reserve list be far off for Evans?
Schad, last September, was removed via golf cart from the practice field in public view after suffering from back spasms. It would turn out to be a season-long ride on the 1986 injured reserve list.
Now, some clues concerning Evans.
Last Thursday, the Rams reported that Evans was suffering from hemorrhoids and might even miss Saturday night’s game against the Denver Broncos. Then it was determined that Evans would play but would relinquish his starting right end spot on passing downs to Gary Jeter, last year’s starter. Hmmm.
Sunday, Robinson admitted it will be difficult for Evans to get his position back.
“He’ll just have to keep practicing,” Robinson said. “We haven’t made that decision.”
Evans, who needed all the practice time he could get to begin with, hurt himself by signing two weeks late on Aug. 1. He hasn’t really come close to hitting a quarterback yet.
The Rams must reduce their roster to 45 players by Sept. 7. Between now and then, there will be plenty of roster-jockeying and surely a few timely injuries, perhaps even one to a certain rookie defensive end.
Still, if you throw out the first picks from the last two years, the Rams have done just fine.
Still alive and doing well from 1986’s draft include a potential star in guard Tom Newberry (second round), quarterback Hugh Millen (third round) and tackles Robert Cox (sixth round) and Hank Goebel (eighth round).
This season’s most-likely-to-succeed draft choices are cornerback Clifford Hicks (third round), linebacker Larry Kelm (fourth round) and safety Michael Stewart (eighth round).
Ram Notes
Coach John Robinson is mildly optimistic that starting inside linebacker Carl Ekern (knee) will be back for the opener Sept. 13 at Houston. . . . To show just how much the Rams are hurting at inside linebacker, Robinson was deeply saddened by the serious hamstring injury that has knocked out free agent Richard Brown for perhaps a couple of months. Richard Brown? “He was really making a bid for a spot,” Robinson said. Add Brown to a list of injured inside linebackers that include Ekern, Mark Jerue and Steve Busick. Still, Robinson said a trade to shore up the position is unlikely. . . . One of the few healthy linebackers, Jim Collins, appears fully recovered from a season-ending nerve injury last year. Collins led all players with nine tackles in Saturday’s 24-20 loss to the Broncos. . . . The Rams must cut to 60 players by Tuesday. . . . Sam Anno, a rookie free agent from USC, appears to have won a roster spot as a long-snapper. . . . It didn’t take the Rams long to put left tackle Irv Pankey back to work. Two days after signing a two-year contract and returning to camp, Pankey played in all four quarters Saturday night. “We just played it by ear with him,” Robinson said. “We started him and just said, ‘Let’s see how tired you get.’ ” . . . Other standouts Saturday night, Robinson said, were linebacker Kevin Greene and nose tackle Alvin Wright.
