Rookie Receiver Lifts Rams
Two weeks before the season opener, the three-man battle for the Rams’ starting tailback job has given way to a three-man race at another position--backup receiver.
Who could have imagined in July that someone named Derrick Faison would push Curt Warner out of the spotlight?
In the Rams’ 27-7 victory over the Phoenix Cardinals before 44,134 at Anaheim Stadium Saturday night, the tailback race between Gaston Green and Warner fizzled for the moment. Green gained 21 yards in nine carries; Warner had 24 yards.
The fight for the team’s No. 4 receiver spot, however, turned up a notch, especially when the team’s only healthy starter, Henry Ellard, left the game in the first quarter because of a strained groin. Ellard did manage to get the first reception of the summer for the starting receiving corps, catching a nine-yard pass over the middle with 13:18 left in the first quarter.
The rest of the night was left for the likes of Faison, a rookie free agent who is competing with Tim Stallworth and Tony Lomack for one open position.
Against Phoenix, Faison had scoring receptions of 26 and 23 yards and finished with four catches for 73 yards, and he could have had more.
Faison beat his man deep in the first quarter but quarterback Jim Everett left the pass short and Faison couldn’t hold on to the ball. Faison came back with an 11-yard reception later in the drive on a play in which his defender, Jay Taylor, was called for pass interference.
In the second half, Faison added a 26-yard scoring reception to put the Rams ahead, 20-0. Faison made that play while having his face-mask yanked by Tracey Eaton.
In the fourth quarter, Faison made another juggling catch over the middle for a 23-yard touchdown, putting the Rams ahead by 20 points.
Who is Faison? He’s a 6-foot-4 rookie from Howard University who played basketball his senior year in college, not football.
“Obviously, Faison is capable of big plays,” Coach John Robinson said. “He’s got some stuff that’s unusual, I think all three men are going to play in the NFL. We’ve got some decisions to make, but they’ve done an excellent job.”
Nearly as impressive as Faison was Lomack, the ninth-round pick from Florida. He finished with two catches for 91 yards, including an 80-yard scoring pass from Everett late in the second quarter.
However, Lomack suffered a strained hamstring near the end of his scoring run and couldn’t return for the second half.
That left the door open for Stallworth, who didn’t have a catch in the first half. He made up for it with a difficult catch on a 27-yard pass from quarterback Chuck Long on the Rams’ first drive of the second half.
The biggest problem for the Ram receivers is health. When Stallworth was forced from the game in the second half because of a bruised right toe, it left Faison as the only available receiver with a chance to make the team. Also unavailable were Ellard, Aaron Cox (hamstring) and Flipper Anderson (hamstring).
“I think I’m as worried about this football team as any that I’ve had coming this close to the season,” Robinson said. “We’ve had an unbelievable number of injures. We lost Ellard again to groin, we don’t think it’s serious. But it’s the same routine, we can’t seem to get any rhythm at wide receiver.”
Everett received his most extensive work of the summer, playing the entire first half. For the night, he completed 10 of 19 passes for 193 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
Long had his best day as a Ram, completing seven of 10 passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns.
The Rams’ first score was set up by new corner Bobby Humphery, who intercepted his second pass of the summer in the second quarter when he stepped in front of a Timm Rosenbach pass and returned it nine yards to the Phoenix 22. Four plays later, Mike Lansford kicked a 37-yard field goal to give the Rams a 3-0 lead.
Ram Notes
Rookie free agent Derrick Faison started at wide receiver in place of Flipper Anderson, who was sidelined because of a sore right hamstring. . . . Welcome to the league: Former Indiana running back Anthony Thompson, the Cardinals’ first draft pick, was stopped for no gain on his first NFL carry after a crushing tackle by safety Vince Newsome. Thompson ended his holdout with the team this week.
These Rams did not play because of injuries: tackles Irv Pankey (back) and Rob Cox (ribs), cornerback Darryl Henley (hip), Cleveland Gary (back), defensive tackle Brian Smith (knee), linebackers Fred Strickland (hamstring) and Mel Owens (back), receiver Aaron Cox and nose tackle Sean Smith (ankle).
