Rams Bring In Fisher to Tighten Defense : NFL: Former USC player, 32, replaces Shurmur. He brings Bettis with him from Eagles to coach the secondary.

The Rams have hired Jeff Fisher and given him a mandate to revamp their defense. The former Philadelphia Eagles’ defensive coordinator agreed Tuesday to terms of a three-year contract.

Fisher, 32, will bring Eagle secondary coach Tom Bettis and the Eagles’ intimidating defensive style with him to the Rams.

“I think in Jeff we’re getting one of the rising young stars in the NFL,” Coach John Robinson said Tuesday. “He’s young, but he’s at the same age when John Madden and Don Shula were when they got major jobs.

“I know Jeff and I believe he has a brilliant future in this league. I think I’m getting him at a great time. His best work is just about to happen.”

Fisher also wanted to bring along Eagle defensive line coach Dale Haupt, but Haupt apparently has decided to remain in Philadelphia. No other Eagle assistants are expected to follow Fisher. The Rams will interview San Diego Charger defensive line coach Gunther Cunningham this week.

Fisher, who played defensive back for Robinson at USC, replaces Fritz Shurmur, who coached the Rams’ defense for nine years before Robinson fired him and five other assistants last week. Although he had the opportunity to remain with the Eagles after Buddy Ryan was fired as head coach, Fisher said he chose to leave for the chance to rebuild the Rams’ defense his own way.

“The decision was to come in and implement a system and be excited about it and bring a new look to a place where there are some people who can make the improvements,” Fisher said Tuesday from Mobile, Ala., where he is scouting talent at the Senior Bowl.

“They’ve given me a chance and I’m not going to let them down.”

Fisher leaves a defense featuring talented veterans such as Reggie White to join a defense that Fisher and Robinson concede needs an infusion of talent.

“You’re aware of the players out there in Philadelphia, the people we have up front, the system is in,” Fisher said. “Of course, (leaving) that was a difficult decision for me.

“But in talking with Coach Robinson about the direction he’s heading in defensively, I thought it was great opportunity for me to start over. He’s committed to start over, implement a fresh scheme, an aggressive scheme, do whatever it takes to bring people to fit the scheme itself.

“We’re not going to go in and as Coach said put band-aids on. We’re going to start off brand new, put in the best 11 guys. That’s a great opportunity and get to go out and do things you’re way. That’s the big key.”

Fisher said he has watched film of the Rams’ defense, and that his first priority, as always, is to get some consistent pressure on the quarterback. The Rams had only 30 sacks last season--only 12 of those coming from the defensive line.

“I feel like we’ve got to get some pressure up front and if that means (rushing) more than four, then we’ll go,” Fisher said. “I’m actually excited about the linebackers, I think the linebackers can rush the passer.”

Fisher, who said he was pleased with the Rams’ talent level at safety, also said that although the Rams have indicated they would be interested in the Plan B market, he didn’t expect to restock the defense with Plan B players.

But Fisher is also known to be interested in bringing in at least a few players familiar with his style--former Eagle middle linebacker Mike Reichenbach, currently a backup with the Dolphins, and current Eagle backup safety Terry Hoage. Both almost certainly will be available in Plan B.

“It took us a couple years in Philadelphia to get us to the point where we were competitive,” Fisher said. “And there are some better people here in Los Angeles than there were in Philadelphia when we came to Philly.

“There’s not a Reggie White here, we can’t go out and find a dominant defensive lineman, but I’m excited about the people. I think the players themselves will be surprised how productive they can be in a new scheme.”

Fisher was the only candidate Robinson interviewed.

“I just felt he was the guy I wanted--my first move,” Robinson said.

“I think he brings the kind of defense, plus he brings a newness and an excitement--a guy on the rise.”

And Robinson said he wasn’t concerned that the current Rams’ defensive talent level--especially on the defensive line--isn’t suited to playing the Eagle style of attack football.

“I think what we’re going to do is put in his philosophy and let the players and talent catch up to it,” Robinson said. “We’re not going to dilute it. We’re going to play that kind of football.

“They’re not maniac football, they’ve gone to a more flexible type of play. But they do play aggressive. And these two guys come in with the philosophy -- that establishes it. Now, we’re now going to move on . . .”

The move to the Rams is a step in Fisher’s swift rise through the coaching ranks. He played for then-Chicago Bear defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan, then followed Ryan to the Eagles as Ryan’s secondary coach. He became the league’s youngest coordinator after being chosen to lead the defense two seasons ago.

“Ever since he was at Chicago we used to talk,” Robinson said. “(Ram receivers coach) Norval Turner and he are good friends, Norv was his coach in college. So yeah, we’ve watched him and seen him ascend.”

Fisher had an offer to remain with the Eagles, and apparently chose the Rams over the the Eagles for reasons other than money. His contract with the Rams is believed to pay him about $150,000 per season. The Eagles are believed to have offered the same as the Rams’ contract, but Fisher decided he needed to leave the Eagles to establish his own identity in the NFL.

Fisher, whose main football mentor has been Ryan, led an Eagle defense known for attacking the quarterback and forcing turnovers. The Eagle defense knocked six quarterbacks out of the game in 1990, and Fisher himself described his style as “unleashing a pack of wolves.”

Ram notes

Former Ram defensive coordinator Fritz Shurmur, who also is in Mobile, Ala., apparently is in line either for a position on the defensive staff of the Minnesota Vikings or the Phoenix Cardinals. Shurmur could be vying with former Eagle Coach Buddy Ryan for the Viking defensive coordinator job.