RAMS : Robinson Is Looking to Clean Up Team’s Act

With one mess of a game behind them, the Rams churn into their second phase of training camp hoping things get cleaned up a little in their next three exhibition efforts.

After fumbling eight times Saturday night in their exhibition opener against the Atlanta Falcons, Coach John Robinson assumes things have to get a little more sane and expects a few more players to be signed.

Once this week ends with Monday’s game in Anaheim Stadium against the San Diego Chargers, the Rams will barrel to the regular-season starting gate with three exhibition games in 10 days. Not much time to be giving catchup-practice time to longtime holdouts.

Of the Rams’ five remaining holdouts, Robinson again stressed that outside linebacker Fred Strickland and center Tom Newberry needed the practice time the most and their holdouts caused the most uncertainty.

Strickland is coming off an injury-marred season and is moving from the inside linebacker position to the physically-demanding strong side linebacker spot in the Rams’ new 4-3 lineup. Newberry is being moved from his old spot at left guard to center.

“I think we obviously are concerned about two people,” Robinson said Sunday evening. “Strickland, who needs every snap he can take in preseason to prepare himself, (and) Tom, who’s playing a new position and a position that vitally affects other people, because he has to learn to snap the ball.

“And we went through a night where mishandling the ball proved to be disastrous. Just about everybody that handled the ball in that game was handling it for the first time for us. The center, the quarterback, the tailback, the (kick) snapper, the holder, the kicker, the (punt) snapper, the punter. . . .

“Everybody that had their hands on the football was new at it, and obviously we need to do a better job of that.”

In particular, Robinson said the offensive line needs to get healthy and get more bodies into the fold before the offense can be expected to do much.

Against the Falcons’ frequent blitzing, the Ram-shackle offensive line--held together by rookies, free agents and scattered veterans--buckled often.

“Obviously, we’ve got to get our offensive line intact,” Robinson said. “We’ve got to get people here that are going to be here, and we’ve got to get the injured back as soon as possible and start making progress.”

Other than Newberry and Strickland, the Rams’ holdouts are No. 1 pick Todd Lyght, fullback Buford McGee and tackle Irv Pankey.

Contrary to reports circulating recently that undervalued the deal, the three-year extension receiver Flipper Anderson signed last month is in the same ballpark as receiver Henry Ellard’s $800,000 salary this season and the $800,000-a-year, annuity deal signed recently by Houston receiver Haywood Jeffires, according to a source with contacts at the Players Assn. who has seen Anderson’s contract.

Anderson, who had a year left on his last deal, received a $280,000 signing bonus to augment his $220,000 base salary for 1991, then got bases of $600,000, $700,000 and $800,000 through 1994.

Counting the bonus as part of the three-year package, Anderson will receive $2.4 million over the life of the extension--an average of $800,000 a year and a far cry from the $650,000-a-year deal reported recently.

“If that would have been the Rams’ last offer, Flipper and I would be out on a golf course right now instead of in camp,” said Anderson’s agent, Ted Marchibroda Jr., who wouldn’t comment any further on specifics.

In other number news, here’s the breakdown of the two-year deal cornerback Jerry Gray signed last month: $800,000 base salaries for this year and next, with a $150,000 bonus each time he makes the Pro Bowl. But because the base salaries are in part deferred, the real value of the two-year deal (without the bonus) is about $1.45 million, or $725,000 a season.

Fullback Robert Delpino’s two-year deal will pay him $275,000 for 1991 and $325,000 for 1992.

Although there’s been no official announcement, it looks as if team general counsel Steve Novak is assuming much of the duties formerly performed by Dick Beam, who recently left his job as the team’s director of operations to take over as general manager of the Orlando Thunder of the World League of American Football.

Novak, a former federal prosecutor, apparently will handle the bulk of the travel, stadium arrangement and Rams Park operation, and will be assisted by Dennis Bickmeier, part of the team’s promotion and sales department. Both Novak and Bickmeier were in Jacksonville last weekend to coordinate the team’s stay.