Drayton Is Learning Lessons by Doing Work in the Field : Football: Rookie tight end is making progress, but he has a lot to absorb if he’s going to help the Rams this season.

There was a large contingent of security personnel here for Wednesday’s practice between the Cleveland Browns and Rams.

Presumably the extra uniforms were on hand to keep spectators far from the field and out of harm’s way of the Ram passing attack.

After watching the Rams’ passing game the last few days, there is an urge to yell “Fore” every time Jim Everett releases the ball. He might know who his prime target is, but he’s offering no clue when he throws the ball.

In an 11-on-11 drill Wednesday, Everett completed two of five passes. One completion was a short pass to Cleveland Gary after defenders deferred to Everett’s red jersey and did not sack him.

Everett tried another in 11-on-11 work inside the 20-yard line. When the ball left Everett’s hands, it wobbled and shook and bounced off the hands of defender Everson Walls and into the hands of Flipper Anderson.

Everett also tried to go deep twice to Anderson in seven-on-seven drills. He came closer, however, to the Cleveland city limits.

“We’re in the throes of being very inconsistent; I mean anybody can look at it and see that,” said Ernie Zampese, the Rams’ offensive coordinator. “Not having enough work with the principal players is our problem right now. We’ve had different guys in there, rookies with the first guys, and there’s no way you can have that crispness.

“We’re attempting to evaluate who is going to be with that group. Now we’ve got to play that first unit (in Saturday’s exhibition against Cleveland). We have to have Jim Everett play quite a while and we have to have Flipper Anderson and Henry Ellard and Pat Carter play with him. We have to get the passing game going.”

The moment of truth, then, is about to come for rookie tight end Troy Drayton.

Drayton undoubtedly will be one of the Rams’ premier offensive players some day. But can the Rams count on him to be ready now? Can he respond aggressively to what he has been taught or is there still too much to absorb? Can the Ram offense afford to wait for him?

“We’re giving him as many snaps as we can,” Zampese said. “We’re still trying to do that, but there might come a time when we have to say, ‘That’s it,’ and go another way. But right now we’re still hoping he can be that guy.

“It’s going to be an uphill battle for him. It’s hard on him because things have to happen fast. We were going slow earlier in camp, but now we have to move on. He either comes along with us or we’ll have to go another direction.”

How tough can it be to run and catch a football?

“It’s been a little frustrating,” Drayton said. “I’m used to going out and just reacting and playing. But now I have to think more and I’m playing very tentatively.

“When I go into the huddle now the first thing I have to ask is, ‘Who am I? What position am I playing now?’ Then I hear the play and I’m thinking, ‘Where do I line up?’ and ‘What pattern do I run?’ ‘Am I involved in the pass protection?’ or “Do I just have a free release?’

“I’m thinking about all that as I run to my spot and I’m also looking at the defense to see what shifts they’re making and what they might do. Then I say, ‘The snap count is what?’ Then the quarterback is giving his cadence, I’m thinking if they give me this coverage, then I run this pattern and then, boom, it’s time to react.

“I find myself coming off the snap count late a lot. Anthony Thompson told me to always repeat the snap count to myself before I go out and that helps. There’s so much going on in a matter of seconds that you have to think about. People don’t understand how much is involved; everything’s going about 90,000 m.p.h.”

If Drayton learns his part, the Rams’ passing game benefits. It’s like the old days when Everett dumped the ball off to a sure-handed Pete Holohan. Defenses had to pay attention to Holohan and the middle of the field, thereby freeing up Anderson and Ellard.

“We’re using him the way we used Holohan and we’re even playing him more in the backfield than Pete,” Zampese said. “We kept most of the blocking load off Pete, but we’re exposing Troy to that because he looks capable. He just needs to learn who to block and then how.

“That’s the problem; there’s so much to learn. You can see him getting off late at the snap count because he’s thinking, ‘What am I supposed to do?’ I’ll tell you this, though, he’s trying real, real hard, and in the scrimmages and games we’ve played, he’s done something in each one of them.

“You just know the ability is there, and the willingness to use it. His only improvement has to come in the one area that just takes time--experience.”

The Rams will start Carter at tight end and employ Drayton in their nickel package when confronted with an obvious passing situation.

They want him to line up in a variety of positions to confuse the defense. They also have asked him to learn to block.

“I’m so tall and I was just running into the holes,” Drayton said. “One day (teammate) Henry Rolling just hit me. Oh, my goodness. I couldn’t even watch it on film; I closed my eyes. That taught me a lesson: Get low and then hit somebody.”

The lessons continue, but as Browns’ safety Stevon Moore learned, the student is making progress.

“I love being matched against a guy like that,” Drayton said after catching two passes at Moore’s expense and hitting him on a running play. “They look at my size and they automatically underestimate me. He was looking for somebody very slow; he doesn’t know I was a former wide-out.

“When I get in the open field, that just comes naturally to me. I can use my strength and I can use my speed. I feel so comfortable out there, and that’s where I think I can help our team.”

The Rams’ passing game needs help, all right. Right now.

“I know they want to get the ball in my hands,” Drayton said. “They can depend on me. I just have to put my nose in the book and make sure I’m on top of everything. I’ll be ready.”