PRO FOOTBALL / DAILY REPORT : RAMS : Ellard Re-Injures Ankle in Practice

Wide receiver Henry Ellard left Thursday’s practice with the Browns in Berea, Ohio, after re-injuring his left ankle.

“It’s the same thing I’ve been dealing with all along,” Ellard said. “I made a cut, hit a tender spot and my ankle just gave out on me.

“When I warm up with it every day I deal with the pain. It’s very frustrating because my hamstrings and my legs are just great. I’ve worked so hard and then this.

“It’s like a driving a fast car with a bad wheel.”

Ellard said his ankle condition will be re-evaluated today before a decision is made on his availability for Saturday’s exhibition game against the Browns at Cleveland.

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There is a chance wide receiver Todd Kinchen will play in his first exhibition game this summer, but no chance he will return punts and run into brother Brian.

Kinchen has been trying to return from an off-season knee injury. He has practiced more in recent days, and may be in for a few plays at wide receiver. The team will not risk him returning punts, however.

“I was kind of hoping he would be returning punts so I could lay one on him,” said Brian, Todd’s older brother and starting tight end for the Browns. “It wouldn’t be to inflict injury, but sort of to say, ‘Hello, how are you doing?’ It would be a little initiation. Maybe in December when we play again.”

Said Todd: “He wouldn’t lay a hand on me.”

If the Kinchens play Saturday, it will mark the first time they have played together on the same field. Their parents made the trip from Baton Rouge, La., to watch.

“I’m motivated to play,” Todd said. “It all depends on how my knee reacts. I’m trying to push through the pain and get some work done. It just all depends on how sore my knee is.”

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The Rams continue to have an overload of tight ends, and the Browns appear short at the position. The teams talked several weeks ago, but the Browns are looking for a tight end in the mold of Pat Carter.

Carter, the Rams’ starting tight end, is not available.

Another tight end, Jim Price, remains unsigned, and if he does not come to terms by the end of today, he will be required to miss the first two games of the regular season.