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Faulk's absence raises depth questions: RAMS NOTEBOOK
By Bill Coats
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
06/12/2006
Rams coach
Scott Linehan doesn't want to consider yet what course he'll take if Marshall Faulk decides not to return to the team. "I haven't crossed that bridge yet," Linehan said.
Tony Fisher also would prefer to postpone any notion of that possibility. "I'm not worried about that," Fisher said at this weekend's minicamp. "I think everybody out here wants Marshall to be around. I was looking forward to actually meeting him to see how a future Hall of Famer works."
Still, neither Linehan nor Fisher can ignore the realization that Faulk's absence following offseason surgery on both knees leaves a gaping hole on the depth chart at running back.
Steven Jackson is unchallenged as the first-team ballcarrier, but with Faulk out, the lineup behind Jackson is unsettled.
Fisher, signed in March as a free agent, is the leader in the clubhouse for the No. 2 spot. "He is now; logic says that," Linehan said. Still, Linehan would prefer to use Fisher as a third-down back, a role he held during his four previous NFL seasons in Green Bay, and on special teams. So if Faulk retires, the Rams probably would try to sign another back.
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Linehan said Fisher has "really made a name for himself as a receiving back. But I think he also has the ability to come in on first and second down ... whenever we need to give Steven a blow. That'll be a part of his role, too."
Fisher, a 6-foot-1, 222-pound Notre Dame product, rushed for 880 yards with the Packers while piling up 900 receiving yards. He also collected 42 tackles on special teams.
Whether Faulk eventually shows up, Fisher, 26, plans to remain flexible. "I'm a team player," he stressed, "so whatever the coaches ask me to do - whether it's run the ball, block, catch some passes, run through brick walls, wedges, whatever - I'm more than willing to do it."
Antoine Bagwell, an undrafted rookie from NCAA Division II California (Pa.), has displayed good speed and quickness. He doesn't want to speculate on whether his chances of making the team could be enhanced if Faulk isn't back.
"One day at a time ... one day at a time," Bagwell said, laughing. "I can't really count my eggs right now. I'm just basically studying the playbook every night, seeing what we have to do the next day, then going over it in practice."
Ram-blings
The three-day minicamp concluded Sunday morning with a 60-minute indoor practice at Rams Park. ... Although rookie
Joe Klopfenstein has been working with the first team, Linehan said he'd still like to sign a veteran blocking tight end.
bcoats@post-dispatch.com 314-340-8189
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