By Bill Coats
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
08/09/2006
As the frenzied and futile 2005 season dragged on, Rams defensive end Anthony Hargrove found himself longing for road games.
At the Edward Jones Dome, "you're on defense and the stadium's quiet, nobody's even cheering you. You're on the sideline and you're getting booed," he explained. "You wanted to play away games, because you got more love away than you got at home."
Hargrove wasn't complaining, really. He understood the fans' discontent as the Rams schlepped to a 6-10 finish. He empathized with the fans' unhappiness about the defense, which was stampeded for more yards than 31 of the NFL's 32 teams.
"It was embarrassing," Hargrove said. "Guys were calling us out ... just coming out there and saying, 'We're going to run for 200 yards against you; we're going to do whatever we want to you.' And then they do it to you.
"You're like, 'Are we really that bad?'"
The point is moot now, because the current defensive lineup bears only a slight resemblance to last year's group. Four veteran free agents arrived in the offseason -- tackle La'Roi Glover, safety
Corey Chavous, linebacker
Will Witherspoon and cornerback Fakhir Brown -- and all figure to start.
Plus, the Rams took another defender, cornerback
Tye Hill, with their first-round choice in the draft. Factor in a new leader in defensive coordinator
Jim Haslett, former head coach of the New Orleans Saints, and the evolution is substantial.
"I'm excited, really excited," said Hargrove, 6 feet 3 and 282 pounds. "I don't think you could've brought together a better defense. The personalities, the character, the love for the game, it's all there. It's going to make a big difference."
Despite the team's defensive woes, Hargrove, a third-round draft pick in 2004 out of Georgia Tech, is coming off a solid season. He started 15 games, collecting 82 tackles, the fourth-highest total on the team, and 6½ sacks.
"He's a legitimate defensive end that can play both the run and the pass, because he has the bulk and size to do both, and the speed,'' coach Scott Linehan said.
Fighting mad
Rams training camp is starting to resemble an "Ultimate Fighting" contest. In the past couple of days, the discord between defensive backs
Tye Hill and Dwaine Carpenter escalated to a second bout, cornerback Dwight Anderson and guard
Richie Incognito scuffled twice within minutes, and Hargrove and tackle
Alex Barron squared off.
After Anderson and Incognito went at it for the second time, Linehan took both aside individually for a "talk" in which the coach did all the talking.
Jackson is hurting
Running back
Steven Jackson has been bothered for several days by a strained Achilles' tendon but has missed little practice time. He took limited reps during Tuesday's single workout.
"He aggravated it again in the red zone period we worked" Tuesday, Linehan said. "We kept him out, but he could've gone in. He'll be ready to go on Thursday," when the Rams play their exhibition opener.
Ram-blings
The Rams added free-agent tackle/guard Adam Haayer on Tuesday, releasing tackle Jason Hilliard to make room on the roster. Haayer, a 6-6, 311-pound fifth-year pro, has made just five NFL starts. Four came last year, when he was with the Arizona Cardinals. ... Today's 3:15 p.m. practice is closed to the public.
Linear Mode
