By Jim Thomas
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Tuesday, Sep. 20 2005
The Rams' game Sunday against Arizona was supposed to be a homecoming for
rookie offensive lineman
Richie Incognito. His family has lived in Glendale, a
northwest suburb of Phoenix, since Richie was in sixth grade.
But the only weekend game involving the Incognito family was younger brother
Derek's Pop Warner football debut Saturday for the Deer Valley Barracudas.
Incognito, a third-round draft pick in April, remains unsigned. He attended
Sunday's 17-12 Rams victory at Sun Devil Stadium, but as a spectator.
"It's a rare situation," Incognito said. "But I've been in a lot of odd
situations in my life. So it's one of many for me."
Several on-the-field and off-the-field incidents - including fights and
suspensions - derailed Incognito's college football career. He last played at
the University of Nebraska in 2003. Incognito, now 22, says he's changing.
"Stuff happens," Incognito said. "Everyone goes through young, wild days.
Definitely, I've had my days. But days like that are numbered. You can't go on
like that forever. I want to live a long life. And you've got to just put those
days behind you."
Maybe those experiences prepared Incognito for his current situation. Maybe
not. In any event, he remains the only player unsigned in the entire 2005
draft.
The Rams and Incognito remain apart on contract terms, and the basic dynamics
of the dispute have remained the same for weeks:
The Rams are offering Incognito a signing bonus that's $117,000 less than the
market value on a three-year deal for a player taken in his slot (81st
overall).
Incognito and his agent (Jack Scharf) want a market deal. The Rams say that's
impossible because they don't have enough money left in their rookie cap to do
so.
Incognito and Scharf say the Rams could make up the difference with a one-time
incentive tied to playing time later in the contract.
As a matter of team policy, the Rams say they don't include such features in
contracts for non-first-rounders.
So Incognito remains in Phoenix, working out, rehabbing from kneecap surgery
and waiting. He met with the Post-Dispatch Saturday at the Rams' team hotel in
Phoenix.
"It's given me a good insight into this business," Incognito said. "This isn't
college, where it's, 'OK, we want you to come play. Here's your room and
board.' This is just business. They want something from me. Obviously, I want
something in return. That's kind of where we're at."
Incognito attended the Rams' minicamps and organized team activities in the
spring, even though he couldn't participate because of the surgery. He has been
living with his parents since July. He works out and rehabs nearly every
weekday at the Athletes Performance Institute in the Phoenix area.
"Basically, I get a two-hour lift in at 10 o'clock, then I come back at 1
o'clock and rehab about two-three hours," Incognito said.
He plays golf. He keeps up on the Rams by reading the Internet. And until
Sunday, when he sat in the stands, he had watched every Rams preseason contest
plus their regular-season opener on television.
"I'm getting pretty darn good at golf," Incognito says.
But his parents are getting "pretty darn" frustrated.
"It's real frustrating for them," Incognito said. "For the most part, they
don't understand what's going on. Why I haven't been offered a fair deal. The
salary cap, and all that. They bug my agents. They bug me. After awhile, you
just run out of answers."
The waiting game could be near an end. Incognito and his physical therapist
from Athletes Performance, Darcy Norman, met with team doctor Matt Matava and
head athletic trainer Jim Anderson of the Rams on Saturday at the Phoenix
hotel. Matava and Anderson checked out the knee.
Scharf, the agent, spoke Monday with Rams president of football operations Jay
Zygmunt, and the two are scheduled to talk again today.
"It's been at a standstill," Incognito said. "So this is some progress. And any
progress right now is positive. Now that they've checked me out, and they see
that I'm all right, I think the ball's in their court. I want to get something
done as soon as possible. I really just want to get back out there."
If Incognito signed, he would be placed on the physically unable to perform
list. Under that designation, he could continue his rehab through Week 6 of the
NFL season (mid-October), and then would have a three-week window to practice
with the team. After that - by early November - the Rams would have the option
of placing him on the active roster, or putting him on the injured reserve list
for the rest of the season.
"I'm working hard, been busting my butt down here," Incognito said. "It's
getting close to where I'm full go, 100 percent. I'm real excited. I'll be able
to play football in the next six to eight weeks."
But only if he has a contract.
Linear Mode
