Rams' Byrd catches on

[RamWraith]

By Jim Thomas
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Monday, Dec. 25 2006

Until Sunday, the only newsworthy occurrence involving Dominique Byrd this
season was his arrest for his alleged role in a nightclub scuffle.

But the rookie tight end made his presence felt on the field Sunday, catching
two passes for 39 yards in the Rams' 37-31 overtime victory over Washington.
Byrd's first catch of the day was the first catch of his NFL career, and it
went for a 27-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

"I knew they were going to call it," Byrd said. "T. Holt and the coaches were
telling me all week, 'Be patient, because the corners are going to bite on what
Torry's doing.' "

And that's basically what happened. Byrd beat safety Sean Taylor on the play.

"I broke open and my eyes got real big," Byrd said.

Before Sunday, Byrd had played in only three games. He was beaten out by Joe
Klopfenstein for the starting spot and Aaron Walker for the No. 2 job in
training camp. But with fullback Paul Smith on the inactive list with a neck
injury, Byrd was in uniform Sunday. Known more for his receiving skills in
college at Southern California, Byrd flashed those skills on his two catches.

Other than some special teams duty, Byrd hadn't been on the field for more than
five or 10 plays until Sunday.

"I've been waiting for my opportunity," Byrd said. "And I just wanted to make
sure that when it came, I was ready to do something big."

A first for Davis

Earlier in his career, running back Stephen Davis scored 68 touchdowns playing
for Washington and Carolina. But Davis, who is Steven Jackson's backup in St.
Louis, got his first TD as a Ram on Sunday. With the Rams catching Washington
in a blitz, Davis caught a shovel pass from Bulger near the line of scrimmage
and rumbled 10 yards to the end zone. The score came with 1 minute, 49 seconds
left in the third quarter and pulled the Rams into a 28-28 tie.

"It felt great," Davis said. "It felt like my first touchdown all over again."

The score was especially meaningful because it came against Washington, where
Davis spent his first seven NFL seasons after being drafted in the fourth round
of the 1996 draft out of Auburn.

Record for Jackson

With six catches Sunday, Jackson broke Marshall Faulk's Rams record for most
receptions in one season by a running back. With one regular-season game
remaining, Jackson has 88 catches (for 782 yards).

Ram-blings

Washington cornerback Shawn Springs suffered a season-ending fractured shoulder
blade in the first quarter. ... The Rams reported no injuries of significance
after the game. ... Besides Smith, the Rams' inactives Sunday were: RB Rich
Alexis, LB Jamal Brooks, CB Jerametrius Butler, DE Eric Moore, OT Jeremy
Parquet and C-G Larry Turner.

[jkramsfan]

maybe byrd can play,he sure looked good yesterday,it's early and only 1 game,but maybe that pick was a good one.

[Varg6]

maybe byrd can play,he sure looked good yesterday,it's early and only 1 game,but maybe that pick was a good one.

There's no doubt he has talent...Its just hearing about that whole arrest was disheartening (I really like the guy too, I thought he was a good pick for us...). Like I've said before the two TE's must be utilized more for blocking and receiving because it definitely works. These two rookie tight ends will be good for us down the road, at least one will be...

[bruce4life]

they both should of been playing the whole year though... our red zone effieciency would of been a lot better and consequently our record would be better as well... RED ZONE EFFICIENCY AND OVERALL RECORDS SEEM TO GO HAND AND HAND THESE DAYS... YOU SCORE TOUCHDOWNS AND NOT FIELD GOALS AND YOU WIN!!!!!!!

[RamFan_Til_I_Die]

I'm not convinced quite yet, two catches prove nothing...let's not forget he may very well be arrested and jailed for his two counts of assault.

[BigGameMN]

I'm not convinced either. His actions at that night club have raised serious character issues. We just got spanked at home by a horrible Zona team, and this guy is out drinking and groping women at 2:00 AM? He should have been at home worrying about getting on the field.

[Country]

Byrd looked good and I think that the pick will pan out. He looks good catching the ball and more dynamic then Klop after the catch. He and Klop will look good together at some point in the future.

[MSRamman]

I wasn't able to see the game, so all that I can comment on is the highlight film I saw of him, but he sure looked like he knew what to do with the ball when he got it. He looked like a WR taking off after the catch.:l