Rams' Carriker Returns To Practice

[r8rh8rmike]

Rams’ Carriker returns to practice
2 hours, 17 minutes ago

ST. LOUIS(AP) —St. Louis Rams defensive tackle Adam Carriker(notes) is back at practice after an ankle injury, but the 2007 No. 1 pick is working with the third-string defense, at least for now.

Carriker hurt his left ankle during a scrimmage Aug. 7, the same ankle that bothered him last season. He returned to individual drills Monday, then resumed working out with the team Tuesday and Wednesday.

For now, Gary Gibson(notes) and Clifton Ryan(notes) are the first-team tackles. Gibson, 27, was signed as a free agent in April after two seasons in Carolina, where he played in 12 games with no starts. Ryan has started 12 of 32 career games, all with the Rams.

Coach Steve Spagnuolo said Carriker, the 13th overall selection in 2007, may play in Thursday’s preseason game at Cincinnati, but his starting job is not guaranteed.

“I think Adam will have his work cut out for him, but he’s a good football player,” Spagnuolo said. “Everybody has to earn jobs right now, and in our opinion at the stage we are at - we said this a long time ago - it is the land of opportunity right now.

“We’ll let everybody battle it out and we’ll see what happens by the time we get to Seattle.”

The Rams open the regular season Sept. 13 against the Seahawks.

Carriker said he is not unhappy with his current role.

“We have a lot of talent on the D line,” he said. “I need to get back out on the field, get back into the flow of things and start playing well.”

[jkramsfan]

good to see him back, I am sure he will work his way back into the starting lineup,I thought at the start of camp this was going to be a big year for Carriker and the team really needs for him to step it up a few notches.

[39thebeast]

I'm going to be critical here. Avery fought back extremely quick from his injury and is already back, Carriker's injury was supposed to hold him out 2 weeks and he went over that time while 190 pound avery went under his recovery time. Carriker and his ankle problems are no good, and they seem to be chronic

[jkramsfan]

I'm going to be critical here. Avery fought back extremely quick from his injury and is already back, Carriker's injury was supposed to hold him out 2 weeks and he went over that time while 190 pound avery went under his recovery time. Carriker and his ankle problems are no good, and they seem to be chronic

I didn't realize he had other ankle problems before this,I thought he had shoulder trouble, there are different degrees of ankle injuries,maybe Averys wasn't as bad,I don't know but it's good to have them both back

[LifeLongRam]

This guy needs to stay healthy, since he's been in the league he's been hurt it seems like. Glad to hear he has to earn his spot back, nothing is guaranteed aroud Ram's Park.
Come on Adam show us you are worth that #1 pick.

[r8rh8rmike]

I'll admit that Carriker worries me. He's constantly injured and never seems to be able to get on track. He needs to step it up and someway, somehow, make something happen.

[Mooselini]

He needs to stay healthy. Once he can stay healthy, then I think he can be a top tier defender for us. But until that happens, maybe he deserves to stay on the third unit...

[Ramer]

It sounds like Carriker has the right attitude, he just need to stay healthy!

[Azul e Oro]

Great attitude on both AC's and Spags' part,imo.

Spags may not be sold on him as a starter even when healthy-which he hasn't been since his rookie year- or is he just giving him the best chance to prove his value-and AC seems to be up for it- by not rushing him back into the starting line?

I very much doubt we'll be better without his being at least a significant part of the rotation this year.

[HUbison]

I have to take the blame for this one, guys. I promoted the selection of Carriker by the Rams even before his senior year. I saw something special in him, and believed him to be a difference maker. And I still do.

However, I feel that Carriker may be suffering from the HUb/Kennedy effect. What is the HUb/Kennedy effect, HUb? Well, I'm glad you asked. You see, whenever I throw all my weight behind a draft pick, with an invested fervor even, bad things happen to that player. I've noticed it with Robert Thomas, John St. Clair, and others to an extent, but I first self-diagnosed with Jimmy Kennedy. I still can't believe that guy went so soft after he got drafted.

So this may not be Carriker's fault at all, but rather my own. Adam......I apologize.



Okay, seriously. This poor kid has been snake bitten by the injury bug (mixed metaphor anyone?) since he got here. Which is odd, because he was extremely healthy all four seasons in Lincoln. It's frustrating that he messed up the same ankle as last year, but I wouldn't call two injuries chronic. I mean, anybody can roll the same ankle twice walking down a street. I've done it.

He's a high character, high motor guy who will find a comfy home in the Spags D. Of this I have no doubt.

[TekeRam]

Hub, does that mean that with your fervor over the godlike Gholston, you've snake bitten his entire career? Or does it only work on players you actually want?

[HUbison]

Hub, does that mean that with your fervor over the godlike Gholston, you've snake bitten his entire career? Or does it only work on players you actually want?

Fine question, Teke. I think the curse becomes active only after being drafted by the Rams. For example, I was a huge Paul Puz fan that same year. He gets drafted by the Bills and though he suffered an early injury, he is now their starting MIKE and having a great start to his career.

What's odd though is that the curse does not appear to work in reverse. I've never been a big Hill fan. I hope the best for him, of course, but I've never felt great about that pick. And as it turns out he, so far, has been a bit of a dud after a promising rookie campaign.

I really have to be careful with this whole curse thing though. It's like Spiderman's uncle told him.....with great power comes great responsibility.

[mikhal5569]

This is a good chance for the man to prove himself. If he has to come in with the second stringers, he should have a advantage being a former 1st round draft pick. There Should be no excuse for a subpar showing. He has to show some pride in this game after being called out and challenged for his starting spot.

[Richbert88]

I can't understand the comparison of injuries between AC and Avery. Ones got a connective tissue/soft tissue ankle injury and the other a hair line non displaced fracture of a small bone in his foot. One is a 300+ pounder and the other is a fleet footed 185 pounder. Ones a mashing DT and the other a WR. Seems that the soft tissue ankle injury on a hoss like AC would be an bigger issue just due to his size. His other three legs may not be enough to compensate for the weight shift.

Seriously, I can't imagine a guy milking an injury under the watchfull eye of a new front office and coaching regime that made no bones about the expendibility of everyone in the organization. Even the janitor. We're talking about AC here, not a pot smokin' Wroten or a demented malcontent like Terrell. And the comparison to Kennedy, please! We're not even sure AC likes donuts and TV.

I think this is most likely a precautionary way of handling things. You have guys you need to see at DT, so why rush AC back and even risk doing so too soon. Last thing you need is Vlad the Destroyer overcompensating for his lack of ability to hold leverage and set his base by muscling up and hurting his surgically repaired shoulder. Sometimes you gotta keep the guy from further hurting himself. With AC, I haven't seen anything to show he wouldn't give his best effort, so hurting himself further might be a likely possibility if he rushes back and tries to overcompensate.

[TekeRam]

Excellent post Richbert.

AC's done nothing but give it his all throughout his career for the Rams. Yes, he's been hurt, but he's played through those injuries every single time. I'm sure that he's been itching to get back on the field but has been held back by the trainers and the coaches, because they somewhat know what they have in him, meanwhile they might not know as much about some of the other guys, such as Darrell Scott and Ryan. Gibson they know about because he's from Carolina, just like our DC is.

I'm sure that AC will be fine and will be tearing it up with the starters sometime soon.