By Bill Coats
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
Monday, Jun. 18 2007
Over the past year,
Claude Wroten has shed his flabby waistline as well as the
skepticism over his off-the-field indiscretions. Now, he's working on ridding
himself of the temptation to play "like every down is third down," as one Rams
assistant coach put it.
Wroten, a defensive tackle from Louisiana State, pleaded guilty to that charge.
"Every snap I was 100 miles an hour, full-speed, out of my gap here and there,"
he said. "I just had to calm down, look at the formations and know when it was
a run and know when it was a pass, not just shoot up the field all the time
like I did in college."
Wroten rolled up 12 sacks and 34 quarterback pressures in two seasons at LSU,
earning All-Southeastern Conference accolades. He also positioned himself to be
a first-round NFL draftee.
Those hopes were scuttled when the Bastrop, La., native failed a drug test at
the scouting combine only a month after he was arrested for possession of
marijuana with intent to distribute. That charge eventually was dropped, but
the damage was done. Wroten tumbled to the third round, where the Rams took him
with the 68th overall selection. He played in 15 games as a rookie, picking up
15 tackles, including one sack, plus seven QB pressures.
When the 6-foot-2, 295-pound Wroten arrived at Rams Park this spring, he
brought a newly chiseled frame. "I had a good workout regimen in the
offseason," he said. "I came in every day, working out and running, and got
myself in much better shape."
He also brought a spiffed-up reputation that includes an incident-free résumé
over the past year and a half. "It's totally behind me," he said. "I'm
continuing to try to prove myself and let everyone know it was a stupid mistake
I made and just look for great things from here on out."
The Rams have some things in my mind for Wroten, especially after trading
veteran lineman Jimmy Kennedy to Denver. They foresee Wroten getting plenty of
work in a rotation with veteran La'Roi Glover on the interior of the line, with
some situational action at end plus special-teams duties.
"With the advent of us playing some left and right tackle and all that, he's
not out of the mix," Rams coach Scott Linehan said. "It's a really good
situation we have right now."
First-round draft pick Adam Carriker is the projected starter at nose tackle,
with Glover penciled in next to him. Wroten is seeking to apply an eraser to
that blueprint.
"La'Roi's a real good player and has been doing it for a real long time; I
learned a lot from him last year," said Wroten, 23. "But I look to step in and
get a lot of (playing time) myself. You can count on that."
Linehan said: "He's a much more confident player. I think he's got a little
chip on his shoulder. There's a little bit of talk about who potentially could
be starting there in the first game, and he's not conceding that."
For Wroten to elbow his way into the lineup, he'll first have to prove that his
undisciplined ways on the field have truly been expunged. He vowed that they
have, describing his comfort level now, as compared with last spring, as "night
and day."
"Coming in, I was a little anxious," he said. "But now I've got a year under my
belt and I've settled down. ... I feel very prepared. The guys are counting on
me now."
That expectation triggers a bit of trepidation,.
"I'm a young guy, and you have to step up to the challenge," he said. "Knowing
that a guy like Jimmy has left, it is a lot of pressure. ... But, hey, if they
throw you in the fire, just get in there and do your job."
Linear Mode
