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By R.B. FALLSTROM
AP Sports Writer
ST. LOUIS — In four years at Ohio State, James Laurinaitis
was on the losing end only eight times in 51 games. His rookie
NFL season has been an eye-opener for its astounding lack of
success.
Though Laurinaitis has more than justified the St. Louis Rams’
decision to draft the middle linebacker with the second pick of
the second round given his team-leading 125 tackles. He’s also
had to absorb a healthy wallop of humility.
As in one lousy victory for a franchise rebuilding from the
ground up entering Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans
(6-7).
“Anyone that’s a competitor wants to win,” Laurinaitis said. “No
matter what program you come from, you want to win.”
The Rams (1-12) are leaning on any and all meager positives
while limping to the finish line. Rookie coach Steve Spagnuolo
suggested hopefully that an outbreak of swine flu that affected
five or six players, including quarterback Kyle Boller and Jason
Brown and forced the team to cancel practice Thursday, could be
a positive because the roster would get a day of rest.
St. Louis has the NFL’s puniest offense, a low-end defense to
match, and might as well have 13 players on injured reserve
instead of 11 given the likelihood Marc Bulger (fractured left
shin bone) and offensive tackle Jason Smith (concussion) are
done for the year.
“We’re a little big banged up,” Spagnuolo said.
Young and inexperienced, too, with 24 undrafted players on the
roster, which makes them ripe for another whipping heading into
a second straight home game that’ll be blacked out on local TV.
The Rams were about 8,000 tickets shy of a sellout Thursday.
Laurinaitis does his best to block out those 12 setbacks, the
indifferent, half-filled home crowds and the Rams’ perennial
status as frontrunners for the No. 1 pick after choosing second
overall the previous two years. Like his coach, he won’t dwell
on the cumulative misery.
“Coach Spags has always done a great job of looking forward,
looking forward, looking forward,” Laurinaitis said. "You
realize this thing’s going to get turned around and we’re
excited to go out there each week to try to do something about
it.
“That’s all you can do, just keep working.”
Laurinaitis has a lot in common with Texans rookie outside
linebacker Brian Cushing, also from a storied program (Southern
California) and the team’s leading tackler with 112 after being
taken with the 15th pick of the first round.
“I was thrown into the mix early and got playing experience and
learning experience,” Cushing said. “The more game experience
you get and the more and more you play, the more comfortable you
get.”
Unlike Laurinaitis, Cushing plays for a competitive team. The
Texans lost four in a row by a total of 19 points before
snapping that skid with a 34-7 victory last week over the
Seahawks, and remain hopeful of a playoff berth.
Cushing has prospered on a veteran defense led by defensive end
Mario Williams and linebacker DeMeco Ryans, the NFL’s leading
tackler over the last four seasons. Cushing missed time with a
sprained left knee in the preseason but hasn’t missed a
regular-season start.
“One of the things he’s done that’s been very rare is to be able
to miss some time on the practice field and still be pretty
automatic,” coach Gary Kubiak said. “You don’t find guys that
normally do that, that young.”
Don’t think Laurinaitis, taken 20 picks after Cushing and the
fifth linebacker to go in the draft, hasn’t noticed Cushing and
the rest of the guys taken ahead of him.
“I kind of want it to be one of those classes where people look
back at it and they’re kind of like, ’Dang, that class of 2009
linebackers, they were a successful bunch,”’ Laurinaitis said.
“I like to look around and see those linebackers making plays.”
Cushing has 2 1/2 sacks, is tied for the team lead with 11
tackles for loss, and has three interceptions and two forced
fumbles. Laurinaitis has led or tied for the team tackles lead
in nine of 13 games, posted double-digit totals eight times, and
has one sack, two interceptions, a forced fumble and a fumble
recovery.
“I don’t know Brian very well, but my guess is his experience in
college has helped him in the NFL, just like I know it has for
Laurinaitis,” Spagnuolo said. “James has been terrific, he’s
been thrust into a role that’s very, very tough as a rookie.”
All those stops have taken a toll on Laurinaitis. He has a pair
of bruised shoulders, and was so spent after last week’s 47-7
loss at Tennessee he needed assistance putting on his sportcoat.
“You’re more sore after these NFL games, because everyone’s
bigger and faster and more explosive,” Laurinaitis said. "You’re
sore the day after and it gets better throughout the week and
then you do it all over again in a cycle.
“Three more cycles and I’ll have some rest then.”
Three more wins for the Texans, who play at Miami next week
before finishing at home against the Patriots, and maybe Cushing
can postpone his first NFL offseason.
“The first season has been great,” Cushing said. “The biggest
thing is just to continue going.”
AP Sports Writer
ST. LOUIS — In four years at Ohio State, James Laurinaitis
was on the losing end only eight times in 51 games. His rookie
NFL season has been an eye-opener for its astounding lack of
success.
Though Laurinaitis has more than justified the St. Louis Rams’
decision to draft the middle linebacker with the second pick of
the second round given his team-leading 125 tackles. He’s also
had to absorb a healthy wallop of humility.
As in one lousy victory for a franchise rebuilding from the
ground up entering Sunday’s game against the Houston Texans
(6-7).
“Anyone that’s a competitor wants to win,” Laurinaitis said. “No
matter what program you come from, you want to win.”
The Rams (1-12) are leaning on any and all meager positives
while limping to the finish line. Rookie coach Steve Spagnuolo
suggested hopefully that an outbreak of swine flu that affected
five or six players, including quarterback Kyle Boller and Jason
Brown and forced the team to cancel practice Thursday, could be
a positive because the roster would get a day of rest.
St. Louis has the NFL’s puniest offense, a low-end defense to
match, and might as well have 13 players on injured reserve
instead of 11 given the likelihood Marc Bulger (fractured left
shin bone) and offensive tackle Jason Smith (concussion) are
done for the year.
“We’re a little big banged up,” Spagnuolo said.
Young and inexperienced, too, with 24 undrafted players on the
roster, which makes them ripe for another whipping heading into
a second straight home game that’ll be blacked out on local TV.
The Rams were about 8,000 tickets shy of a sellout Thursday.
Laurinaitis does his best to block out those 12 setbacks, the
indifferent, half-filled home crowds and the Rams’ perennial
status as frontrunners for the No. 1 pick after choosing second
overall the previous two years. Like his coach, he won’t dwell
on the cumulative misery.
“Coach Spags has always done a great job of looking forward,
looking forward, looking forward,” Laurinaitis said. "You
realize this thing’s going to get turned around and we’re
excited to go out there each week to try to do something about
it.
“That’s all you can do, just keep working.”
Laurinaitis has a lot in common with Texans rookie outside
linebacker Brian Cushing, also from a storied program (Southern
California) and the team’s leading tackler with 112 after being
taken with the 15th pick of the first round.
“I was thrown into the mix early and got playing experience and
learning experience,” Cushing said. “The more game experience
you get and the more and more you play, the more comfortable you
get.”
Unlike Laurinaitis, Cushing plays for a competitive team. The
Texans lost four in a row by a total of 19 points before
snapping that skid with a 34-7 victory last week over the
Seahawks, and remain hopeful of a playoff berth.
Cushing has prospered on a veteran defense led by defensive end
Mario Williams and linebacker DeMeco Ryans, the NFL’s leading
tackler over the last four seasons. Cushing missed time with a
sprained left knee in the preseason but hasn’t missed a
regular-season start.
“One of the things he’s done that’s been very rare is to be able
to miss some time on the practice field and still be pretty
automatic,” coach Gary Kubiak said. “You don’t find guys that
normally do that, that young.”
Don’t think Laurinaitis, taken 20 picks after Cushing and the
fifth linebacker to go in the draft, hasn’t noticed Cushing and
the rest of the guys taken ahead of him.
“I kind of want it to be one of those classes where people look
back at it and they’re kind of like, ’Dang, that class of 2009
linebackers, they were a successful bunch,”’ Laurinaitis said.
“I like to look around and see those linebackers making plays.”
Cushing has 2 1/2 sacks, is tied for the team lead with 11
tackles for loss, and has three interceptions and two forced
fumbles. Laurinaitis has led or tied for the team tackles lead
in nine of 13 games, posted double-digit totals eight times, and
has one sack, two interceptions, a forced fumble and a fumble
recovery.
“I don’t know Brian very well, but my guess is his experience in
college has helped him in the NFL, just like I know it has for
Laurinaitis,” Spagnuolo said. “James has been terrific, he’s
been thrust into a role that’s very, very tough as a rookie.”
All those stops have taken a toll on Laurinaitis. He has a pair
of bruised shoulders, and was so spent after last week’s 47-7
loss at Tennessee he needed assistance putting on his sportcoat.
“You’re more sore after these NFL games, because everyone’s
bigger and faster and more explosive,” Laurinaitis said. "You’re
sore the day after and it gets better throughout the week and
then you do it all over again in a cycle.
“Three more cycles and I’ll have some rest then.”
Three more wins for the Texans, who play at Miami next week
before finishing at home against the Patriots, and maybe Cushing
can postpone his first NFL offseason.
“The first season has been great,” Cushing said. “The biggest
thing is just to continue going.”
