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OFFICIAL 2015 Training Camp & Preseason: News & Tidbits Thread (3 Viewers)

Steve Smith just wants to be home for wife's birthdayQ: Do you enjoy these joint practices?

A: No, I'd rather be at home. Because you asked me my opinion, I'd rather be at home. Today's my wife's birthday so I'm not at home, I'm out here doing this bulls---, and I'm missing my wife's birthday. That's my honest opinion. I'd rather be at home singing happy birthday to my wife. But I'm out here getting questions to assess a rookie corner (Smith was previously asked about Eagles second-round pick Eric Rowe).

 
The Rams are Itching for a Fight

Excerpt:

St. Louis Rams Training Camp ReportGreg Bishop writes...

Site: Oxnard, Calif.

What I saw: Tuesday, Aug. 18, 75 degrees and sunny, for an afternoon scrimmage between the Rams and the Cowboys. That and three brawls between two teams that are as sick of training camp as everybody in the NFL is at this point in the summer.

What I heard, post-fisticuffs: From a Rams’ employee, after both teams called an early end to the scrimmage: “That’s the worst one I’ve seen in 18 years.” From the former baseball manager Tommy Lasorda, to Cowboys coach Jason Garrett: “Sometimes, a team needs to get fired up.”

Three things you need to know about the Rams:

1. Nick Foles looks like more than a serviceable starter. He looks like he just might be the reason the Rams can make the playoffs. That’s why St. Louis with Philadelphia this offseason, sending Sam Bradford and his litany of injuries to the Eagles in exchange for Foles. Foles is, by all accounts, healthy after a broken collarbone sidelined him for the second half of last season. To that end, the Rams have already inked Foles to a two-year extension before he had taken a single regular-season snap. On Tuesday, he followed his worst throw (an interception by cornerback Tyler Patmon) with a touchdown pass to tight end Jared Cook. Throughout the scrimmage, Foles looked comfortable in the West Coast-scheme of offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti, who was previously the team’s quarterbacks’ coach. Where the Rams offense held the team back in recent seasons, perhaps Foles will give them enough to contend in the NFC West.

2. The Rams choice to spend two days practicing an hour or so (or longer, depending on traffic) outside of Los Angeles seemed to hit a little too close to home. Or, too close to their potential future home, anyway. Much of the offseason NFL chatter centered on one or two of three teams – the Rams, Raiders and Chargers – moving to LA. Then the Rams showed up in Oxnard, and fans wore the throwback jerseys of the best Rams from their LA period – Eric Dickerson, Henry Ellard. On Monday, Stan Kroenke, the Rams owner, came to practice, as did a fathead poster of Kroenke that someone waved in the stands. Anyway, it all seemed to point to a future where the Rams don’t just train occasionally in this area, but play here, too.

3. For a team that last made the playoffs after the 2004 season – the longest drought in the NFC – the Rams showed on Tuesday that they’re willing to fight.

And fight.

And fight.

It got ugly. There were players fighting without helmets, players throwing other players on the ground and players running between practice fields once the teams were separated to start the skirmishes anew. At one point, one kerfuffle nearly spilled into the stands. You could see guard Brandon Washington mixing it up, along running back Tre Mason and tackle Greg Robinson and Cook. At one point, Mason knocked the helmet off a Cowboy, and one of his teammates handed the helmet to a fan in the stands. Anyway, the Rams won’t dethrone the Seahawks without, well, without a fight. If this was a harbinger for the season that lies ahead, they’ll take it.

Five dot-dot-dot observations: Last season’s 6-10 record marked the 10th straight year that the Rams failed to a) make the playoffs or b) finish above .500. You can see there’s an urgency to end that streak (maybe a little too much urgency, or too much urgency to end practice, anyway) … The Rams are still expected to field a team among the youngest, if not the youngest, in the NFL. Their longest-tenured veteran is defensive end Chris Long, now in his eighth season … Speaking of, the St. Louis offensive line will feature a first-time starter at center – either Tim Barnes, Barrett Jones, or Demetrius – and two draft picks on the right side in right tackle Rob Havenstein and right guard Jamon Brown … One player the Rams likely didn’t want to see headed toward the brawl was Todd Gurley, their first-round pick – their recovering-from-serious-injury first-round pick. He had his left knee wrapped in ice as the scrimmage neared its conclusion, then twice ran toward the fracas, not away from it. The Rams don’t expect Gurley to play this preseason, and they want to take the time to make sure he fully recovers … Keep an eye on Kenny Britt, who recorded 48 catches, 748 receiving yards and three touchdowns last season. He’s only 26.

What will determine success or failure for the Rams: Scoring enough points to win. It sounds simple, right? But the Rams scored under 10 points in four games last season and under 20 in half their contests, some of which they even won. With a defensive line that looks like one of the best in football, all they need is for Foles and the offense to be steady and score enough in order to at minimum contend.

The one name on the roster I'd forgotten about: Jeff Garcia, a four-time Pro Bowl quarterback now in his first season as an offensive assistant, after a stint in the CFL with Montreal. Garcia looks like he can still play, but maybe this season, with Foles, he won’t be needed.

Player I saw and really liked: Robinson. The second-year tackle out of Auburn shed roughly 15 pounds this offseason, according to his teammates. He also had surgery on a toe. Those factors combined to make him lighter and faster and more nimble, which is good for Foles and Gurley and Mason and an offense on the rise toward respectability.

The thing I'll remember about Oxnard: Seeing the Cowboys set up at a Residence Inn, which is part of the Marriott hotel chain and a favorite spot for journalists, not football players. No frills here. Just the kind of mini-apartments that lend themselves perfectly to the modest expense accounts for out-of-town writers – and a football team intent on marching toward the playoffs. The Rams, it should be noted, stayed nearby for the scrimmage – in a Four Seasons.

Gut feeling as I left camp: The Rams do not wrestle the NFC West away from the Seahawks. But they do make the playoffs as a Wild Card team behind a Top 5 defense.
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Philadelphia Eagles Training Camp Report

Excerpt:

Robert Klemko writes... Site: One NovaCare Way Philadelphia, PA, site of the Eagles practice facility, a stone’s throw from Lincoln Financial Field.

What I saw: A morning practice in shells.

Three things you need to know about the Eagles.

1. The LeSean McCoy-Demarco Murray swap was an even better deal for Philadelphia than you think. Of course, it wasn’t a pure swap -- Murray signed with Chip Kelly’s Eagles in free agency and the Bills swapped McCoy for Kiko Alonso – but it’s all the same. The feeling in Philadelphia, despite Murray’s limited exposure on campus, is he will leave far fewer yards on the field and will eliminate the negative yardage plays you get with the shifty McCoy.

2. The additions of Byron Maxwell and Kiko Alonso make this defense significantly better. Maxwell joins a pass defense that finished near the bottom of the league, and his presence should help ease the transition of Walter Thurmond into what is a new position at safety. Maxwell looks good in camp and has expressed eagerness to shed the notion his success in Seattle was a product of the talent assembled around him.

3. Sam Bradford will not win you any fantasy titles, but he may just dethrone Alex Smith as football’s best game manager. He’s been uber-accurate in camp and has built a nice rapport with first-round rookie wideout Nelson Agholor in camp. Kelly’s offensive identity is more about maintaining tempo and ball security and less about the quarterback taking matters into his own hands, and Bradford seems to be the right man for that job.


What will determine success or failure for the Eagles in 2015… The interior offensive line. That’s the biggest question mark heading into the season, with Kelly listing four first-team left guards this week. Seems to us the battle is between little-used converted tackle Allen Barbe (eight career starts), Matt Tobin (who for all intents and purposes failed his audition at left guard early last season), and John Moffitt, who spent a year out of football before un-retiring this offseason. At right guard, Andrew Gardner played ho-hum to finish the season and could very well be replaced by Moffitt or Tobin. The interior line is obviously critical to Murray’s production in Kelly’s inside zone running game. Injuries could devastate this unit, as evidenced by a poor performance from the reserves early this preseason.

Five dot-to-dot observations… I think Tim Tebow is more valuable to the Eagles as a third QB than Matt Barkley, given what he can do at the goal line, and regardless of how he performs in the preseason. New extra point rules will make two-point conversions a factor in the winter in Philadelphia and throughout the northeast and Midwest, and I believe Kelly will keep a roster spot open for a guy who can thrive in the red zone… The Eagles are already experiencing a spate of injuries, though we get the sense none are serious enough to threaten Week 1 appearances. Among the non-participants when The MMQB rolled into town: Alonso, Murray, Zach Ertz and Mychal Kendricks… Among the various curiosities of a Chip Kelly practice, one stood out. During one offensive period, quarterbacks took snaps with a full plate of receiving options, but instead of offensive and defensive lines, faced a handful of coaches wearing shoulder pads with black netting rising from the back collar, meant to simulate the outstretched arms of pass rushers. A dozen camps, and that was a first… The Eagles have a curious setup: Select fans and friends and family of players line the practice field in hospitality tents and are free to observe many drills within about 15 feet of the players. Upon entering the practice field, Eagles players took advantage of an opportunity to shake hands with a dozen or so handicapped visitors lining the indoor and outdoor exits… There isn’t much idle time for players at a Kelly practice. Often, we say six sessions going on at once, whereas in many other cities on the tour, players stood around for long periods while special teams operated.

Gut feeling as I left camp: Kelly may pull off the increasingly rare feat of winning a division without the best quarterback in said division. 10-6, with a deep playoff run that ends abruptly in Green Bay or Seattle and validates Chip’s flurry of questioned offseason moves.

-Robert Klemko
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I will be away from reliable Internet access for a few days, and I need to ask for your help in posting information that you find in this thread in my absence.

 
The Ravens defensive backs will be seeing Eagles wide receiver Jordan Matthewshttp://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/...bal-ravens-news-and-notes-20150821-story.html in their sleep over the next couple of days.

The second-year wide receiver out of Vanderbilt has been the best player on the field when the Eagles' first-team offense goes against the Ravens' first-team defense.

He's caught balls underneath, he's caught deep passes, he's drawn pass interference penalties. Nobody on the Ravens has been able to match up. If Matthews stays healthy, I'd be shocked if he didn't have a big year.

 
Randle returns, from Rotoworld

Joseph Randle (oblique) returned to Cowboys practice Friday.

He took first-team reps. Randle's oblique has become a recurring concern, but isn't a significant injury. Randle remains Dallas' best option at lead back, but he's expected to lose touches to Darren McFadden and Lance Dunbar.
 
Rotoworld...

Redskins acquired TE Derek Carrier from the 49ers for a conditional 2017 fifth-round pick.

The "conditions" are related to playing time and stats. Carrier just turned 25 years old and has absurd measurables, running 4.49 with a 40-inch vertical at 6-foot-3, 240 coming out of Beloit College in 2012. He probably should've played over both Vance McDonald and Vernon Davis last year, but wound up handling under 200 snaps. Carrier is a converted wide receiver who earned positive run and pass blocking grades from PFF in 2014. He gives Washington a No. 2 tight end following Niles Paul and Logan Paulsen's year-ending injuries. We wouldn't totally rule out the possibility of Carrier pushing always-injured Jordan Reed once he picks up Jay Gruden's system.
 
Jags' starters expected to play the whole first half tonight. Anyone else hear how long other teams' starters will play tonight?

 
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