Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher – Training Camp Post-Practice – August 29, 2016
(On if the team is done with the roster moves to establish the 75-man roster)
“They have to be in tomorrow at 4 P.M. eastern, so we’ll turn everything officially in. I’d say we’re 90 percent there. We’ll release it as soon as we finish, but we’re about 90 percent there. Again, like I said, it’s not an easy situation. I talk to each and every player and thanked them for the contribution and all that. Now we’re more into play-time mode – as you can see, there’s a moving van out there – we’ve got a lot going on here over the next couple of days.”
(On how good it was to see T Rob Havenstein on the practice field)
“It was good. We got him out there; he got a couple reps in each period. Me seeing him out there was better for him getting out there the first time – that was the purpose for us taking him off the PUP (Physically Unable to Perform list). We’ll see how he does over the next couple of days; we haven’t ruled him out for the game for Thursday.”
(On if the competition level along the defensive line during camp was what he expected)
“We’ve got depth and we created competition. I thought it’s worked out well. Especially late in preseason games, when you get guys like (DE) Matt Longacre and some of those guys just making plays out there and earning a right to play on Sundays.”
(On if the fourth preseason game is more important than fans realize for guys who are on the roster bubble)
“It is. We value each and every rep, whether it’s out here at practice or whether it’s in the fourth preseason game. There are some decisions that are going to be made based on some performances there. In addition to that, you’ve got some guys that we’re grooming to play in specific special teams positions when the regular season starts, so they need to get experience at those positions.”
(On what went into the decision to let go of DE Quinton Coples)
“‘Q’ did a good job coming in here. We started him off at defensive end, and then we asked him to move to tackle, just to give him a chance inside to see. I really appreciated everything that he did – his attitude and going from end to tackle, if you’ve never been in there, is quite a change. He worked really hard at it. Out of fairness to a player like ‘Q,’ I didn’t see him making the team and that’s exactly what I told him. I wanted to give him a chance and give him an opportunity to get out there early to see if he could find work. If not, we’re going to keep the door open for him.”
(On if that shows how much defensive line depth the team has)
“It does. We still have some tough decisions to make up on the defensive line, and the final roster comes down to, as you guys know, what’s going on, sometimes, at other positions, as well. Do you have the luxury to carry 10 or nine defensive linemen and then fewer at another position. Those are things that we’re kind of massaging right now.”
(On if QB Jared Goff will start on Thursday at Minnesota)
“I haven’t decided yet. That’s a good question. Do you think he should?”
(On if QB Case Keenum will play in the final preseason game)
“We’re in the discussion stages right now. Great questions, we just don’t have answers for you.”
(On if he would be in favor of the active roster on a Sunday in the regular season being at 53 or staying as it is now with 46 dressing for games)
“Every year, there’s proposals to adjust the roster size. All those things are collectively bargained. There’s been a push since I got in the league to play more guys on Sunday, have more guys available. It gets back to that competitive situation where, if we’re playing opponent A and they have 53 healthy guys and we have 49 healthy guys, then there’s a competitive disadvantage there. That’s what it always ends up coming back to is what’s competitive and what’s not.”
(On how LB Alec Ogletree is doing)
“He’s doing well. Each week, through the preseason games, he’s getting better. Keep in mind, he’s coming off a season-ending injury last year. He’s worked really hard through the offseason, once we made the change and moved him to Mike (linebacker); I think he’s handled his responsibilities very well.”
(On going with Thursday as the players day off during the regular season)
“Yes, we did that last year.”
(On why he’s going with Thursday and not Tuesday, like many other teams)
“We’ve traditionally been Tuesdays forever. And giving it some thought, we just kind of tweak our week a little bit. It’s all about recovery, it’s all about when is the necessary down-time, when does it fit in the week? A lot of reasons for it, but we like the way it works. Now, the players love it, it’s a little harder on the coaches because you have to accelerate the game-planning through Monday because you’re basically doing some install on Tuesday because we’re actually working on Tuesday.”
(On if it feels like it helps that the players have the game plan on Tuesday or Wednesday)
“I think they get so far ahead, yeah. And most players come in on their days off, anyway. When you come in on Tuesday as a day off, you haven’t even been introduced to the game plan, you’re sitting there looking at an opponent. When you come in on Thursday as a day off, you’ve already have two days of install in, so you know exactly what you’re doing.”
Los Angeles Rams Media Release 08/29/2016
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