Nick’s Notes: July 28, 2008

MEQUON, Wis. –

MONDAY AFTERNOON NOTES

-       As usual, business comes first. The Rams made a roster move because of the mounting injuries on the defensive line Monday afternoon. The team swapped offensive lineman Stephen Sene for offensive tackle Julius Wilson. Wilson was last in Miami.

-       Free safety Oshiomogho Atogwe has been hit by the hamstring bug that plagued him in the spring and sat out the afternoon session. Atogwe is day to day with the hamstring. Tight end Anthony Becht suffered a similar injury during practice and was taken for treatment. His status is also day to day.

-      There isn't much new to report on Steven Jackson except Scott Linehan said he has been in touch with Jackson in recent days. Jackson and Linehan text each other and Linehan said Jackson has just been asking how practice is going and other general discussion.

-       Punter Donnie Jones had shaved the frock off his head and looks more like the guy who set team records last season.

-        Receiver Drew Bennett had perhaps his best practice in the afternoon, making a variety of catches including a leaping grab on a jump ball against Ron Bartell.

-       Dante Hall is drawing raves for his conditioning and looks to be in a prime spot to land the No. 3 receiver job. Of course, it's really early and Donnie Avery or Keenan Burton could emerge in that race.

-       Here's an undrafted free agent to keep an eye on though he probably doesn't have a great shot to make the roster. Running back Lance Ball out of Maryland really has some juice. Ball is a big guy at 5-9, 232 pounds and has the frame of a fullback. But he has a nice burst and solid hands. He'll likely be squeezed out by numbers but could be a prime practice squad candidate. Then again, you never know what will happens o he could get a shot in the preseason and make something happen.

-       That's all for today, be back tomorrow with more.

MONDAY MORNING NOTES

-         Greetings from Concordia Wisconsin, where we begin the first full week of camp with Monday’s morning workout.

-         As usual, let’s get to some news before we hop into the action on the field. Defensive end Victor Adeyanju had a big offseason and was carrying that momentum into training camp but it all came to a halt with the news this morning that he suffered a fractured middle finger and could miss up to a month. It isn’t likely, contrary to other reports that he would miss much more than the preseason games but it remains to be seen how he recovers from the injury. Adeyanju is in St. Louis having surgery on the finger.

-         Adeyanju had been battling a hamstring injury but played through it before the finger injury.

-         As the injuries start to mount, it seems the defensive line is getting hit the hardest. While end C.J. Ah You returned to work, the Rams lost defensive tackle Josh Thompson to a torn right plantar fascia that will keep him out for an extended period.

-         The Rams added a cornerback to help bring depth because of the shoulder injury that has put Fakhir Brown on the sideline. Cortney Grixby, a free agent who last was with Carolina, arrived to the morning practice but wasn’t here in time to put on pads. He will wear No. 43. Grixby was an undrafted free agent released by the Panthers on July 16. He checks in at 5’9, 170 pounds. Grixby will have his first practice this afternoon but did field some punts following the morning workout.

-         As for the action on the field, there are a few young players making a pretty solid impression. Rookie offensive lineman John Greco is a keeper. It doesn’t appear he has much of a future as a tackle but he certainly does inside at guard. He could probably play tackle if he had to but there’s no doubting that he could step in and be a solid guard right now. He continues to hold his own in one on one pass rush drills.

-         Cornerback Justin King  is a little more polished than I had been led to believe. He’s at least ahead of where Jonathan Wade was at the same point last season.

-         Derek Stanley continues to make a play or two every practice that wows the crowd and catches the eyes of the coaching staff. He might not land one of the six receiver spots but keeping him away from one of them is going to be extremely difficult.

-         Vince Hall, who has been kind of the forgotten man among the young linebackers, had some nice moments in the morning practice including a couple of impressive pass breakups.

-         A very happy birthday goes out to Rams Director of Player Programs Ray Ogas. Ogas was showered with a stirring (sort of) rendition of “Happy Birthday” following the workout. Ogas is one of the good guys and has now turned in six decades.

-         I'll be back with more following the afternoon session.