By Nick Wagoner
Senior Writer

From the moment he set foot in St. Louis, Laurent Robinson became the Rams’ most tenured receiver in the NFL.

The same Robinson who had been in the league a whopping two seasons with all of 21 games, 42 catches and 489 yards to his name has more experience in the league than any of the other receivers on the roster.

Robinson is quick to admit that is a bit of a strange feeling.

“It’s pretty crazy, but I still feel like I’m a rookie again,” Robinson said. “I’m learning a new offense for the third year in a row and I just have to get in the play book and start working hard.”

On April 6, the Rams and Falcons swapped draft positions in the fifth and sixth round in order for Robinson to come to St. Louis in the deal.

Drafted in the third round in the 2007 NFL Draft, Robinson came in to the league as a bit of a small school wonder after setting school records in receptions and receiving yards at Illinois State.

In his first season in Atlanta, Robinson flashed plenty of promise as he finished with 37 catches for 437 yards in six starts. Heading into last season, Robinson had high hopes for a breakthrough season in the Falcons’ new offense.

But Robinson was hampered by a nagging hamstring issue and a slightly torn medial collateral ligament. Neither injury required surgery but they limited him to six games.

“Last year I had some injuries that kind of kept nagging and just kept me out, so I have to fight through it, forget about last year, and just move on to this year,” Robinson said.

Robinson has already moved on and did it quickly after the trade. Robinson says he was a little surprised by the deal but recognized the chance that playing in St. Louis will give him.

Aside from Robinson, the Rams have only youngsters Donnie Avery, Keenan Burton and Derek Stanley with any real NFL playing experience.

At 6’2, 194 pounds with dreads and the No. 11 on his jersey, Robinson looks like a smaller version of Larry Fitzgerald but he doesn’t compare himself to anyone.

In the meantime, Robinson is working mainly as a slot receiver in this weekend’s minicamp and with the second unit. In his first practice on Friday morning, Robinson was admittedly nervous.
“I was a little rusty,’ Robinson said. “I was out there with a new team.  I just have to get used to the quarterbacks and the atmosphere and I’ll be all right.”

Robinson bounced back in the afternoon practice and looked sharp in Saturday’s morning practice. He knows there’s a bit of pressure for one of the receivers to emerge as Marc Bulger’s top target with Torry Holt gone and plenty of balls to go around.

“It’s a big opportunity,” Robinson said. “Hopefully I can just step in and learn the playbook.  I’m still picking up on the playbook because this is my third offense in three years.  I just have to get in the playbook and get ready.”

ROAD TO RECOVERY: Second-year cornerback Justin King is recovering well from the foot surgery that ended his rookie season before it could begin.

King returned to the first minicamp and participated in a limited basis as he was not quite yet to full speed at the time. Now, in the second minicamp, King has moved closer to being back to 100 percent.

“It’s feeling pretty good,” King said. “I’m just coming out, going to keep rehabbing it and working through it. It gets a little sore every once in awhile but nothing to hold me down.”

King’s rookie season showed plenty of promise before it was short-circuited by the injury. In just a few weeks of training camp, King had impressed the previous coaching staff enough to work his way into the mix as a potential nickel back and key contributor in his first season.

That made the injury and having to sit out the season that much more excruciating.

“That was probably the hardest thing, not developing and just waiting and waiting and waiting,” King said. “And now I’m just trying to get back to where I was so I can add on to that.”

Despite the injury, King made it a point to spend as much time around the team and the Russell Training Center as possible last season. He often would show up to meetings and take detailed notes so that when he did step back on the field he wouldn’t be too far behind.

“I tried to pick up (the mental aspect of the defense),” King said. “I used to do scouting reports for the defensive backs and the defense last year on the other opposing teams’ offenses and things like that.  And I’d always try to stick around with the guys, keep the camaraderie, because it’s one thing to be hurt and it’s another thing to just be away from it all for a year, so I just tried to stay around it as much as possible.”

HAVE SOME: Linebacker Will Witherspoon has only been in the league for seven seasons but as he enters his eighth and looks around the locker room, he can’t help but feel like an elder statesman.

“Am I really?” Witherspoon said, laughing.  “Actually, this is only my fifth year. What are you talking about? Yeah, I guess so. At this point, there comes a time in your career if you get a chance you’re going to be the old guy on the team. Hopefully, I get to be the really old guy and keep playing and doing what I do.”

The many young faces on the field and in the locker room strike Witherspoon as younger and younger with each passing season.
 
 “Yeah, they are,” Witherspoon said. “It’s kind of sad that some of those guys were born so many years after me.”

CUTS CUTS CUTS: In addition to the four players in on a tryout basis and the undrafted free agents, the Rams have plenty of young players hoping to find their way on to the roster.

One undrafted free agent, receiver Quentin Chaney of Oklahoma, failed a physical and did not make it to the minicamp.

As it stands the Rams have 86 players and four tryout guys on the field. Because the draft class is technically unsigned, the Rams are not over the limit of players allowed. But in time for training camp, the Rams will have to get down to 80 players with no exemptions.

In other words, some players are battling just for a spot to make it to training camp.

“We’ll just see if they end up making the team later,” coach Steve Spagnuolo said. “The way we look at it is we may be in a situation where a lot of the roster may turn over. We’re just trying to find good players. I think that happens in the league everywhere.”

RAM BITS: Long snapper Chris Massey suffered a right calf injury and was in a walking boot in the afternoon practice. He is not expected to practice in the final workout of minicamp on Sunday morning…Free safety Oshiomogho Atogwe is battling hamstring tightness but has played through it for the most part. He’s likely to participate in Sunday’s practice.