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London Fletcher
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MACOMB, Ill. — Standing over the defense on the second day of training camp, Lovie
Smith resembled a minister reciting a homily to an attentive congregation.
"Detail, men. Detail," Smith said, thrusting MLB London Fletcher through the
guard-tackle gap during an instructional drill. "That’s what it takes."
Fletcher — one of three returning starters expected to be on the field for the
Rams when the regular season kicks off — is in the same position as every new face in
training camp: starting over.
"We’ve got some work to do," Smith said in a one-on-one
conversation following a morning session. "We set a good tempo to start it off after
we got a few guys in here we wanted here. I don’t think we’re ready to shut down
training camp, but we like where we are."
Smith left the NFL’s ninth-ranked defense in Tampa Bay, where he was solely
responsible for the linebackers, to help Mike Martz’s club turn around the 23rd-ranked
defense in the league. A unit that gave up 471 points last season. A unit easier to pass
through than a revolving door. A unit that couldn’t hold up its end of the bargain
and let down the scoring machine known as the Rams’ offense.
"At the most basic level, you want to score more points than the other team,"
Smith said. "We were really bad in that area. That can’t happen. This is a
different approach because the way our offense puts up points, we have more opportunities
to get the turnover and make big plays as much as other teams are going to be throwing the
football."
Smith and Martz worked together at Arizona State from 1988 to ’91, so the
second-year Rams skipper knows the "other side of the ball is in good hands."
"He’s a good friend, but really and truly I have a lot of friends out there
who I may or may not hire," Martz said. "Smith is a guy who I have always
admired as one of the best coaches I’ve been around for lots of reasons — his
character, his ability to communicate with players, his work ethic. … In my opinion,
he’s going to be a head coach."
Smith built his résumé as an assistant at Kentucky, Tennessee and Ohio State before
heading what has been arguably the best unit of linebackers in football over the last four
seasons in Tampa, with personnel like Hardy Nickerson and Derrick Brooks.
"To me this is a normal progression," Smith said. "If you are doing a
good job as linebackers coach, then you should be moved up. We have good players, guys
willing to learn. That makes my job easier."
The situation Smith enters is similar to the position Martz faced when Dick Vermeil
handed him the keys to the offense and asked him to make it explode.
"I think it’s a very similar situation," Martz said. "I want to
treat him like Dick treated me. I want to give him complete latitude with that defense,
without restrictions, and just let him go. I trust him completely. Absolutely trust
him."
The defensive rebuilding project began when the Rams let coordinator Peter Giunta go
— but that was only the first move that spurred a sweeping domino effect. After
defensive assistants packed their bags, veteran players were on the move. Out were veteran
DT DeMarco Farr, LB Mike Jones, CB Todd Lyght and CB Todd Collins.
Martz and GM Charley Armey worked trades to unload QB Trent Green (to Kansas City) and
DE Kevin Carter (to Tennessee) in order to stockpile draft choices. They also upgraded
their personnel by trading picks to Arizona for All-Pro CB Aeneas Williams and added FS
Kim Herring from Baltimore and LBs Mark Fields from New Orleans and Don Davis from Tampa.
"As a veteran, the more you’ve played, and played well, the more our younger
guys are going to listen," Smith said. "Just watch Aeneas Williams. He has been
out here forever. He runs from drill to drill, sideline to sideline. Always going hard.
Grant Wistrom, he’s going to chase down every play until he hears a whistle. Jeff
Zgonina, same thing. That’s what these young guys have to pick up."
Martz concurred, "We needed an infusion of not just talent, but winners. Those
veteran guys give us both of those things."
With veteran leadership on board, the Rams went all defense with their three
first-round picks in the NFL draft and landed DT Damione Lewis (10th), S Adam
Archuleta (20th) and DT Ryan Pickett (29th).
"We’re all coming in new," Smith said. "These guys haven’t
played together, a lot of them. We’re talking about a lot of new players, but
we’re also talking about veteran players who know how to play football and 11
athletes. As for the scheme, they’ll learn that in time."
The board wiped completely clean, ace DL coach Bill Kollar and DB chief Ron Meeks
joined the party. They helped Smith add the new defense in voluntary camps following the
draft, where attendance was described as "super" by Smith, which made it easy to
instill the new philosophy: Keep it simple.
"We want to have 11 guys run to the football, get to the football and have a bad
attitude when we get there," Smith said. "Then we can get the points down and
the turnovers going."
He wouldn’t pinpoint why the Rams’ defense went sour so quickly after being
solid enough to win the Super Bowl after the ’99 season, but Smith brings a scheme
that relies less on the blitz and more on zone coverage and a solid base that emphasizes
the linebackers.
"Whether we win or not will have a lot to do with how our linebackers play,"
Smith said. "The safeties and the linebackers have more responsibility, and things
are a little more simplified for our defensive linemen. All we want from them is a little
pressure and not to get pushed around."
Ultimately, Smith said the success of the defense might come down to Fletcher. In
Tampa, Smith had four-time Pro Bowler Brooks as his play-making linebacker. Prior to last
season, he also had Nickerson, another Pro Bowler.
"There are some good linebackers in this league," Smith said. "But
Derrick Brooks is the most special football player I’ve seen … and that is
saying a lot. He can turn anyone to dirt, and we had a lot of good players in Tampa.
"London and Mark Fields are in that group of good linebackers. They can make
plays," Smith said. "London is quick and smart, a knee-bender, a good athlete.
Mark athletically is second to none. Those guys are very similar to what we had in Tampa,
but it is so hard to compare. I remember the last thing in Tampa and at the end of the
season, they were on top of their game. Right now, we’re just getting started."
Davis, a sixth-year veteran, has a slight edge because of his knowledge of Smith’s
scheme after the duo spent the past five seasons with the Buccaneers. What he doesn’t
have is a guaranteed job, mainly because of the play of yet another draft pick, LB Tommy
Polley.
Another position battle worth keeping an eye on is at strong safety, where John
Lynch-clone Archuleta is trying to make the conversion from linebacker and beat out
third-year pro Rich Coady.
"We really like Adam and what he gives us," said Smith, a former All-American
as a defensive back at Tulsa. "He likes to hit."
Left defensive end is also up for grabs as Leonard Little battles free-agent signee
Cedric Jones. Little is the better pass rusher, whereas Jones, who came over from the
Giants, is better against the run.
The Rams play five times in the preseason, which means Smith has an extra game to
evaluate depth but less time to work with the first unit. Regardless, expectations remain
to have a grade-A defense on the field Sept. 9 at Philadelphia.
"Philly is D-Day," Smith said. "We’re going to be better next year
and even better the year after that. Right now, we have to put a good product on the
field. That’s what we’re geared toward, and I don’t see anything that would
indicate otherwise."
"We expect them to be at their best in the first quarter of the first game,"
Martz said straight-faced on his way to team meetings. "That’s the way it was
for our offense two years ago. Now obviously I expect them to get better, but we want the
best they can give." |
