Rams Back In Action

It was a nice vacation week for the Rams, but it’s time to get back to work in preparation for the San Francisco 49ers. The team was back on the practice field today, and it looks like the bye week did the team some good. First, offensive tackle Jason Smith has been fully cleared from his concussion, and he will be good to go this week in San Fran. Regardless of what you might think about Smith, he is of vital importance to this team, and they will be much better with him back in the fold. Also, Ron Bartell practiced today while dealing with shoulder and thigh issues. He was limited, but he was at least able to do some work, so that’s good news.

In less encouraging but still not terrible news, Danario Alexander, James Butler, Fendi Onobun, and Britt Miller were all unable to go today. The good news here is that all players are being called day-to-day by the team, so they might be able to go this weekend. Alexander has been doing some running, and it seems possible that he could be able to play on Sunday. It would be a pretty quick turnaround after the knee surgery, but we will watch his progress closely. I have a gut feeling that Butler will play, but it will depend how he feels as the week goes on. As far as Onobun and Miller go, I wouldn’t be shocked if we didn’t see either one of them.

On the enemy front, we know that former Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith will start under center this weekend. I’m not really sure how I feel about this. I mean, this guy isn’t a Pro Bowler by any means, but for some reason he makes me nervous. The Rams will have to be prepared for him to get out of the pocket, and I really hope he doesn’t hurt us with his feet. CB Nate Clements was limited in practice with an ankle, but he is expected to go. TE Vernon Davis was full-go, so we will have to deal with him, unfortunately.