Sam got the second-most snaps among defensive linemen, trailing only Westbrooks. All of them were at defensive end, and the Rams are loaded at that spot. Westbrooks, listed as a tackle in the media guide, was used at all four positions.
WAIT FOR IT: As a rookie, Cordarrelle Patterson was the NFL's best kickoff returner and set a franchise record with a 32.4-yard average and two touchdowns. Naturally, the Rams are wary.
PASS RUSH: Robert Quinn led the NFC with a franchise-record 19 sacks and the Rams have plenty more who can make a quarterback flinch in Long (8 1-2), Michael Brockers (5 1-2), Williams Hayes (5) and Kendall Langford (5). Plus, pass-rushing tackle Aaron Donald was a first-round pick this year.
"The administrative stuff is obviously different. Thinking about the 46-man game-day roster,Nike Air Max 90 Black Women, the communication with the referees, those things are all different. The football part I've been doing a long time,Supply NFL Jerseys," Zimmer said.
CASSEL'S TIME: Veteran Matt Cassel earned the starting nod over first-round pick Teddy Bridgewater, getting the edge based on experience and leadership. Cassel was among three quarterbacks who started in 2013, and returned with the assurance he needn't fear looking over his shoulder after every mistake.
New Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams has players braced for the challenge. End Chris Long remembers Peterson "just destroying the game plan,Cheap Jerseys From China."
"If you want to create problems for yourself, give him a returnable ball,Cheap Jordan Shoes For Sale," coach Jeff Fisher said on a conference call with Minnesota reporters.
There was zero hoopla accompanying the 15 undrafted free agents who arrived anonymously, unlike the fanfare that accompanied the historic seventh-round pick. Four of them made the 53-man roster, among them a decorated defensive lineman from a directional school.
"I told him, 'Just make sure you kick me the ball,Cheap World Cup Jerseys, man,'" Patterson said. "And he told me, 'Just be ready.' So I'm ready for that.'"
Things to watch for in Vikings-Rams:
Patterson didn't buy it, citing a conversation he had with Fisher this summer in Los Angeles.
ST. LOUIS (AP) — No one could get enough of Michael Sam's trail blazing role at St. Louis Rams training camp. The fellow rookie who outplayed him to win a backup spot has a pretty nice back story, too.
"He doesn't avoid contact and if you're a DB, he's going to find out if you like to hit people or not," Long added.
"I know how hard it is to make an NFL roster, or just even get into camp," Westbrooks said. "I'm definitely happy to see he made it to another team."
ZIMMER'S DEBUT: Mike Zimmer makes his head coaching debut for Minnesota after serving as defensive coordinator in Dallas, Atlanta and Cincinnati the previous 14 seasons. The Bengals made the playoffs the last three years and averaged 10 wins. Leslie Frazier was fired after the Vikings started 1-7 and finished 5-10-1, but there's promise with seven first-round picks the last three drafts, and everybody's No. 1 fantasy draft pick in 29-year-old RB Adrian Peterson. Preseason records mean nada, but still it has to be a confidence builder going 4-0.
Soft-spoken Ethan Westbrooks, the Division II defensive player of the year in 2012 at West Texas A&M, had been confident he'd done enough. He was pleased to learn Sam had been signed to the Cowboys' practice squad.
"It was cool, I enjoyed it," Westbrooks said. "I've been enjoying playing the whole D-line since college, so it wasn't that big of a deal."
PETERSON RULES: The All-Pro running back embarrassed the St. Louis defense at home with 212 yards rushing in the last meeting in December 2012. He was so far in the clear at the end of an 82-yard touchdown run there was time to sneak a peek at the video board. "Yeah, yeah, I was able to see myself," Peterson said.
"It was entertaining," Westbrooks said, "to say the least."
Fisher has 156 wins,Wholesale NBA Jerseys China, third on the active list, but says he's just as excited as he was before his first game in the middle of the 1994 season when he replaced Jack Pardee in Tennessee.
NO BRADFORD: Sam Bradford missed the final nine games last season with a torn left ACL, and appeared to be completely back before reinjuring the same knee in the third preseason game. The offense is now in the hands of 34-year-old journeyman Shaun Hill, who has thrown just 16 passes the last three s
