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COPYRIGHT 2001 Sporting News Publishing Co.
The Rams have overhauled their woeful defense, infusing eight new starters, a new scheme and a new staff with the hope of making another Super Bowl run.
It's called a pursuit drill, and it's a basic part of defensive preparation. The running back takes the handoff and sprints downfield. All 11 defensive players race after him--at full speed--for 50 yards to the end zone.
On the first day of a May minicamp, the Rams run this drill over and over again under the watchful eye of new coordinator Lovie Smith. New defensive line coach Bill Kollar stands on the goal line, making sure no one slows up at the end of the "play." When second-year end Jermaine Benoit slows down ever so slightly at the end of one such dash, the entire group has to run again. The message: Go all out or you may be left out.
The Rams practiced such a drill last season. But as one team executive said with some disdain: "We ran it at half-speed."
Funny, it looked like the St. Louis defense played at half-speed during most of the 2000 season. Just one year after doing a solid job in the team's run to a Super Bowl title, the Rams' defense suffered a complete meltdown last season. Had they been even average on defense, the Rams and their supercharged offense probably would have returned to the Super Bowl. But they weren't anywhere close to average, allowing 471 points--the seventh-highest total in NFL history.
"Drastic situations...
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