Rams rookie James Laurinaitis is catching on quickly

ST. LOUIS -- Rookie middle linebacker James Laurinaitis spent the St. Louis Rams' entire morning practice with the first-string defense.

Laurinaitis had worked mostly with the second-string defense during the first week of training camp.

"I wanted him to get a feel for that,'' Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo said of moving Laurinaitis up with the starters. "That'll be an ongoing evaluation.''

Chris Draft shifted from middle linebacker to strong-side linebacker, opening up a spot for the second-round draft pick.

"Coach Spags, I think, is moving some guys around right now, kind of seeing where guys can play,'' Laurinaitis said. "I'm happy that he had the confidence in me to put me in the first group, but nothing has changed with my mindset. I'm still going out there trying to learn. I'm still asking lots of questions and trying to get better every day.''

Laurinaitis said he doesn't see the move as a sign that he'll be playing with the starting unit when the regular season opens.

"It is what it is,'' Laurinaitis said. "Coach Spags hasn't made any final 'this is our depth chart' thing. He's moving people around and seeing how versatile guys are at other positions. If he throws me somewhere else tomorrow, I'll go there. I'll do whatever he wants.''

Spagnuolo said Laurinaitis is showing all the attributes that convinced the Rams to select him with the 35th overall pick out of Ohio State in the 2009 NFL Draft.

"We're seeing the things we thought (we'd see) when we drafted him,'' Spagnuolo said. "He's a smart football player, he's tough, he can run real well. He's picking up things pretty good right now. The volume keeps getting heavier and heavier, but he's handled it.''

Laurinaitis said he is feeling more comfortable in his knowledge of the Rams' defense.

"As a Mike (middle) linebacker, you have to be very comfortable in your position,'' Laurinaitis said. "You have to be able to make calls, and you have to be able to stand by them. You have to kind of direct people around there. We have some great veteran leadership, and with Chris out there at (strong-side linebacker), it helps in case you do mess up.

"There were no mess ups today. It was a pretty solid practice.''

Laurinaitis said he still gets plenty of reminders about being a rookie.

"There are still a lot of things that make you feel like a rookie,'' Laurinaitis said. "It's like Will Witherspoon leaving his pads every day and having you carry them back for him.

"It's a learning process, and as the vets have always said to the rookies, it's a marathon, not a sprint. You're going to be a rookie all year, and there are things that are going to come up in Week 17 that I'm not going to know about. You're going to see offenses you've never seen before, you're going to see things you haven't seen before.''

Laurinaitis said he's glad to have Witherspoon, who played middle linebacker for the Rams for the previous three seasons, and Draft to lean on.

"When you see the vets, the class guys like Spoon and Chris Draft, and they're still taking notes, they're still learning after how long they've been in the league, it sets a great example for the young guys,'' Laurinaitis said. "I'm very thankful and blessed to come into a situation where I have two older guys who are very helpful with answering questions.''

As for his rookie initiation, Laurinaitis said he's already sung for the team.

"I did an amazing version of Keith Sweat's 'Nobody,''' Laurinaitis said.