Tuesday, Sep. 08, 2009

Rams notes: Carriker frustrated by injury; Bulger still a question mark

ST. LOUIS -- A shoulder injury that ended his season before it ever began has St. Louis Rams defensive tackle Adam Carriker feeling more than a little frustrated.

"Well, there is a few walls I've run my head into,'' Carriker said. "I don't know. You just keep plugging away. It is what it is.''

Carriker, a first-round pick in the 2007 NFL Draft out of the University of Nebraska, has been placed on injured reserve.

He'll undergo surgery on his right shoulder for a torn subscapularis on Wednesday in Houston, Texas. He underwent surgery for a similar injury on his left shoulder after the 2007 season.

"Two years ago, I did the subscap and the labrum,'' Carriker said. "This year, it's just the subscap. It's a 75 percent tear, which isn't as bad as it was two years ago. It's a 'guestimate,' but hopefully it is a four-month recovery instead of like a six.''

Carriker said he was injured trying to shed a block on the final play of the third quarter of the Rams' preseason finale against the Kansas City Chiefs last Thursday at the Edward Jones Dome.

"It's just very frustrating, very agitating,'' Carriker said. "There is not much I can do. It's the same thing I have done a million other times in practice and games. For some reason on this play something went wrong.''

Carriker said he knew immediately that the injury was serious.

"It felt exactly the same as the other shoulder when I hurt it a couple of years ago,'' Carriker said. "That's the first thing I thought of.''

Carriker said he never experienced any shoulder problems before reaching the NFL.

"Two years ago, I was taking on a double-team,'' Carriker said. "I was kind of in a funny position. This time, I have no idea what happened. That's the most frustrating part.''

Bulger has yet to take a snap under center

Quarterback Marc Bulger participated in practice Monday, but he took no snaps under center.

Bulger is coming back from a broken pinkie suffered taking a snap in practice Aug. 17.

"We figured, 'Don't put him under center today,''' Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo said. "It'll be another 48 hours before we practice again, and the hope is he will be able to do it Wednesday.

"We'll wait and see how he feels Wednesday morning, and decide what we will do then.''

Spagnuolo said Bulger being able to practice on Wednesday will be question of pain tolerance.

"It's probably more of a pain thing,'' Spagnuolo said. "At some point, we have to test it and see how it feels to him.''

Quick hits

Spagnuolo said the Rams haven't made a decision on whether rookie offensive tackle Jason Smith, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2008 NFL Draft, will be a starter.

"We actually moved him around a little bit. Today's Monday? We haven't (decided) yet,'' Spagnuolo said.

Smith was working with the starting unit Monday during the portion of practice that the media is allowed to watch.

* Guard John Greco had a pin placed in his broken wrist during surgery over the weekend. Greco had a cast on the wrist Monday, and Spagnuolo reiterated that Greco will miss 2-to-3 weeks because of the injury.

* The Rams filled out their eight-man practice squad by signing defensive end Bryan Smith, a third-round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft who was released by the Philadelphia Eagles over the weekend, and running back Chris Ogbonnaya, a seventh-round pick for the Rams in the 2009 NFL Draft.

* Linebacker Larry Grant (sprained knee) was ruled as out by Spagnuolo for the Rams' season opener against the Seattle Seahawks.

* Running back Samkon Gado showed his toughness by practicing despite an injury to his ribs.

* Quarterback Brock Berlin, who was cut by the Rams on Saturday, has been signed to the Detriot Lions' practice squad.

Berlin has been reunited with former Rams coach Scott Linehan, who is the Lions' offensive coordinator.