Gary in Ram Camp but He Won’t Be in Uniform for a While

Cleveland Gary started his Ram career Thursday and spoke of many good things to come. But not this week, of course.

Gary won’t play in Sunday’s opener at Atlanta. And he’s probably out of the home opener against Indianapolis Sept. 17.

But someday, Gary promises to contribute. Maybe even this season.

“I’ve lost three games in the last four years at the University of Miami,” Gary said Thursday before his first Ram practice. “If there’s one thing I think I know how to do--I’m not boasting about it, (I’m saying it) in a humble manner--is know how to win. It’s important that I contribute and help this team win ballgames.”

The Rams could have used Gary’s talents about two months ago, when training camp opened. Instead, they got their first-round fullback three days before the opener and now must wait weeks, maybe months, for him to catch up.

That’s the way first-round negotiating goes in the National Football League these days: You draft a player, brace for the holdout, eventually sign him for millions and then hope his rookie season isn’t a waste.

As a result, the Rams will force-feed the playbook to Gary, perhaps designing special plays for specific situations.

“He’s not going to have the responsibility of playing a whole football game,” Robinson said.

Gary thinks it helps that he played in a pro-style offense at Miami.

“I don’t think it will be long at all,” he said, “because, in mini-camp I was here, and I know the terminology of the whole system, it’s just different in terms of the numbers and codes.”

Of course, no one says he wants to hold out, but those things always seem to happen.

“It was tough,” Gary said. “At first, I was prepared for it, but I wasn’t prepared for it. I didn’t know it would go this long, so I started to get a little uptight.”

Gary monitored the progress of his negotiations initially but claims to have lost interest as the days passed.

“It got to the point where I forgot about it,” he said. “It was there but I forgot about it. I had no choice. I would have drove myself crazy. I did the everyday routine, worked out, do what I had to do, hung out with my friends--that was basically it. I hit some baseballs.”

Gary, remember, recently signed a minor league contract with the Miami Miracle, an independent Class A organization in Florida.

He said his future in baseball was discussed with the Rams during negotiations but claims he never agreed to a clause that would prohibit him from playing baseball in the football off-season.

“I plan on playing; I signed a contract,” he said. “I don’t know what tomorrow’s going to bring. I’m a competitor; I love what I do. I love football. I love baseball, I’m not trying to be anybody or get into this syndrome of, ‘Well, I want to do this more than the other.’ I prepare myself for now. I’ll prepare for later later.”

Speaking of football-baseball players, Atlanta’s first-round pick, cornerback Deion Sanders, “Neon Deion,” as he is known, signed a four-year deal with the Falcons Thursday, and unlike Gary, will play Sunday, if only as a punt returner. He could also get into the game against the Rams as a defensive back in some defensive coverages.

Sanders, who was spending his late summer as an outfielder with the New York Yankees, literally left the playing field to join the Falcons, where some players have already taken shots at the flash from Florida State.

“Most of the people who have made negative comments about me are guys who don’t know me,” Sanders told Atlanta reporters. “People who have had the privilege of knowing me don’t feel that way.”

So much for peacemaking. Before entering the Falcon locker room, he reportedly said: “I’m going to go in and liven the place up.”

The Rams appear to be catching the Falcons at the right time. Sanders, who just signed, will be less a factor than he might have been with a full training camp. Also, Atlanta’s offensive line remains in a shambles. All-Pro guard Bill Fralic came to terms Tuesday, but starting left guard John Scully and center Wayne Radloff remained holdouts through Thursday.

The starting tackles, Mike Kenn and Houston Hoover, are listed as questionable with injuries.

Last season, the Rams sacked Falcon quarterbacks nine times in a 33-0 win.

Ram Notes

It appears that both Ram starting inside linebackers, Larry Kelm and Fred Strickland, will miss Sunday’s game with injuries. Coach John Robinson said that Kelm’s foot injury could also force him out of next week’s home opener against Indianapolis. Strickland, recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery, was expected to play some this week, but Robinson said Thursday it looked doubtful. Richard Brown and Mel Owens take over at inside linebackers in the 3-4 defense. Rookie Mark Messner takes Strickland’s nose-tackle position in the Eagle defense.

In search of an eighth offensive lineman, the Rams worked out guard Vince Stroth, a Houston castoff, Thursday. Guard Warren Wheat, the Rams’ eighth-round pick, was expected to take that spot until he was claimed by Seattle this week. The Rams were hoping to sneak Wheat through league waivers and reclaim him Tuesday, but the Seahawks spoiled those plans.

Kicker Mike Lansford is getting a little anxious about his contract renegotiation. He signed a temporary, one-year deal at last year’s salary of $195,000 to get him to camp on time, with a good-faith promise that the Rams would renegotiate. As the season opener approaches, he’s still kicking on good faith. As of Thursday, he and his foot weren’t planning a walkout.