Depth on O-line suffers blow

Depth on O-line suffers blow
By Jim Thomas
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
08/18/2008

Scott Linehan posted a quick no sale sign Saturday night when asked whether Mark Setterstrom's knee injury gave him a sense of "here we go again" on the offensive line.

"Nope, nope, nope," Linehan responded. "People get hurt in football. Your gut hurts for the kid, but as a team you go to the next play."

As expected, Setterstrom's injury is season ending. The third-year offensive guard suffered a fractured kneecap against San Diego and is expected to undergo surgery this week.

And there was a double dose of bad news for the offensive line Sunday, when Linehan said backup offensive tackle Brandon Gorin also is out for the year because of a shoulder injury.


"It's real similar to what Orlando (Pace) had," Linehan said. "There's some pretty significant damage that didn't show up on the first MRI."

Gorin, who started eight games last season, suffered his injury late in the first half of the Aug. 9 preseason opener in Tennessee. It was originally described as a slight tear of the rotator cuff, and he was expected to be sidelined for a few weeks.

But additional examination revealed more substantial damage. Gorin also needs surgery but is seeking additional medical opinions before proceeding, according to Linehan.

Last season six offensive linemen, including four starters, combined to miss 59 games because of injuries. Four of those linemen, including three starters, ended up on the injured reserve list.

Now, the Rams already are down two linemen with two exhibition contests still to be played before the team even reaches the games that count.

At a minimum, the losses of Setterstrom and Gorin affect the Rams' depth. In the case of Gorin, he appeared to be in a tough fight for a spot on the final 53-man roster before the injury. That's because Adam Goldberg appears to have all but nailed down the No. 3 tackle spot with a strong training camp and preseason to date.

Even with Setterstrom and Gorin headed for the injured reserve list, with the cutdown days fast approaching, Linehan indicated that the team may not add any additional blockers.

"I think we can manage," Linehan said. "We've got 13 available offensive linemen for the next two games. I think Tennessee had 12 available when we were in camp with them. And when I was at Minnesota, we would quite often go into training camp with 12 offensive linemen. … So assuming we don't have any more injuries at this point, we should be OK there."

Setterstrom started the final six games of his rookie season (2006) at left guard. He opened the '07 season starting at left guard as well, before suffering a season-ending left knee injury in Game 3 against Tampa Bay. After spending much of the offseason working at center, Setterstrom opened training camp as the starting right guard.

But a right leg injury sidelined him for much of the team's stay at Concordia University Wisconsin. Although relatively minor in nature, the injury provided an opening for Richie Incognito to move ahead of him into the starting lineup.

Then came Saturday. Working with the second unit against San Diego, Setterstrom opened the second half at guard when the latest injury occurred. It's the same knee in which Setterstrom suffered his season-ending injury last September, but it's a completely different injury, Linehan said.

"He just planted and kind of got pushed back and you saw his leg kind of give out," Linehan said. "Certainly it's some tough luck to have two really tough injuries to the same (knee) within a year."

Quarterback Marc Bulger said: "I felt bad for him, because I know he worked his butt off to get back this year. I saw him stand up and his knee wobbled back and forth. It's one of those things you knew it was that bad when it happened."

Before Setterstrom was carted off the field Saturday at the Edward Jones Dome, Linehan said he told his teammates to "go get a score. Win this game."

That's exactly what happened. Rookie Roy Schuening replaced Setterstrom in the lineup, and the Rams marched 71 yards in 13 plays, culminating with Travis Minor's 3-yard touchdown run in a 7-6 Rams victory.

"This is how we're going to respond to adversity this year," Linehan said. "We're just going to keep playing. We're not going to get into that (woe is me) deal."




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