THOUSAND OAKS — It will be framed and displayed prominently, like a long-coveted piece of art.
The ball, and the NFL touchdown that made it special to Cam Akers, did take longer to acquire than he or the Rams might have hoped.
“It’s my first one, so I’m going to keep it for myself,” Akers said a few days after he caught a pass from Jared Goff and beat a linebacker to the end zone for a third-quarter touchdown in the Rams’ 27-24 victory at Tampa Bay on Monday night.
The Rams made the Florida State running back their top draft pick last April, taking him in the second round as they sought to replace Todd Gurley.
Akers wasn’t shy in training camp about saying he expected to prove himself as a “complete back” like Gurley who could “block, catch and run.”
But one part of that, learning to block on passing plays at the professional level, wasn’t as easy as Akers expected. After he started the Rams’ season-opening wins against Dallas and Philadelphia, a rib injury cost him two games. He’s third on the team behind Darrell Henderson and Malcolm Brown in carries (50), rushing yards (201) and average (4.0).
This week, as the Rams (7-3) prepared to face the San Francisco 49ers (4-6) Sunday at SoFi Stadium, a generally cheerful Akers admitted that adjusting to the NFL grind has been difficult too.
“As a young player, as a rookie, it’s easy to get bored with the process,” the Mississippi native said on Zoom. “(They key is) just understanding that it is a process that you’ve got to go through. Taking it forward with your feet on the ground.
“That’s what I did from the first half of the season to the second half, and it’s paying off.”
It was especially hard during the off-season months when restrictions forced by the COVID-19 pandemic forced teams to forgo on-field workouts and in-person meetings with study sessions by video conference.
Akers learned more than X’s and O’s.
“It just made me understand that regardless of the circumstances that you’re in, you’ve still got a job to do, you’ve still got to be present,” he said. “At first I was struggling with it a little bit, but I got it now.”
The 5-foot-10, 217-pound back flashed his talent by making tacklers miss on a 19-yard catch-and-run up the left sideline in the Rams’ loss at Miami in Week 8.
The next day, coach Sean McVay praised Akers for that play but laid out what the 21-year-old has to work on.
“I just want to continue to see him mature, ascend and really continue to learn how to compete without the ball, understanding where he fits in (quarterback) protections,” McVay said. “When the ball’s in his hands, it’s pretty natural for him.”
The reward will be more games like Monday’s. It was memorable not only for Akers but for two other Rams rookies. Wide receiver Van Jefferson scored his first NFL touchdown and rookie safety Jordan Fuller grabbed his first two NFL interceptions, off Tom Brady no less.
Akers’ touchdown came on a short pass play that Goff said the Rams have worked on a lot, the difference being that the receiver wound up more open on the left side against the Buccaneers than he usually is in practice.
“He has great hands, he can catch the ball in the backfield, he can make plays after the catch,” Goff said of Akers. “That’s part of the reason that we like him.”
After waiting for so long, Akers said, he knew the touchdown was coming as soon as he heard the play in the huddle.
“When the call came in, I got excited, because I kind of knew if it came to me, I’m scoring,” he said. “Regardless of how the ball comes, where the defender is, if it comes to me I’m scoring.
“It came to me, and thank God I scored. It was a surreal moment. I got my first touchdown.”
Suitable for framing.
NOTES
The Rams held an early practice on Thanksgiving Day. … Sean McVay said defensive end Derek Rivers, who was claimed on waivers, should join the team Saturday but won’t play Sunday against the 49ers. … Of the three Rams practice-squad players who went on the COVID-19 reserve list Nov. 18, two now are off it. Wide receiver J.J. Koski was removed Wednesday, two days after tight end Kendall Blanton. Defensive back Jake Gervase remains on the list for players who tested positive for the virus or had close contact with someone who did. … Cornerback Dont’e Deayon (calf) returned to the practice squad from the injured list, according to the NFL transaction wire. … The 49ers have won 72 games (including the past three), the Rams 67, and they’ve tied three times in the twice-a-season series that began in 1950.
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Rams running back Cam Akers’ first NFL TD didn’t come easily - OCRegister
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