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Bulger is likely to miss 2 games
Hopes to recover from injury by Dec. 27
BY STEVE KORTE
skorte@bnd.com
ST. LOUIS - Quarterback Marc Bulger said he's hoping to be back from a bruised throwing shoulder in time for the St. Louis Rams' game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Dec. 27.
That means Bulger would miss two games -- vs. Carolina this Sunday at Bank One Stadium and vs. Arizona next Sunday at Sun Devil Stadium.
"I think we are shooting for Philly now," said Bulger, who will be replaced in the lineup by veteran Chris Chandler. "I just hope I can do some light throwing next Monday or Tuesday."
Bulger didn't rule himself out for the game against the Cardinals, but he said his shoulder was still so sore on Wednesday that he was unable to throw the football.
"I do everything slow," Bulger said, "Real slow, it's fine. Anything where I go across my body is a lot of worse. My throwing motion kind of goes across my body, and that's where I am having a problem. Throwing a ball is about impossible right now."
Bulger suffered a bruise to the tip of his clavicle after being sacked by defensive tackle Bryant Young with 1:40 left in the first quarter of the Rams' 16-6 win over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
Rams coach Mike Martz said he was going to be cautious with Bulger.
"We might have him next week, maybe," Martz said. "We'll see. Like I told him today, it is what it is. You can't wish it well. You have to take it day by day and see how it feels."
Bulger was worried that he might have injured his AC joint as he came off the field on Sunday cradling his right arm against his side.
"I thought it clicked when I went down," Bulger said. "Immediately, that's when I thought about the AC.
As the game was still being played, Bulger was being driven to Barnes Jewish-West Hospital for an MRI on his shoulder.
"They wanted to get a look at it as quickly as they could," Bulger said. "As we were driving out there, I listened to the game on the radio. It was definitely a weird feeling."
The MRI showed no structural damage to Bulger's AC joint.
"It's a relief," Bulger said. "The AC is a lot longer, and an AC can cause problems in the future, too. This heals a lot quicker."
Bulger said he has been forced to sleep on his back all night because of the injury.
"It's been different," Bulger said. "I think I snore a little bit on my back."
Bulger said he was having ice and electrical stimulation treatments on his shoulder. He hadn't received any home remedies from fans.
"I got some cookies from the neighbor, that's about it," Bulger said.
Bulger said he wasn't angry with Rams right tackle Grant Williams for failing to block Young.
"I honestly don't know who gets beat when I get hit during a game," Bulger said. "It's not like they aren't trying. Hopefully, Torry (Holt) wasn't mad at me when I set him up a couple of weeks ago. It goes both ways. That's just football."
Bulger was making a reference to Holt suffering a concussion attempting to catch a pass that Bulger floated over the middle against the Seattle Seahawks on Nov. 11.
Bulger said he thought he'd be able to pick up right where he left off when he returns from the shoulder injury.
"I am staying mentally sharp," Bulger said. "It actually may be a good thing for my arm."
It appears that rookie Jeff Smoker will be the Rams' backup quarterback until Jamie Martin, who was signed on Monday, can get up to speed with the offense.
"I'm very pleased with Jeff Smoker," Martz said. "He's much, much further ahead than I would have anticipated. He has retained a lot more and looks at ease a lot more with what we are doing than I would have thought."
Martin, who previously spent the better portion of five seasons with the Rams, said he didn't think it would take him long to get a good grasp of the Rams' offense.
"I've thrown the ball in this league for 10 years, and I can get reacquainted pretty quick with the speed and all of that stuff," Martin said.
Martin, 34, hasn't thrown been on an NFL roster since being cut by the New York Jets in October, 2003.
Martin, who lives in St. Louis, said he planned to retire if didn't find a job in the NFL by the end of the 2004 season.
"My wife and I were going to wait this year out and see what happens," Martin said. "Then after this year, I'd be done with everything. We stayed in St. Louis and waited for something to happen."
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I hope Chris Chandler can work some old magic and beat the Panthers this weekend . . .
Hopes to recover from injury by Dec. 27
BY STEVE KORTE
skorte@bnd.com
ST. LOUIS - Quarterback Marc Bulger said he's hoping to be back from a bruised throwing shoulder in time for the St. Louis Rams' game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Dec. 27.
That means Bulger would miss two games -- vs. Carolina this Sunday at Bank One Stadium and vs. Arizona next Sunday at Sun Devil Stadium.
"I think we are shooting for Philly now," said Bulger, who will be replaced in the lineup by veteran Chris Chandler. "I just hope I can do some light throwing next Monday or Tuesday."
Bulger didn't rule himself out for the game against the Cardinals, but he said his shoulder was still so sore on Wednesday that he was unable to throw the football.
"I do everything slow," Bulger said, "Real slow, it's fine. Anything where I go across my body is a lot of worse. My throwing motion kind of goes across my body, and that's where I am having a problem. Throwing a ball is about impossible right now."
Bulger suffered a bruise to the tip of his clavicle after being sacked by defensive tackle Bryant Young with 1:40 left in the first quarter of the Rams' 16-6 win over the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
Rams coach Mike Martz said he was going to be cautious with Bulger.
"We might have him next week, maybe," Martz said. "We'll see. Like I told him today, it is what it is. You can't wish it well. You have to take it day by day and see how it feels."
Bulger was worried that he might have injured his AC joint as he came off the field on Sunday cradling his right arm against his side.
"I thought it clicked when I went down," Bulger said. "Immediately, that's when I thought about the AC.
As the game was still being played, Bulger was being driven to Barnes Jewish-West Hospital for an MRI on his shoulder.
"They wanted to get a look at it as quickly as they could," Bulger said. "As we were driving out there, I listened to the game on the radio. It was definitely a weird feeling."
The MRI showed no structural damage to Bulger's AC joint.
"It's a relief," Bulger said. "The AC is a lot longer, and an AC can cause problems in the future, too. This heals a lot quicker."
Bulger said he has been forced to sleep on his back all night because of the injury.
"It's been different," Bulger said. "I think I snore a little bit on my back."
Bulger said he was having ice and electrical stimulation treatments on his shoulder. He hadn't received any home remedies from fans.
"I got some cookies from the neighbor, that's about it," Bulger said.
Bulger said he wasn't angry with Rams right tackle Grant Williams for failing to block Young.
"I honestly don't know who gets beat when I get hit during a game," Bulger said. "It's not like they aren't trying. Hopefully, Torry (Holt) wasn't mad at me when I set him up a couple of weeks ago. It goes both ways. That's just football."
Bulger was making a reference to Holt suffering a concussion attempting to catch a pass that Bulger floated over the middle against the Seattle Seahawks on Nov. 11.
Bulger said he thought he'd be able to pick up right where he left off when he returns from the shoulder injury.
"I am staying mentally sharp," Bulger said. "It actually may be a good thing for my arm."
It appears that rookie Jeff Smoker will be the Rams' backup quarterback until Jamie Martin, who was signed on Monday, can get up to speed with the offense.
"I'm very pleased with Jeff Smoker," Martz said. "He's much, much further ahead than I would have anticipated. He has retained a lot more and looks at ease a lot more with what we are doing than I would have thought."
Martin, who previously spent the better portion of five seasons with the Rams, said he didn't think it would take him long to get a good grasp of the Rams' offense.
"I've thrown the ball in this league for 10 years, and I can get reacquainted pretty quick with the speed and all of that stuff," Martin said.
Martin, 34, hasn't thrown been on an NFL roster since being cut by the New York Jets in October, 2003.
Martin, who lives in St. Louis, said he planned to retire if didn't find a job in the NFL by the end of the 2004 season.
"My wife and I were going to wait this year out and see what happens," Martin said. "Then after this year, I'd be done with everything. We stayed in St. Louis and waited for something to happen."
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I hope Chris Chandler can work some old magic and beat the Panthers this weekend . . .
