Another new Ram
Tre MasonClick Here to view this Link. was asked to gain tough yards at Auburn in an offense designed to run the football.
Advertisement
His job won't change in the NFL.
Mason was selected by the run-heavy St. Louis Rams in the third round (75th overall pick) of the NFL Draft Friday night. He was the fifth running back selected, following Bishop Sankey from Washington, Jeremy Hill of LSU, Carlos Hyde of Ohio State and Charles Sims of West Virginia.
Mason will be reunited with former Auburn teammate Greg Robinson, who was selected No. 2 overall.
"Me and Greg are a dynamic duo," Mason said. "We know each others' tendencies and techniques. It will be great to continue on with that."
The Rams a portion of the last four months talking with tailbacks and putting them through the paces at private workouts. They talked with Hill. They talked with Hyde.
Mason? Not at all.
Why would they? Head coach Jeff Fisher's son, Trent, was a backup safety and special teams player on the Plains from 2011-13 and Fisher attended several Auburn games during that stretch. Also, Rams general manager Les Snead played at Auburn, graduated in 1993 and later served as a graduate assistant.
"We approached Tre no different than any other player," Fisher said. "We didn't do a visit; we didn't need to do the visit nor did we need to do the workout. We felt like we knew everything we needed to know about the kid."
Fisher said the Rams viewed Mason as a change-of-pace back who can complement their leading rusher, former Vanderbilt star Zac Stacy, with a slightly different skill set.
"It's releasing out of the backfield, creating one-on-ones on linebackers and defensive backs and winning those things," Fisher explained. "Plus, he's a quick hitter. He's good in space. Screens, those kinds of things."
Fisher later dismissed talk that Mason's wrist injury, one that reportedly will require surgery, was an issue.
That validated what Mason had been saying prior to the draft. The former Auburn tailback said Friday night that he was ready to begin work as soon as possible and has plans on becoming one of the NFL's premium players.
"I try to be unique and do a little bit of everything," Mason said. "I try to be unique. I try to be able to do a little bit of everything. I try to be one of the best players to ever touch a football, so that means I have to be able to block, catch, and run."