ST. LOUIS -- Offensive lineman Adam Goldberg agreed to a contract with the St. Louis Rams on Friday night and he was on the practice field the next afternoon.
"It was miserable," said Goldberg, the Rams' player representative during the NFL lockout. "It was really an enjoyable time when you're checking your phone every two minutes."
The Rams are happy to have him.
"It's great to have Adam Goldberg back," coach Steve Spagnuolo said.
Goldberg, 31, started all 16 games last season and 14 of 16 two years ago. Goldberg's versatility is his strong suit as he can play both tackle and guard and could work at center if necessary.
"There's a safety blanket there," Spagnuolo said. "He's a class guy and a pro and we're glad we've gotten him back."
The Rams will hold an open scrimmage during training camp Sunday at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo. The scrimmage, which will last approximately two hours, will take place at the 6,000-seat Harlen C. Hunter Stadium on the campus.
"We are excited to once again utilize Lindenwood's outstanding facility for our scrimmage," Spagnuolo said. "We've had great experiences at Lindenwood each of the last two summers and it will be another tremendous opportunity for us to connect with our fans in the St. Louis metro area."
The Rams will simulate a normal game-day warmup and then do a 10-minute walkthrough. There will be a live scrimmage of about 16 plays and then situations like having the players execute on third down and in the red zone.
"We're looking for execution," Spagnuolo said. "We want to keep everyone healthy."
Goldberg said he is looking forward to jumping into the scrimmage.
"I'm in shape. Round is a shape," Goldberg quipped. "Football is football. I was able to participate today. I'm looking forward to some live football. It's been a while.
"It should be old hat by tomorrow."
The Rams signed guard Harvey Dahl before training camp. Will Goldberg adjust to returning to the backup role?
"Everybody wants to be a starter," Goldberg said. "There's constant competition in this league. I welcome that competition. If any player out here says they're striving to be a backup, they're lying to you. Everyone wants to be a guy their team relies on on every play. Whatever role I'm put in, I'll do to the best of my ability to make sure this team can put up points."
The players got a treat about 90 minutes into the practice when it was break time. A van came driving to the practice field with a bell clanging. It had Popsicles for the players who were toiling on a muggy, mid-90s day.
Who was first to the truck?
"I got to throw my boy Jason Brown under the proverbial bus, or ice cream truck, if you will," Goldberg laughed. "He was the first one out there. I was proud of him for that. I've never seen him move that fast."
Spagnuolo said he was expecting a "real" ice cream truck.
"I was expecting one where you open the windows and everything," Spagnuolo said. "This one was a little better. Last year, we brought them in in boxes. We've progressed a little bit."
Notes: CB Jerome Murphy fractured his ankle Friday. Spagnuolo said he will have surgery next week and likely will be lost for the year. ... WR Dominique Curry had surgery Saturday to fix his fractured hand. His return is not known. ... WR Donnie Avery (hamstring) and WR Danario Alexander (knee) did not practice. ... FB Brit Miller came off the physically-unable-to-perform list and practiced. ... The Rams signed T Quinn Ojinnaka, a New England free agent, to a contract.
Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press
