Injured guard still has not undergone surgery

~ Terrell was supposed to have had a second operation on his wrist.

ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Rams placed offensive guard Claude Terrell on injured reserve in late August with the understanding he would soon undergo a second operation to correct a wrist injury.

Nearly four months later, the Rams are still waiting for Terrell to undergo surgery -- and they're not happy about it.

Coach Scott Linehan said Wednesday he asked Terrell, a fourth-round pick in 2005 who made 10 starts as a rookie, to report to Rams Park to get the ball rolling on a procedure that is expected to require a rehabilitation period of three to four months. Terrell has been rehabbing in Texas, his home state.

Rams medical personnel, not feeling rest will cure the problem, have recommended Terrell undergo a second surgery. Terrell had not reported by late Wednesday afternoon, and the team was attempting to contact him for comment.

"You can't make a person have the surgery, and he just opted not to," Linehan said. "Now he's in the same spot he was in when we originally wanted him to get it done.

"We're hopefully going to push those buttons and get it done."

Under normal circumstances, the Rams would have pushed those buttons before now. Linehan said 95 percent of the time injured players stay with the team, and indeed the likes of Orlando Pace, Andy McCollum and Tony Fisher have not made themselves scarce.

As for Terrell, Linehan wanted him out of the locker room.

"In this case, Claude was not in the frame of mind that I felt was going to be healthy for the locker room, so I OK'd it for him to go down to Texas.

"There was a discontent as to whether the procedure was the right thing to do."

On the day Terrell was placed on injured reserve, putting him out for the season, he indicated a doctor in Texas would perform a second operation. Contact with the team has been minimal since then.

"Of course you lose a little bit of that hands-on, and a certain amount of trust that has to be involved in somebody doing what they say they're going to do," Linehan said. "Hopefully we can get him back here and get it done here."

Terrell lost his starting left guard spot to Richie Incognito before training camp, and the impasse likely has endangered his future with the team. The Rams have auditioned several young players on the offensive line this season due to injuries, and the new coaching staff has seen little of Terrell on the field.

"I think it puts him way behind," Linehan said. "It's certainly something you don't recommend.

"I think our medical staff did a great job of spelling out the alternatives, and it wasn't sufficient."

Noteworthy

• Defensive end Victor Adeyanju, who has tried unsuccessfully to return from a broken right forearm the last two weeks, has a better shot to play this week although he remains questionable. "We'll make a decision by Friday, but it looks pretty encouraging that he'll be up this week," Linehan said.
• Punter Matt Turk has been named NFC special teams player of the week after averaging 49.8 yards on five attempts and running 16 yards for a first down on a fake in the fourth quarter.