Rams safety shows mature side in second NFL season

MACOMB, Ill.

Unlike many of his teammates, St. Louis Rams safety Adam Archuleta didn't fortify himself with diversionary toys like video games or remote control cars before heading to the team's remote training camp site.

Archuleta, entering his second season in the NFL, likes it dull when he's not thinking football. So forget the PlayStation2.

"I want to be as bored as possible, so I can go to sleep," Archuleta said. "Otherwise I'll be up all night. It's kind of addictive."

His favorite thing to do in Macomb: "Sleep."

"I don't know anything about any place around town," Archuleta said. "Last year I didn't get out at all. It was just straight sleep. I don't really have time for all that other stuff."

Archuleta, the 20th overall pick of last year's draft, isn't really a stick in the mud. He subscribes to an innovative training method in which athletes test themselves with rapid reaction, spending 2 1/2 hours in the gym daily during the offseason.

"We just go out and train hard, really, is what it comes down to, a lot of absorbing weights, absorbing force, generating speed," he said. "Everything is built on that explosiveness and getting that power."

During his off-time, he likes to ride on his wake board, which essentially is a snowboard on water and is a dangerous pastime, on a lake about 40 minutes outside his Arizona home.

"I'm working on a second career, maybe an extreme sport," Archuleta said. "I'm not a pro, but we're getting some skills.

"We have to tone it down a little bit because you can get hurt, so we don't get crazy."

And on the field, Archuleta doesn't mind mixing it up. He spent a night in a hospital last season after sustaining his second concussion in three weeks caused by leading with his head too much.

Archuleta has since altered his tackling style to maximize his career potential.

"I just have to be smarter and not let my pride get in the way of my performance," Archuleta said. "If you're a guy who likes to put his head in there, it's tough to change. But longevity is the key."

Archuleta reported to camp feeling a lot more secure. Last year, he said, he was a typical nervous rookie, plus he was making a position switch from linebacker to safety.

"I wasn't real confident in myself and my abilities, and I didn't know what I was going to bring to the table," Archuleta said. "Now I can concentrate on my game. This year, now that I have a taste, it's going to be a lot different camp."

Martz doesn't think the difference is drastic at all.

"I thought he was fine last year and I think he's doing better this year," Martz said. "He's more familiar with what we're doing, so things happen faster for him, though."

Befitting his status as a veteran now, Archuleta has a mature attitude about the Rams' Super Bowl upset loss to the Patriots.

"You have to deal with it," he said. "You're going to lose some games, and we just happened to lose the biggest one. Right now, that's the last thing we need to worry about."

He doesn't buy into the notion that the Rams should be chomping at the bit to erase the memory of that setback, either.

"Just being a competitor, you should always be hungry," Archuleta said. "If we would have won, I don't know if it would have said much about us to be more hungry or less hungry."