Tinoisamoa questionable, Pace doubtful for Sunday

ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis Rams linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa sounded a lot more confident than his coach about his chances of playing with a dislocated elbow.

Tinoisamoa was listed as questionable for Sunday's game at Arizona, although after practicing on Wednesday he said there was no doubt he would be able to play wearing a brace.

"It's not going to hold me down," Tinoisamoa said. "I'm going to be there Sunday. We're going to take precautions, but it feels good."

The outlook on offensive tackle Orlando Pace, who sustained a concussion in last week's loss at San Francisco, was more pessimistic.

The seven-time Pro Bowl tackle was doubtful and is scheduled for a medical evaluation today.

"I asked him how he felt and he said he felt a lot better," coach Scott Linehan said. "I think that has to be a good thing, that he feels better."

Pace won't work out until Friday at the earliest. Linehan said there will be no rush to get Pace back on the field.

If Pace doesn't play, the Rams will go with the patchwork offensive line that finished Sunday's loss to the 49ers. Todd Steussie moved from left guard to left tackle, Pace's position, and Adam Goldberg took over at that guard spot.

Richie Incognito made his first career start at center -- and his first time overall since his freshman year in college -- after Andy McCollum sustained a season-ending knee injury in the opening game.

Linehan said there has been no thought of moving right tackle Alex Barron, who played left tackle in college and was the team's first-round pick last year, over to the left side. Linehan said he preferred to keep the juggling to a minimum.

"We've had to move enough," Linehan said. "We're trying to keep things as stable as we can."

Linehan was circumspect at first about Tinoisamoa's condition, saying only that his elbow is "getting better" and that he had some limited work on Wednesday. Told of Tinoisamoa's confidence, Linehan said that was "standard" for the linebacker.

"That's just the way he thinks, and that's why he has a good chance to play this weekend," Linehan said.