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The St. Louis Rams cut their losses with troubled running back Lawrence Phillips on Thursday, waiving last year’s first-round pick.
The move came a day after Phillips skipped a team meeting and practice. Phillips went AWOL after an early-morning conversation with coach Dick Vermeil, who told him he planned to start Jerald Moore ahead of him Sunday against the Carolina Panthers.
An emotional Vermeil choked up at the end of a news conference at which he predicted Phillips would someday be a Pro Bowl player.
Team sources said Phillips’ problem was alcohol-related. He was arrested for drunken driving last year in California. Vermeil has refused to discuss the subject other than to say Phillips’ biggest problem was a lack of maturity.
