With three days of practice in the books, these stories are making news at Rams training camp.

$50 million man: DE Chris Long’s four-year contract extension is worth nearly $50 million, including about $27 million guaranteed, league sources told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The new deal will keep Long in St. Louis through 2016. He has increased his sack total in each of his four seasons, including 13 last year. Imagine what Long could do playing for a team that often has the lead...

Most impressive rookie: CB Janoris Jenkins has first-round talent but fell to the second round due to off-field situations. Through three days of camp, he’s practicing with the starters and playing like one. "He is a young guy who is coming in with a lot of confidence. He has come in and made a lot of plays already,” safety Quintin Mikell told ESPN.com. “I can see it coming. He's going to have a good year. They're going to test him and he might have a little bit of struggles here or there, but he has a lot of confidence and is a guy who can make plays."

Highs and lows: The Rams’ unproven receiving corps has made a slew of spectacular catches but also dropped several balls. On Tuesday, rookie Brian Quick had one of each. Fellow rookie Chris Givens and Greg Salas made eye-popping grabs, while TE Lance Kendricks dropped a pair of catchable passes. It was an ugly reminder of Kendricks’ rookie season.

On the sideline: RB Daryl Richardson (leg), WR Danario Alexander (hamstring) and C Tim Barnes (calf) did not practice Tuesday. CBs Josh Gordy and Kendric Burney, both dealing with hamstring tightness, also did not participate. G Rokevious Watkins continues to work on his conditioning. Listed at 6-3, 338, the rookie has done some drills but has not lined up with the offense yet for a scrimmage play. "Throughout college, my weight fluctuated," Watkins said. "I had problems with conditioning, but that's something I'm putting in the past. I'm going to work through it and get to where I need to be."

Best position battle: Craig Dahl and Darian Stewart are taking turns with the first-team defense at free safety. (Mikell is locked in at strong safety). Stewart made 84 tackles, forced two fumbles and returned an interception for a touchdown in the 31-21 upset over the Saints last year. Dahl made 61 tackles, forced three fumbles and also picked off one pass.

What’s next: The Rams hold a special teams practice at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, then the full team puts on pads for the first time Thursday.

Get more Rams updates and analysis from Larry Hartstein @CBSSportsNFLSTL.