Rams Training Camp News & Notes, Matthew Stafford Back at Practice, Texans Joint Practice Takeaways

we got tons of Juicy news and nuggets from the Rams joint practice session with the Texans that's coming up next on locked on [Music] Rams you are locked on Rams your daily Los Angeles Rams podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day what is up ramley and welcome to another episode of lockdown Rams your daily podcast covering your Los Angeles Rams free and available wherever get your podcast locked on Rams part of locked on podcast Network your team every day we're also available over on YouTube so if you haven't yet do us a huge favor hit that subscribe button hit that notification Bell hit that like button and let us know what do you think is the biggest X Factor for the Rams to make the playoffs this season my name is Doug McCain friends call me dmac you can follow me on X and Instagram at dmac corla I've been covering LA Sports for over a decade 247 Sports bleach report SI Dodgers Nation the Rams for locked on and as always I'm joined by the Rams prehab and postgame show host for the Rams flagship radio station ESPN 710 La he's entering his ninth season covering your Los Angeles Rams the people's champ Mr Travis Rogers you can follow him on X at Travis Rogers and on today's episode we've got some juicy nuggets from the Rams Texans joint practice session the Athletics Jordan rodri has some very interesting things to report before we're going to dive into everything that we are hearing from the Rams final joint practice session but first today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel now through September 22nd all FanDuel customers can bet $5 and get a three-week free trial of NFL Sunday Ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV visit fanduel.com lockon to get started okay Travis so we are Jared Goff Danny amandola Bryce Perkins days away from opening kickoff and yesterday the Rams and the Texans they had a joint practice session and the best takeaway for me was one you had Mr Matthew Stafford back at practice and there was a Little Love Fest between him and CJ strad CJ strad said he asked him a lot of questions and the offseason strout has been definitely shining up Matthew Stafford talking about how underrated he is how he has one of the best arms and how he's a guy that he watched growing up but really the big takeaway for me is that Stafford in the 11 on 11 reps he had a little rogue keeper and with that keeper the the staff must have freaked out a little bit but the fact that going on that keeper lets you know that hamstring is fine well yeah still think about what we we've seen from Matthew Stafford and some of these joint practices we saw the Rogue keeper and we saw the deflected pass that he went and caught from himself and nearly got himself killed in the process like I get it I I get that he's a competitive guy and that he's been around a long time and he wants to do but let's let's have a little bit of a self-preservation kick in at at some point for sure but yeah that he was out there that uh he was able to do what he's able to do and and he got out of there one piece that's all very good news that's these are the last really you know quasi live reps that he's gonna have before we get to uh whatever's coming up in Detroit so that's all really good news I I'm glad you brought up the the part about him and CJ strad kind of having a a moment together because I've always been struck by that that CJ strout obviously is on the other side of the draw right he's an AFC player and I don't think the Tex the Texans surprised everybody last year I wouldn't be surprised if the Texans won the AFC South but there there's very very limited situations where stoud and Stafford are going to compete against one another right they don't that that that opportunity of the Texans and the Rams playing for the the whole thing is pretty long odds but I always I always have that moment of really want to share any secrets with these guys you never know where he's going to go next you never know where you're going to go next and I I just I I I get it I like that they have a mutual admiration I like that they're willing to kind of collaborate on on what they see as quarterbacks I like that strad holds Stafford in high regard but I don't know maybe it's just me being a paranoid old man but I would always be a little reluctant to give away too much like hey what do you do here like yeah that's up to you to figure it out bro I I'm not I can't help you with that I I had to learn it you gotta go learn it yeah absolutely CJ Stroud sound like like Doug McCain talking about Travis Rogers okay went you're Fanboy on him he says just how he manipulates guys with his eyes his drops his arm angles I've been a fan of Matthew sta for a long time I wasn't trying to be a fanboy today but I asked him a lot of questions I tried to just learn and he was just really honest with me and wasn't mean which I appreciate so I'm definitely a huge fan of his definitely one of my favorite quarterbacks of all time I feel like sharing a fi with him was dope and then Matthew Stafford said it's humbling I remember being in their shoes thinking the same thing about Brett Favre and Pa Manning when I got to go against those guys at the beginning of the year I'm not putting myself in that same breath but the other guys it was really a cool experience I'll never forget playing with Brett and when he was in Minnesota I was in Detroit and he came up to me and he was like hey man I'm a big fan I'm like you can't say that to me right I'm a fan of you I've been watching you play forever so it's cool to see the generations and definitely Matthew Stafford being where he is and just kind of embracing that side of it so like I said I think you only do this with a select few guys I mean do it with every single person but I think CJ strad the rookie year that he had I think Stafford definitely certainly respects that I I I do too and strad proved himself to be a really good player right out of the gate he seems to take it really like I I'm a CJ strad fan too but I I like what you said about you know the the quote he's talking about with Brett Favre and PT Manning and him saying you know I'm not I don't put myself in the category with those guys probably not pton Manning because pton Manning's on the short list of of greatest guys to have ever done this but I don't know if he's any different than Brett Favre you know we're talking about one Super Bowl championship you're talking about a guy with a big arm you're talking about a guy that has been you know the the the one of the best in the business for a very long time and this is why I'm so bullish on Stafford this year this is why I'm so bullish on the Rams this year Matthew Stafford is right on the cusp of just being universally accepted as one of the greats of his generation I don't know because he was on the Lions for so long and because the Lions weren't very good for the vast majority of the time he was there I think we tend to downgrade his accomplishments just a little bit whereas one more good run through the playoffs you know even if it's not a Super Bowl appearance or certainly a Super Bowl championship but another appearance in the NFC championship game where all of a sudden said there's Stafford again I really think could Elevate his entire career make that I know you've been talking about this a lot make that case for the Hall of Fame make that case to that aren't just pure counting stats I know those are important but those tend to get pushed further and further down because the game changes the way that it does playoff appearances playoff runs moments in the playoffs I think are what could really Elevate him into that category of faves Mannings those guys that are the greats of their generation one more good run for the playoffs uh for Matthew Stafford and obviously by association with the Rams could really change his legacy in a dramatic way and and I hope it happens for him not just because I'm a Rams fan but because I think he deserves it because I think that he's put himself in a position to do those things but it's got to happen one more time like you know we know this playoff history in Detroit it was pretty limited we know the great run to the Super Bowl championship we know that last year was kind of a a bonus surprise that they got in but this is a year with expectations this is a year where they got a good team this is a year where they can make a little bit of a run and I think it would be a great way to maybe not end his career but be another great chapter in his career absolutely I agree with you 100% I'm always trying to make the case for Matthew staff from the Hall of Fame he's one of those guys where you look at the accolades yes the counting stats are there definitely in the mix for yards and touchdown passes but when you look at the all Pros when you look at the pro Bowls two pro bowls no all Pros typically Hall of Famers are sitting at at the very least on average Seven Pro bowls and three all Pros so yeah absolutely it doesn't tell the whole story about just how good he has been throughout his career I think a lot of that is was his lack of Team success on the Detroit Lines but yeah for the lockon NFC West preview show got a shout out to my guys Brian peacock and and Clancy they were giving me some because any shout outs he doesn't need any clc's the man he went back and forth man he can go back and forth man I respect to him but they were you know they were looking was Mr bias you know who is my division pick I was like Rams who's the MVP Stafford right I was very I was definitely wearing my my Rams color glasses during that NFC preview but it's because I truly me it I mean I really do think that Matthew Stafford with a a better running game I mean couple years ago Rams 25th 22nd in Run game last year they go up to seventh in the league so he's going to benefit from that you got puka n emerging I think Cooper cup just quietly is on a mission on a mission to prove that he's still one of the best receivers in the sport Demarcus Robinson then Kobe Parkinson as a red zone threat and the offensive line where they're sitting at right now everything is set up for Matthew Stafford to have an elite season and I think that yes we saw 41 touchdowns in 2021 when he wented to win the Super Bowl we also saw 17 interceptions I think you're going to see less touchdowns from Stafford this year but also less interceptions that we saw in 2021 I think this is going to be his best complete season as a ram barring his health of course so we always have to use that as a caveat but a big Maddy Stafford year I'm all about it big Stafford House here but coming up next we're giving out more nuggets from the Rams join practice with the Texans that's coming up next on locked on Rams this episode of Locked on Rams is sponsored by better help so what are the things you do to take care of yourself right those self-care things that you make sure that you take 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by better and this is where therapy can help and better try or better help is a great way to try it so never skip therapy day with betterhelp visit betterhelp.com locked on today to get 10% off your first month that's better help hp.com lockon and welcome back to lockon Rams thank you for making lockon Rams your first listen every single weekday free and available rev your podcast locked on Rams part of locked on podcast Network your team every day also a special shout out to those everyday listeners out there watching and listening to every single episode of lockon rams can't tell you how much we appreciate you and the season is almost here and you want to join that five episodes of week Club definitely listen to five episodes a week on the pod on the YouTube channel hit us up on the YouTube in the comment section as well because we want to include those comments on the show so definitely be sure locked on but here Travis in our second segment pick up on the joint practice with the Texans and it does feel like it was a very very successful practice they got a lot of things in they had the ones going against the ones the twos going against the twoos Matthew Stafford talked about how talented that that Texans defense is but one area I think is still pretty interesting is the running back spot and Boston Scott he's been dealing with a lower leg contusion he's going to play Saturday but the Rams did sign a second-year running back and S rodric Thompson on Thursday morning so the first three running backs they're a lock on the 53 man roster you got Kiren Williams you got Blake km you got Ronnie Rivers those the one two three spots I still think Boston Scott C is going to be that number four guy you saw the big nice 34 yard run he had to ice the game yep against the Cowboys and he's has the ability to contribute on special teams but he basically got a camb body in sadr Drake Thompson yeah yeah look if you're playing in the third preseason game I don't think that's a great sign do do I think he's going to make the team yeah probably but I mean you we we know how Shawn McVey treats the preseason we know how little value he puts in the games that are played in the preseason and that's the first that includes the first two the third one every team this is just kind of a yeah just throw it out there and see what happen let's just get off the field and get home and get ready for opening day uh that you're in that game I cannot imagine that that makes you feel great about the spot that you are uh in the team uh going back to what you said before about you know all the things that they got done at the Joint PR keeping mind the these are where the Rams get most of their work done in these joint workouts the the the workout against the Cowboys I guess the two workouts against the Cowboys The Joint practice with the Chargers The Joint workouts with the Houston those are where guys are making decisions that's where guys like you just said ones against ones that M this is that's the only quasi live action that Matthew Stafford and all these real you know starting players are going to see so I what happens tomorrow morning on Saturday morning against the Texans is really unimportant relative to what we see in these joint workouts absolutely I think really if I had to take one thing from those joint workouts other than Matthew Stafford being back and being healthy and me being able to sleep soundly for the first time in a while last night is what happened on the offensive line and it's very interesting how they're using Bo limmer now Bo limmer he's been getting a line share the snaps at the center spot and the reason for that is if Jonah Jackson can't come back healthy is there best combination Bo limmer at Center and Steve Avala back in guard temporarily or do you have Steve Avala at Center and then Zach Thomas at the left guard position and not going to take a victory La here but did say that Bo limmer was maybe going to be this year's puka AA for the Rams as far as a late round pick that was going to emerge it's not the star the puka is GNA be for sure but Shawn McVey is speaking extremely highly of him he said I like the command I like the communication what is he a reliever but I think you see a lot of the physical traits where he can come out of his hips and get more removal I think he's getting more and more comfortable in the protection element B has made some really good strides and I think that's a credit to the guys around him but also Ryan Wendell and Zach chromer so definitely it feels like they're leaning towards a Bo limmer at Center and Steve Avala at guard combination if Jonah Jackson isn't ready to go against the Lions in week one maybe limur is the Rams equivalent of Alex vesia one of those guys that you really don't plan on all that much it's like hey This Guy's super important we actually we're going to really need to lean on this guy he gets a lot of guys out or in Li's case he could play uh you know an important role to to get you to whenever Jonah Jackson comes back obviously abala the plan is to play him at Center uh Jonah Jackson was and I think Shawn mcve if I remember the quote correctly was he's going to start working back in and getting closer so I don't think this is something that they're going to have to deal with long term but again I I I think all of these pieces fit together ultimately which is offensive line the number one thing is can you protect your quarterback and in particular can you protect your quarterback for the first two weeks because of the backup quarterback situation that the Rams find themselves in so I don't know if completely shuffling everything is the right idea to where all right we're going to take our Center and put him at left guard we're going to take a backup and put him uh in the in the center position so now we're maybe a little bit less at two spots not that Steve AA couldn't go back to left guard and Thrive but he's been working as a center so a little bit of a change I would think that the easier solution is probably just leave aalo where he is and and go to your backup at left guard uh in Thomas but that there are options and that limmer has forced him to consider options I think is ultimately a good sign and it speaks to their depth moving forward yeah and I'm of the opinion that if you truly believe that Center is the best spot for Steve Avala as far as his ceiling goes he has the potential to be a multi-time bow or All Pro level Center well then you start that process you stick with that process and it's really one of the big questions that we need to have answered is when are we going to see this offensive line at full strength and how long are these guys going to have to build that chemistry and cohesion because those are the big offseason moves you resigned Kevin doson Jonah Jackson was the big offseason acquisition it almost feels like an acquisition with Steve aala if you're putting him in a spot where you can have more success at Center when he was already a really good guard as a rookie so it almost feels like we have three new potentially topend offensive linemen and then there's injuries to other key guys along that line too I mean if you look at the right Tackle Spot War McLendon he's still playing right tackle with Rob havenstein dealing with an ankle injury Joe noboom is still playing left tackle with Aller Jackson dealing with ankle injury and our guy Logan bruss yeah he's getting a lot of snaps as the reserve guard so we'll see what happens by the way see Creed Humphrey he did sign a nice extension there not gonna not to do the simps thing not gonna do the Simpson M where St the line St the line say say why did you drive Creed om not gonna do it but nice to see him having a good career but I mean yeah it it look they have options they have some depth that that I still believe that havenstein and both Jacksons will be back and healthy relatively quickly uh but like you said all the players that you just went through uh they feels like there are some solutions or at least problem solving uh temporarily in some of these spots I don't know if this is what we saw a few years ago where they just started dropping left and right and you were not ready to do it I think that they do have some uh some possible depth that maybe we didn't consider at the beginning of the Season uh but that being said you got to get your ones out there as quickly as possible and you know I it's the NFL guys get hurt guys go down you hope you're on the right side of it you're a little more UNL or lucky than unlucky and and and so far I think the Rams have been pretty lucky as far as their depth being up to the task no doubt about it and it's going to be one of the biggest reasons why this team either has a lot of success or has an underwhelming season is the offense lineing clearly things are trending in the right direction but it's good to see like you said they have hit on some depth pieces and that's key for shirts as well but coming up next some more nuggets from the Rams joint practice with the Texans that's coming up next on lock on Rams when you're hiring for your small business you want to find quality professionals that are right for the role not just anybody the right somebody right Professionals for the right role that's why you've got to check out LinkedIn jobs LinkedIn jobs has the tools to help you find the right Professionals for your team faster and for free and Linkedin is not just another job board what LinkedIn does is it helps you hire professionals that you're not going to find anywhere else even those who aren't actively searching for a new job but might be open to the perfect role which might be the one that you have in a given month over 70% of users don't visit other leading job sites so if you're not looking on LinkedIn you're looking in the wrong place and on LinkedIn 86% of small businesses get a qualified candidate within 24 hours hire professionals like a professional unlinked in post your job for free at linkedin.com lockon NFL that's LinkedIn in.com lockon NFL to post your job for free terms and conditions apply welcome back to lockdown Rams thank you for making lockdown Rams your first listen every single weekday free and available revor podcast lockon Rams part of locked on podcast Network your team every day all right Travis so feels like we're just at this joint practice session at this point everything we're kind of breaking down with it but this next part I found extremely interesting so panua he's still out dealing with the knee injury McVey he's been rotating Tyler Johnson Xavier Smith and Jordan Winnington into the role that n plays for this offense and Whittington who was a running back in high school and he played a lot of running back was a f-star recruit the a lot of the reports have him being possibly used in a run game as a little wrinkle there so I found that pretty interesting as well and he's also getting a lot of blocking reps too you know what's funny like sea McVey obviously has a incredibly Sharp offensive mind the Rams have never really struggled to to score points or move the ball and and there there's no real valid criticism maybe other than can we run the ball a little bit more inside the 10 yard line of the way that Shawn mcy runs his offense so I I I say what I'm about to say with the understanding that he knows what he's doing and knows what he's doing probably to agree better than just about anybody else that's doing it in the NFL maybe save Andy Reid Kyle Shanahan they throw him in a hat take out get what you want the ram don't have a lot of gimmicks a lot of gadgets a lot of weird things that you do say okay I've never seen that before Jordan Whittington in the running games kind of an interesting thought right just I I know we've seen some jet sweeps here and there with guys like tutu going back to you know some other guys that but I wouldn't hate seeing just a little bit of oh whoa I've never seen that from a Rams offense and whether it's Whittington or any of the other guys that maybe you do I don't want to do it with cuff I don't want to do it with you know puka and and the guys that I need to go down the field to make some plays but having a little bit of a change up in your bag is something that I wouldn't hate to see from that Rams offense yeah absolutely I mean I think that also too just increases his value on this team is the versatility what he can do on special teams it just feels like he's a guy that's tough to deny this season and he's forcing his way on the field in some capacity so really excited for Whittington and what he can bring to this Rams offense and now as far as the two-minute offense it's one of the Rams best periods because they were going run heavy on the 11 on 11s and there was some frustration there so Matthew Stafford and Cooper cup they got together and they say you know what forget this and Cub ran one of his signature routes they get a touchdown off of that 2 two Atwell did drop two wouldbe touchdowns from Jimmy garoo in the Red Zone both were very well thrown balls precisely thrown balls and Atwell did a good job to get past the coverage there but wasn't able to secure those catches and then in the the two-minute drills they did a really nice job that was really the highlight of the afternoon for that Rams offense you had big gers with Demarcus Robinson Tyler Johnson Cooper cup and you had a they a spot where they were just getting a lot of work in there and with the touchdowns on 34 yards so yeah I definitely think that all in all those are the highlights right there as far as Winnington as a running back Demarcus Robinson Cooper cup looked really good but two two Atwell dropping two touchdowns from Jimmy Garoppolo definitely probably a low light so yeah it yeah for sure you drop a couple of touchdown passes that but again I as the president of the I've never bought the two two thing to begin with I'm just going to kind of put that in the column and shrug my shoulders and say yeah whatever um let's talk about the fact that Jimmy G put it on the spot a couple of times you know that I think that's because Tut two Atwell is not gonna be the guy he's throwing that pass to right if Jimmy G finds himself in a game he's G to be throwing it to pukan niua he's going to be throwing it to Cooper cup he's going to be throwing it to Demarcus Robinson and that he's finding the guy that he's able to put the ball in the basket that he's able to put the ball in the money that's a really good sign because Atwell is not going to be the guy that he's throwing that ball to he's going to be throwing it to the guys that do make plays that do catch the ball so I I'll take that as a net positive for the Rams in the event that Matthew Stafford you know misses some time here or there that Jimmy G is sharp that's good news for the Rams for sure absolutely and he did make up for it later he did have a big touchdown where he was really physical and in the Red Zone but definitely a little bit disappointed to see him drop what was a a dime by Jimmy Garoppolo for sure but yeah I mean good to see CJ strad meet his Idol thought that was very awesome I will say when it comes to Matthew Stafford in the words of Don Corleone never tell anybody outside the family business what you're thinking right I'm a reasonable man I'm gonna make him an offer can't so yeah definitely keep those secrets to yourself I don't want to see the text later remember when when when Kobe con Reggie Miller to give you all those secrets and they met in the finals Hope You Don't See anything like that exactly exactly look here's the best news of all we're done we got football we got we got to get through one game tomorrow morning Saturday morning against the Texans we're going to come back next week we're g to knock it out and then we're talking about the Detroit Lions a game that matters we're going to see the ones against the ones we'll see what that depth chart looks like we'll know what the offensive line health is but we got to get through one more meaningless preseason game before we can get into the next four months of real NF football and I can't wait oh yeah I mean you are not going to see any meaningful impact players in this last preseason game because it's sha McVey and then that roster Grim Reaper is coming Sunday Monday Tuesday you got to trim that roster from 90 to 53 by 100 pm on August 27th so yeah it's getting real kickoff is happening we're Jared goway days from opening night in Detroit but that's going do for this episode locked on Rams my name is Doug McCain you can follow me on xit Instagram at dmac corla and you can follow the peoples chat Mr Travis Rogers Travis Rogers until next time whose house it's lock on Rams house