A breakout for Whittington? Secondary a strength?
The Los Angeles Rams kicked off training camp with their first practice on Wednesday, going four straight days on the field before getting a break on Sunday. Practices have varied in length and intensity, but the team is making progress as the season approaches.
The Rams are scheduled to wrap up camp on Sunday, Aug. 3, so they’ve got one more full week of practice at Loyola Marymount University before heading back to Woodland Hills. After four productive days of camp, we’ve already learned a lot about this team.
Here are eight takeaways from the first week of practice.
Matthew Stafford’s back injury is creating cause for concern
Stafford missed the first four practices of camp, which wasn’t ideal but also not the end of the world. He’s accumulated a lot of experience, as Sean McVay always says, so he doesn’t need as much work as other players.
However, when McVay said after Saturday’s practice that the Rams are now taking it a “week at a time” with their quarterback, that set off some alarms. Stafford will no longer return to practice on Monday as initially expected, and he’s not expected to practice at all this week.
McVay doesn’t sound overly concerned, but he also downplayed Stafford’s elbow injury two years ago until after the season he said, “people forget what a big deal that was.”
Are we headed down the same path with Stafford this year where he barely participates in practice before the season and battles through discomfort all season? We haven’t quite reached that point yet, but the combination of a 37-year-old quarterback and back pain is at least a little worrisome.
Jordan Whittington is standing out
Everyone is pointing to Tutu Atwell as a potential breakout candidate thanks to the departures of Cooper Kupp and Demarcus Robinson, but Jordan Whittington could be poised for a similar emergence.
The second-year receiver worked hard this offseason, as he always does, and was regularly in the gym with Kupp, Puka Nacua, Tyler Higbee and others. He’s an impressive young player who didn’t get many opportunities as a rookie last season but always capitalized on them with strong performances each time.
This summer, Whittington has shown to be a playmaker in camp and may push for significant playing time on offense.
“I’ve been super impressed with him,” McVay said of Whittington on Saturday. “He’s done such a great job. You look at a guy that came in and was mature beyond his years as a rookie last year. He’s got the ability to play all three spots. He can really compete in the run game and I think he’s really continuing to increase his route volume. He’s played really well. He’s strong. He’s so conscientious. He’s just one of those guys that you don’t bet against. He’s a good football player. You can’t have enough guys like that. We love J-Whitt.”
Stetson Bennett is taking advantage of his opportunities
The good news with Stafford being out is that Bennett has gotten more opportunities than he ordinarily would have. He’s been working with the second-team offense and by all accounts, he’s looked improved from last year.
Clips from practice show a confident thrower who’s looked comfortable in the pocket and also used his mobility to escape trouble. Offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur loves what he’s seen from Bennett so far, sharing this answer when asked how far the young quarterback has come from last season.
“I almost don’t want to tell you. I almost want you to see it for yourself,” he said. “I’m so happy for him. I know I’m speaking volumes about all these guys, but it’s how I really feel. He’s in such a good place mentally. When you are in such a good place mentally, you can now allow your physical abilities to take hold.”
He hasn’t locked up a roster spot yet but if he plays well in the preseason, he could land on the 53-man roster – especially if Stafford’s back injury lingers.
Nate Landman has emerged as the leader at inside linebacker
Before camp began, it looked like a four-horse race at inside linebacker with Landman, Omar Speights, Chris Paul Jr. and Troy Reeder. After one week of practice, it’s clear Landman has emerged as the frontrunner in that group.
He was wearing the green dot in Friday’s jog-through and has been working with the first-team defense, relaying calls from Chris Shula to his teammates on the field. Sean McVay couldn’t be more impressed by the Rams’ offseason addition, saying he’s “done a great job leading the way for that group.”
“He’s been awesome. He’s a great communicator,” McVay said. “He’s got great command. He’s got the ability to elevate people. He’s got a great feel for attacking the football. He got another punch-out today. I just like the way that this guy’s got a great vibe. He’s just got some natural leadership traits and communication skills where he understands what’s going on from an all-22 perspective. I think when you’re talking about a guy that’s at that inside linebacker position, it’s key and critical. He’s done a great job leading the way for that group.”
Landman forced a fumble in practice Saturday with a perfect punch-out, knocking the ball from Davis Allen’s arms to create a turnover for the defense.
If he can put together a breakout season, it’ll elevate the play of the entire defense after the Rams struggled at that position last year.
The secondary will be better than expected this season
There’s no lack of depth in the secondary this year, which is encouraging. The safety group features a terrific trio of Kamren Curl, Kamren Kinchens and Jaylen McCollough, while the cornerbacks are led by Darious Williams, Ahkello Witherspoon, Quentin Lake and Cobie Durant.
Emmanuel Forbes Jr. and Josh Wallace are two players who could contribute, as well. That gives the Rams a ton of options on defense, especially with Lake’s versatility.
Durant has made some splash plays in camp by breaking up passes and sticking close to receivers in coverage, while Forbes has been tasked with covering Davante Adams in practice and has done a nice job, as well. Forbes is the wild card in this group because if he can take his game to the next level as a starting-caliber player, the Rams will be flush with cornerback talent.
The secondary as a whole could go from being a perceived question mark to a strength on defense.
Alaric Jackson seems to be making good progress
It was a great sign that Jackson didn’t start camp on the PUP or NFI list, allowing him to participate in practice even in a limited capacity. By Friday, he was taking part in team drills during the jog-through and remained a participant on Saturday, too.
The Rams will take it as slow as needed with Jackson as he deals with blood clots in his leg but as McVay said, there’s a “very real possibility” that he’ll be on the field in Week 1. That would be fantastic news for the Rams, even though they’re confident in D.J. Humphries as the backup plan; Humphries has been getting first-team reps in practice, as well.
Kyren Williams’ contract should get done at some point
The Rams haven’t signed Williams to a contract extension yet but there’s no doubt progress has been made. Williams’ agent, Drew Rosenhaus, even visited Rams camp last week to sit down with the team as negotiations continued, a positive sign as the two sides work toward a deal.
Williams doesn’t sound the least bit concerned about it getting done eventually, even if that spills into the regular season. He made it clear he wants to stay in Los Angeles and McVay has praised the young running back countless times as someone who embodies what it means to be a member of the Rams.
Just look at the fact that Williams hasn’t skipped a single practice amid these contract negotiations. He’s fully embraced his leadership role at running back and hasn’t given Blake Corum or Jarquez Hunter any opportunities to overtake his spot atop the depth chart.
Rookies are off to a fast start
Hunter has flashed with his speed in practice, while Terrance Ferguson has impressed Jared Verse already this offseason with his playmaking ability. In fact, Verse said he’s been “very impressed” by the entire rookie class, saying they’ve all “been dominating” in practice.
He mentioned Josaiah Stewart having his best practice of the entire offseason last week, playing with great speed and effort on the edge.
As for Ferguson, Mike LaFleur likes what he’s seen from the rookie tight end so far.
“Off of what he was doing in OTAs, it’s just not too big for him,” he said. “He just has that look in his eye and he’s a really smart kid schematically. He picked it up no problem in the spring. And then just kind of the review as we’ve done these last few days, he really picked up right where he left off in terms of schematics. And then it’s going to be every single day, just building and stacking and getting used to the speed of this game. It’ll be great to get the pads on for all these rookies, and for all the guys, but for the rookies, having those pads on and playing ball for a month, playing in the preseason leading up to September, but really impressed with them.”