Practice looked a little bit different for the Los Angeles Rams on Monday. Not only were the pads on for the first time, but two key players were missing on offense: Matthew Stafford and Van Jefferson.
Both of them got the day off to rest, which Sean McVay attributed in part to the fact that the offense planned to be run-heavy in the first padded practice. It was a solid day for Stetson Bennett, who stepped up in Stafford’s place, while Demarcus Robinson had another great showing, too.
Here are notes and takeaways from the fourth practice of camp.
1
Matthew Stafford and Van Jefferson get rest days
On the first day of padded practice, Stafford and Jefferson unfortunately sat out. The Rams have been cautious with Jefferson throughout camp already, with this being his second veteran rest day. But Stafford’s day off was also planned from the start, knowing today would be run-heavy.
There’s nothing to be concerned about with Stafford, as McVay said “he won’t miss another practice in training camp.” So he’ll be back out there for the Rams’ next practice with pads, zipping the ball around as he has all year thus far.
Rams QB Matthew Stafford has a vet rest day today, but is still as involved as he can be in today’s training camp practice. A couple clips of him coaching up the younger QBs during individual drills pic.twitter.com/W5PzEygQqZ
— Stu Jackson (@StuJRams) July 31, 2023
2
Sloppy day for the offense
McVay wasn’t overly pleased with the operation on offense Monday. He called the offense “pretty sloppy,” which isn’t overly surprising considering Stafford wasn’t the one leading the way and it was a share between rookie Stetson Bennett and Brett Rypien.
McVay liked what he saw from the defense, and they had some plays where “guys are teeing off on certain things,” so it seems he was mostly disappointed in the pre-snap stuff that allowed the defenders to get a great jump off the line.
“For the most part, I felt like defense did a good job of really setting the tone at the beginning,” McVay said. “It felt a little sloppy, just as simple as even just the way that you break the huddle and that’s where you can appreciate just the command that Matthew has and everything that that offensive operation entails.“
3
Cast isn't stopping Ahkello Witherspoon
After undergoing surgery on his thumb and having pins inserted, Witherspoon was back at practice on Monday and he didn’t seem to miss a beat. According to team reporter Stu Jackson, Witherspoon made a nice play to break up a pass from Bennett to Tyler Higbee, swatting it away in coverage.
Despite his left hand being in a cast, Witherspoon is still performing as one of the best corners in camp.
4
Demarcus Robinson keeps making plays
Robinson has been the star of camp at wide receiver thus far. Having already made a handful of impressive plays in practice, from acrobatic catches to touchdown grabs, Robinson did it again on Monday – this time on a throw from Rypien. He made a difficult grab for a touchdown during red zone work, which elicited a high five from McVay, according to the OC Register.
Demarcus Robinson with the tough catch for the TD during redzone work on a pass from Brett Rypien. Robinson continuing to perform well in camp
— Stu Jackson (@StuJRams) August 1, 2023
“It’s not too big for him. There’s been a lot of opportunities where he’s kind of been the primary on some of these things and he’s just got a good look in his eye,” McVay said. “I mean, he’s got a good swagger. You can just see the way that he even just moves around the field, he’s got confidence. You like those guys that want the ball.”
5
Derion Kendrick out with hamstring injury
With Witherspoon emerging as one of the better outside cornerbacks, the last thing Kendrick could afford to do was miss time. Unfortunately, he suffered a hamstring injury in camp and has been sidelined, but the hope is that he’ll be back within the next week.
“He’s making good progress,” McVay said. “I talked to him today and those soft tissue things are something that you can’t be too careful with. So hopefully we’ll get him back within the week, maybe next week. It might be this week. So it’s kind of just day-to-day, especially when you’re talking about with those DBs.”
6
Stetson Bennett gets most of the first-team reps
According to Adam Grosbard of the OC Register, it was Bennett who got the majority of the reps in practice over Rypien with Stafford out. That’s a great sign for the rookie, who by most accounts had a great day throwing the ball.
Grosbard noted that Bennett has “struggled with maintaining his arm strength when throwing in the pocket,” which was one of the knocks on the former Georgia quarterback leading up to the draft.
That’s a Top 🔟 play right there. pic.twitter.com/LCB65LYgel
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) August 1, 2023
7
Zach Evans coughs up fumble on punch-out from Tyon Davis
Players never want to fumble in practice, particularly at the running back position where ball security is essential. On Monday, rookie Zach Evans lost a fumble on a punch-out by a fellow rookie, Tyon Davis. The ball was scooped up and recovered by Daniel Hardy on defense, so it went as a turnover for the rookie tailback.
Rams DB Tyon Davis with a forced fumble Peanut Punch style, knocking the ball loose from RB Zach Evans, with OLB Daniel Hardy scooping it up. Big cheers from the defense after that play
— Stu Jackson (@StuJRams) August 1, 2023
