collected Goff material, early August, during camp

In Jared Goff, Rams see a centerpiece for a contender

Lorenzo Reyes, USA TODAY

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/rams/2016/08/01/jared-goff-los-angeles-rams-jeff-fisher/87921544/

IRVINE, Calif. – When Jeff Fisher is done with all his work, when he leaves the temporary and transitional training camp facility the Los Angeles Rams have at the University of California, Irvine, he goes home and sleeps on an air mattress.

The head coach overseeing the franchise’s relocation to Southern California has sacrificed elements of his own move. So when the bed is deflated from the previous night’s sleep, he fires up the air pump and fills it up again.

He doesn’t have the time, he said, to secure fancier accommodations.

“I’m as settled as I possibly could be,” Fisher told USA TODAY Sports Sunday evening after the Rams’ practice. “I’ve got bigger things to worry about.”

At the top of that list is ensuring that quarterback Jared Goff, the No. 1 overall pick, proves them right.

Fisher and Rams general manager Les Snead shipped a haul of draft picks (Nos. 15, 43, 45, 76 in 2016 and first- and third-round selections in 2017) to the Tennessee Titans for the rights to pick the passer of their choosing. Now, the job security of both men rests in Goff’s selection – and his eventual appointment as the team’s starter.

“The one piece that we needed to stabilize our team was QB,” Snead told USA TODAY Sports before Sunday’s practice. “It’s a risk, I agree, but this was the time. It was one we needed to take.”

The way they see it, Fisher and Snead have amassed a solid group of young talent. They have beaten teams like the perennial powerhouse Seattle Seahawks, Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts, Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos, and have posted a winning record in one of the toughest divisions in football in two of four seasons.

But they lacked consistency – something they think they can now get.

“What I like is that we have proven we can be competitive,” Snead said. “Now they’re tired being competitive. It’s time to go be contenders. We’re in that phase now. And then the next phase will be winning playoff games.

“We felt that when you look at the 30,000-foot view, yes, with all the pieces we gave up (in the trade for the No. 1 pick), we could have added good-to-very-good football players. But maybe we would still be doing the same thing – competing, but not quite contending – because of the instability at QB.”

In that hypothetical, that’s probably the best-case scenario.

With a 27-36-1 record in their four-year tenure with the Rams, Snead and Fisher knew they needed to produce more victories. Drafting a franchise quarterback, they believed, was the quickest way to do that.

That’s why in the days after the Rams completed the trade with the Titans, they rapidly set up workouts with both Goff and eventual No. 2 pick Carson Wentz. The Rams needed to do their homework. And the more and more they heard about Goff, the more they felt at ease with the decision to take him.

“We thought the guy was one of the best passers of the football that has come out in a while,” Snead said.

Goff told USA TODAY Sports on Saturday that shortly after the Rams picked him, he sought out Titans passer Marcus Mariota for advice. Mariota suggested Goff try an exercise in his downtime: Record himself saying a play call, play it back, diagram the play on a sheet of paper, and then visualize the progression.

It’s something Goff says is already sharpening his understanding of the offense.

“We were aware of those things before we took him,” Fisher said. “We were aware that he was going to do the extra. He has always done that. He was always very, very competitive and committed. Those things don’t surprise us at all.”

Added Snead: “That’s how greatness is built.”

That’s why Fisher and Snead are at peace.

bnw wrote:

They said the same thing about Sam Bradford.

They tried to build around Bradford. He got injured.

They’re adding Goff to a more developed team: “The one piece that we needed to stabilize our team was QB,” Snead told USA TODAY Sports before Sunday’s practice.

That’s the key…they’re ADDING Goff to what is a more talented team. Goff and Bradford are very different kinds of qb talent btw.

Jared Goff will be Rams’ franchise quarterback — in time

This is the best article IMO on why it might take time.

At the same time, it leaves things out, such as mastering the techniques and timing and vision you need making 3, 5, and 7 step drops from under center, and also recognizing what (more complicated) pro defenses are doing.

..

InvaderRam wrote:

More talented? Gurley is an upgrade otherwise there isn’t an Amendola on this offense. TA is more of a runner and decoy.

You can’t neglect the difference the defense makes. It’s huge. And while SB had Amendola, he had nothing else. The Rams have a lot of developing “else” and just not one guy…yet. And IMO you underestimate what Tavon brings. He is not just a runner, he catches passes, which is why he works as a decoy–they don’t know which he will do, and that’s a guy who can break almost any play. A player does not work as a decoy unless defenses fear him. So he’s a combined yards player with 9 TDs. That’s something. He’s just not dismissable.

Jared Goff should begin on bench

Bucky Brooks

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000680715/article/jared-goff-should-begin-on-bench-hue-jacksons-rgiii-project

Patience is a virtue — in virtually all aspects of life. But it is rarely found in NFL locker rooms.

In a league where production and performance are paramount, general managers and scouts frequently fall prey to the outside noise and rush players onto the field to justify lofty draft-day selections. This happens with most top picks, but quarterbacks are especially susceptible to microwave treatment when they are selected in the first round — and even more so when they’re taken with a top-10 pick.

That’s why I’m paying close attention to how the Los Angeles Rams are bringing along Jared Goff.

The football world will be clamoring to see the No. 1 overall pick when the Rams open their season in front of a national television audience at San Francisco in the final game of Week 1 on Monday, Sept. 12. While I’ve heard all of the rhetoric from coach Jeff Fisher and his staff on resisting the urge to put the rookie out on the field before he is ready, we’ve seen nearly every quarterback selected with a top-five pick over the past five years take the ball as the team’s starter very early in the season. Thus, I traveled to Rams camp fully expecting to see Goff primed and ready to supplant Case Keenum as the team’s starter.

I mean, on paper, this shouldn’t be a fair fight: Goff boasts prototypical physical dimensions (6-foot-4, 215 pounds), A+ arm talent and a polished game, while Keenum has a smallish stature (6-1, 205 pounds), an average arm and a lack of cachet as a former undrafted free agent and current NFL journeyman. Sure, Keenum led the Rams to a 3-2 record as the team’s part-time starter a season ago, but Fisher wouldn’t seriously consider using the fifth-year pro as a legitimate starter this season. Right?

To my surprise, Goff isn’t anywhere close to being ready to play as a starting quarterback at this stage of training camp. Now, this isn’t a direct knock on him or his future potential. It can be a process. Having been around some of the best quarterback developers in the game (Mike Holmgren, Andy Reid, Jon Gruden, Steve Mariucci, Dan Henning, Kevin Gilbride, Mike McCarthy and Mike McCoy), I know that young signal callers must check the boxes in three key areas before they are primed to step on the field as a starter:

» Communication
» Coverage identification
» Judgment

Watching Goff over a full workout, I sensed that — despite widely reported improvement since the end of OTAs and minicamps — the Cal product still has a long way to go before he reaches the standard needed to wrestle the starting job from Keenum.

After spending his formative years directing a spread offense (Sonny Dykes’ “Bear Raid”), Goff is still mastering the verbiage and communication skills to own the huddle. The lengthy play calls and at-the-line adjustments require far more verbal communication than the no-huddle system he ran in Berkeley. In addition, the constant chatter and identification require complete mastery of the playbook to make split-second decisions at the line. While I’m not privy to the Rams’ playbook or their audible system, I can say that the offense operated with better tempo and pace when Keenum was at the helm. Goff had his moments directing the two-minute offense in team drills, but the pauses between plays were noticeably longer with the rookie in charge.

Moving on to some of Goff’s post-snap responsibilities, I believe he is still adjusting to the complex coverages routinely employed by NFL coordinators. Rams DC Gregg Williams is one of the most creative tacticians in football, and his carefully crafted pre-snap disguises frequently mask the designated coverage. Thus, opposing quarterbacks must be in tune to the depths of linebackers and safeties in order to get a bead on the blitz or coverage. Keenum efficiently sorted out the myriad disguises and blitzes from the Rams’ starters to find the hot route or open receiver down the field. He was rarely flustered by the constant movement, and his efficiency certainly surprised me, based on the complexity of the defensive looks.

Meanwhile, despite facing a more static look, Goff struggled a bit against the defense in team drills. Williams frequently aligned his defense in a Cover 2 shell (two deep safeties with corners aligned at 6 to 7 yards) and used a variety of simple zone (Cover 2, Cover 3) or zone-blitz (five-man rush with three deep and three under) concepts against the rookie. These defenses are the equivalent of what you would see in an NFL 101 class, yet Goff routinely had a tough time finding the open guy. And when he did identify the open man, he was frequently late with his throw, resulting in a contested catch or off-target toss down the field. At the NFL level, quarterbacks must throw with timing and anticipation to consistently complete passes in tight windows between multiple defenders.

Now, I don’t want to be too critical of a young passer in the opening stretch of his first NFL training camp, but judgment is arguably the most important part of playing the position, and Goff seems so overwhelmed by the speed of the game that he’s been inconsistent with his decisions. Some of his poor determinations are understandable, due to the uncertainty that plagues every young QB, but he also has been prone to making some “hero” throws in traffic. In the workout I attended, Goff threw four passes that should’ve been intercepted, each the result of a forced throw at intermediate range despite the fact that a checkdown was available underneath.

To be fair, most quarterbacks are reluctant to take the open checkdown when they believe they can make a “hero” throw. But Goff is in line for a number of turnovers off tips and overthrows until he develops the patience and poise to settle for a short completion instead of gambling on a “wow” play. He might foster these characteristics after a few preseason games, but I believe it will take him some time to learn the management skills needed to start for a competitive team.

Taking all of this into account, I think it’s sensible for Fisher to officially name Keenum the starter and stick with him through at least the first half of the season. The veteran not only gives the Rams the best chance to win right now, but the team believes in his talent and leadership skills. Speaking to several offensive players, I repeatedly heard the word “gamer” and “winner” in reference to the 28-year-old Keenum. In fact, one Rams receiver said the offense would thrive in 2016 with Keenum at the helm, even though everyone expects Goff to eventually become a “baller” at the position.

To get a management perspective, I talked to several team officials who suggested Keenum can succeed because he has a clear understanding of his limitations and won’t try to do too much with the ball in his hands. Unlike some quarterbacks who shrug off the “game manager” label, Keenum seemingly has embraced the approach — and everyone in the building believes he won’t mess it up if he gets the chance. Given that Los Angeles has a budding superstar in Todd Gurley who can pound the football, savvy game management from the quarterback position could work quite well for this team.

For the past several months, I thought the prospect of Keenum taking the field with the starting unit was simply the product of coachspeak. But after spending time at Rams camp, I believe the team should play the veteran quarterback until the youngster proves that he is ready to handle the job. This is the blueprint Fisher successfully used with a young Steve McNair during his time heading the Oilers/Titans. Despite entering the NFL as the third overall pick in the 1995 NFL Draft, McNair didn’t become a full-time starter until 1997. He went on to make three Pro Bowls and earn NFL MVP honors in 2003. Fisher should keep this in mind, to help Goff eventually reach his full potential as the Rams’ franchise quarterback.

Rams rookie quarterback Jared Goff shines in scrimmage

Steve Dilbeck

http://www.espn.com/blog/st-louis-rams/post/_/id/29968/rams-rookie-quarterback-jared-goff-shines-in-scrimmage

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles Rams coach Jeff Fisher had to catch himself. He has been so excited about the team’s return to the Coliseum Saturday, he forgot to mention the one player who clearly stood out.

The one player the Rams most need to stand out — quarterback Jared Goff.

The Rams put a lot into drafting Goff with the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft. Fisher has called him a “franchise quarterback.”

And if he’s had plenty of nice moments during the first week of camp, he’s also had his expected share of miscues and interceptions.

But Saturday was easily his best day of practice yet. He looked comfortable and was consistently on target. In a two-minute drill, he smoothly drove the team down the field for a touchdown. Passes zipped or had perfect touch. He did not throw one interception.

“I can’t believe I didn’t bring up Jared to start with,” Fisher said in his post-practice media session. “I don’t know if you saw the two-minute drill, but that stuff was real nice. He was locked in, focused. He knew exactly where the play clock was, the game clock, timeouts, everything.

“He had a good day today. That’s good for him to finish up the week on a really good note. Now he can get his mind right for next week.”

The 6-foot-4 Goff wasn’t ready to make any bold proclamations, let alone claim Saturday had been his best day.

“I don’t know, I think every day I’ve been trying to improve,” Goff said. “And slowly but surely I feel like I’m getting better every day.”

Which was about as far the 21-year-old was ready to go Saturday.

“I’m starting to settle in and feel more comfortable every day,” he said. “The more comfortable I feel, the more in control I feel, the more confident I’m going to be, and the better I’m going to play. So, every day it’s just going to get better.”

Goff continues to run the second team and is listed behind returning starter Case Keenum. Fisher said Keenum will start their first exhibition game this Saturday against the Cowboys. But fans clearly have already made their choice known.

No one received more or louder cheers at the Coliseum practice than Goff. If everyone understands it is only a matter of time before Goff becomes the team’s No. 1 quarterback, the fans have anointed him now.

Goff said he didn’t really hear their outpouring Saturday. His focus was the same as it’s been since camp opened. Still, after one week, he has noticed a slight evolution in his play.

“Just the comfortability,” he said. “Is that a word? I just felt more comfortable every day and continue to gain confidence. Each day I try to take a little bit of a step, and I feel like I’ve done that.”

Jared Goff should be the Rams’ starting quarterback

Sam Farmer

http://www.latimes.com/sports/rams/la-sp-farmer-goff-20160808-snap-story.html

The Rams were bold when they acquired a massive chunk of land in Inglewood and planned a $2.6-billion stadium, bold when they seized a Los Angeles market gathering dust for two decades, bold when they made a historic leap up to the No. 1 pick in the draft.

And they should be bold again in making rookie Jared Goff the starting quarterback.

Goff is working with the No. 2 offense — Case Keenum is the starter — but with each practice the former University of California standout is showing he’s increasingly ready to take the reins. The exhibition opener against Dallas on Saturday will shed more light on how far he has come.

The Rams are closely monitoring how quickly Goff is picking up the offense, how he’s seeing the field, his anticipation in terms of throwing to spots and letting receivers go get the ball, as opposed to aiming for the receivers themselves. Day by day, he’s getting increasingly comfortable.

“You can see it, especially when you go back and hit rewind a few times on the film,” General Manager Les Snead said after Saturday’s practice at the Coliseum. “I always give the quarterback credit because he’s actually doing it without rewind, in real time.”

Snead says he sees a distinct difference between this Goff and the one in Organized Team Activity workouts in the spring. Remember, Goff has had to relearn taking a snap from under center, something he hasn’t done with any regularity since his freshman year of high school.

“In OTAs, he was memorizing the vocabulary words, now he’s applying them,” Snead said, comparing learning the playbook to learning a new language.

First, you learn Spanish words. Then, you use it in everyday life. When you start dreaming in Spanish, then it’s your language.

From the start, Coach Jeff Fisher has made it clear he’s not going to rush Goff onto the field, or put any absolute deadlines on when he needs to get out there. Fisher has taken a when-he’s-ready-we’ll-know approach.

Regardless, when the games are real, Goff should be the starter. The argument against that is the risk of putting a young quarterback out there too early and destroying his confidence. Hey, Aaron Rodgers got to learn at the elbow of a seasoned pro in Green Bay. Same for Philip Rivers in San Diego. But those teams had Brett Favre and Drew Brees as starters. The Rams have Keenum, who is at best a temporary fix.

In 2008, rookie quarterbacks Matt Ryan (drafted third by Atlanta) and Joe Flacco (18th by Baltimore) started every game for their teams and each made NFL history by reaching the playoffs. Since, every rookie quarterback selected No. 1 overall has opened his season as the starter — that’s Matthew Stafford, Sam Bradford, Cam Newton, Andrew Luck and Jameis Winston. So it would actually be breaking with tradition to sit Goff.

No matter when he takes over, Goff will encounter some type of turbulence. Of course there will be a learning curve. But his ability to withstand that is one of the reasons the Rams fell for him in the first place, that he worked through the rough patches and took Cal from 1-11 to 5-7 to 8-5. That included a 55-16 humiliation in a monsoon at Oregon, when the freshman Goff lost two fumbles on the Bears’ first three possessions and was benched near the end of the first quarter. His passing numbers: three for six for 11 yards.

Coach Sonny Dykes resisted the pressure to replace him as the starter after that debacle, and Goff now looks at that moment as one that shaped who he is today. He didn’t crack; he grew from it. The Rams took that into account when they traded up 14 spots to draft him.

Dykes told The Times before the draft that Goff and his family are as “low maintenance” as any people he has encountered as a coach.

“We threw that poor kid to the wolves his first year,” Dykes said. “He just got teed-off on play after play, and nobody ever said a word. Mom and dad were never, ‘Hey, wait a minute guys, what are y’all doing to my son?’ They were just supportive, exactly the kind of people you would want.”

Obviously, a player’s parents aren’t part of that equation in the NFL, but that’s reflective of the fact that Goff is tough, not a Faberge egg to be coddled. He has shown he’s capable of handling pressure, and growing through it.

The Rams open Sept. 12 at San Francisco, and they’ve had months to prepare for that game. If they decide to start Keenum, they’ll have to give him the majority of the snaps in the days and weeks leading up to that, which will slow Goff’s progress.

For Goff, a Monday night start at San Francisco would not only be a homecoming, but would bring the family’s story full circle. His father, Jerry, a former major league catcher, got his first career hit at Candlestick Park. You can bet the researchers at ESPN will have a video clip of that at the ready.

The future is now for Goff, and his team has made lots of gutsy moves to get to this point. Why stop now?

Keenum listed as starter over Jared Goff for first exhibition game, but Rams aren’t naming regular-season starter yet

By VINCENT BONSIGNORE / STAFF COLUMNIST

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/goff-725101-rams-first.html

IRVINE – The Rams put a depth chart together for their game Saturday against the Cowboys – for whatever that’s worth. Predictably, all eyes were immediately drawn to the quarterback position, for which the name Case Keenum is listed first.

That’s neither a surprise or particularly newsworthy. It carries no hidden message, nor does it necessarily reflect where the quarterback position will stand one month from now or even two weeks from now.

As sure as Team USA will crush the field on its way to Olympic basketball gold in Rio, Keenum was going to start the Rams’ first preseason game ahead of rookie Jared Goff, the first overall pick in April’s draft and the future face of the franchise.

It’s a point the Rams have made overtly and privately almost from the moment they turned their draft card in to Roger Goodell four months ago in Chicago and officially hitched their wagon to the former Golden Bear.

The message then and now is clear: Goff will eventually be the Rams starter, but they will neither rush it or put a timeline on it. His ascent to the throne will be an organic process rather than contrived.

Until Goff successfully completes that process – and make no mistake, it’s on him and him alone to make that case – Keenum is the starter.

Which brings us back to the depth chart, and the stir it caused when word started spreading that Keenum would be under center when the Rams first take the field against the Cowboys at the Coliseum on Saturday rather than Goff.

Upon doing some poking around, the advice I was given and the recommendation I will pass along is this: The depth chart for Saturday is so inconsequential at some positions, rather than digest it with a grain of salt, best bet is to taste it, swish it around and then just spit it out.

That is, unless you actually think T.J. McDonald, who has been running with the ones all camp, is really the third-string safety.

That isn’t to say Goff will absolutely be the starting quarterback when the Rams open the regular season against the 49ers.

Only that the Rams aren’t close to making a declaration one way or another.

Which makes sense, of course.

There is absolutely no upside to naming Goff the starter right now, even if the Rams believe he’s ready or just want convince themselves and others they nailed the top pick in the draft.

In fact, it would set up a potential downside so detrimental and destructive it could take months – if not longer – to climb out from under the rubble.

If you declare Goff the starter barely two weeks into training camp – only to find out he isn’t ready to command a preseason game let alone the bright lights of the regular season – the awkward walk back from that decision and ensuing drama could engulf the rest of the season.

Forget the firestorm it would create outside the organization, the damage inside the locker room could be devastating.

It’s hard enough as it is navigating across the treacherous waters of an NFL season, let alone sabotaging the voyage by poking self-inflicted holes into the bottom of the boat.

So the Rams will prudently wait to declare Goff the starter. The goal, of course, is that it’s a decision they’ll make just one time over the foreseeable future. The last thing they want upon handing him the keys to the car is a sharp, immediate U-turn back to the garage.

Not that it isn’t a fair question, wondering how long it will take Goff to state his case as the starter.

His first week of training camp offered just glimpses of a possible timeline.

There were obvious growing pains at the beginning of the week, when the bulk of his interceptions and poorly thrown balls were thrown. But he showed progress over the first six practices, including a strong day Tuesday on the first day of pads and a perfectly run two-minute drill during Saturday’s scrimmage at the Coliseum when he marched the Rams 65 yards in 1:34 for a touchdown.

It was a segment that revealed intangibles just as much as talent, such as game clock, play clock and timeout management and the leadership qualities essential to the quarterback position.

Like when fellow rookie Duke Williams dropped a perfectly thrown pass at the goal line as the Rams were closing in on the end zone. Rather than sulk or get angry, Goff immediately pulled Williams aside and told him to forget about the drop and that the ball was coming his way if he was open.

“I told him, right after he dropped it. I said I’m going to come right back (to you),” Goff said.

True to his word, two plays later Goff found Williams cutting across the end zone for a perfectly thrown touchdown pass.

It was a telling moment, and it left Rams coach Jeff Fisher praising the two-minute drill performance and Goff’s overall performance the first week of camp.

“He’s been doing a great job with his reads, and he’s been getting better every day,” Fisher said.

Behind the scenes, the Rams have expressed confidence Goff is progressing at an adequate pace and that he’s consistently flashed the skill set that convinced them he was the best player in the draft.

At his best, he’s been poised and timely while delivering accurate passes on the throws he’s been asked to make – most of them the medium to short variety.

His problems occur when he doesn’t set his feet correctly – more often than not when he’s lofted throws off his back foot – and balls sail on him. You can sometimes get away with that in college, but in the NFL, not so much.

While he’s thrown his share of picks over the first week, the organization believes the interceptions are the result of correctable mistakes rather than talent flaws.

It’s not enough to anoint him the starter yet.

But a month ahead of the season opener, there is plenty of time for that to happen organically rather than forced.

“Hard Knocks” spotlights Goff, shows how far he still has to go

Zac Jackson

Hard Knocks spotlights Goff, shows how far he still has to go

On the same day Rams coach Jeff Fisher told reporters that 2016 No. 1 overall draft pick Jared Goff will soon be getting more first-team reps, the annual “Hard Knocks” inside training camp show debuted on HBO and featured Rams camp.

Goff got the treatment from the show’s cameras and producers that you’d expect a top pick in Los Angeles to get. He’s the headliner, even before he’s the starter, and the first of the show’s five episodes started by showing how far Goff still has to go.

A montage of botched snaps, whether or not they were Goff’s fault, was followed by clips of Goff talking with coaches and trying to relay plays through the huddle. The show’s producers also carefully chose a clip of Goff on set with NFL Network after one practice saying he’s never been a backup quarterback at any level.

At one point cameras caught Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams telling Fisher and other Rams staffers that Goff has never huddled — “not in middle school, not in high school” — so it’s understandable that he’s getting used to both the verbiage of the offense and relaying it.

“Offenses in the NFL, you’ve got to have a f—–g catalog to call plays,” Williams said.

The HBO cameras were also on hand for a one-on-one session with Goff and quarterbacks coach Chris Weinke.

“Everybody is watching what you,” Weinke told Goff. “You can’t f—–g hide. It ought to give you chills.

“This doesn’t just happen. You don’t just say, ‘Hey, I’m No. 16, I’m the starting quarterback. That ain’t f—–g happening.”

Like happens on any good quasi-reality show, the struggles are followed with brighter moments. Cameras caught Goff getting extra post-practice work with wide receiver Kenny Britt, asking Britt for more reps to make up for poor throws, and later caught Williams telling his defense it needed to keep the offense out of the end zone for one play in an 11-on-11 situation.

Right on cue, Goff threw a touchdown pass.

“That was real,” cameras caught Rams defensive lineman Mike Waufle saying to his fellow coaches after one Goff pass. “He threw a strike. That’s a quarterback, man.”

Rams’ Goff believes he’s prepared for first NFL action

The Associated Press

http://www.dailyrepublic.com/sports/rams-goff-believes-hes-prepared-for-first-nfl-action/

IRVINE — No matter when Jared Goff relieves starting quarterback Case Keenum or how much the rookie plays, he will be the focal point of the Los Angeles Rams’ preseason opener Saturday.

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 draft got a preview of what kind of attention he can expect going forward from the season premiere of “Hard Knocks,” the HBO documentary series that follows life in an NFL training camp. Goff was shown taking a ride on the Goodyear Blimp, buying electric fans so offensive players could stay cool in their dorm rooms at UC Irvine, adjusting to a pro-style scheme, and not remembering where exactly the sun rises.

Goff said Thursday he hasn’t heard back from Taylor Swift after his interest in the pop star became television fodder, but is hearing about his sunrise gaffe.

“Got a lot of grief from my friends and stuff, but I thought it was funny,” Goff said. “I know it is a TV show and they are trying to make a story line whatever that may be. That doesn’t bother me. I think it’s funny and I think it’s cool, something I can probably watch for years to come.”

Everything Goff has done during training camp has drawn plenty of interest.

Goff’s media availability attracted more than a dozen reporters Thursday, while Keenum spoke to less than half that number on Monday. While he has been taking snaps with the first team offense in closed walk-throughs, Goff’s first public work with the starters in a two-minute drill on Tuesday resulted in a barrage of questions for coach Jeff Fisher and offensive coordinator Rob Boras.

That interest will only intensify, but Goff said he isn’t paying heed to the overwhelming attention from fans and media.

“Whatever you guys say, take it with a grain of salt. It doesn’t mean much to me,” Goff said. “I don’t read anything. I don’t look at anything. I just try to do my best every day out here and get better and do the best I can.”

Goff said he believes the tempo of practice and quality of the Rams’ defense has him prepared for his first NFL action. He expects to treat it like every other game he has played in, though there will be one notable difference as he will be coming off the bench. Goff, a three-year starter at California, didn’t remember the last time he did not take the first snap in a game.

“In football, I don’t know,” Goff said.

Goff didn’t know how much he would play against the Dallas Cowboys either.

“I’ll go in whenever they tell me to go in and go out wherever they tell me to go out,” Goff said, “I don’t think that is up to me.”

NOTES: Fisher hasn’t divvied up playing time just yet, but indicated starters would likely play two or three series before exiting. A handful of players might not make their preseason debut until Week 2, he added. … Fisher is certain that no one is more excited to see the Cowboys than Rams center Tim Barnes, left guard Cody Wichmann and right guard Jamon Brown, not even the expected crowd of nearly 90,000. “Our interior have had just about enough of (All-Pro defensive tackle) Aaron Donald, so they are looking forward to lining up against someone else,” Fisher said.