What is #LARams RB Todd Gurley going to do on the ground in 2019?@VinnyBonsignore: 240 carries, 1,070 yards and 11 TDs@Rich_Hammond: 200 carries, 960 yards and 12 TDs@3k_: 186 carries, 952 yards and 15 TDs

What say you, Rams fans? https://t.co/5DeS9Yti3n

— TurfShowTimes (@TurfShowTimes) May 22, 2019

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If you're complaining about Todd Gurley not being at OTAs, stop. He's doing good things https://t.co/6WhNnFvwgE

— Cameron DaSilva (@camdasilva) May 22, 2019

10 Observations from OTA No. 2

Myles Simmons

https://www.therams.com/news/10-observations-from-ota-no-2

1) When practice started after the stretching period, Los Angeles’ defense got things going with a pursuit drill, while the offense worked on fundamentals. The offensive line split up into two groups to get some time with the two-man sled — though each player got his work individually. The offensive quarterbacks and skill players went through basic routes against air to warm up.

2) During individual drills, tight ends coach Wes Phillips was active within the position group, using a blocking bag while helping the players with their technique. The tight ends worked through movement and staying in front of defenders on blocks, and also their first steps in run-blocking techniques.

3) Also during individual drills, the defensive line worked on their shock-and-shed technique. The players had to push back position coach Eric Henderson, get his arms off of them, step sideways through the bags, then hit a large weighted ball on the ground. It shouldn’t come as a surprise, but defensive tackle Aaron Donald’s power and speed really stood out when going through the drill. Second-year defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day looked good in his reps, too.

4) Wide receiver Cooper Kupp — who is progressing through his rehab from a season-ending ACL tear suffered in Week 10 last year — went through some work on the side from the early portion of practice with trainers. But he also was in for a number of plays during Los Angeles’ 11-on-11 jog through later in the session.

5) Early on in 7-on-7 work — with the first-team offense going against the first-team defense — quarterback Jared Goff threw a nice deep ball down the left side to wide receiver Robert Woods. The pass went just over the outstretched hand of safety Marqui Christian. Woods was thisclose to making the catch, and really it seemed like a play he’d make nine times out of 10. But in this particular instance, he bobbled the ball a few times before it fell to the ground, drawing a couple of “OHHHs” out of his teammates and coaches.

6) Wide receiver/return specialist JoJo Natson made a nice leaping catch over the middle from backup quarterback Blake Bortles during the 7-on-7 period. Natson caught the pass just as he was getting from the second to the third level, securing it as he went to the ground.

7) At one point during the 7-on-7 work when the reserves went in, safety Eric Weddle was behind the offense chatting with third-year tight end Gerald Everett. The veteran safety, headed into his 13th year in the league, had recently been covering the third-year tight end in 7-on-7, and may have had some tips of the trade to share.

8) Undrafted rookie tight end Kendall Blanton made a nice catch at the end of the 7-on-7 work at the right sideline. Goff got flushed out of the pocket to his right by a mock rusher — pass game coordinator Shane Waldron, in this case — and had to make an off-schedule throw. Blanton was open near the first-down marker at the sideline, and made the sliding catch for what would have extended a drive.

9) While a lot of Los Angeles’ 11-on-11 work came in the form of a jog-thru — where Goff was pointing out his reads rather than actually throwing them — the team did do some live-speed, non-contact 11-on-11 drills toward the end of practice. On one play, rookie safety Taylor Rapp was defending the middle of the field and knocked a pass down intended for Natson, receiving some, “Good job, Taylor!” praise from the defensive sideline.

10) Finally, after the full team was dismissed, many of the Rams’ younger players stayed back to get in some more 11-on-11 work. L.A. often does this, particularly during training camp, in order to get those players more comfortable with the offensive and defensive systems through more reps.

“We’re striving to be the best in the league” -Weddle
Hear from Eric Weddle as he addresses the media after the team’s first day of OTAs.

Vid link:

https://www.therams.com/video/we-re-striving-to-be-the-best-in-the-league-weddle

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
#Rams signed [Matthews] to be a versatile chess piece that Wade Phillips can move all over the field in various packages The goal, first and foremost, is to create favorable matchups for him to get to the quarterback.

Lindsey Thiry@LindseyThiry
Jared Goff joked yesterday that Cooper Kupp needs a shock collar for when he starts to do too much in his knee rehab. Kupp on track for Week 1.

Darren Rovell@darrenrovell
Huge news in the NFL today. Starting this season, each team will have a mental health clinician that has to attend to players 8-12 hours a week. One of the reasons the perception of mental health is where it is is because it is only addressed in emergencies. This changes that.

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Going through 2018 play-action passing numbers — #Rams WR Brandin Cooks led the #NFL with 593 yards receiving on play-action concepts. Middle of the field opens up here for Goff/Cooks. @NFLMatchup pic.twitter.com/1eKLhWUDxc

— Matt Bowen (@MattBowen41) May 21, 2019

More #Rams/Cooks + play-action — Cooks averaged 19.02 air yards per target on play-action concepts. Deep post/cross & the corner route. @NFLMatchup pic.twitter.com/algFuTqony

— Matt Bowen (@MattBowen41) May 21, 2019

when you try to break the awkward silence pic.twitter.com/CFESeyWPk6

— Cameron DaSilva (@camdasilva) May 21, 2019

This paints a very optimistic picture for the 2019 #LARams… https://t.co/DWsFSlkkqW

— J.B. Long (@JB_Long) May 17, 2019

💪 AD x OTAs 💪@AaronDonald97 | #LARams pic.twitter.com/CGhNEmATrQ

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) May 20, 2019

"@iamjohnthethird [is] a budding star" – @weddlesbeard

What the players + McVay had to say after Day 1 ⤵️

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) May 21, 2019

Quotes & Notes 5/20: “You forget how much offense we actually have.” Goff goes against defense at first day of OTAs

Clarence Dennis

https://www.therams.com/news/quotes-notes-5-20-you-forget-how-much-offense-we-actually-have-goff-goes-against

“You forget how much offense we actually have because weekly it’s so narrow and it’s so focused, then you come back to this period and it’s like holy smokes.”
-QB JARED GOFF

The Rams are headed for year three with head coach Sean McVay and quarterback Jared Goff leading the offense and the signal-caller says the playbook is getting thick.
Aside from a few expected first-day glitches, McVay was pleased with the energy from his group on the 90-man roster as Phase III is now underway. The defending NFC Champs spent two hours on field at the team facility in Thousand Oaks, Calif., which featured 11-on-11 offense vs. defense for the first time since preparations for Super Bowl LIII back in February.

“He’s like a kid standing on the sidelines that just wants to be able to grab a ball and go play.”
-HC SEAN McVAY

McVay updated the status of wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who spent the afternoon between on-field drills and the stationary bike. The head coach said Kupp is making ‘great progress’ headed for year three, coming off last November’s ACL tear.
Kupp is expected to return in time for the season opener Week 1 against the Panthers.

“It’s early, but you can feel that they’ve had an impact on this team already.”
-HC SEAN McVAY

In the handful of new faces and jersey numbers who took the field for Phase III were veterans Eric Weddle and Clay Matthews — who have already made an impact at the safety and linebacker spots and the defense as a whole, according to McVay.
More specifically, McVay said the pair brings some flexibility to the unit — a measure of Weddle and Matthews’ combined 22 years of NFL experience.

“J.J. — a budding star — it’s just a great opportunity for me to not only play alongside him and help, and learn things from him as well.”
-S ERIC WEDDLE

Weddle and third-year safety John Johnson took the field together against an offense for the first time on Monday.
After the pair’s practice-field debut, the veteran said he’s here to push Johnson, who led the club with four interceptions in 2018.

“Just to get out here and compete against the defense is always fun — to actually go against somebody.”
-RB MALCOLM BROWN

With running back Todd Gurley away from Day 1 of the voluntary third phase of the offseason program, it was his position mate Malcolm Brown taking carries with Goff and the ‘ones’ at practice.
Brown welcomes the idea of splitting looks with Gurley as the pair enter year five together, and said that he feels comfortable as ever entering year three as a member of McVay’s offense.

10 Observations from OTA No. 1

Myles Simmons

https://www.therams.com/news/10-observations-from-ota-no-1

1) The Rams’ offense and defense were on the field together at the team facility in Thousand Oaks, Calif. for the first tine since back in January — a welcome sight on a sunny day in the mid-60s. With 90 men on the roster, each player had his first initial and last name on both the front and back of his helmet. It’s striking how many more players there are on the offseason roster than during the regular season.

2) Running back Todd Gurley, cornerback Aqib Talib, cornerback Marcus Peters, and outside linebacker Dante Fowler were not in attendance for Monday’s voluntary session. Head coach Sean McVay did say after practice that the team had been in communication with each player, which is all the club wants. McVay noted he expects Fowler will be back later this week. The head coach also said that Gurley has been working with both the Rams trainers and external trainers in preparation for the season, and that all parties are on the same page.

3) After the early special teams period, the Rams held a walk-thru with the first-team offense and first-team defense on the same field. Offensive and defensive reserves were on the second practice field. Going at the slower speed, quarterback Jared Goff was pointing out his reads and progressions in the play instead of actually throwing the ball. Los Angeles also worked in a couple different offensive personnel groupings — not just the standard one running back, one tight end, three wide receiver set we’ve grown so accustomed to seeing on a down-to-down basis.

4) Defensively during that period, second-year linebacker Micah Kiser worked at the second inside linebacker spot next to signal-caller Cory Littleton — where former Ram Mark Barron started in 2018. And though it’s supremely early, it was also apparent how L.A. can use safety Eric Weddle’s versatility in the backend of the defense. He and third-year safety John Johnson sometimes lined up inside the box, sometimes deep. And safety Marqui Christian occasionally was on the field for a three-safety set — something the Rams utilized down the stretch last season.

5) After the walk-thru, Los Angeles’ offense went through a ball-security drill — standard in Rams practices throughout the year, showing how it’s one of the club’s priorities. On a separate field for the defense, L.A. started out with a pursuit drill — again, standard for the team throughout the season.

6) Notably, wide receiver Cooper Kupp — who is recovering from a season-ending ACL tear suffered midseason — participated in some individual drills, catching a few passes from Goff. Kupp said after practice that he’s taking things “one day at a time,” and not looking beyond a week at a time in his rehab. McVay and Goff both noted that the wideout is the kind of player L.A. will likely have to hold back to not do too much too son. And McVay also said that the goal remains to have Kupp ready for “competition and performance” for Week 1 against the Panthers.

7) Goff looked sharp early, both during the individual period and when Los Angeles went to half-field drills for some 7-on-7-style looks, with the top offense going against the top defense. One of Goff’s best passes went down the left seam to wide receiver Josh Reynolds, who snagged the pass over a defender.

8) Tight end Gerald Everett made a nice catch over the middle on a pass from backup quarterback Blake Bortles. No. 5’s pass was perhaps a bit high, but Everett made Bortles right by jumping up and reeling in the intermediate-level pass for a nice gain.

9) Much like Weddle, linebacker Clay Matthews’ versatility stood out during 11-on-11 drills. Matthews lined up on the outside and on the inside, sometimes rushing, sometimes dropping back. Since the team’s not wearing pads, you should probably take this with a grain of salt, but it did look like Matthews was winning reps, too. Headed into his 11th season, Matthews looks like he’s going to be a significant part of Los Angeles’ defense, and can really help improve the unit.

10) Finally, also during 11-on-11 drills, Goff hit Reynolds with another strong throw — this time on an out route to the right sideline. Goff nicely dropped it in No. 83’s hands above beyond the second level of the defense and in front of the third level for an intermediate completion.

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
Jared Goff looked really good throwing the ball today. Really, really good.

Sparta@evans5150
Chips on shoulders make for better players

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
More the natural progression of a young, elite #NFL QB. The guy took his team to the Super Bowl in his second year as the starter. There isn’t a chip on his shoulder. Unfinished business? Sure.

==

Jason La Canfora@JasonLaCanfora
No one was taking Gerald McCoy in trade at $13M/year on a contract everyone knew Bucs would eventually dump… But on the market there will be no shortage of interested teams

Adam Schefter@AdamSchefter
Former Buccaneers’ DT Gerald McCoy wants to sign with a playoff contender, and of course make money. But he wants to win. Spots that would make sense include the Browns, the Patriots, the Chargers, the Jaguars, and the Cowboys amongst others.

==

Warren Sharp@SharpFootball
Eagles defense time on field:
2013 – 32nd
2014 – 32nd
2015 – 32nd
<Chip Kelly fired>
<Doug Pederson hired>
2016 – 1st
2017 – 1st
2018 – 4th

Vincent Bonsignore@VinnyBonsignore
I know it’s only OTA’s, but #Rams Sean McVay does as good a job as any coach I’ve seen making 11-on-11 periods competitive. That said, Jared Goff looked really good throwing the ball today. Really, really good.

Ryan Kartje@Ryan_Kartje
Rams OL Joe Noteboom was in a red, no-contact jersey at the first OTA today. Still worked at first team LG. He said the jersey was just a precaution.

Pro Football Rumors@pfrumors
Rams’ Cory Littleton Signs RFA Tender

Joel Corry@corryjoel
The longer a team waits to sign a good to great player, the more money it will cost in the long run. By the way, Russell Wilson is making almost 25% more under his new deal through 2021 than if he went year-to-year by playing out his 2015 extension & getting franchised twice.

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Bill Barnwell: Rams should add D-lineman, extend Marcus Peters https://t.co/4iEwVKwKbb via @theramswire

— RamsNewsNow (@RamsNewsNow) May 20, 2019