The Los Angeles Rams are in the midst of training camp and will kickoff their preseason slate of games next week when they take on the Dallas Cowboys on Aug. 11.
So far, Los Angeles has gotten good early returns from their young core of players though they’ve also dealt with their fair share of injuries. Players like Alaric Jackson and Jonah Jackson have gotten hurt during practice, while Derion Kendrick is out for the year with a torn ACL.
Injuries before the regular season are never a good sign, though there’s optimism that most of these players won’t be forced to miss time. However, the Rams did get a pleasant surprise earlier this week when Todd Gurley visited training camp practice.
Head coach Sean McVay spoke about Gurley’s visit and had high praise for his former star running back. “It was great,” McVay said. “I got a chance to see Todd at the Arsenal game the other day too. Anytime that you have guys like him come back around, it sure means a lot.
“He’s a special player, special person. We had a lot of really good memories together and it was good to be able to really catch up with him for a while at the Arsenal game the other day. Then seeing him out here, he still looks like he could take a couple carries and be the man like he was.”
Under McVay, Gurley had a career years carrying the football and it culminated with him winning Offensive Player of the Year in 2017. While Gurley was a key fixture of McVay’s offense, a knee injury slowed him down considerably and the Rams eventually decided to move on from him.
It was a disappointing end to Gurley’s tenure in Los Angeles, but he has said he holds no ill will toward the organization. In fact, he later admitted he appreciated that the Rams released him versus trading him to a team he didn’t want to be on.
With his relationship with McVay intact, hopefully this means Gurley will be seen at more games in the 2024 season.
Matthew Stafford happy to be with Rams after contract situation was resolved
There was more good news to be had at Rams training camp as Matthew Stafford returned to the field after a situation with his contract. Stafford requested more guaranteed money on his deal and got what was he looking for, making him happy to return to the team.