Ram quarterback Matthew Stafford is practicing. But he hasn’t played, and won’t play, in the preseason. Is he prepared for Week 1?
“Yeah, I think so,” Stafford told reporters on Thursday. “We still have time before the first one, so we just continue to work against each other, sharpen our skills both offensively and defensively. The season is a process. I want to make progress throughout it. That’s what we’re trying to do. . . . [T]here might be days where you’re going to have some tough ones. Can you bounce back and keep going? It’s just like a season, right? You don’t play the first game and get seventeen times better in the last game of the season. You’re just fighting, finding ways to win ball games and doing that along the way. That’s what we’re up to right now. Just trying to work through some things [and] get guys in position. We have some guys still out that hopefully we can get back pretty soon. It’s really a valuable experience for everybody.”
Stafford has recovered from a hamstring injury, well enough to practice fully and completely in a joint session with the Texans.
He also has a thumb injury, which happened away from football.
“I’m not going to take you through the details,” Stafford said. “I cut it at my house, like a normal human being and I have to protect it for a little bit. I’ll be fine.”
Whether the Rams will be fine becomes a week by week, game by game proposition. Every year, most teams deal with injuries. Some more than others. The teams that stay the healthiest have far better chances to achieve their goals.
The Rams get the season started with a visit to Detroit, site of L.A.'s playoff loss to cap the 2023 season.