Los Angeles

Rams

Stafford leaving practice is likely a precautionary measure for the Rams to ensure any hamstring issue does not escalate. Head coach Sean McVay said, “unfortunately, [Stafford] had some tightness” in Wednesday’s joint practice against the Cowboys. The 36-year-old just agreed to a re-worked contract in the offseason and the Rams anticipate Stafford continuing to run the offense at a high level. Jimmy Garoppolo and Stetson Bennett took over reps for the second half of the practice.

Austin announced his retirement on his Instagram on Tuesday, saying “after an incredible ten years, I’m officially retiring from the NFL.” The former first-round pick was a phenom in college at West Virginia, totaling 4,446 yards from scrimmage in 52 games. The Rams selected Austin in the 2013 draft and he went on to total over 1,000 yards as a rusher, receiver, and returner each over his career. After five seasons with the Rams, he spent time with the Cowboys, 49ers, Packers, Jaguars, and Bills either on the active roster, practice squad, or offseason roster. Injuries derailed much of Austin’s career towards the end, but he will best be known as a triple-threat weapon with the Rams. Austin retires at 34, saying “just like seasons, they come to an end, and it’s time for me to enter my next chapter in life”.

Bennett made the start for the Rams on Sunday and played out the entire contest. The second-year quarterback had more downs than ups, as evidenced by his four-interception day, but gathered himself and the offense to orchestrate a game-winning drive in the final seconds. Bennett capped the drive with a six-yard touchdown pass to tight end Miller Forristall for the game-tying score, while kicker Joshua Karty converted the PAT to secure the win. After missing all of his rookie campaign, Bennett is now competing to stick around on the Rams’ 53-man roster as the third quarterback after Jimmy Garoppolo returns from his two-game suspension for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy.

In a post to his Instagram, Foles, a former third-round pick of the Eagles in 2012, has opted to call it quits. The veteran quarterback didn’t play an NFL snap in 2023, but he is most remembered for his run as the Eagles’ starter during the 2017 season when he stepped in for an injured Carson Wentz and led the team to an unprecedented Super Bowl victory in Super Bowl LII. During that three-game playoff stretch, Foles threw for 971-6-1 while completing 72.6 percent of his passes. He was on the receiving end of the famous “Philly Special,” which helped give the Eagles a 22-12 lead over the Patriots before halftime. A journeyman quarterback who spent time with six different franchises over his career, Foles is also one of nine quarterbacks to throw for seven touchdowns in a game, which he did during a Week 9 contest against the Raiders. Foles retires with a career 29-29 record while throwing for 14,227 yards and 82 touchdowns.

Nacua went down with a knee injury yesterday, revealed to be a bursa sac burst, according to McVay. The 23-year-old wideout is now week-to-week heading into the preseason, but McVay stated, “he’ll be in good shape, and he’ll recover... no threat of anything for Detroit.” The Rams’ Week 1 game is against the Lions and based on McVay’s comments, Nacua should be ready to go. After setting rookie records last season, Nacua is a WR1 value, but rookie sixth-round pick Jordan Whittington could see more looks throughout camp and preseason while Nacua is out.

The Rams’ offensive line has taken some hits lately, prompting the signing of McDermott. The veteran lineman appeared in six games for the Patriots last season, making five starts, and split time between the Jets and Patriots in 2022. McDermott earned a PFF blocking grade of 67.8 last season while playing exclusively at left tackle; he can serve as a bookend tackle at either side for the Rams, who could run him with the starters sooner than later in camp.

Specifically, the Rams hope to allow Williams to “stay fresh.” Williams himself admitted to initial worry when the team used a third-round pick on Michigan RB Blake Corum, but the Rams’ exact intentions remain unclear. They have talked up the similarities between the two backs, leading to a belief that coach Sean McVay can “stay in the rhythm and how he calls the game.” That quote is via RBs coach Ron Gould. For his part, Williams seems to be preparing for a different workload this season. “Obviously it’s not going to be good for me (if I take every carry),” Williams admitted. We aren’t entirely sure how to guide fantasy managers here — it’s dangerous to over-interpret summer comments — but at the very least, it seems as if all parties are at least preparing to spell Williams more than they did during his fantasy dominant 2023. He’s a high-reward, moderate-risk proposition as a mid-range RB1.

A source told Schefter that Nacua’s knee ailment was “not serious.” He left practice early on Sunday with his knee wrapped with ice. Head coach Sean McVay said he wasn’t sure how the injury happened. Nacua would seemingly have a good chance to be ready for the team’s Week 1 game against the Lions barring setbacks to the knee injury. Any missed time for Nacua would mean a glut of targets for Cooper Kupp and Demarcus Robinson.

Nacua reportedly left the practice field “a little over [an hour] into it after a team drills period” before returning to the sideline, wearing his uniform and helmet, with the ice bag in tow. Per Rodrigue, “Sean McVay says he is ‘not sure’ what happened.” The team will undoubtedly play things extremely conservatively with their star player. It is a situation to monitor closely, though panic is currently unwarranted.

Havenstein is the leader of an offensive line that has seen a lot of turnover during the previous three seasons, making his absence something worth monitoring as the 2024 regular season approaches. The team would do well to give Havenstein the required time to get fully healthy before games begin to count. The nine-year veteran has made 130 starts for the franchise since entering the league with the then St. Louis Rams, starting more than 13 games in all but one season.