NEWPORT BEACH >> Matthew Stafford reported Sunday for his first Rams training camp, ready to get started with a team boasting more talent and grander expectations than the quarterback ever enjoyed with the Lions.
“It’s great,” Stafford said at the hotel where Rams players and coaches will be billeted during two weeks of practice at UC Irvine starting Wednesday. “Not many people in my position get the chance to move teams to a place that’s had a bunch of recent success. I’m just excited to be a part of it.”
It would have been even greater a week ago, before Cam Akers’ Achilles injury last Monday cost the Rams their leading rusher.
Eventually, the Rams might have to seek help in a free agent or trade, but so far they’ve said the right things about the running backs they have, expressing confidence Akers’ replacement will come from among Darrell Henderson, Xavier Jones, Raymond Calais, seventh-round draft pick Jake Funk and undrafted rookie Otis Anderson.
Stafford expressed the same hope as he spoke with L.A. reporters Sunday.
“Really, the biggest gut punch was for the kid,” Stafford, 33, said of Akers, 22, who fought injuries as a rookie in 2020 but carried for 625 yards, one more than Henderson.
“It’s next man up. Those guys are going to battle it out,” Stafford said. “That’s the name of the game in this league. You’ve got to have depth. You’ve got to have guys step up. We’ll definitely have that.”
Stafford said coaches haven’t told him exactly what the running-back plan is.
“They’re kind of saying, ‘Dang,’ like we all are,” he said.
That’s the bad news. Meanwhile, there’s plenty to cheer up Stafford. For one thing, the man who’s used to being in Allen Park, Michigan, spoke to reporters on hotel deck overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
The Rams, feeling they’ve upgraded at quarterback from Jared Goff to Stafford after going 10-6 and winning a playoff game, are forecast to win 10-1/2 games and rated a 13-1 shot to win the Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium.
The Lions never won more than nine games or inspired better than 22-1 Super Bowl odds in Stafford’s 12 seasons in Detroit.
Stafford found another advantage to living and playing in L.A. when he found Rams receivers eager to take part in informal pass-and-catch practice in the weeks since June minicamp.
“That’s a great thing about Southern California. People want to be here and it’s easy to get guys to come back,” he said.
Stafford said minicamp left him comfortable with the offense but training camp will be a different step toward the Sept. 12 season opener against the Bears.
“It’s a bunch of new experiences for me,” he said. “Where we’re playing, where I’m living, my teammates, coaching staff. All that is new for me. It’s definitely invigorating and a challenge for me, something I’m looking forward to.”
NOTES
The Rams hired football writer Andy Benoit as an assistant to coach Sean McVay. Benoit, 35, replaces McVay assistant Bill Nayes but will play a bigger role. That includes work with analytics. … All Rams quarterbacks and rookies reported for training camp on schedule Sunday, and no tardies are expected when the rest of the roster reports Wednesday, a team executive said. … Questions about how many Rams players have received COVID-19 vaccines were being referred to McVay, whose first session with reporters is Monday morning. League medical director Dr. Allen Sills said about 70% of NFL players are vaccinated and seven teams have 85% or more vaccinated, the AP reported. Unvaccinated players must be tested daily, among other impositions. NFL officials have warned of game forfeits if there are outbreaks this season.
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