The first joint practice against a defense that featured two elite pass rushers did not go well for the Rams.
Now, four days after the Chargers’ Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack helped ruin the Rams’ day, quarterback Matthew Stafford will look beyond the line of scrimmage and deal with Dallas Cowboys edge rushers Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence.
And Stafford will once again take snaps behind a depleted offensive line.
On Thursday there will be no tackles during joint practice in Oxnard, but a Rams offense also without injured receiver Puka Nacua will be challenged to avoid the deflected passes, batted balls and interceptions that permeated practice with the Chargers.
The Rams know Parsons well. In 2022, he recorded two sacks and forced a fumble in a win over the Rams at SoFi Stadium. Last season, he had a sack and three quarterback hits in a win over the Rams in Arlington, Texas.
See more information: Rams declare Puka Nacua will recover for season opener, but three injured forwards?
“When you get into real Sundays, you set your game plan around guys like that,” Rams offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur said Wednesday, adding, “It’s going to be a good job for our guys and then We’ll see what the guys will do. come forward and do what you can against him.”
The sheep tackles Alaric Jackson (ankle) and Rob Havenstein (ankle) and left guard Jonah Jackson (shoulder) remain uninjured.
Thus, Stafford will operate behind a line that should include center Steve Avila, guards Zach Thomas and Kevin Dotson and tackles Joe Noteboom and Warren McClendon Jr.
The Rams defense will face a much bigger test against the Cowboys than the offense they encountered against the Chargers and their backup quarterback. Easton Varawho worked in place of injured Justin Herbert.
Against the Cowboys, veteran Dak Prescott will be at center. That means a defense that features young offensive linemen like Kobie Turner and rookie Braden Fiske and edge rushers Byron Young and rookie Jared Verse will face a quarterback who makes quicker reads and collapses quickly, veteran outside linebacker Michael Hoecht said.
“It will be a good test for us against a guy who played a lot of football in the NFL and is a great quarterback… who knows how to manipulate pockets and keep guys away with his eyes,” Hoecht said. “It will be fun to see a group of young guys going up against a top-notch quarterback like that.”
The Rams secondary will not face Cowboys star receiver CeeDee Lamb. The Cowboys placed Lamb on injured reserve/non-reporting list on Tuesday. Lamb has held out as he seeks a new contract.
See more information: Rams to return to Cal Lutheran after new Woodland Hills training facility postponed
Thursday’s practice is the second of four joint practices for the Rams. They will practice again with the Chargers on August 14th. They will also practice with the Houston Texans on August 22nd.
In recent years, the Rams have practiced two consecutive days with another team. This year, the Rams and other teams opted for the one-day format, in part, to avoid fights that often broke out on the second day of practice.
The NFL this week fined the Detroit Lions and New York Giants $200,000 over fights that broke out during two joint practices between the teams.
“All NFL clubs were reminded in a memo sent last month that fighting and unprofessional conduct at joint practices would not be tolerated,” the league said in a statement Wednesday, according to an Associated Press report.
This story originally appeared on Los Angeles Times.
