Both the Rams and the Raiders look good during the first day of joint practice
Los Angeles Rams and Las Vegas Raiders first day during joint-practice and scrimage. Photo by Jerry Kelly/TGSportstv1.
THOUSAND OAKS, CA - On the first day of the Rams and Raiders joint practice, it was full of energy and just one little scuffle, but that's football in the NFL, both teams being competitive during practice preparing for the game this Saturday.
Both teams looked pretty sharp during the team drills, and the 49ers "Jimmy G" and Matthew Stafford looked good throwing the football during the scrimmage, and thought the joint practice was good for the team.
"It was good. We got a lot of good work in, always plays you're going to want back but had a lot of explosives, and it was really just good work for us to get against another defense, another team. They play a very different style of defense than what we face every single day, so it's nice for myself and some of these guys that haven't been exposed to a lot of NFL football to be exposed to a different team and realize, 'Hey man, it's not like we get to go practice against the same defense and then go play them on Sundays every week.' It's going to be different every week, and we got to find a way to adapt and go out there and execute, so it was good."
Los Angeles Rams and Las Vegas Raiders first day during joint-practice and scrimage. Photo by Jerry Kelly/TGSportstv1.
Rams head coach Sean McVay liked the overall practice during their first joint practice with the Raiders.
"Good. The tape is always the best thing to be able to look at. We had some good one-spot drills at the end, some good special teams periods, a lot of teamwork, some one-on-ones kind of competitive stuff in the early parts of it, and we got a lot done. I didn't see exactly what happened when there was a little skirmish, but got it separated. It wasn't an issue, and we were able to get everything that we wanted accomplished, and that was the important thing and that's where we're at."
Matthew spoke to the media about how good it was to practice against the Raiders to help him get ready for the season.
"It's great. This is a bunch of good reps against another defense, another team. We'll have it again next week, but we take these really seriously as far as going out there and executing and having good practices. We don't game plan at all really for this. We just go out there and try to test our rules, test ourselves in certain situations. There’s things I'll want back after today, but for the most part, it was good."
The Rams young secondary had a chance to go up against one of the best receivers in the league Davante Adams, getting valuable reps to prepare them for the upcoming season. Coach McVay shared his thoughts about the opportunity his secondary had to practice against him.
"What a great opportunity to go against one of the best. If you have a growth mindset and you're in the mentality that the work pays off and you continue to get opportunities to challenge yourself, that's what you love. And I think that's what a lot of guys have on our team. He certainly is one of those guys that fits that criteria and I think it's a great opportunity. And there's some other players on their team that fit that mold and what a cool thing it is to be able to do that."