[Elvis]

From Irvine, with the Los Angeles Rams

1. Don’t expect to see any of Todd Gurley in the Rams’ four preseason games, and it became clear very quickly into training camp that we won’t see a ton of him during practices, either. The Rams have concocted a detailed plan to limit Gurley’s workload this camp. Generally, that plan includes alternating practice days with rest days, and it started from the first day of camp in Irvine and will continue through joint practice with the Raiders in Napa.

But there appear to be no limitations on Gurley on the days he is in uniform. He is a full participant in 11-on-11 drills, run drills, blitz pickup, and when he’s running, it does not look like the knee injury that sidelined him late last season has slowed him down. Wide receiver Robert Woods said that when the players sought out their max-speed data during the first weekend of camp, it was Gurley who hit 22 mph – the fastest of any of the skill position players.

The Rams consider this decreased workload part of their plan to maximize their investment in Gurley. A year after they signed Gurley to a four-year, $57.5 million contract, general manager Les Snead said he has no regrets about the size or timing of that contract. Gurley remains the NFL’s highest-paid running back, in both annual salary ($14.35 average per year) and total contract. His full deal is worth $5 million more than the contract Le’Veon Bell signed with the Jets in March, though Bell received more guaranteed money at signing ($27 million, to Gurley’s $21.95 million).

“With all the analytics in the NFL now, that sometimes, I get it, it’s all about these players that are commodities to be basically expended and then you kick them out,” Snead told The Athletic. “But I’m like, ‘Wait a minute.’ A locker room is full of people. All the great leaders, starting as far back as you want to go, they talk about: It’s the people. It’s all about the pillars, and you’ve got to reward them. So ultimately when you look at Todd, since he’s been drafted, he’s got the most yards from scrimmage, the most TDs than any other human beings. I don’t even know who is second, but he’s 6 yards ahead of (Falcons receiver) Julio (Jones). So that human being deserved that reward. And I think that’s what you want to be known for. If you come to the Rams, if you’re one of our pillars, we’re going to try to take care of you. If you’re one of our important role players, we’re going to try to take care of you.”

2. It’s been a unique camp for the Rams in that, for the first time in recent years, there is almost no contract drama. The Rams practiced all of training camp without Aaron Donald the past two years, but this year, there are no holdouts, with Donald, Gurley, wide receiver Brandin Cooks and offensive tackle Rob Havenstein all having received new contracts in the past year. Even head coach Sean McVay and Snead are settled, each receiving an extension in July.

The Rams have had contract talks with the agents for quarterback Jared Goff, who is heading into the fourth year of his rookie deal, and cornerback Marcus Peters, who is in the final year of his contract, but no deals appear imminent for either player.

“Because we did all [the 2018 deals], we had to divide it up,” Snead said. “Everyone that was coming up and this year would have been their year, we have communicated to them that, ‘Hey, you can still get things done,’ and they’re not losing money, and they wouldn’t lose guaranteed money, it’s ultimately delayed gratification, right? You’d have to defer some payments into future years to get things done.”

3. This preseason is critical for the Rams’ coaching staff. After appearing to be one step ahead of most defensive coordinators last year, Sean McVay was outcoached by Bill Belichick in the Super Bowl. The Patriots held the Rams to just a field goal, in part by following a defensive blueprint established in December by Vic Fangio and the Bears. The Rams failed to adjust when the Patriots played primarily zone defense instead of man-to-man, and had few answers to solve the Patriots’ smothering run defense that consistently resulted in difficult third-down passing situations for Goff.

McVay said he would be using training camp, especially the four joint practices against the Chargers and Raiders, to work on making better in-game coaching adjustments.

“You can’t shy away from the things we didn’t do well last year, and some of the situations where I certainly could have put our players in a better spot,” McVay said. “So that’s a huge point of emphasis. If you’re afraid to look at the things that we didn’t do good enough, you’re kind of brushing it under the rug and inevitably it’s going to come back to haunt you.”