-
Sarah Barshop, ESPN Staff Writer
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford experienced hamstring tightness and did not finish Wednesday’s joint practice against the Dallas Cowboys, a team official told reporters.
Rams quarterbacks Jimmy Garoppolo and Stetson Bennett took over reps for approximately the second half of the practice as Stafford, 36, watched from the sideline.
The team is not concerned about Stafford’s hamstring issue and does not expect it to linger, a source told ESPN’s Lindsey Thiry.
“[Stafford] operates at a world-class level,” offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur said. “But we know that every rep is going to be valuable for him, no matter how many plays he’s had. Unfortunately, he had some tightness.”
Garoppolo, who signed with Los Angeles in March to back up Stafford, worked with the first-team offense after Stafford’s exit, the reps having added significance as Garoppolo is unlikely to play in the preseason games.
“Anytime you get those ops, particularly against a defense like this with all the players they got, is going to be valuable,” LaFleur said.
Garoppolo is suspended for the first two games of the season for violating the NFL’s performance-enhancing substances policy.
Bennett took snaps with the backups three days after he threw four interceptions before leading a last-minute touchdown drive against the Cowboys in the first preseason game.
“He did some good things, but we got to work on the turnovers, no doubt,” LaFleur said. “But there were a lot of positives for him to be able to get out here and practice.”
Stafford was scheduled to speak to reporters after practice but that news conference was canceled. Rams coach Sean McVay was not scheduled to talk to reporters Wednesday.
In 15 games last season, Stafford completed 62.6% of his passes for 3,965 yards with 24 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
Source: www.espn.com