LOS ANGELES — Day 9 saw the return of defensive end Myles Garrett to the field after missing the entire second block of Rams Training Camp presented by CommunityAmerica Credit Union at LMU. Similar to what has taken place over training camp, the 11-on-11 period showcased a continued battle between the wide receivers on offense and the secondary on defense.
Offensive coordinator Nate Scheelhaase and defensive coordinator Chris Shula both talked about that back-and-forth battle between the two position groups. Garrett talked with the media about advice he's given and received since both joining the Rams and entering the league and wide receiver Puka Nacua and Garrett both mentioned the bond between players throughout the roster this training camp.
"It seems like mutual respect to me. Especially (wide receiver Davante Adams) and Puka, when (cornerback Trent McDuffie) is covering those guys, you see Trent's right on them, they make a great catch, you almost see them fist bump after. Sometimes Trent gets a PBU, you can just tell the respect they have for each other, and they're pushing each other to be better every single day." - Shula
Although Wednesday's practice didn't have as much of a back-and-forth as Monday's practice, all throughout camp there's been constant competition between some of the best receivers and best defensive backs in the NFL.
Oftentimes, the wide receiver will put themselves in a great position and McDuffie, cornerback Jaylen Watson or anyone else in the secondary will make a play on the ball and Scheelhaase simply tips his cap and acknowledges that it was yet another "great contested play downfield that they have made."
Scheelhaase, among others, is the latest to mention just how back-and-forth the training camp practices have been. "Davante and Puka have gone back at them, you feel like every catch you're holding your breath because those guys are on you in sticky coverage. They're challenging at the line of scrimmage, they're running with you downfield and they're physical in the run game. So when you got guys like that who make it challenging for us at receiver, it's certainly made us a whole lot better."
"Pouring into your teammates is important because they want to get better. They want to learn from me, but I also want to learn from them. What is their style? What are they seeing? How are they rushing? And how can I help improve them? And how can we work with each other?" - Garrett
In a continuation of the theme "iron sharpens iron" throughout training camp, Garrett talked the pointers and advice circulating the Rams' outside linebacker room. But the advice doesn't stop within the d-line, as Garrett also finds himself talking with the offensive line to help both sides by "talking to the center as far as the snap count, if I see any tendencies by him, trying to let him know (that) this is what it's telling me that you're going to snap the ball here or this was helping me get a good jump."
Throughout his career Garrett has taken the advice from "so many." Even as the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Garrett's mindset remains the same. "I tried to listen to everyone I could. I'm still not as good as I could be and I'll never be too good to listen to anyone," Garrett said.
"I would say from Day 1, it felt like everybody hit the ground running. The continuity between the team, we were pretty young my rookie year with how many rookies we had play, but it's nice that we all got a lot of games under our belt now. But I think the connection between the team, everybody hanging out in the meal room, ... it's been fun to have that communication, and watching our some of our high school tape." - Nacua
As with every year, training camp is a time for new players to acclimate to the team, but also a time for returning players and groups to continue to bond from compounding years together. The wide receiver room returned the vast majority of its production from a season ago with Nacua, Davante Adams, Jordan Whittington, Xavier Smith, Konata Mumpfield and more. That shared experience and time to watch high school tape continues to build that bond.
For a new player to the Rams like Garrett, this time is to get to know his teammates to be able to trust them on and off the field. Garrett explained how he will "play cards, sit and talk, have lunch," to get to know everyone at LMU. "You get a lot of time to just break bread with guys and learn where they're from, their motivations," Garrett said. "I think that's what helps build a great team, once you know everybody."
