On Saturday, Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay announced that quarterback Matthew Stafford will not practice next week. The 37-year-old quarterback is entering his 17th year and suffers from a sore back.
Stafford spent the first week of camp working out with the trainers and has reportedly not started throwing. McVay initially said Stafford would rejoin the team in a few days, but that is no longer the case.
Why Is Sean McVay Taking a Week-to-Week Approach With Matthew Stafford?
On Saturday, Gary Klein of the Los Angeles Times reported Stafford’s status, followed shortly thereafter by Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic.
Matthew Stafford will not practice next week, McVay said.
— Gary Klein (@LATimesklein) July 26, 2025
McVay told reporters that Stafford will now be a “week at a time” and added that’s probably what he should have said in the first place.
— Jourdan Rodrigue (@JourdanRodrigue) July 26, 2025
The NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport posted McVay’s full comments on the team’s reasoning for considering Stafford week to week.
“He’s still good,” McVay said. “We’re going to be week to week with him, though … the end goal is September 7 when we open up against the Texans … and rushing him back, where you could potentially have an unnecessary setback, you know, that just doesn’t make sense.”
Here is Sean McVay’s full comments on @nflnetwork, on Matthew Stafford https://t.co/nWEfullX59 pic.twitter.com/1g8fwbt6k5
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 26, 2025
McVay appeared on the “Up & Adams Show with Kay Adams” on Friday, saying that the team has modified its approach to handling Stafford’s workload.
How Will This Modified Approach Impact the Rams’ Preparation?
“You can’t be smart enough with him,” McVay told Adams. “We’re going to take a modified approach so he can feel as good mentally and emotionally … we did that in the offseason. I thought it was awesome. Had a little bit of soreness creep up, so we should be good to go in a couple of days.”
McVay quickly adjusted to this new reality, saying, “We are fortunate to have the luxury of a player like him that, you don’t minimize the importance of practice, but this is the best thing for him and our football team.”
Stafford’s health is what’s most important to the Rams. McVay is known for not playing his starters in the preseason, so backups Jimmy Garoppolo and Stetson Bennett were widely expected to play most of the snaps in the preseason.
Stafford’s familiarity and experience with McVay’s offense should blunt concerns about rust or being able to connect with his receivers.
The Rams open the preseason against the Dallas Cowboys on August 9 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
