LOS ANGELES -- Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford did not practice Monday after being expected to take part in individual drills in his return to practice from an aggravated disk in his back.
Monday's practice was expected to be the next step in Stafford's return from back soreness after he threw 68 passes at the Rams' practice facility Saturday morning. On Sunday, coach Sean McVay said he expected Stafford to participate in individual drills the next day with the plan to "take it a day at a time" from there.
On Monday, McVay said while Stafford had "a great workout" and "felt good" Saturday, he "didn't feel good enough" to throw Monday. The Rams "didn't think [practicing] was the right thing to do based on how he woke up feeling today," McVay said.
Instead, Stafford was in street clothes during practice while walking into a "restorative and rejuvenation" chamber parked next to the Rams' practice field. McVay said the chamber is to help with recovery, but is "kind of normal for any of our players" and "wasn't anything specifically related to [Stafford's] back."
Shortly after practice began, Matthew Stafford walked into this Ammortal chamber, which helps with "restoration and rejuvenation." Stafford will not practice today. pic.twitter.com/FtWUAvXxxC
— Sarah Barshop (@sarahbarshop) August 11, 2025
Last week, McVay emphasized that while the Rams are being cautious with Stafford's back, he would be available to play if it was the regular season. McVay said Monday that the Rams will continue to be "flexible and fluid" with Stafford's return from his back injury and reiterated that the team plans to "take it a day at a time" going forward.
"I do think it's important to be able to get some work in, but not at the expense of following the plan that we've talked about," McVay said.
When asked whether surgery has been ruled out for Stafford, McVay said, "That hasn't been a conversation that we've had."
"I haven't gone down that road yet in terms of those types of conversations," McVay said. "There's been a lot of conversations about what's the best method of how we want to approach it. That hasn't been something that comes up."
