2016 Los Angeles Rams Training Camp Preview

Football is back.

Here’s the official team homepage for 2016 Los Angeles Rams Training Camp.

Training Camp Schedule

Pretty pdf from the team here.

Weather and field conditions are evaluated daily, so all dates and times provided are subject to change, including autograph sessions. Stay tuned to TST (and check our Twitter account) for updates on any schedule changes.

Directions and Parking

Crawford Field, UC Irvine is located at 903 W Peltason Dr., Irvine, CA 92617. Suggested directions can be found here.

The Rams suggest fans park in in the Mesa Parking Structure (next to the Bren Events Center) at the following prices:

General Permit: $10/day
General Permit for Oversized Vehicles: $20/day
Full Training Camp Pass: $140
Full Training Camp Pass for Oversized Vehicles: $280

This map indicates all available parking areas. Fans are encouraged to purchase parking passes online in advance.

Information on disabled parking and mobility assistance can be found here.

The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is located at 3911 South Figueroa St., Los Angeles, California, 90037.

What to bring...and what not to

Per the team:

Please feel free to bring the following items to training camp: Hats, jackets, rain gear, sunglasses, sunscreen, binoculars, umbrellas, and strollers...Feel free to bring your camera to take photos of players and coaches. Flash photography is not allowed. Video cameras will not be allowed.

No coolers or outside food and beverage, including alcohol, are permitted.

The following items will not be permitted at training camp: alcohol, outside food and beverage, coolers, glass containers, noise makers, loud radios, large signs or inappropriate attire. Also, no weapons of any kind, regardless of persons with concealed carry handgun permits, will be allowed.

Major Storylines

Injuries

Injuries are always the biggest impact from training camp. A year ago, the Rams lost CB E.J. Gaines for the season with a Lisfranc injury. The year prior, QB Sam Bradford and CB Trumaine Johnson both suffered preseason knee injuries.

Whatever superstition you cling to, go ahead and knock it out now. Hell, go ahead and do it every day. We’re gonna need it.

Jared Goff’s NFL Career Begins

When the Rams traded with the Tennessee Titans to acquire the #1 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, it reset the trajectory of the entire franchise. When they used that pick to select Cal QB Jared Goff, it determined who was going to lead them on that trajectory.

Now as the Rams begin training camp, the question is when Goff will take over the starting position from Case Keenum who was awarded the gig late last year.

One major aspect to key on in the interim is who Goff develops a rapport with. Even if he is taking snaps with the second string, he could well develop some immediate chemistry with a backup wide receiver or tight end, conceivably one of the four other offensive draft picks from the Rams’ 2016 draft class. That chemistry could carry over once Goff takes over the starting position and perhaps pulls that target with him up the depth chart.

Reforming The Offense

Goff and 2015 Offensive Rookie of the Year RB Todd Gurley will draw the majority of attention on the offense, but the issues plaguing the 32nd-ranked offense in terms of yards in 2015 goes beyond one or two players. To gain less yards than any other team over the course of the entire season indicates systemic failure.

Gurley’s rookie season was marked with highlights that exhibited rare skills, but the Rams will need to do more in the passing game to take the defensive focus off of him. That’s what they failed to do in 2015 which led to a four-game stretch in which Gurley averaged less than 45 yards per game.

The offensive line was racked by injuries in 2015. LG Rodger Saffold, noted for his injury history, saw his sixth NFL season end in Week 5 with a shoulder injury. Starting RG Jamon Brown, a third-round pick from the 2015 NFL Draft, broke his leg defending an interception return in Week 9 ending his rookie season. Backup OT Darrell Williams broke his wrist on the same play. OT Andrew Donnal, who was filling in for RT Rob Havenstein while he was on a short injury leave, injured his knee in Week 10 ending his season. Expectedly with those injuries and the youth injection from last year’s offseason, the offensive line’s performance was part of the problem as well. The Rams aren’t expected to make any personnel changes to the group from last year.

And the receiving group? There’s a reason Pro Football Focus ranked them the worst WR and TE corps in the entire NFL...

So just how does this offense provide sufficient support to put the team above .500? The answer to that likely will define the Rams’ 2016 season.

Defensive Identity Remade

In recent years, the Rams’ defense, pushed by the quality of its defensive line, has been the stronger unit. That defense was often led by longtime Rams DE Chris Long and MLB James Laurinaitis. Both, along with CB Janoris Jenkins and S Rodney McLeod, are no longer Rams leaving four starting spots to be filled with new names.

How those four positions, and the defense as a whole adjusts, will set the limitations for the team as a whole as they work to build a credible offense.

We’ll be tracking those four storylines every practice as the 2016 Los Angeles Rams begin to take shape and prepare to take the field providing NFL football in Los Angeles for the first time in more than 20 years.