Ram Digest

Rams Again To Start Rookies, Veterans From Same Point

The National Football League on Thursday confirmed the offseason program dates for the Los Angeles Rams
Zak Gilbert|
Jul 29, 2024; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay, general manager Les Snead and chief of staff Carter Crutchfield talk on the field during training camp at Loyola Marymount University. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Jul 29, 2024; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay, general manager Les Snead and chief of staff Carter Crutchfield talk on the field during training camp at Loyola Marymount University. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

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Los Angeles Rams

Whether the Rams draft Jaxson Dart or any other player in the first round, the team’s 2025 draft class won’t get its feet wet on a practice field before veterans join them.

That’s because McVay will not conduct a rookie minicamp after the draft, an option the NFL provides. Since the Rams hired him in 2017, McVay has never held one. Every other organization puts its rookies on a practice field either the first or second weekend after the draft.

No one can argue with the results. After all, the Rams have the reigning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year in Jared Verse. Their roster also includes some of the league’s best young players, including wide receiver Puka Nacua, running back Kyren Williams, linebacker Byron Young, defensive tackle Kobie Turner, defensive end Braden Fiske and safety Kam Kinchens.

Since they won Super Bowl LVI and shifted to a draft-and-develop philosophy, McVay and Les Snead have taught a masterclass for how to draft on Day 2. None of those young players got an early start. Just like this year’s Rams rookies, they all hit the field at the same time as the Los Angeles veterans.

Veterans will begin Phase 1 of the offseason program on April 21, three days before the draft. That two-week phase limits teams to meetings, strength and conditioning and physical rehabilitation. But Phase 2, when on-field work is allowed, is when McVay believes the Rams get the best evaluation of rookies. Rams rookies experience their first grass workouts alongside veterans. They all start from the same point on their 2025 journey.

Phase 2 consists of the next three weeks. In addition to on-field workouts, clubs may include individual or group instruction and drills, as well as “perfect play drills,” and drills and plays with offensive players lining up across from offensive players and defensive players lining up across from defensive players, conducted at a walk-through pace. Neither live contact nor team offense vs. team defense are permitted.

The ensuing four weeks are considered Phase 3, when the league allows teams 10 days of organized team practice activity, or OTAs. No live contact is permitted, but 7-on-7, 9-on-7, and 11-on-11 drills are allowed. Phase 3 also includes a single minicamp with mandatory attendance, per the collective bargaining agreement.

Dates of the Rams' 2025 offseason program:

Category

Date(s)

First day of program, Phase 1

April 21

NFL Draft, Green Bay

April 24-26

Rookie minicamp

(none)

Organized team activities (OTAs)

May 27-28, May 30, June 2-3, June 5, June 9-10, June 12

Mandatory full-team minicamp

June 16-18

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Zak Gilbert
ZAK GILBERT

Since his freshman year at the University of Colorado, Zak Gilbert has worked 30 years in sports, including 18 NFL seasons. He's spent time with four NFL teams, serving as head of communications for both the Raiders and Browns. A veteran of nine Super Bowls, he most recently worked six seasons in the NFL's New York league office.