Throughout training camp, team insider Myles Simmons will share his top observations from each practice.
1) Friday's session was closed to Rams season ticket holders, but Crawford Field at UC Irvine was still packed. There was plenty of energy following the big announcement that Los Angeles has changed its primary "color" uniform to the iconic royal blue and yellow for the next two seasons.
2) Rams Hall of Fame offensive tackle Jackie Slater was in attendance for Friday's practice. He spent some time talking with the defensive linemen before the session began, particularly defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh. "It's great, obviously, to have them around, be able to pick their brains, be able to talk to them, interact with them," Suh would say of the interaction after practice.
Check out some of the best shots from Day 2 of 2018 Rams Training Camp at UC Irvine.
3) With such a large crowd, fans got audibly excited when quarterback Jared Goff hit wide receiver Brandin Cooks with a deep pass down the left sideline. It was a nice ball, but it should've been — the offense was going against air. Those are the plays that should work, and in this case they did.
4) The defensive line spent a good portion of individual drills practicing ripping the ball out from a ballcarrier. Players partnered up, with one playing the part of running back with the other tasked to create a takeaway running up from behind. On one of Suh's reps, he punched the ball out so hard that it landed in a hospitality tent. Sources say Suh is a pretty strong guy.
5) During one-on-one drills, cornerback Kevin Peterson nearly picked off quarterback Sean Mannion on a short out route. Peterson read the route perfectly and got his hands on the ball, but just didn't complete the catch.
6) Also in one-on-ones, wide receiver Robert Woods made a nice move to shake cornerback Marcus Peters and then made a nice catch in the middle of the field. That's not easy to do with an elite man coverage player like Peters.
7) Later in the session, Goff connected with tight end Gerald Everett on a ball deep over the middle. Everett had to stretch out to make the catch, which was fit into a tight window to evade double coverage. Everett has flashed a bit over the first two days of camp, making a number of receptions on the first- and second-team offense.
8) During 11-on-11, Cooks made a nice catch over the middle that also drew some cheers from the crowd. This one was a bit more impressive since Cooks had some competition aside from the air — Peters was draped all over him. An "iron sharpens iron" situation, to be sure.
9) Head coach Sean McVay is known for using different tempos to try to keep a defense off guard. With that in mind, the offense did get in some no-huddle work during the second 11-on-11 segment of the day. Goff connected with wideout Robert Woods on a deep crossing route for what would've been at least a 20-yard gain.
10) Finally, linebacker Ramik Wilson has flashed over the first two days, consistently getting his hands on the ball. On Friday, Wilson nearly picked off two passes in the flat during separate 11-on-11 drills. Wilson has received the bulk of playing time at inside linebacker alongside linebacker Cory Littleton early in camp.
