THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – WR Brandin Cooks (concussion) is considered day-to-day this week as the Rams begin their preparations for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Cooks, who was placed in concussion protocol after exiting Los Angeles' Week 8 win over Cincinnati on the third play of the game, saw concussion specialists in Pittsburgh during the Rams' bye week last week.
"It was good," McVay said of the visit. "More than anything, just getting some clarity on what's been the reason that maybe these things have occurred, how is he feeling. Anytime you can just get some more information with something like this, it's very helpful. He's still day-to-day. He was asymptomatic right after, which is always a positive thing."
The concussion against the Bengals in London marked Cooks' second in 24 days, as he also sustained one at Seattle in Week 5. According to McVay, the goal of seeing the specialist was to help both Cooks and the Rams seek clarity on what he's dealing with and how to handle that as time goes on.
"For him, just being able to learn more about the entirety of what's going on and maybe have a better understanding of maybe why some of these things have occurred, I think it gives him a quieted mind and it gives us a good feeling about how we want to progress moving forward with this," McVay said.
McVay said he and Cooks have had conversations about where Cooks' life is compared to where his professional career is as it relates to brain injuries in football, but out of respect for the privacy of Cooks and the information shared by the doctors in Pittsburgh, declined to elaborate on the details of those discussions.
"He's got a great perspective on what's most important: I think, No. 1, he's got so many great things going," McVay said. "We're not going to do anything to put him in harms way. That's the No. 1 priority, that will continue to remain that not only with Brandin, but with all of our players. We'll be very smart with how we ease him back into this whenever that time comes if that's the decision we make."
McVay said he didn't know precisely where Cooks was in concussion protocol as of Monday. However, the Rams are working on scheduling a second visit to those same specialists in Pittsburgh to assess his progress.
"He's continuing to have good responses day in and day out," McVay said. "We're scheduled for him to probably meet with those doctors in Pittsburgh again. When exactly that will take place, we'll find out a little bit later on."
It's possible that Cooks could play this Sunday against the Steelers in Pittsburgh, according to McVay, but when he returns will ultimately be his decision.
"Usually, what I think they have is a trust that our interest is in their best interest," McVay said. "Using the experts to be able to give their opinion and then you make decisions accordingly as you move forward. You can't be safe enough with some of these health things. That's something that we don't take lightly at all."
Matthews expected to be on the field this week
McVay said he expects LB Clay Matthews to return to the practice field this week.
Matthews missed the Rams' last three games due to a broken jaw sustained in Week 5 against the Seahawks. McVay has previously stated this week – the week after the bye – as being the most realistic scenario for when Matthews would come back from injury.
"I think, really, it's just kind of getting him back into normal routine, seeing how he's feeling," McVay said of how they plan to bring Matthews along this week. "Everything's checked out in a positive manner up to this point, so I think it's just kind of progressing back to, 'How comfortable do you feel putting a helmet on?' Some of the collisions that naturally would occur and just kind of trusting that you're nice and secure in that absence of some of that stuff that kind of kept it in place and helped it heal over the last couple weeks."
