In less than two weeks, the Rams are scheduled kick off their offseason program, with Organized Team Activity workouts slated to get underway on May 22.
When it comes to Matthew Stafford's participation, the quarterback will have "no limitations" and be "ready to roll," according to head coach Sean McVay.
"He's doing really well," McVay said last week at the NFL Annual Meetings in Phoenix. "I think he'd be better equipped to answer this, but I think it's been a long time since he's been healthy through an offseason, where he's been able to throw. I was just with him the other morning where he was in there early (at the facility) working, being able to do the things that are in alignment with preparing for the season."
Stafford himself has basically held this expectation since early January.
"Heading into the offseason, got a chance to be pretty darn healthy and continue to try to get to feeling as good as I can I feel, and then get ready to go again next year," he said during his end-of-season media availability at that time.
Stafford did not throw during the Rams' offseason program in the spring of 2022, then had his throwing workload in training camp on a pitch count as part of their plan to manage his elbow. In the 2022 regular season, he was limited to nine games as he missed time due to concussion protocol and a spinal cord contusion.
"He's doing really well," McVay said. "I think last year, there was such a unique combination and collaboration of things that prevented him from being able to play the way that he's capable of, whether it was the things that he dealt with, some of the surrounding parts, missing a lot of time leading up into the season with some of the injuries and just different things that he was working through. So I think there's a lot of guys on our team that will have a renewed sense of urgency and appreciation for just getting back out and competing, and he's certainly one of those guys. We're a lot better football team with him going."
From Training Camp practice No. 1 to Super Bowl LVI, look through the best photos from Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford's first season in royal & sol.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals in Week 4 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Detroit Lions in Week 7 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals in the Wild Card round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the New York Giants in Week 6 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the New York Giants in Week 6 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Baltimore Ravens during Week 17 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Detroit Lions in Week 7 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday Night Football during Week 5 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Jacksonville Jaguars during Week 13 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the New York Giants in Week 6 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the San Francisco 49ers in Week 10 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams celebrate the Super Bowl LVI Championship at the LA city parade.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals during Week 14 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Jacksonville Jaguars during Week 13 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Houston Texans in Week 8 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Houston Texans in Week 8 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Bucceneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Detroit Lions in Week 7 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Indiniapolis Colts in Week 2 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Jacksonville Jaguars during Week 13 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Minnesota Vikings during Week 16 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals in Week 4 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the New York Giants in Week 6 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday Night Football during Week 5 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season
The Los Angeles Rams take on the San Francisco 49ers during Week 18 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams enter the field during team introductions before playing against the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI, February 13, 2022, in Inglewood, CA. (Jeff Lewis/LA Rams)
The Los Angeles Rams celebrate the Super Bowl LVI Championship at the LA city parade.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the San Francisco 49ers in Week 10 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Indiniapolis Colts in Week 2 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Seattle Seahawks during Week 15 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Detroit Lions in Week 7 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Bucceneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season. The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
Matthew Stafford's first visit to SoFi Stadium.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Detroit Lions in Week 7 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Houston Texans in Week 8 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Minnesota Vikings in Week 16 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals in the Wild Card round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Minnesota Vikings during Week 16 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Houston Texans in Week 8 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams celebrate the Super Bowl LVI Championship at the LA city parade.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the San Francisco 49ers during Week 18 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Detroit Lions in Week 7 of the 2021 season.
Matthew Staffoed
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Minnesota Vikings in Week 16 of the 2021 regular season.
MVP Cooper Kupp, Aaron Donald and Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams celebrate Super Bowl victory with a jubilant cavalcade down, complete with Mickey Mouse and his pals, down Main Street U.S.A. at Disneyland Park in Anaheim, Calif., Feb. 14, 2022. The players visited the Disneyland Resort one day after the Los Angeles Rams' victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI. (Matt Brown/Disneyland Resort)
The Los Angeles Rams take on the San Francisco 49ers during Week 18 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Bucceneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season. The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season.
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) celebrates during an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, September 26, 2021 in Inglewood, California. (Ben Liebenberg/NFL)
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals during Week 14 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
Quarterback (9) Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams speaks at the podium during the Rams celebration parade and rally, February 16, 2022, in Los Angeles, CA. (Jeff Lewis/LA Rams)
Los Angeles Rams kickoff 2021 training camp practice at UC Irvine.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the San Francisco 49ers in Week 10 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals in Week 4 of the 2021 season.
Quarterback (9) Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams passes the ball against the Cincinnati Bengals during Super Bowl LVI, February 13, 2022, in Inglewood, CA. The Rams won 23-20. (Jeff Lewis/LA Rams)
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals in Week 4 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the San Francisco 49ers in Week 18 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals in the Wild Card round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams celebrate the Super Bowl LVI Championship at the LA city parade.
Los Angeles Rams host 2021 training camp practice at UC Irvine.
Matthew Stafford's first visit to SoFi Stadium.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Jacksonville Jaguars during Week 13 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take the practice field in preparation for Week 3 against the Buccaneers.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday Night Football during Week 5 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Indiniapolis Colts in Week 2 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals in Week 4 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
Los Angeles Rams kickoff 2021 training camp practice at UC Irvine.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the San Francisco 49ers during Week 18 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Detroit Lions in Week 7 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Bucceneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season.
Behind the scenes of the Los Angeles Rams open video directed by Award-winning director Wally Pfister.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Bucceneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Jacksonville Jaguars during Week 13 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Indiniapolis Colts in Week 2 of the 2021 season.
Matthew Stafford's first visit to SoFi Stadium.
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) celebrates during an NFL football game against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, October 3, 2021 in Inglewood, California. (Ben Liebenberg/NFL)
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Green Bay Packers during Week 12 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Divisional round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Indiniapolis Colts in Week 2 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Detroit Lions in Week 7 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday Night Football during Week 5 of the 2021 season.
Matthew Stafford's first visit to SoFi Stadium.
The Los Angeles Rams took on the Detroit Lions in Week 7 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the New York Giants in Week 6 of the 2021 season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals in the Wild Card round of the 2021 NFL Playoffs.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Arizona Cardinals during Week 14 of the 2021 regular season.
The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Bucceneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season. The Los Angeles Rams take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3 of the 2021 season.
When healthy last year, Stafford completed 206 of 303 pass attempts for 2,087 yards with 10 touchdowns against eight interceptions. When he started all 17 regular season games and all four of Los Angeles' ensuing playoff games in their Super Bowl LVI-winning 2021 season, he completed 404 of 601 pass attempts for 4,886 yards with 41 touchdowns against 17 interceptions. His passing yards broke Kurt Warner's single-season franchise record, while his touchdown total tied Warner's single-season franchise record.
To McVay's point about it being a long time since Stafford was healthy through an offseason: Prior to the elbow situation, Stafford dealt with a thumb injury from hitting his throwing hand on the helmet of a defensive player during 2021 training camp – though he brushed it of and was a full participant in practice the next day.
"It'll be nice," Stafford said back in January, when asked what going into OTAs healthy does for him. "I had obviously the thumb a couple years ago, then elbow stuff that I wasn't able to really participate in a whole lot of stuff when it comes to throwing the football for a long time. So to be able to do that in a way more regular pace, which is exciting for me as a player, that's what I want to do. I want to be out there. I want to be able to throw and be a part of the team and do all that kind of stuff. So that's exciting for me."
