THOUSAND OAKS — It’s been a busy couple of weeks for Warren McClendon Jr. and Zach Thomas. With a series of injuries across the Rams’ offensive line, McClendon and Thomas have been running with the ones at practice.
For McClendon, that’s included reps against the likes of the Cowboys’ Micah Parsons and DeMarcus Lawrence and the Chargers’ Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack in joint scrimmages. “Those are good players, they’re at the top of their game,” McClendon said after Sunday’s preseason win over the Cowboys. “Any time you can get reps in against players like that, you gotta take advantage of them.
” McClendon and Thomas each played 46 snaps in the preseason opener at right tackle and left guard, respectively. Neither allowed a quarterback pressure in 25 pass blocking reps, according to Pro Football Focus, and both had good moments in the run game. McClendon agreed that last weekend’s performance was a good confidence boost, albeit against a different level of competition.
Saturday’s second preseason game against the Chargers will likely give McClendon and Thomas another opportunity to stack some reps ahead of the regular season. It’s possible the Rams opt to hold McClendon and Thomas out on Saturday; head coach Sean McVay said Thursday that he and his coaches would meet Friday to decide if they wanted to keep any additional players safely on the sidelines along with the core players who sat out last weekend. But McClendon, a second-year player, and Thomas, going into his third season, seem like good bets to keep playing this preseason.
If the Rams’ injury woes along the offensive line continue into the regular season, they will need McClendon and Thomas to be ready for action along with veteran utility man Joe Noteboom. McClendon began working at left tackle this week at practice, which helps him be ready for either side of the line. He’s been working through an ankle he rolled at Chargers practice, though he was able to return to the field that day and hasn’t missed a practice since.
“I feel good. Ankle’s getting better day by day,” McClendon said. “And it’s good, I’m getting those reps against good players.
And even though Rob’s still dealing with his ankle, him and Alaric are there giving me pointers and giving me stuff to look at. Having them there, it’s been helpful.” Despite the last-second victory, quarterback Stetson Bennett IV struggled the first 57 minutes of last weekend’s preseason opener.
Four interceptions, 24 of 38 throwing the ball, struggling to make plays out of the pocket. The Rams need to know they can trust Bennett before the regular season begins. Backup Jimmy Garoppolo is suspended for the first two games of the year, and the Rams will need someone in case of emergency in Weeks 1 and 2.
Bennett still hasn’t proven he is ready to be Matthew Stafford’s backup even on a temporary basis, and will have some work to do to earn that trust this weekend. McVay was happy with how Bennett did with expanded looks in the joint practice with Dallas on Wednesday. On one play, he was able to identify a mix-up in the Cowboys’ coverage and take advantage with a touchdown pass to Tutu Atwell down the sideline.
McVay wants to see that side of Bennett on Saturday. “This is a very difficult position that these guys play. These windows close fast,” McVay said.
“We want to be as consistent playing within the framework of what we’re asking as possible while also understanding that the beauty is when things go a little bit off-schedule. Consistency in the decision-making is what we’re looking to see.”.
