The Rams are heading into Monday night’s matchup with the Buffalo Bills with one major piece in place and another still in the wait-and-see lane.
Aaron Donald is set to play, while Myles Garrett’s return continues to move at a deliberate pace as Los Angeles manages his recovery from knee surgery. Coach Sean McVay said Saturday that Donald will carry no injury designation even though he did not practice, and he added that tight end Colby Parkinson and cornerback Jaylen Watson are also good to go.
“He’ll be good to go for the game, no status there,” McVay said of Donald. “The only guy that will be listed as questionable will be ‘Q,’ but I feel like he’s turning in the right direction and feels good so that’s a positive for us.”
Safety Quentin Lake is the lone player listed as questionable.
Garrett’s timeline is much less certain. McVay said the pass rusher is making progress after surgery, but the Rams are not in a rush to open his practice window next week. The emphasis, he said, is on getting Garrett back to the point where he can truly perform, not just return in name only.
“When I talk to Neal ElAttrache, and I think it’s a great way to articulate it, there’s a difference between return to play and return to performance,” McVay said. “When you do something like this, let’s put him in a good position to return to performance.”
Before Garrett moves into football work, he has to clear the team’s recovery markers and show how the knee handles the ramp-up. McVay said he believes the procedure may have addressed the irritation that had also limited Garrett during training camp.
“Him actually doing football-related activities and drills will be very important for us to put him in a position to join the group and be the guy that we’re accustomed to seeing and that he wants to be for this team as well,” McVay said.
That sets up a big test for the Rams’ defense against Josh Allen, whom McVay described as a quarterback who keeps getting sharper within Buffalo’s offense. The Bills signal-caller still has the kind of arm talent and mobility that can wreck a game, but McVay focused on the way Allen now processes coverages, distributes the ball and controls the offense before the play breaks down.
“There’s always the first play and then there’s always the second play with him where then if it’s not there, then he can go off-schedule,” McVay said. “Obviously, the physical traits and characteristics, he’s off the charts where he can beat you with his arm and his legs.”
McVay drew a line between the confidence Allen brings to Buffalo and what Matthew Stafford means to the Rams.
“Just like our guy, he instills a belief in his team that they have a chance every time he’s at the switch, which is how we feel about Matthew,” McVay said. “It’s going to be a great challenge and our guys are excited about it. He is a very, very special and troublesome player to defend.”
He also touched on how he handles in-game decisions, making clear that analytics matter but don’t operate in a vacuum. Personnel, matchups and the feel of the game all factor into the call sheet.
Asked specifically about going for two after a touchdown while trailing by 14 points in the fourth quarter, McVay said he would usually lean toward the extra point first and sort out the rest after another score. The final choice, he said, can depend on the game state, the defense and the plays available on offense.
“The analytics has certainly driven a lot of our decisions in terms of influencing what we decide to do,” McVay said, “but most importantly is the people that are playing.”
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