LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Rams are two training camp practices into a journey they hope can carry them all the way to a final game at SoFi Stadium in February.

The work starts on the grass fields at Loyola Marymount University. Here are eight thoughts on what we’ve seen through the first two sessions:

1. This was Matthew Stafford’s first time throwing passes in training camp in two years. A year after missing camp to manage a degenerative back issue that threatened the start of the season, it feels like he and the passing game are in a different place. The back issue hasn’t gone anywhere, and he’ll still miss every other practice to manage it. But there’s no longer the threat, the wonder or the fear.

That was on display Monday, when Stafford threw at will to Davante Adams on crossers and deep dig routes that showcased great timing and spatial awareness, and when he let it rip downfield to Puka Nacua. It took them just a couple snaps to create the highlight of the practice, with Nacua going deep down the left sideline on a fade route and Stafford lofting it for a smooth catch-and-run touchdown that got the crowd roaring.

Nacua came back shortly after that on a slant route across the middle. Stafford had to adjust the ball to fit it into a tight window, and Nacua reached up one hand to reel it in without breaking stride before taking it to the house.

Adams isn’t new anymore, Stafford can play and Nacua is simply Nacua. It’s arguably the highest-ceiling foundation of any unit in the NFL, and the reason the Rams were willing to get as aggressive as they’ve been on defense to maximize this group.

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2. If Nacua has been the flashiest through two practices, the most under-the-radar has been the Rams’ newest receiver.

CJ Daniels turned in a terrific practice on Monday, working primarily with Stetson Bennett and the second-team offense. The sixth-round rookie out of Miami was Bennett’s go-to option and while it’s early, he’s starting to show glimpses of why the Rams traded up for him. He’s strong, tough, competitive and confident as both a run blocker and a receiver in traffic. The confidence with which he attacks the ball at the catch point is something Sean McVay has long looked for in a receiver.

But Daniels is not a burner, making how he’ll look in more difficult matchups an open question. But he’ll be insulated, with Nacua and Adams drawing top outside cornerbacks, and Daniels could find matchups where his 6-foot-2 size is enough of an advantage to mitigate the lack of speed.

Looking across the Rams’ skill positions, they don’t have a true burner with Tutu Atwell gone. In fact, the only player who could truly run away from defenders is running back Blake Corum. And yet that’s still the model the Rams carried to the No. 1 scoring offense last season.

3. The offense does have one new and important element and that’s coordinator Nathan Scheelhaase, who got a promotion from passing game coordinator when Mike LaFleur left to become the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals. It could be a short stint for Scheelhaase as one of the hot head-coaching candidates entering next year’s cycle.

Scheelhaase is walking into a great infrastructure, complete with McVay’s system and oversight, balance in the offense, and versatility in the personnel. He has an MVP quarterback and two star receivers.

But perhaps what helps a 35-year-old first-time coordinator most is essentially having two coaches on the field in Stafford and Adams. The Stafford piece goes without explanation, but Adams may be equally as important because, unlike Stafford, he’s not on a pitch count or maintenance schedule. He’s the consistent rock right now.

“He’s a guy that, second to none, cares about his craft and what it looks like to be the best receiver he possibly can be,” Scheelhaase said of Adams. “And you just see over the course of years why he’s been successful. Him coming out here on the first day of a training camp in 10-plus seasons in the league, he’s got the same mentality. He’s trying to figure out small ways to get better, things he can do with his releases, things he can do at the top of his breaks. That’s the type of guy you love being around as a coach.”

4. That helps explain why the Rams did not pull the trigger on trading Adams for A.J. Brown this offseason. The idea was tantalizing, as Brown is the better player at this stage of their respective careers and could offer a cost-controlled No. 1 receiver in the event that the Rams don’t extend Nacua. But as they constantly preach, names on paper don’t win football games. It would have been messing with something that is far from broken — and the biggest effect might be in the steady, even-keeled way Adams has taken to a veteran No. 2 role.

His story will be a fascinating one to document, as Adams can feel the end closing in, but it’s the most unresolved of anyone’s. Adams is 0-5 in conference championship games. While every player hungers to hoist a Lombardi Trophy, Adams has a little more on the line with his attempt to win one. If he does and is a major piece, that could be his final argument for the Hall of Fame.

“I’ve given it some thought,” Adams said on retirement. “It wasn’t until the past couple of years where, for different reasons, that you start to think about when the end is going to come. Right now, I’m just enjoying it. I can’t tell you if it’s going to be after this year or after next year. I truly don’t know.”

5. Nacua did have one fade route he couldn’t win because Trent McDuffie was in good position. The two-time All-Pro cornerback matched him stride-for-stride and beat him to a Stafford deep pass to knock it away.

McDuffie will be at his best moving across a secondary trying to live in dime personnel as often as possible. He’s most effective in the slot due to his mix of toughness, tackling, communication and instincts. But reps like that against the NFL’s reigning leader in receptions showcase why he’s such a critical addition. The Rams didn’t have anyone who could reliably do it from an outside cornerback spot last season, freezing their creativity in the playoffs.

Two-time All-Pro cornerback Trent McDuffie is in his first training camp as a Los Angeles Ram. (Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images)

6. The most impressive play in Sunday’s practice Kam Kinchens’ diving interception along the sideline off a tipped pass from Cam Lampkin. The ability to see the ball off the ricochet, track it into his arms while falling and stay inbounds shows why Kinchens is one of the Rams’ three biggest breakout candidates.

Last season, Kinchens was left trying to play eraser at free safety behind the mistakes in run defense and coverage of the outside cornerbacks. That cut into his playing time, with the Rams leaning more on veterans like Quentin Lake and Kam Curl, which also spoiled a bit of that duo’s versatility and playmaking. Kinchens can be impactful in making plays on the ball, as his four interceptions, forced fumble, fumble recovery and defensive touchdown as a rookie in 2024 proved.

7. Stafford’s maintenance schedule is going to serve two purposes: keeping him fresh and ready for Week 1 in Melbourne against the San Francisco 49ers, and opening up reps for one of the Rams’ only position battles in camp — backup quarterback.

With Jimmy Garoppolo gone, that’s fallen on Bennett and No. 13 overall pick Ty Simpson. Bennett, who is getting the first crack, has the lead with the playbook and scheme after spending the past three seasons here. He’s demonstrated a good command of the offense, but between offseason practices and the two training camp sessions, he’s also fallen victim to a couple of greedy mistakes.

Simpson also showed solid command in his limited reps. He isn’t going downfield much, but the Rams are working on small steps with him, and he’s displaying some solid accuracy and decision-making.

There is risk with Stafford’s back, and the expectations are so high and the schedule so challenging that the Rams can’t afford to take games off if their MVP does miss time.

Should Simpson be unable to rise to that level, it isn’t an indictment on him long term. He was a developmental pick. But it could set up a situation where Garoppolo is seen as an emergency option. The Rams viewed him as a starting-caliber quarterback these past two years, and though he doesn’t appear interested in going through a full training camp and backup routine, he did tell NFL Network he’s open to playing again in the right situation.

8. It was interesting to ask Byron Young about his offseason and hear most about managing his knee injury. It’s the same knee he hurt in the playoffs last season, which led him to wear an ice pack and sit out most of the later practices, and he just didn’t look like his normal speedy self in the NFC Championship Game. That, along with a lack of finishing from the rest of the pass rush, exposed the leak in the secondary and set up what this offseason was ultimately about for the Rams — finding weapons like McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, and a true pass-rush closer in two-time Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett.

Young is healthy again, and he could be primed for a big season in a contract year. The ends opposite Garrett in Cleveland got to feast on one-on-one opportunities, which is what Jared Verse set Young up with last year for his 12-sack breakout. But if Aaron Donald returns — still an if, but a real one — Young could force opponents to plan for a third pass rusher.

That’s where the versatility of Kobie Turner and Braden Fiske, plus a step from Josaiah Stewart, would help. Young played 76 percent of the snaps for a second straight season last year, but dialing that back just a bit could pay dividends for the Rams’ Super Bowl push — and for his market value as a free agent at such a coveted position.