OXNARD, Calif. (AP) Quarterback Nick Foles hasn’t showed up to compete with Jared Goff for the Los Angeles Rams.
Foles skipped his second straight day of voluntary practice Wednesday, and Rams coach Jeff Fisher said the veteran passer hasn’t participated in their offseason program since the club drafted Goff. Fisher declined to say whether Foles has demanded a trade.
”I think Nick has the feeling that if things stay the same, he’s probably not going to be on the roster,” Fisher said after organized team activities. ”Beyond that, it was probably more of a mutual thing. Not that we said, `Don’t come,’ but he’s just saying, `Coach, I’d rather just stay away until we get things worked out.’ And I just said, `I’m fine with that.”’
Foles agreed to a two-year, $24.5 million contract extension with the Rams shortly after arriving from Philadelphia in a trade for Sam Bradford in March 2015. He started 11 games, throwing seven touchdown passes and 10 interceptions for the NFL’s worst passing offense, before getting benched in December in favor of Case Keenum.
”Nick is a great friend,” Keenum said. ”His wife and my wife are great friends. I don’t want to speak on him for anything, but he’s a great teammate, one of the best teammates I’ve ever had, as far as off the field, what he means to the room. There’s a lot of things going on.”
Foles, who threw just one touchdown pass in seven games after the bye week, made a $6 million roster bonus in March and participated in earlier offseason activities during the team’s move to the West Coast. But the Rams traded up to draft Goff in April, and Fisher has said he hopes Goff will start the opener.
”I’ve had conversations with Nick, and we’re on the same page,” Fisher said. ”We’re trying to work things out. … We have three quarterbacks on the field right now. It’s hard enough to get reps for all three of them. It has nothing to do with him not wanting to come in and compete at all. He’s very competitive, and we appreciate everything he did for us. His teammates miss him.”
Goff, Keenum and Sean Mannion are taking the snaps this month in the Rams’ most important workouts between last season and next month’s training camp. Fisher had said Keenum was the Rams’ presumptive starter for this season before they drafted Goff, making Foles’ future tenuous even before Goff’s arrival.
The Rams’ offense has been overhauled in the offseason, with assistant head coach Rob Boras taking charge of the unit along with new passing game coordinator Mike Groh. If Foles saw any future with the franchise, his teammates believe he would be in camp learning alongside them.
”We would definitely love to have Nick out here, but he made a decision, and I hope he’ll be back some time soon,” running back Todd Gurley said. ”I gave him a text just a couple of weeks ago to check up on him. Hopefully he’ll be back, but I still love Nick.”
Only two other veterans aren’t around the Rams this week: running back Tre Mason and defensive back T.J. McDonald were both excused for personal reasons, Fisher said.
Mason was arrested in Florida in March and hit with a variety of charges stemming from a conflict during a traffic stop, while McDonald was arrested last month on suspicion of driving under the influence.
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