L.A. Rams Taylor Rapp now healthy, playing catch-up for opener vs. Cowboys

University of Washington product missed three weeks with knee injury

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – It’s been baby steps for Los Angeles Rams safety Taylor Rapp since suffering a knee injury that sidelined him for most of training camp.

First, rehab with trainers inside the weight room at the team’s facility.

Then, jogging and agility drills on the field, along with watching on the sidelines as teammates practiced.

And finally, suiting up in full pads and taking the field with the rest of his teammates, which Rapp did for the first time on Tuesday.

“He did great,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said. “It was good to have him back out there. He was excited. He looked comfortable. He said he felt good, so it was great to get him back out there.”

All the while, Rapp has been in his playbook learning new defensive coordinator Brandon Staley’s version of the 3-4 defense, and on the sideline echoing the defensive calls to his defense when Staley called them out to the rest of the unit.

“I love him,” Rapp said about his defensive coordinator. “He’s very interactive with us, always coaching us up. I love his passion for the game. I love his energy, so it’s definitely a great thing to have him.”

However, Rapp said it’s been tough to get a feel for the defense and his role in it without getting physical reps on the field.

“I was so eager to get out on the field,” Rapp said. “Before I had to shut it down a few weeks ago, we never really got into live practice, so I haven’t really put on a helmet or went against our offense. We did jog through or walk-throughs, but I never got to really strap on my pads and my helmet.

“It felt great to be out there.”

The University of Washington product is coming off a productive rookie season in which he finished with 90 combined tackles, eight pass breakups and two interceptions, including one returned for a score.

The Rams have had the luxury of taking it slow with Rapp’s rehab because of the talented depth at safety that includes rookie Jordan Fuller and Terrell Burgess. But there’s a reason Rapp has been penciled in as the starter; he can play.

“Taylor had a great rookie year, I mean, better than what I had my rookie year,” safety John Johnson said. “He’s definitely got a lot more ground to stand on. I just see us being the best safety tandem in the league, and anything short of that is a disappointment.”

Rapp also participated in an excruciating, 10,000-calorie challenge that he participated this summer back in his hometown of Bellingham, Wash.

Yesterday I attempted a challenge where you try to burn 10,000 calories in one day.

125 miles biking (103 in one ride), 1.25 miles swimming, 4 miles hiking, 3 miles running, a short workout, and 7,300 feet of elevation later, #10kcaloriechallenge completed ✅ 4:30 AM-9:09 PM pic.twitter.com/m79izSZdaC

— . (@trapp07) May 25, 2020

Rapp said the challenge did not have an impact on his knee injury, and that his teammate Cooper Kupp and his wife might take part in it next year.

“It was a cool thing that I did back in May,” Rapp said. “My older brother, he’s really big into mountain biking, cycling and stuff. And he has a lot pro mountain biker friends, and they were doing it, too.

“My brother was doing it as well, so I decided to take part in it. It was a long day.”