Rams perplexed by how to address Matthew Stafford's 'baseball injury'

Had he not chosen to dedicate himself to football, Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford might have been a top baseball prospect.

Now Stafford — and the defending Super Bowl champions — are attempting to work through an elbow issue more closely associated with pitchers.

Stafford is dealing with tendinitis, a person with knowledge of the situation said Thursday. The person requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation.

The Rams are trying to manage Stafford’s lingering elbow pain, raising more questions than answers as they prepare for their Sept. 8 opener against the Buffalo Bills — and a bid to become the first team in nearly two decades to win back-to-back championships.

“It is a tricky deal,” coach Sean McVay said Thursday after practice, adding, “It’s a little bit abnormal for a quarterback. You know some of this stuff is things that MLB pitchers deal with and so it is something that we’re kind of learning about on the fly.”

Asked if a Thursday report that Stafford was suffering from tendinitis was accurate, McVay did not confirm or deny.

“I don’t know what you would really call it,” he said. “I just know the elbow issue.”

Stafford, 34, looked perfectly fine during his limited work Thursday at UC Irvine. During a seven-on-seven drill, he dropped back and delivered a 50-yard pass to receiver Tutu Atwell.

That kind of play no doubt caused McVay to breathe a sigh of relief. His veteran quarterback looked every bit as smooth and strong as he did last season when he led the Rams to a Super Bowl victory.

But one long pass is not the long play for Stafford, McVay and a team attempting to repeat.

Stafford played through arm pain last season and still passed for 41 touchdowns, with 17 interceptions. A month after engineering a victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI, the Rams gave Stafford an extension that includes $120 million in guarantees.