IRVINE, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Rams were emphasizing the red zone late Monday afternoon, so Jared Goff lined his offense up at around the 10-yard line and positioned himself under center. Bradley Marquez was in the slot. When Goff dropped back, the second-year wide receiver ran a corner route towards the back of the end zone. And after Goff set his feet, he delivered a perfect ball, just over the reach of two defenders and into Marquez's hands for a practice touchdown.
"I knew pre-snap that we were going to have a chance to complete that," Marquez said. "Me and him, we both knew that."
Marquez has spent most of his offseason working with Goff, beginning during organized team activities from late May until mid-June. In the month that followed, the two remained in Southern California and played catch up to three times a week. And since the start of training camp 17 days ago, Marquez has caught several passes from Goff while running with the second-team offense.
"He's gotten a lot better," Marquez said of Goff, the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft. "I feel like the game is slowing down for him a little bit."
Goff returned to the field for the first time since suffering a sore non-throwing shoulder in Saturday's 28-24 win over the Cowboys and basically navigated through practice without restrictions. Rams coach Jeff Fisher said Goff's shoulder is "no concern" and felt the rookie quarterback "was fine" in a limited workout.
"This was kind of ease-yourself-back-into-the-weekday," said Fisher, who will have his players practice in full pads on Tuesday and Wednesday. "But it was good for him to be able to overcome the shoulder soreness, get out there and throw the ball."
Fisher once again touted the play of his other quarterbacks, who continue to operate under the shadows. He raved about Case Keenum, who would've gone 7-for-7 in the exhibition opener if not for a dropped pass by Tavon Austin. He was sure to mention third-string quarterback Sean Mannion, who threw for 147 yards and three touchdowns in the second half. And then he preached patience with his quarterback situation.
"We've done this before," Fisher said. "We have a plan. And the plan basically revolves around being patient. You have to be patient. It's unfair to Jared, and to Case, and to Sean, to say, 'All right, here’s the date.' That's just not fair."
Marquez says Goff is "getting better every day" at operating under center, but noted that his biggest improvements have come with the subtleties of relaying plays from the huddle.
"From then to now," Marquez said, "just with him being comfortable and the confidence he portrays in the huddle, and the confidence to repeat the play, it's been a big difference.”
Marquez is part of a receiving corps that racked up the fewest yardage in the NFL last season. The group -- headlined by Austin and Kenny Britt, with rookies Pharoh Cooper and Tyler Higbee joining the mix -- amassed a mere 2,931 yards and hauled in a league-low 11 touchdowns.
On Saturday, only two of the 10 first-half completions -- from Keenum and Goff -- went to wide receivers.
"We have tremendous talent in the receiving group, from top to bottom," said Marquez, competing with the likes of Cooper, Brian Quick and others for playing time. "We just need to go out there and we need to perform now, because in past years, our receiving group hasn’t been up to expectations."
That's why plays like Monday's stand out -- a beautifully thrown ball by a promising rookie quarterback being counted on to enhance a listless passing offense.
"He can make every throw on the field, regardless of where it is," Marquez said of Goff. "That is just something I’ve seen over the last few months from him, so it doesn’t really surprise me or surprise anybody else. He's been doing it, and he's going to continue to do it."