The fourth episode of HBO’s “Hard Knocks: Los Angeles” aired on Tuesday night as the end of the season nears. It was the second-to-last episode, and although there were clips of practice and drills, this week’s episode was about more than football.

A good portion of the hour-long episode was about the Rams’ and Chargers’ responses to Jacob Blake being shot seven times in the back by Kenosha police in Wisconsin. The Rams held a team meeting to brainstorm ideas of how to fight racism. The Chargers canceled their scrimmage, as players across the NBA and MLB also boycotted their own games in wake of the tragedy.

It was an important episode that took fans behind the scenes of what’s discussed in these difficult conversations and how much support players have from their coaches. So while it may not have been an episode filled with pads cracking and highlight-reel catches, it was as important as any this season.

Here are seven takeaways from Episode 4 of “Hard Knocks: Los Angeles.”

Sean McVay outraged over Jacob Blake shooting

“Are you kidding me? He’s walking away from them. That is awful. It makes me sick.”

That’s what McVay said the first time he watched the video of the tragic shooting of Blake in his office, filmed by “Hard Knocks” cameras. It was as genuine as it gets. He was outraged by the incident, and rightfully so. It was Rams director of communications Artis Twyman who showed McVay the video, discussing the situation with the head coach.

“You just feel helpless because this keeps happening,” Twyman said to McVay.

After watching the video, McVay was shaken up. He was asked immediately after whether he would consider postponing practice, to which he said he was thinking about it. The Rams opted not to cancel practice, but they did hold a team meeting to discuss the Kenosha shooting.

Van Jefferson takes centerstage

All training camp, we’ve heard from reporters, coaches and Rams players about just how good Jefferson has performed. On Tuesday’s episode, we got a glimpse of his impressive route running and hands.

“Hard Knocks” showed his toe-tapping touchdown in the first scrimmage, his route running against the Rams’ corners in practice, and his work with Jalen Ramsey in coverage – though none of those clips showed the rookie beating Ramsey.

“When you look at the three starters, he’s like a mix of all three of them,” said Jacques McClendon, director of player engagement, when talking about Jefferson with Les Snead.

Clay Johnston still getting acclimated

Johnston is coming off a torn ACL suffered last October, and he’s still finding his footing on the field. He admitted as much to Justin Lawler and said his left leg still feels stiff and not completely healthy.

It showed in practice and linebackers coach Joe Barry didn’t let it slide. He got on Johnston for being slow to react and for passing off his man in coverage when he shouldn’t have. It wasn’t a great showing for Johnston, who’s fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster.

Jared Goff impressed by defense

The “Hard Knocks” cameras caught Jalen Ramsey’s one-handed interception on Goff, a pass that was intended for Van Jefferson in the corner of the end zone. Rookie safety JuJu Hughes couldn’t believe Goff threw the ball in Ramsey’s direction, but he trusted his talented receiver.

After the play, which Ramsey returned to the other end of the field before tossing it to Aaron Donald for a somersault into the end zone, Goff shared his thoughts on the Rams defense.

“Encouraging how our defense is looking,” Goff told Les Snead.

Josh Love and Bryan London get cut

One of the worst parts about training camp for both veterans and younger players are roster cuts. They happen every year, and they come in bunches right before the season starts. The Rams made two notable cuts last week, moving on from quarterback Josh Love and linebacker Bryan London.

This week’s episode featured McVay and Snead letting each player know they’ve been cut, which is always a difficult conversation.

“It isn’t anything you really didn’t do, it’s just that we’re bringing in two linebackers,” McVay told Love.

“We’re going to bring in some guys with different body types,” Snead told London after McVay delivered the bad news. “This Daniel Bituli kid is like 6-4.”

Rams’ leadership council meets about social injustice

We knew the Rams held a meeting to discuss social injustice, actions the team could take to fight racism and take a stand in the community to fight for equality in America. What we didn’t know was who exactly attended that meeting, what was said and the nature of it.

Among those at the meeting were the following: Robert Woods, Andrew Whitworth, Tyler Higbee, Jared Goff, Sebastian Joseph-Day, Aaron Donald, Cooper Kupp and Johnny Hekker, among other members of the Rams.

It was all of the top leaders in the locker room, which includes Joseph-Day, who may not be a big name but has been at the forefront of fighting for racial equality.

Thomas Brown leads young RBs off the field

Brown is in his first year as the Rams’ running backs coach, and he’s received plenty of high remarks from McVay for his leadership and coaching style. “Hard Knocks” caught a meeting Brown held with his running backs, including Cam Akers, Darrell Henderson and Malcolm Brown.

It wasn’t about how to pass protect or run routes out of the backfield. It was about taking a stand, leading in the community and doing more than just talking about ending racism.

“If we’re not going to be at the forefront of that, don’t expect anybody else to be,” he said. “I don’t care what they say. If talking solves racism, we would’ve ended that a long time ago. We’ve been talking about racism for a long- time.

“What I hate to see, what irritates me, is to have the same stuff happen over and over again. We’re behind closed doors talking about and the publicly, you don’t do a damn thing. But in my opinion, if you care about your community, your nation of people, and your future, it’s a fight worth having.”