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Rams’ offensive line problems persist
by Albert Breer
Todd Gurley has rushed for 641 yards on 200 caries in his second season, and the Rams’ supposed offensive centerpiece didn’t suddenly forget how to run the ball. Jared Goff didn’t get into the lineup until late November, and his readiness for the NFL isn’t the only reason why. The problem here is deeper and won’t be easy to fix.
The offensive line is an unmitigated mess, and the offensive design hasn’t been creative enough to mask it. The situation boiled over last week when former second overall pick Greg Robinson was scratched for the team’s loss in New Orleans.
At Robinson’s pro day in 2014, his coaches warned teams that it’d take the physically imposing prospect time to learn to play in the pros, given that Auburn was only running a handful of run plays and a handful of protections. The fact is, Robinson hasn’t shown the mental capacity to get there since, and that has led to growing problems with consistency and penalties.
“He’s not instinctive, and he panics at the top of the rush,” said one Rams source. “That’s why you see the dumb penalties. A lot of the penalties come when they’re not really necessary.” And that has prevented Robinson from leveraging his athleticism, which remains considerable.
Elsewhere, the Rams are starting 2015 draft picks Jamon Brown, Cody Wichmann and Rob Havenstein, and had right tackle Rodger Saffold (who signed a lucrative five-year deal in 2014) flip sides against the Saints.
Add it up, and there has been a major investment made in making that area better. And the fact that there’s been so little progress there has spilled over to affect players like Gurley and Goff, which certainly means that there could be changes coming after the season in positions that aren’t just filled by players.
