Article: 2023 Rams defense: Position-by-position breakdown
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2023 Rams defense: Position-by-position breakdown
Wed, Sep 6, 2023, 2:53 PM EDT
LINK
The Rams’ Mike Hoecht (97), seen during a training camp practice Aug. 17, 2023, in Thousand Oaks, makes the move from defensive tackle to outside linebacker. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
As much as Sean McVay teams are known for their offenses, the Rams’ 2023 season will likely hinge on how much the defense improves over the course of the fall and into the winter.
No one expects the Rams defense to be a unit feared by NFL offensive coordinators in the early weeks of the season, and perhaps not for the entire year as a whole. But for a unit easily defined by its youth in September, can it be remembered for its improvement in December and January?
The organization believes it identified enough players that could grow into important roles for the team, but how quickly does that happen? Is it fast enough that the Rams can pull off some surprise wins down the stretch of the season?
Only time will tell, but here’s a look at the state of the Rams’ defense entering Week 1 against the Seattle Seahawks:
Defensive line: Aaron Donald, Bobby Brown III, Jonah Williams, Kobie Turner, Earnest Brown IV, Desjuan Johnson, Larrell Murchison
Donald is back for his 10th season and will receive the majority of the focus on the Rams’ defense from fans and opposing coaching staffs alike. But Donald will produce, either by absorbing multiple blockers or making tackles himself. The key is how much help he will receive along the defensive front.
Everyone else on the defensive line is still on their rookie contracts, and Williams is the only other player who played in more than 10 games last year for the Rams, so experience is certainly lacking. Despite that, watch for Turner, a third-round pick this spring, to push Bobby Brown for playing time as the season progresses.
Outside linebackers: Michael Hoecht, Byron Young, Zach VanValkenburg, Nick Hampton, Ochaun Mathis (injured reserve)
This position group is expected to start two players who have no experience either at this position or in the NFL. Hoecht was a defensive tackle last season and has since transitioned to outside backer in his fourth season.
On the opposite side is rookie Byron Young, a third-round pick out of Tennessee. Young so impressed the Rams in his first preseason game and the ensuing joint practices with the Raiders that they held him out of the final two exhibitions, expressing confidence that the pass rusher was ready for regular-season action without additional live snaps.
Inside linebacker: Ernest Jones, Christian Rozeboom, Jake Hummel
Jones is one of the new leaders of the Rams’ defense, earning captain honors and taking over as the headset wearer who relays play calls from coordinator Raheem Morris to the rest of the defense pre-snap. He set a preseason goal of becoming a household name this season and will look to build off his 114-tackle campaign last year.
Rozeboom, on the other hand, had a total of eight tackles last year while mainly playing on special teams across all 17 games. His fourth season will be the biggest opportunity yet for the former undrafted free agent, with only Hummel providing depth for the position group as a whole.
Defensive back: Cobie Durant, Derion Kendrick, Ahkello Witherspoon, Jordan Fuller, Russ Yeast, Quentin Lake, John Johnson III, Tre Tomlinson, Duke Shelley, Jason Taylor II
Durant is taking on the role of the star cornerback this season, a spot that was previously occupied by Jalen Ramsey. It will move him around the field and require him to be a more vocal leader in his second season.
On the outside at corner will be Kendrick and Witherspoon. Kendrick was limited by a hamstring injury throughout training camp, but he is still viewed as someone who could establish himself this year as part of the Rams’ defensive core moving into future seasons. Witherspoon was one of the Rams’ few free agent acquisitions this offseason and has impressed Coach Sean McVay with his professionalism and steadying influence for the rest of the defense.
At safety, the Rams will lean on Fuller. The fourth-year safety and new captain missed most of last season with a hamstring injury after starting 28 games in his first two campaigns. He’ll look to recapture that momentum alongside Yeast, a second-year player who largely played special teams as a rookie.
Pushing Yeast for playing time will be John Johnson III, the Rams’ former NFC title game hero who rejoined the squad in August in the middle of training camp. After a disappointing couple of seasons in Cleveland, Johnson is trying to recapture the magic in Los Angeles that made him a coveted free agent after the 2020 season.
Lake and Tomlinson were among the standouts of the preseason, making plays throughout exhibitions and joint practices. Each should receive opportunities early in the season to prove their early production can translate to the regular season.
#HelmetHornsMatter
“Well, the color is good, I like the metallic blue,” Youngblood recently said while laughing, via NFL Journal. “The horn is terrible. It looks like a ‘C.’ When I first saw it on the logo I honestly thought it was a Charger logo.
“Now when I see it on the helmet, it just isn’t a ram horn. There is no distinct curl like a mature ram horn. I don’t know how the Rams could get that wrong. That is your symbol and it has been for what? Seventy years or more? Longer than I have been alive? It’s just not us, it’s not the Rams.”---Mr. Ram Jack Youngblood
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/07/2023 05:08AM by Ramsdude.
Wed, Sep 6, 2023, 2:53 PM EDT
LINK
The Rams’ Mike Hoecht (97), seen during a training camp practice Aug. 17, 2023, in Thousand Oaks, makes the move from defensive tackle to outside linebacker. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
As much as Sean McVay teams are known for their offenses, the Rams’ 2023 season will likely hinge on how much the defense improves over the course of the fall and into the winter.
No one expects the Rams defense to be a unit feared by NFL offensive coordinators in the early weeks of the season, and perhaps not for the entire year as a whole. But for a unit easily defined by its youth in September, can it be remembered for its improvement in December and January?
The organization believes it identified enough players that could grow into important roles for the team, but how quickly does that happen? Is it fast enough that the Rams can pull off some surprise wins down the stretch of the season?
Only time will tell, but here’s a look at the state of the Rams’ defense entering Week 1 against the Seattle Seahawks:
Defensive line: Aaron Donald, Bobby Brown III, Jonah Williams, Kobie Turner, Earnest Brown IV, Desjuan Johnson, Larrell Murchison
Donald is back for his 10th season and will receive the majority of the focus on the Rams’ defense from fans and opposing coaching staffs alike. But Donald will produce, either by absorbing multiple blockers or making tackles himself. The key is how much help he will receive along the defensive front.
Everyone else on the defensive line is still on their rookie contracts, and Williams is the only other player who played in more than 10 games last year for the Rams, so experience is certainly lacking. Despite that, watch for Turner, a third-round pick this spring, to push Bobby Brown for playing time as the season progresses.
Outside linebackers: Michael Hoecht, Byron Young, Zach VanValkenburg, Nick Hampton, Ochaun Mathis (injured reserve)
This position group is expected to start two players who have no experience either at this position or in the NFL. Hoecht was a defensive tackle last season and has since transitioned to outside backer in his fourth season.
On the opposite side is rookie Byron Young, a third-round pick out of Tennessee. Young so impressed the Rams in his first preseason game and the ensuing joint practices with the Raiders that they held him out of the final two exhibitions, expressing confidence that the pass rusher was ready for regular-season action without additional live snaps.
Inside linebacker: Ernest Jones, Christian Rozeboom, Jake Hummel
Jones is one of the new leaders of the Rams’ defense, earning captain honors and taking over as the headset wearer who relays play calls from coordinator Raheem Morris to the rest of the defense pre-snap. He set a preseason goal of becoming a household name this season and will look to build off his 114-tackle campaign last year.
Rozeboom, on the other hand, had a total of eight tackles last year while mainly playing on special teams across all 17 games. His fourth season will be the biggest opportunity yet for the former undrafted free agent, with only Hummel providing depth for the position group as a whole.
Defensive back: Cobie Durant, Derion Kendrick, Ahkello Witherspoon, Jordan Fuller, Russ Yeast, Quentin Lake, John Johnson III, Tre Tomlinson, Duke Shelley, Jason Taylor II
Durant is taking on the role of the star cornerback this season, a spot that was previously occupied by Jalen Ramsey. It will move him around the field and require him to be a more vocal leader in his second season.
On the outside at corner will be Kendrick and Witherspoon. Kendrick was limited by a hamstring injury throughout training camp, but he is still viewed as someone who could establish himself this year as part of the Rams’ defensive core moving into future seasons. Witherspoon was one of the Rams’ few free agent acquisitions this offseason and has impressed Coach Sean McVay with his professionalism and steadying influence for the rest of the defense.
At safety, the Rams will lean on Fuller. The fourth-year safety and new captain missed most of last season with a hamstring injury after starting 28 games in his first two campaigns. He’ll look to recapture that momentum alongside Yeast, a second-year player who largely played special teams as a rookie.
Pushing Yeast for playing time will be John Johnson III, the Rams’ former NFC title game hero who rejoined the squad in August in the middle of training camp. After a disappointing couple of seasons in Cleveland, Johnson is trying to recapture the magic in Los Angeles that made him a coveted free agent after the 2020 season.
Lake and Tomlinson were among the standouts of the preseason, making plays throughout exhibitions and joint practices. Each should receive opportunities early in the season to prove their early production can translate to the regular season.
#HelmetHornsMatter
“Well, the color is good, I like the metallic blue,” Youngblood recently said while laughing, via NFL Journal. “The horn is terrible. It looks like a ‘C.’ When I first saw it on the logo I honestly thought it was a Charger logo.
“Now when I see it on the helmet, it just isn’t a ram horn. There is no distinct curl like a mature ram horn. I don’t know how the Rams could get that wrong. That is your symbol and it has been for what? Seventy years or more? Longer than I have been alive? It’s just not us, it’s not the Rams.”---Mr. Ram Jack Youngblood
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/07/2023 05:08AM by Ramsdude.
| Subject | Author | Views | Posted |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Ramsdude | 81 | September 07, 2023 05:08AM |
