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Position-by-position predictions for the Rams’ season-opening 53-man roster
By Vincent Bonsignore Jun 19, 2019
The offseason is in the books and training camp awaits in the final week of July. The Rams have a deep, experienced roster, and while they face very few questions in terms of starting jobs, fitting all that talent into a 53-man roster will be a challenge.
There will be difficult cuts, to be sure.
With the start of camp five weeks away, I’m taking a stab at the 53-man roster for the start of the regular season.
Quarterback
In the mix: Jared Goff, Blake Bortles, Brandon Allen, John Wolford (rookie)
The Rams could keep three quarterbacks, which likely would mean Allen remaining on the roster, but the experience and durability of Bortles as the backup to Goff could open a roster spot at a more pressing position.
Who makes the cut: Goff, Bortles
Running back
In the mix: Todd Gurley, Malcolm Brown, Darrell Henderson (rookie), Justin Davis, John Kelly, Matthew Colburn (rookie)
With so much focus on the status of Gurley’s left knee, expect the Rams to approach his usage plan quite a bit differently than they did in the first four years of his career. That means more work for Brown and, likely, a major role right out of the gate for Henderson, who could play enough to push himself into consideration for Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. The drafting of Henderson likely will result in a difficult cut of either Davis or second-year back Kelly. And with Henderson assuming a role as a change-of-pace back, Kelly might be the odd man out.
Who makes the cut: Gurley, Brown, Henderson, Davis
Receiver
In the mix: Brandin Cooks, Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, Josh Reynolds, KhaDarel Hodge, Mike Thomas, JoJo Natson, Austin Proehl, Alex Bachman (rookie), Nsimba Webster (rookie), Jonathan Lloyd (rookie), Nsimba Webster (rookie)
The top four receivers are set, and it’s as good a foursome as you’ll find in the NFL. It gets a bit tricky beyond that — albeit for good reasons — and it will be interesting to see who steps up to claim the final spots. The battle between Thomas and Hodge is worth monitoring. Thomas landed on injured reserve last season with a groin injury in Week 1 and never made it back to the active roster due to a numbers crunch. Now in his fourth season, Thomas still has untapped potential as a long-ball threat, but it’s time to for him to finally put it all together. If not, the Rams are more than comfortable with Hodge, who appeared in 14 games last year as a rookie, mostly on special teams. Natson’s proficiency as a punt returner increases his chances of making the team, although he doesn’t offer much as an actual receiver. If someone else emerges as a punt returner, the Rams could opt for a backup who offers more value in the pass game.
Who makes the cut: Cooks, Woods, Kupp, Reynolds, Thomas, Natson
Tight End
In the mix: Tyler Higbee, Gerald Everett, Johnny Mundt, Romello Brooker (rookie), Keenan Brown (rookie), Kendall Blanton (rookie)
The Rams are high on the Higbee-Everett tandem and believe there is still room to grow for both of them. Everett, in particular, appears poised for a breakout year. Mundt is a valuable special-teams player and he’s a proficient blocker. He hasn’t gotten much of an opportunity to showcase his pass-game skills, but the Rams have seen enough to know he’d offer stability if called upon, so his spot appears secure. Nevertheless, the Rams added undrafted rookie free agents Brooker, Brown and Blanton to provide camp competition.
Who makes the cut: Higbee, Everett, Mundt
Offensive line
In the mix: Andrew Whitworth, Rob Havenstein, Joseph Noteboom, Brian Allen, Austin Blythe, Bobby Evans (rookie), Jamil Demby, Kyle Murphy, Jeremiah Kolone, Brandon Hitner (rookie), Vitas Hrynkiewicz (rookie) Aaron Neary, Chandler Brewer (rookie), David Edwards (rookie), Matt Kaskey (rookie)
After featuring one of the most experienced, stable lines in the NFL the last two years, the Rams now have a group in transition, as new starters are needed at center and left guard and nearly an entirely new reserve unit needs to be built. The good news is, Whitworth and Havenstein are back at left and right tackle, respectively, and Blythe is a player on the rise entering his second year at right guard. Noteboom and Allen are likely to get the nods at left guard and center, respectively, leaving backup holes to be filled. The Rams addressed the issue during the draft with the selections of tackles Edwards and Evans, and both should earn roster spots because of potential. Ideally, they’ll both spend their rookie years as development players. Demby cross-trained at guard and tackle last year as a rookie, and that versatility should benefit him come cut-down day. At this point, he’s the most likely candidate to replace Noteboom and Blythe in an injury situation, or if Noteboom has to swing to one of the tackle spots in case Havenstein or Whitworth gets hurt.
Who makes the cut: Whitworth (T), Havenstein (T), Noteboom (G/T), Blythe (G/C), Allen (C/G), Demby (G/T), Edwards (T), Evans (T)
Defensive Line
In the mix: Aaron Donald, Sebastian Joseph-Day, Marquise Copeland (rookie), Tyrell Thompson (rookie), Greg Gaines (rookie), Tanzel Smart, Michael Brockers, John Franklin-Myers, Morgan Fox, Bryant Jones (rookie) Boogie Roberts (rookie)
The odd man out here is third-year defensive tackle Tanzel Smart, who dressed for just two games last year after being on the active game-day roster for all 16 games as a rookie. Smart’s roster spot, essentially, is being taken by Gaines, a rookie nose tackle from Washington who could earn a starting job in the Rams’ base 3-4 defense, and the return of Fox, who missed all of last year with a knee injury. The Rams are also high on Joseph-Day, who could push for an interior rotation role, and Franklin-Myers, who flashed last year as a pass rusher. Also, keep in mind outside linebackers Samson Ebukam, Clay Matthews III and Justin Lawler can also drop down as defensive ends when the Rams shift out of their base defense on pass downs.
Who makes the cut: Donald, Brockers, Gaines, Franklin-Myers, Fox, Joseph-Day
Outside linebacker
In the mix: Dante Fowler Jr., Samson Ebukam, Clay Matthews III, Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, Justin Lawler, Trevon Young, Landis Durham (rookie)
The intrigue here centers on how much Matthews has left in the tank, whether Fowler can finally reach his full potential, what kind of improvements Ebukam can make as a second-year starter and whether Okoronkwo can push for a role as an edge pass rusher. In terms of camp battles, the final roster spots figure to come down to Okoronkwo, Lawler and Young.
Who makes the cut: Fowler, Ebukam, Matthews, Okoronkwo, Lawler
Inside linebacker
In the mix: Cory Littleton, Micah Kiser, Bryce Hager, Josh Carraway, Dakota Allen (rookie), Natrez Patrick (rookie), Travin Howard, Troy Reeder (rookie), Ketner Kupp (rookie)
Kiser is in line to replace Mark Barron alongside Littleton in the starting lineup, although Howard has a chance to play his way into a role. His roster spot — and that of Allen — will come down to a camp battle that will also include undrafted rookies Patrick and Reeder and Carraway, a free-agent pickup from Washington. Hager’s experience and special-teams proficiency creates job security.
Who makes the cut: Littleton, Kiser, Howard, Carraway, Hager
Cornerback
In the mix: Marcus Peters, Troy Hill, Darious Williams, Aqib Talib, David Long, Nickell Robey-Coleman, Kevin Peterson, Dont’e Deayon, Dominique Hatfield, Ramon Richards
No real surprises here as Long, a rookie from Michigan, earns a spot and role and Peterson, who missed all of last year with a knee injury, holds off Deayon and Williams for the last spot.
Who makes the cut: Peters, Talib, Robey-Coleman, Hill, Long, Peterson
Safety
In the mix: Eric Weddle, John Johnson, Taylor Rapp (rookie), Blake Countess, Marqui Christian, Nick Scott, Steven Prater, Jake Gervase (rookie)
The Rams might opt to keep only four safeties, but Christian and Scott both offer a ton of special-teams value and should win jobs as a result. Rapp, a rookie from Washington, could forge a rotational role out of training camp.
Who makes the cut: Weddle, Johnson, Rapp, Christian, Scott
Special teams
In the mix: Johnny Hekker (punter), Greg Zuerlein (kicker), Jake McQuaide (long snapper)
Barring injury, there won’t be any competition here.
