Sean McVay says Taylor Rapp is 'just going to continue to get better'
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theramswire.usatoday.com]
Cameron DaSilva
Since taking over as a starter in 2017, John Johnson has quickly developed into one of the best young safeties in the NFL. Unfortunately, that development has hit a roadblock as he suffered a shoulder injury in Week 6, landing him on injured reserve for at least eight weeks, if not the rest of the season.
Fortunately, the Rams are deep at safety and have another outstanding young player ready to step up. Taylor Rapp filled in for Johnson on Sunday and played very well, leading the defense in snaps played and finishing second in tackles with six.
He and Marqui Christian did their best to take Johnson’s place in the secondary, which are no small shoes to fill. Sean McVay is encouraged by Rapp’s play and believes he’s only going to keep getting better.
“They did a really nice job. I think Taylor Rapp taking on added snaps, really did a great job,” McVay said on Monday. “I thought Marqui did a great job in a lot of our known passing situations, you can just feel his range. Taylor Rapp is just a player that’s just going to continue to get better. Like we’re talking about with David Edwards, mature beyond his years for a rookie and doing a lot of good things from those two.”
Rapp is a very reliable tackler, missing just one tackle this season on 32 attempts, a missed tackle rate of 3.1%. That’s an important trait for a safety, being the last line of defense.
He’s at his best when playing close to the line of scrimmage, too, working around blocks and making tackles in the box. The Rams seem to have gotten a steal with Rapp in the second round and he’s only seven games into his NFL career.
