11 takeaways from Rams' disappointing 2022 season

[theramswire.usatoday.com] 11 takeaways from Rams' disappointing 2022 season


Cameron DaSilva
January 11, 2023 10:42 am PT
To say 2022 didn’t go the way the Los Angeles Rams expected would be a massive understatement. They never thought they’d go 5-12 the year after winning the Super Bowl, even after suffering the losses they did in the offseason.

It was a harsh reminder of how difficult it is to win in the NFL, even as a team viewed among the best in football before the season began. The offensive line fell apart, stars got injured and the running game struggled, which are just a few of the reasons the Rams struggled so painfully.


Looking back on the 2022 season, here are 11 things we learned.

1
No team could’ve overcome Rams’ injuries on O-line
Look, the Rams’ offensive line probably wasn’t going to be great to begin with. It looked shaky in Week 1 when everyone was healthy and it all went downhill from there. But there’s no question the injuries played a huge part in the unit’s struggles. No team in the NFL could’ve overcome the losses Los Angeles suffered up front.

There’s a reason they’re the only team in NFL history to start 12 different combinations in the first 12 weeks. A total of 13 players started along the offensive line, which is way more than the Rams ever expected to have.

No amount of depth or draft picks could’ve fixed the Rams’ problems up front. It’s just that simple.

2
Offense is much-too reliant on Cooper Kupp
Kupp is an exceptional player capable of taking over a game. We saw that a bunch in 2021, and the Rams don’t win the Super Bowl without him. But this season, the offense was much-too reliant on him. How reliant, you ask? He had 98 targets this season, which was second on the team – 10 fewer than Tyler Higbee.

However, Kupp played nine games, eight fewer than Higbee. Allen Robinson, who was supposed to be the No. 2 receiver, was only targeted 52 times in his 10 games played. There just wasn’t enough spreading the ball around and it seemed like if Kupp wasn’t open, no one else would make a play.

The Rams need a legitimate second option next to Kupp if this offense is going to improve in 2023.


3
Cam Akers looks like an above-average RB again
It was a slow and dreadful start to the year for Akers. He was almost traded before the deadline and the Rams even considered cutting him, but he stuck around and showed again what he’s capable of in the second half of the season. He was especially good in the final four weeks, topping 100 yards from scrimmage in all four games.

He also rushed for more than 100 yards in the final three games, ranking second in the NFL in rushing yards from Week 16-18 (345). It was by no means a perfect season by Akers, but at the very least, he earned himself a spot on the roster in 2023 and he could potentially be their starting running back in Week 1.


4
Not enough was done to help the pass rush
The Rams tried to re-sign Von Miller but he opted for a bigger deal with the Bills. Los Angeles thought it could get away with Terrell Lewis and Justin Hollins opposite Leonard Floyd but in no way did that work. Both players were cut during the season, leaving Floyd as the only truly capable edge rusher.

Fortunately, Floyd played well in the second half after Aaron Donald went down but it was painfully clear that the Rams didn’t do nearly enough to help the pass rush around those two players. They couldn’t have expected to sign a one-for-one replacement for Miller, but they needed to do more at outside linebacker than they did.

5
Bobby Wagner was even better than expected
Wagner was the Rams’ big-ticket signing this offseason and expectations were high for the All-Pro linebacker. It was a weak spot for Los Angeles for several years, but with Wagner now in the middle of the defense, the belief was that he’d solve a lot of issues. He did, and more.

Wagner was even better than anticipated this year, racking up 140 total tackles, recording six sacks, two interceptions and 10 tackles for a loss. It was one of his best seasons ever and among the top performances all-time by a linebacker in a Rams uniform.

Not only was he a leader in the locker room and the defensive signal caller, but he was a playmaker in coverage, against the run and as a blitzer. The Rams couldn’t have asked for more from him in Year 1.

6
Potential, but also concerns emerge at cornerback
Darious Williams’ departure in free agency left a hole at cornerback, which the Rams filled with Troy Hill and a pair of rookies, Cobie Durant and Derion Kendrick. David Long Jr. also got a shot in the secondary, but it was a tough transition from 2021’s group to this year’s unit.

Ramsey was a Pro Bowl-caliber player again, and Hill had a few good performances, but there were too many poor showings from this group. Long struggled in coverage, Kendrick got beat for big plays too often and Durant’s rise happened too late in the year.

Fortunately, Durant looks like a future starter at the nickel spot, but there are questions about who the other outside corner will be alongside Ramsey. Hopefully Kendrick can be that guy, but that’s no certainty.

7
Coaching staff didn’t do the best job evaluating Rams’ talent
There were three instances this season of the coaching staff not properly evaluating the talent on the roster. The biggest miss was keeping Durant on the bench for five games after he returned from a hamstring injury. He finally got another chance in the final five weeks and he was a playmaker, picking off two passes against the Broncos, including a pick-six.

Michael Hoecht also emerged late in the year after he moved to outside linebacker, playing well as a pass rusher in the final few weeks. His play at that spot shows he should’ve gotten a chance there much sooner.

And finally, there’s Tutu Atwell. McVay admitted he should’ve gotten him involved sooner than he did because every time he got a shot, he made a play. That doesn’t mean he should’ve been a starter from Week 1, but Atwell could’ve helped as a deep threat and gadget player on offense.

8
Recent draft classes haven’t panned out
It became painfully clear this season that their recent draft classes haven’t worked out. And the Rams essentially admitted as much with their roster decisions. Terrell Lewis and Terrell Burgess were both cut this season and were each former third-round picks. Darrell Henderson Jr. was released, too, though that was partly because he’s a pending free agent. Bobby Evans, a third-rounder in 2019 like Henderson, was also cut during the season.

These were draft classes that the Rams needed to come through in 2022, but none of those players rose to the occasion. And looking at the team’s classes from 2020 and 2021, there isn’t much optimism about those two either.

Atwell hasn’t done much, Bobby Brown was suspended to start the year, Earnest Brown didn’t play until the season was lost, Robert Rochell was a special teams player and only Akers made any significant impact from the 2020 class this year.

9
Matt Gay is one of the two best kickers in football
How about some positivity? Gay certainly provided that on special teams with an outstanding season for the Rams. He made 28 of his 30 field goal attempts, the fourth-best rate in the league. He missed one kick between 50 and 59 yards, and another from 60-plus. That’s it. He was perfect from inside 50 yards and an impressive 7-for-9 from 50-plus.

You could make the case that Justin Tucker is the only kicker in the NFL that’s better than Gay. It’s just that Gay didn’t get as much praise because of the season the Rams had in 2022.

10
Backup quarterback needs to be a bigger priority
Every team hopes its starting quarterback remains healthy for all 17 games, but as we saw this season, that’s not always possible. Matthew Stafford missed eight games with a concussion and neck injury, leading to John Wolford, Bryce Perkins and Baker Mayfield starting in his place. None of the three was very good.

However, as poorly as Mayfield played at times, he showed potential – more so than Wolford and Perkins did. The Rams need to make backup quarterback a bigger priority this offseason, whether it’s by re-signing Mayfield or bringing in a capable veteran to back up Stafford.

11
Depth is as important as star power
We heard it said countless times by McVay and Rams players this season: It’s not easy to win in the NFL. On paper, the Rams looked like one of the better teams in football, boasting a roster filled with Pro Bowlers.

They had as many stars on their roster as any team in the league before the season began. Stafford, Kupp, Donald, Ramsey, Robinson, Wagner. But even with so many recognizable names and accomplished players, the Rams still couldn’t consistently win. There were a lot of reasons for that, but their lack of depth and talent around their stars was a big part of it.

They didn’t have the offensive line to protect their stud quarterback. They didn’t have the cornerback talent to prevent teams from avoiding Ramsey. They didn’t have the pass rushers to help out Donald and Floyd.

Depth is important and the 2022 Rams were a painful reminder of that.