No shortage of projected fierce positional battles for the Rams, huh?

Always a good thing to have strong competition, of course.

In no particular order:

On O.

Backup QB is a 3-way battle. I give Wolford the slight edge because of his minuscule one year experience, but this could go in 3 different directions. I know some would prefer an experienced vet retread but I don’t. I’m impressed by the potential of these youngsters in a McVay O.

RB is gonna be a two-way Donnybrook if the lightbulb has gone off for Hendy. The exact rotation and number of snaps might not be sorted out until well into the season. I see Akers as the eventual ‘starter’, but who really knows? I love Akers’ intangibles.

Corbett and Hav are on the inside track, but neither are an absolute lock to be the opening day starters. Evans appears to have NFL starter abilities.

Can Everett stay on the field in 12 personnel? IOW, if he can both catch and block well enough then the D will have no ‘tell’ when he comes on the field. You know that McVay would love that. Currently, Everett or Mundt is almost like putting up a sign for the D as to whether a run or a pass is coming. So, I see a battle between Everett and Mundt for playing time. Heck, maybe we should be keeping an eye out for Hopkins, as well. There might be an opening for second TE snaps if the kid has the talent and can catch up to the NFL quickly enough.

I predict a knock-down-drag-out between Reynolds and Jefferson for 3rd WR. I further predict Jefferson as the eventual winner although it might not occur until midseason.

On D.

We’re gonna see a 5-way competition for weak side OLB snaps. Think about that. I think Ebu has the inside track for opening day but I also think that there could be changes in the rotation as the season evolves. Maybe more than one change.

Kiser will likely be one ILB and 3 others will compete for the other ILB starter in the limited base sets. Still, that’s pretty good competition, don’t you think?

I see Hill facing stiff competition for starting outside CB opposite Ramsey. First of all, it sounds like Ramsey will have many different responsibilities under Staley in order to confuse the QB, so who knows what combos Staley has in mind not only for Ramsey, but for the rest of the secondary on any given snap. IMO, this might further open the door for another man CB to see the field more. I’m a big Williams and Long fan, so seeing them at either outside or nickel would please me.

Nickel CB is gonna be a 3 way battle between Burgess, Long, and Williams, I think. Pretty danged competitive, huh?

Safety seems pretty much locked up, although Burgess will surely be included in some of Staley’s hybrid sets.

On ST.

Really, we’re looking at a 3-way for placekicker. Moreover, they look like 3 very qualified candidates, at that. Can’t remember when I’ve seen such competition at placekicker.

So, we’ll all have a ton of interesting things to watch as camp unfolds. Sure wish we had those fantastic camp reports from our board camp reporters to help us through these many battles, but it’s not to be. Hopefully, the beat reporters step up their game when we need it most.