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Terrell Lewis is 'definitely going to be a big factor' with Justin Hollins out 8-10 weeks
Cameron DaSilva
September 28, 2021 9:10 am PT
The injury bug bit the Los Angeles Rams again on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, this time sidelining a key starter for an extended period of time. Justin Hollins suffered a partially torn pectoral muscle and will be placed on injured reserve.
Sean McVay said he’ll be out 8-10 weeks and could return later in the season if his recovery goes according to plan. The Rams are already thin (and injury-prone) at outside linebacker, making this a big blow to the defense.
But McVay has confidence in Terrell Lewis, who will see his role grow substantially in Hollins’ place. Coming off a game in which he played a career-high 34 snaps, Lewis’ workload is only going to get bigger with Hollins sidelined – and McVay is excited to see what he can do.
“He played close to over 30 snaps, which was by far his biggest workload. Thought he handled it well. He came in, he was feeling good. And so, seeing his maturation and him continue to progress is a big deal because Justin Hollins had done such a great job really solidifying that spot opposite Leonard Floyd over these first few weeks. But to see Terrell be able to do what he did was really encouraging. You can’t have enough good players that can apply pressure to the quarterback and be able to set edges and make the plays that he did. So, he’s definitely going to be a big factor and you can look for him to play a lot more snaps moving forward.”
Lewis had two pressures on 26 pass-rush opportunities, making two tackles and landing one hit on Tom Brady. He also leveled Rob Gronkowski with a big shot to the ribs, knocking the tight end out of the game for a brief period of time.
He has the size, speed and athleticism to excel as a pass rusher, but he hasn’t been able to stay healthy himself. A nagging knee injury has caused him to miss time, but with the Rams managing his practice regimen throughout the week, hopefully he can stay on the field and contribute on Sundays.
