After down year with Browns, Troy Hill shoul return to form in familiar Rams defense

[theramswire.usatoday.com]
After down year with Browns, Troy Hill should return to form in familiar Rams defense

Cameron DaSilva
May 4, 2022 11:28 am PT

Troy Hill had the best year of his career in 2020 when he was with the Rams. He picked off three passes, had 10 pass breakups, forced a fumble, made 77 tackles and scored three total touchdowns: two pick-sixes, one fumble return.

He was always around the ball, and while he did give up some big plays, he made more of them himself.

His departure last offseason was somewhat bittersweet because he was a key player in the secondary, but he also had his lapses in coverage. Now back with the Rams, some fans are having mixed feelings, especially after seeing the way he played with the Browns last year. It’s caused some to wonder why the Browns were so quick to give up on him after just one season.

It was partly because of the depth they now have at cornerback and partly because Hill’s play was rather inconsistent. According to Pro Football Focus, he had four games last season with an overall grade of at least 72.0. However, he also had two terrible games with grades below 40, allowing a total of 11 catches on 12 targets for 182 yards against the Chargers and Patriots combined.

He finished the year with a grade of 60.1, his lowest since 2016. In his final two years with the Rams, PFF gave him overall grades of 76.4 and 74.2, allowing a completion rate of 59.2% in those two years combined. Last season with the Browns, he gave up a completion rate of 76.6%.

Despite some struggles in coverage, Hill was a reliable tackler for the Browns. He made a total of 26 stops, which is only one fewer than he had with the Rams in 2020 despite playing 440 fewer snaps last season. He had a missed tackle rate of just 9.8%, too, significantly lower than his miss rate of 16.5% in 2020.

So there were some bright spots in his game last season, but he was still significantly better overall with the Rams in 2020. Now that he’s back in Los Angeles, he should bounce back to his form from two years ago.

Sean McVay spoke about his familiarity with the Rams’ defensive scheme, which was installed by Brandon Staley in 2020 and tweaked by Raheem Morris last season. Hill excelled in that system, playing both in the slot and outside. According to PFF, he played a career-high 546 snaps in the slot in 2020 and 312 outside. Last season, he was almost exclusively a slot corner, playing 471 of his 533 snaps inside.

His position flexibility will yield better results next season, constantly changing spots in the secondary depending on what the offense is showing the Rams. Ramsey can also play in the slot, so having two cornerbacks who can line up at either spot will be valuable.

The Browns didn’t trade Hill because he’s suddenly a bad cornerback. They just had a lot of young depth and used Hill to recoup a fifth-round pick next year. And the Rams benefit from gaining a starting cornerback for only a fifth-rounder and just $1.5 million in cap space.