No position group has undergone more changes for the Rams in the last three years than the secondary. Since the 2017 season, they’ve had 12 different players start for them at cornerback or safety, nine of which made at least 10 starts.
Among the players the Rams have moved on from include Trumaine Johnson, Lamarcus Joyner, Aqib Talib, Marcus Peters and Kayvon Webster, while Eric Weddle retired this offseason. Now, the Rams are looking to Jalen Ramsey, Troy Hill, John Johnson and Taylor Rapp to lead the secondary in 2020, which is certainly a promising group of defenders.
But what is its ceiling? Could the Rams have one of the best secondaries in football this season? With Ramsey as the No. 1 cornerback and two quality starters at safety, the sky is the limit for Los Angeles. And that’s without even mentioning Hill, who was great as a No. 2 cornerback in the second half of last season.
Pro Football Focus has fairly high expectations for this group, ranking the Rams’ secondary ninth in the NFL heading into the 2020 season. PFF’s Steve Palazzolo highlighted Hill’s play and Ramsey’s improvement as the season went on, with Ramsey allowing more than 12 yards in coverage only once after Week 11.
Darious Williams, David Long Jr. and Donte Deayon were also mentioned in the rankings. Williams had two interceptions and two pass breakups on only 16 targets and Palazzolo likes his potential as a slot corner in place of Nickell Robey-Coleman.
The four primary starters across the secondary seem set with Ramsey, Hill, Johnson and Rapp, but the Rams utilize nickel packages often on defense, which means a fifth defensive back will be on the field a lot. It could be Williams, Long or Deayon, but don’t rule out rookie Terrell Burgess, either.
Burgess has the potential to put this secondary over the top thanks to his versatility and tackling ability. At Utah, he played all over the defense, be it at outside cornerback, free safety, nickel cornerback or linebacker.
We don’t yet know how the Rams will deploy him in 2020, but assuming he gets on the field as a rookie, he’s going to contribute and probably make some key plays. If Burgess can play at a similar level to the way Rapp performed last season, the Rams will be poised to have an elite secondary.
But on the flip side, if Hill can’t maintain his play from last season, or if the Rams struggle to replace Robey-Coleman, this secondary may fall short of expectations.