Sean McVay is beginning to run out of words to describe the Rams’ never-ending injuries, particularly along the offensive line. It’s gotten to the point where it’s almost unbelievable how many players they’ve cycled through up front, starting nine different combinations in their first nine games.
They’ll go 10-for-10 on Sunday when they visit the Saints, too.
On Friday, McVay ruled out Brian Allen and David Edwards for Week 11. Allen had thumb surgery and is dealing with knee swelling, while Edwards had a setback in his concussion recovery. After Chandler Brewer and Alaric Jackson were both placed on injured reserve this week, the Rams have gotten dangerously thin on the O-line.
They currently have just six healthy offensive linemen on the 53-man roster. Considering five of them will be starters, that’s obviously not enough to have active on game day.
The six healthy linemen are Ty Nsekhe, Coleman Shelton, Bobby Evans, Oday Aboushi, Matt Skura and Rob Havenstein. The question now is how the Rams will deploy five of those six players.
What we know is that Nsekhe will start at left tackle and Havenstein will be the right tackle. Evans and Aboushi can play either guard spot, while Shelton and Skura both have experience at center and guard.
One possible starting offensive line is this:
LT: Nsekhe
LG: Shelton
C: Skura
RG: Aboushi
RT Havenstein
At the very least, that seems to be the best combination of five starting linemen this week, leaving Evans on the bench as a backup guard and tackle. Shelton and Skura could be swapped, too, but Aboushi’s best spot is right guard.
After deciding who will start, the Rams will need to determine which players from the practice squad could be promoted – because there’s no shot they’re playing on Sunday with only six active linemen. Max Pircher still needs a lot of time to develop in the NFL’s international pathway program, so he probably won’t get called up. Jeremiah Kolone can play guard and center, while A.J. Arcuri is a traditional tackle.
It should be assumed that Kolone and Arcuri will both be promoted, giving the Rams eight healthy linemen. It’s far from an ideal situation, but at this point, they won’t find any better options in free agency and the trade deadline has already passed.