There weren’t many bright spots on offense in the Rams’ preseason opener against the Chargers, which isn’t hard to see considering they only scored six points in the loss. But it wasn’t completely due to poor quarterback play. Bryce Perkins was a standout for the Rams, even if he only threw for 42 yards and a touchdown.
It was the way he played and the comfort he showed on the field and in the huddle that was particularly impressive. He rushed four times for 23 yards, but one of those “rush attempts” was a kneeldown for minus-2 yards. So really, he carried it three times for 25 yards, with two of those rushes picking up the first down on third.
There was no better play in the entire game than the one he made late, stiff-arming one defender and hurdling another to pick up 12 yards on third-and-9.
OH NO HE DIDN'T 🔥@TDN_Perk with the stiff-arm + hurdle 😤 pic.twitter.com/Lw2xOB94XO
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) August 15, 2021
He only played 22 snaps compared to Devlin Hodges 34, but it’s Perkins who deserves a longer look in the second preseason game against the Raiders. Sean McVay should let him showcase his skills a little bit more, allowing him to get even more comfortable and in a rhythm on offense, considering Saturday night was his first-ever game in the NFL after the preseason was canceled last year.
McVay liked what he saw against the Chargers, so why not give him even more reps in the second preseason matchup.
“I thought he did a nice job. I was real pleased with him,” McVay said after the game. “You could see he had a couple of great off-schedule plays tonight. That third down-and-9, that’s definitely on SportsCenter tonight. It was exciting to be able to see. I thought the overall operation, getting in and out of the huddle, communicating some of the play call, sending the motions, mixing up your cadence. It’s definitely a good positive night for Bryce. The standards he has, I think he’s always going to want to be perfect snap in and snap out, but there was positives to take away from both he and Duck.”
Perkins has an outside shot to make the Rams’ 53-man roster this season, but that’s only if they keep three quarterbacks; Matthew Stafford and John Wolford are locked in as the No. 1 and 2. If Perkins waived, the Rams will undoubtedly want to keep him on the practice squad for a second straight season.
The only concern with that is the possibility of a team claiming him off waivers and signing him to their 53-man roster. Perhaps that’s why McVay won’t want to expose Perkins too much during the preseason, for fear of him catching another team’s eye before final cuts are made.
But the stage wasn’t too big for Perkins, who was playing his first game since he was in college in 2019.
“Last year, I really tried to do my best of just staying prepared with the game plans, being comfortable, not getting complacent and just sitting back and accepting the role,” Perkins said after Saturday’s game. “I think watching John Wolford, how he prepared as the backup role was great. And leading up to here, I just wanted to come out here and show some of my capabilities. It’s always different when it’s live and people have to tackle and everything like that. But I just take it one play at a time. This is great. I’m not going to get too caught up on one play or one drive because there’s more games to be played. And we just got to keep moving forward. But it was definitely fun getting out there tonight, making plays. And I’m looking forward to the next game.”
The Rams host the Raiders on Saturday night at 7 p.m. PT again in the second week of the preseason and will have two joint practices on Wednesday and Thursday leading up to that game. Wolford isn’t playing in the preseason, nor is Wolford, so this is a golden opportunity for Perkins to prove himself once again.
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