Category: Latest Rams news

Former Rams to play key roles in NFC and AFC Championship Games

Four former members of the Rams will play key roles on Sunday.

This time last year, the Los Angeles Rams were preparing for the NFC Championship Game against the New Orleans Saints. They missed the playoffs this season and will be watching championship weekend from home, but a handful of former Rams will be on the field Sunday.

Four, in particular, stand out, one from each team playing this weekend. They’re going to have a big impact on the outcome of Titans-Chiefs and Packers-49ers, with at least two former Rams participating in the Super Bowl two weeks from now.

Here are three players and one coach with ties to the Rams this weekend.

Titans LG Rodger Saffold

Saffold left the Rams to sign with the Titans last offseason in free agency, and he hasn’t missed a beat as a road-grading guard. He’s helped pave the way for Derrick Henry, who led the league in rushing and has helped get the Titans to the AFC Championship Game.

Saffold’s contract with Tennessee was for four years and $44 million, pricing himself out of the Rams’ range. He spent nine years with the Rams and was drafted by them in the second round of the 2010 draft.

Packers coach Matt LaFleur

LaFleur was Sean McVay’s offensive coordinator for one season in 2017 before he was hired by the Titans to be their OC in 2018. He helped the Rams lead the NFL in points and finish 10th in yards during his year in Los Angeles, proving to be a valuable member of McVay’s coaching staff.

Chiefs WR Sammy Watkins

Watkins was one of the Rams’ first blockbuster acquisitions when they traded for him just before the 2017 season. He had a disappointing season that year, though, catching only 39 passes for 593 yards and eight touchdowns in 15 games. He went on to sign with the Chiefs the following offseason, but he has yet to play a full 16-game season and only has 1,192 yards the last two years.

49ers RG Mike Person

Person started 14 games for the 49ers this season and was their right guard against the Vikings in the divisional round. He’s finally found a home in San Francisco after bouncing around the NFL and just had his best season in 2019. Though he never played a game for the Rams, he was with them from 2013-2014 before signing with the Falcons in 2015.

6 free agents with ties to Rams OC Kevin O’Connell

The Rams could be interested in these six free agents, all of whom played for Kevin O’Connell.

Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

After a down year offensively, Sean McVay decided to hire an offensive coordinator for his coaching staff. He landed on 34-year-old Kevin O’Connell, formerly of the Washington Redskins. He was the offensive coordinator and play caller at the end of the 2019 season and previously served as the quarterbacks coach on Jay Gruden’s staff.

O’Connell will have an impact on the offensive game plan, even if he doesn’t call the plays. He can also help the Rams lure players in free agency who he has connections to.

Here are six players with ties to O’Connell who may interest the Rams in free agency.

OG Brandon Scherff

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Unless the Redskins re-sign him before March, Scherff will be one of the best offensive linemen available in free agency. He not only has ties to O’Connell, having played for him for the last three years, but also to Sean McVay, who was with the Redskins during Scherff’s first two seasons.

The Rams have a clear need at guard with Austin Blythe being a free agent and Joseph Noteboom potentially moving to left tackle from guard. Scherff is going to break the bank and become one of the top-paid guards in the NFL, so he might be out of the Rams’ price range.

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Take a virtual tour of SoFi Stadium with views from every section

Get a view from each section in SoFi Stadium.

The Los Angeles Rams are about eight months from taking the field at SoFi Stadium, though we’re not yet sure who they’ll face in their first home game at the new venue. Fans have already been purchasing personal seat licenses (PSLs) and season tickets, so they know where they’ll be sitting when SoFi Stadium opens.

They can get a view from their seats, too.

On the stadium’s website, you can take a virtual tour and get a view from every section in the stadium – from field-level seats to suites to upper-level seats. You can look around as if you were in the stadium, too, to see the roof, field, Oculus scoreboard and everything else.

Here’s a view from the 50-yard line in the VIP Section 219, Row 10.

And here’s what it looks like from higher up in Section 540, Row 3.

Even the supposed “worst seats in the house” don’t look bad at all, as seen here from Section 553, Row 17.

SoFi Stadium is nearing completion and as of the Rams’ last update, it was 85% done earlier this month. It’ll be quite the change from the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, where the Rams have played the last four years after moving from St. Louis.

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Opposing QBs rarely tested Rams defense with deep passes

The Rams were great defending against deep passes this season.

There were a lot of areas where the Los Angeles Rams underachieved in 2019, but you could argue they were better against the pass than expected – especially considering all the injuries and changes that occurred during the season.

A secondary that began the year with John Johnson, Eric Weddle, Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib finished with Jalen Ramsey, Troy Hill and Taylor Rapp all as starters, all of whom played well in the second half of the season. There were only two games where the Rams allowed at least 300 yards passing in 2019, with those coming in Week 17 against the Cardinals (a meaningless game) and in Week 4 against the Buccaneers.

Part of the reason the Rams were able to keep their opponents in check through the air is that they were rarely challenged on deep passes. According to Inside Edge, teams facing the Rams threw deep balls on only 9.6% of their pass attempts, which was the third-lowest rate in the NFL.

For comparison, league average was 12.2%, so teams weren’t testing the Rams deep very often.

Explosive plays can make or break a team, and the Rams didn’t give up many big gains through the air, either. They only allowed 40 completions of at least 20 yards, which was tied for the third-fewest in the NFL.

When you can limit big plays the way the Rams defense did, it goes a long way toward getting opposing offenses off the field. Granted, there were times when Los Angeles failed to do that, but for the most part, the defense was strong against the pass.

Dante Fowler Jr. says he’s ‘just getting started’ after career year

Dante Fowler Jr. isn’t satisfied with his 11.5 sacks from 2019.

The Los Angeles Rams only had Dante Fowler Jr. for half a season (plus the playoffs) in 2018 before deciding to give him a one-year extension worth up to $14 million. It was a big gamble on a player who hadn’t shown the ability to consistently produce as a pass rusher, but one that paid off for Los Angeles.

Fowler went out and had his best season ever in 2019, recording career-highs in sacks (11.5), tackles (58), QB hits (16), tackles for loss (16) and passes defensed (6). As a complementary player next to Aaron Donald, Fowler more than held his own on the outside.

As great as Fowler was in 2019, he still has more to prove. He said he’s “just getting started.”

Fowler will be a free agent in March unless the Rams sign him to an extension before then. Being just 25 years old and coming off a standout season, Fowler will undoubtedly cash in this offseason the way Za’Darius Smith, Dee Ford and Frank Clark did last offseason.

Whichever team signs him, though, will be betting on Fowler being more than just a one-year wonder. Based on the way he played in his first season as a full-time starter, it’s easy to think he’ll follow up this season with another strong year in 2020.

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Eric Weddle shares knee recovery update, believes he’s ‘half wolverine’

Eric Weddle is already recovering well from his first surgery.

Eric Weddle is 35 years old and has been playing football for most of his life, yet for the first time ever a couple weeks ago, he underwent surgery. It was a procedure on his meniscus, but not one that’s expected to sideline him for any significant period of time.

In fact, Weddle is already well into his recovery after getting the stitches removed on Friday. He added in an update on Twitter that his knee never swelled and he believes he’s “half wolverine.”

Oh, and he’s about ready to hit the golf course, too.

Weddle may not be back with the Rams in 2020, already saying he doesn’t want to come back as a backup safety. He knows John Johnson and Taylor Rapp are in line to be the starters, so there may not be a spot for Weddle in the lineup.

If the Rams part ways with Weddle, they’ll save $4.25 million in cap space next season, which is a significant chunk of money.

This past season, Weddle made 108 tackles (2nd-most on the Rams) and broke up four passes.

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Cory Littleton recognized as one of NFL’s top free agents in 2020

Cory Littleton is the 9th-best free agent, according to Pro Football Focus.

Cory Littleton isn’t a household name among NFL fans just yet, but he’s well on his way to becoming a known player outside of just Los Angeles. After a strong 2019 season, Littleton is set to hit free agency for the first time in his career.

After making just over $3 million this past year, his new salary is going to far exceed that number, whether it’s with the Rams or another team. Los Angeles would love to keep him, but considering how much it’ll cost to retain him, it’s very possible Littleton will be playing elsewhere in 2020.

It’s widely known that he’ll be sought-after on the open market, too. On NFL.com’s list of the top 25 free agents this offseason, Littleton came in at No. 17 – the only member of the Rams to make the cut.

Smart linebackers who can cover and make their teammates better are rare and valuable commodities, even if they tend to get underpaid compared to pass rushers.

On Pro Football Focus’ top 50 free agents of 2020, Littleton ranked even higher. He came in at No. 9, making him the best available linebacker in PFF’s eyes.

Littleton has quietly become one of the best coverage linebackers in the league, capable of running the seam with tight ends and closing quickly on running backs underneath. He has 18 pass breakups and six interceptions over the last two seasons, and he’s posted a 90.6 coverage grade that ranks third-best in the league. However, while potential suitors are going to love Littleton’s ability to affect the passing game, he has had his struggles against the run. His 50.8 run-defense grade ranks just 103rd out of 126 qualifiers over the last two years, so that could hurt his value for teams looking for an all-around three-down linebacker.

Littleton may have only been an undrafted free agent out of Washington, but in the last two years as a starter, he’s proved his doubters wrong. If the Rams can’t come up with the money to re-sign him, finding a replacement will be extremely difficult.

After all, he led the team in tackles with 134, had 3.5 sacks, tied for first in interceptions (2) and had the most pass breakups of any Rams defender (9). Players who put up those numbers don’t grow on trees, and Los Angeles could be faced with a situation where No. 58 is playing somewhere else next season.

4 free agents with connections to Rams DC Brandon Staley

John Glaser-USA TODAY Sports In a somewhat surprising move, the Rams parted ways with Wade Phillips as their defensive coordinator. Sean McVay replaced him with 37-year-old Brandon Staley, who has been an outside linebackers coach under Vic Fangio …

John Glaser-USA TODAY Sports

In a somewhat surprising move, the Rams parted ways with Wade Phillips as their defensive coordinator. Sean McVay replaced him with 37-year-old Brandon Staley, who has been an outside linebackers coach under Vic Fangio for the last three years; two in Chicago and one year in Denver.

Staley has only been an NFL coach since 2017, so his connections to players don’t exactly run deep. However, these four players are set to hit free agency in March and have played for Staley in the past.

OLB Aaron Lynch

Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

Lynch spent one year with Staley as his coach in 2018 with the Bears, playing 13 games with three starts. He recorded three sacks, eight QB hits, one interception and 16 total tackles that year, which are admittedly not overly impressive numbers.

Lynch isn’t a prolific pass rusher, but rather a better run defender at 6-5, 285 pounds. He fits best on the strong side as a left outside linebacker, which is where Clay Matthews currently resides.

No one is saying Lynch would solve the Rams’ issues at outside linebacker, but he wouldn’t be a bad depth piece as he could probably play defensive end in sub-packages, too.

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Joe Barry turns down USC job, re-signs with Rams

Joe Barry is staying with the Rams as their linebackers coach.

The Los Angeles Rams interviewed Joe Barry for their defensive coordinator vacancy after parting ways with Wade Phillips, but they decided to go in a different direction by hiring Brandon Staley. Barry was also in contention for USC’s defensive coordinator position, but he has turned down that opportunity to stay with the Rams.

Barry has re-signed with Los Angeles to remain the team’s linebackers coach and assistant head coach.

This is excellent news for the Rams, who were in danger of losing Barry after not giving him the defensive coordinator job. Having to replace another coach would’ve been a challenge, already needing to find a new running backs coach and special teams coordinator after Skip Peete and John Fassel both went to Dallas.

In addition to hiring Staley as his defensive coordinator, Sean McVay also brought aboard Kevin O’Connell as the Rams’ offensive coordinator.

Johnny Mundt’s blocking carries value for Rams at TE in 2020

It shouldn’t be a tough decision for the Rams to retain Johnny Mundt.

When discussing the Rams’ current tight ends, two players immediately come to mind: Tyler Higbee and Gerald Everett. Higbee just set franchise records for receptions and yards by a tight end in 2019, while Everett is viewed as a breakout candidate at tight end seemingly every season.

The player who gets left out of the conversation each time is Johnny Mundt. He only played 19% of the snaps in 2019 and has fewer career receptions (5) than Higbee had in each of his last five games of the season.

It’s easy to overlook Mundt as merely a reserve player who doesn’t contribute much. However, he provides value in ways that don’t show up on the stat sheet. According to Pro Football Focus, Mundt finished eighth in run blocking and 10th in pass blocking among all tight ends and running backs this past season.

His blocking is a big reason the Rams used so many two-tight end formations toward the end of the season with Higbee and Mundt. In the last five weeks, Mundt played 148 snaps on offense out of his 211 total from the season.

He’ll be an exclusive rights free agent this offseason, which makes it very easy for the Rams to retain him if they wish. There’s no doubt that given the low cost it’ll take to keep him, the Rams should absolutely give Mundt another season in Los Angeles.

This is especially relevant if the Rams end up shopping Everett in the offseason, given Higbee’s emergence. If they can recoup a third- or fourth-round pick for Everett and keep Mundt as the No. 2 tight end, primarily as a blocker, it won’t be a bad move by the front office.