Category: Latest Rams news

Kevin Dotson not ranked among NFL’s top 10 guards despite breakout season

Kevin Dotson graded out as the 2nd-best guard in the NFL last year but PFF didn’t put him in the top 10 of its rankings for 2024

Kevin Dotson became one of the Rams’ most valuable and impactful players last season after being acquired from the Steelers. He didn’t start right away but after Joe Noteboom went down with an injury, he stepped in at right guard and was immediately a difference-maker.

Dotson allowed just eight hits on the quarterback and four sacks all year, while also grading out extremely well in the run game; his 88.4 run-blocking grade was the second-best of any guard in the NFL.

Despite earning the second-best overall grade of any player at his position last year, Dotson wasn’t ranked anywhere near the top of PFF’s list highlighting the best guards in football. Dotson came in at No. 12, much lower than most people would have expected him to be after the season he just had.

Dotson is a prime example of a player having the potential to flourish in the right system. Moving to Sean McVay’s wide-zone scheme unlocked a different side of Dotson’s game in 2023, and his 85.2 PFF overall grade placed second only to Chris Lindstrom, while his 88.8 run-blocking grade led the NFL.

His performances in 2023 earned him a mega three-year, $48 million contract extension with the Rams in the offseason, and for good reason. Dotson allowed 20 quarterback pressures in pass protection, providing the perfect interior presence for Matthew Stafford.

Dotson will have a chance to prove he wasn’t a one-year wonder in Los Angeles last season after re-signing with the Rams in March. Now locked in with a three-year, $48 million contract, Dotson has the financial security he was looking for.

Lining up between Steve Avila and Rob Havenstein should yield great results for the Rams’ entire offensive line, potentially giving them one of the best units in football. And the guy playing left guard for L.A., Jonah Jackson, is quite the talent, too. He ranked 30th in PFF’s guard rankings as he enters his first season with the Rams.

Jackson struggled with injuries in his four years with the Lions, but he’s been a starter in every game he’s played in. The four-year veteran earned a 61.0 PFF overall grade in 12 games this past year, including four with a pass-blocking grade of at least 80.0.

There’s a lot to be excited about with the Rams’ O-line heading into 2024 and much of that starts with the two guards on the interior.

Andrew Whitworth among 4 former Rams playing in marquee celebrity golf tournament

Andrew Whitworth and Jerome Bettis are among four former Rams teeing it up in the star-studded American Century Championship golf tournament

The American Century Championship is the biggest celebrity golf tournament around, bringing star athletes and entertainers to the course in Tahoe each and every summer. Everyone from Justin Timberlake to Steph Curry have played in the event, and this year, a handful of former Rams players will be in the field, too.

The American Century Championship announced the participants in this year’s tournament, which will be held from July 10-14, and these four ex-Rams will be teeing it up:

  • Jerome Bettis
  • Ryan Fitzpatrick
  • Baker Mayfield
  • Andrew Whitworth

Fitzpatrick only played two years with the Rams, and Mayfield was in Los Angeles for less than half a season, but they still qualify as former members of the franchise. Like Fitzpatrick, Bettis was drafted by the Rams, spending three years with the organization from 1993-1995. Whitworth, of course, was signed in 2017 and spent five years with the Rams, helping them win Super Bowl LVI against the Bengals.

Among the other current and former NFL stars playing in the ACC tournament are Davante Adams, Tim Brown, Larry Fitzgerald, Dwight Freeney, Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Peterson. For the full field of players, click here.

Where do Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp rank among best QB-WR duos?

Even after a couple of down years, Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp are one of the best QB-WR duos in the NFL

When the Rams acquired Matthew Stafford from the Lions in 2021, he and Cooper Kupp quickly developed a rapport on and off the field. In their first season together, Kupp won the receiving triple crown by leading the NFL in catches, receiving yards and touchdown receptions. He was also named Offensive Player of the Year and won Super Bowl MVP, completing arguably the best season ever by a wideout.

Now three years later, Stafford and Kupp are still viewed as one of the best QB-WR tandems in the NFL. While their numbers from the last two seasons may not blow anyone away, they were both injured in 2022 and Kupp was less than 100% last season, which is a big reason the All-Pro receiver fell below the 1,000-yard mark each year.

Pro Football Focus ranked the 10 best QB-WR duos in football entering the 2024 season and the combination of Stafford and Kupp were third behind Tua Tagovailoa-Tyreek Hill and Joe Burrow-Ja’Marr Chase.

Another combination afflicted by injuries, we have nevertheless seen Stafford and Kupp cook to record-breaking levels when both are healthy. Those injuries have now given the connection competition within the same offense, with Stafford to Puka Nacua another devastating duo last season. But Kupp remains his favorite target.

There’s no question Puka Nacua ate into Kupp’s targets last season, even when both were healthy. Nacua just about became Stafford’s go-to guy, averaging 9.4 targets per game compared to Kupp’s 7.9.

There’s a chance that after the 2024 season, it’ll be Stafford and Nacua ranked somewhere on PFF’s list instead of Stafford and Kupp, but for now, it’s the veteran who gets the nod in the top three.

Jason Garrett wonders how Rams will look without Aaron Donald, ‘the human eraser’

Jason Garrett recently visited Rams OTAs and while he has no concerns about the offense, he wonders how the defense will fare without Aaron Donald

Teams across the NFL all lost players this offseason, whether in free agency, via trade or to retirement. No one suffered a bigger loss than the Los Angeles Rams, however.

Aaron Donald announced his retirement from the NFL after 10 seasons, stepping away from football and the Rams after a Hall of Fame career. Replacing him is nothing short of an impossible task but Los Angeles attempted to do so by focusing a lot of attention on the defensive front in the draft.

Former Cowboys coach Jason Garrett recently visited Rams OTAs and his biggest question about the team is the void left by Donald.

“The big question there is Aaron Donald is no longer a member of the Los Angeles Rams,” Garrett said. “Having gone against that guy a lot, he’s the most disruptive player we ever had to game plan against. And you always had to have two guys on him. You had to have an answer in the run game and in the pass game. And when you’re playing around him and are coaching when he is on your team, it’s an unfair advantage. And now they don’t have that. He was the human eraser. And so now, they drafted the two kids from Florida State. I think they’re excited about them. But it’s going to be a younger team on defense without that superstar, that marquee player, so that’s going to be a big question.”

It’s a question most fans and analysts are also asking about the Rams. There will obviously be a drop-off in terms of interior pressure without Donald in the fold, but will that have a ripple effect on the rest of the defense? Donald always commanded double- and triple-teams but now that he’s gone, offenses will be able to deploy a more standard style of protection up front.

Garrett doesn’t have any concerns about the Rams offense, but the defense is a question in his mind.

“Matthew Stafford is still their quarterback, Cooper Kupp is still their receiver, Puka Nacua is still their receiver, Sean McVay is still calling the plays. I feel good about what they’re going to do on offense. The question is how do you replace 99?” Garrett said.

Jonah Jackson on the main reason he signed with the Rams: ‘No. 9’

Jonah Jackson says Matthew Stafford was the primary reason he picked the Rams: “I knew he could bring us all the way”

Jonah Jackson probably wasn’t lacking suitors when free agency began in March. He quickly signed a three-year deal worth $51 million with the Los Angeles Rams on the first day of the legal tampering period, a huge splash by Les Snead and Sean McVay shortly after the market opened.

There are a lot of things that make the Rams a good landing spot for any free agent, from the impressive coaching staff to the location in Southern California, but it was Matthew Stafford who really drew Jackson to Los Angeles.

During an interview with J.B. Long and D’Marco Farr, Jackson said Stafford was the primary reason he picked the Rams.

“It definitely came down to a few teams but here, obviously, the weather is absolutely incredibly. Every day is beautiful. But, No. 9,” Jackson said. “I had Matthew my rookie year and I knew what he brought to the table and I knew he could bring us all the way. And from the outside looking in, we had a lot of carryover in Detroit and I got along well with those guys. Greg, Brad (Holmes), Jared (Goff) and they all loved it out here and I figured they’re my kind of guys.”

Jackson isn’t yet up to full speed as he recovers from a knee injury suffered late last year, but he’s going to be a huge part of the Rams’ offense once the season begins. At 6-foot-4 and 315 pounds, he’s both literally and figuratively a big player along the offensive line.

He’ll be the starting left guard next to Steve Avila, who’s moved to center, helping protect Stafford once again after he did the same as a rookie in 2020. That year, he played 1,006 snaps and allowed five sacks, but since then, he’s given up just six sacks in the last three seasons.

Watch: Kyren Williams (foot) returned to practice and is looking shifty

Kyren Williams was expected to miss the rest of the offseason program with a foot injury but he returned on Thursday and was looking good

Kyren Williams was dealing with a “foot issue,” as Sean McVay described it, a couple of weeks ago and was expected to miss the rest of the Rams’ offseason program. He had been sidelined but on Thursday, he returned to the practice field.

It was a pleasant surprise for the Rams, even if it is just OTAs, after it was believed that he’d be out until training camp in July. The team shared a video of Williams going through individual drills and he was showing no ill effects from whatever the foot injury was.

He looked quick going through his cuts, moving at seemingly full speed. Williams is established enough that he doesn’t even necessarily need these spring sessions but being the hard worker that he is, he was probably itching to get back out there.

Sean McVay ranked as NFL’s 2nd-best coach, but who is above him?

There’s only one coach ranked higher than Sean McVay on this list.

There were plenty of skeptics when the Rams hired Sean McVay in 2017, handing the keys to a 30-year-old head coach one year after moving to Los Angeles. It didn’t take long for McVay to prove himself because in Year 1, the Rams won 11 games and in his second season, they made it all the way to the Super Bowl.

McVay’s stock has been on the rise ever since, with 2022 being his only losing season – a 5-12 record after Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp and Aaron Donald all missed about half the season.

Heading into the 2024 season, which will be McVay’s eighth year at the helm, he’s widely seen as one of the top coaches in football. Jarrett Bailey of Touchdown Wire thinks particularly highly of McVay, putting him at No. 2 in his coaching rankings.

McVay took a different approach to his offense last season and turned the Rams into a run-through-your-face power run team with a lot of play action mixed in. Matthew Stafford still has the ability to sling it, and it’ll be fun to see what the offense can do in year two of Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp as a duo. McVay has already been to two Super Bowls and won one. Can the Rams make another appearance in the biggest game of the year? Who’s to say they can’t?

With McVay ranking second, there’s only one coach ahead of him – and it’s a fairly obvious choice. Bailey put three-time Super Bowl champion Andy Reid at No. 1, who has led the Chiefs to back-to-back titles in the last two years.

The majority of NFL experts would put Reid atop any coaching list with how dominant the Chiefs have been under his guidance, even before Patrick Mahomes arrived. He’s a lock for the Hall of Fame but if McVay continues on his current trajectory, he’s going to be in Canton at the end of his career, too.

Watch: Mic’d-up Cooper Kupp gives rookie Drake Stoops route-running tips

Cooper Kupp was mic’d up during OTAs and he gave undrafted rookie Drake Stoops some route-running tips between reps

Cooper Kupp brings a ton of value to the Los Angeles Rams, both on the field and off it. On Sundays, he’s one of the league’s best receivers when healthy. During the week, he and Matthew Stafford incessantly prepare for their upcoming opponents in the film room with their own early-morning tape sessions.

This time of year, he helps the younger players on the roster by coaching them up in practice. He did just that during OTAs this spring, taking some time to share tips with undrafted rookie Drake Stoops between reps.

The Rams caught a couple of those conversations when Kupp was mic’d up, sharing the video on YouTube Thursday.

“You did good, though. Good job staying down, driving through that next one before your eyes snapped back. Helps you turn,” Kupp told Stoops.

They continued chatting later in practice, too.

“I think the best ones happen when it’s a counter to what you’re trying to do,” Kupp said. “I want to go in but I don’t think it’s that break. I’m going to go out. Those are the best ones. You don’t predetermine. You just feel it as the rep goes.”

Stoops must spend a lot of time studying Kupp’s tape because he had some Sean McVay-like recall during that chat with Kupp. He remembered a certain technique Kupp used against the Saints years ago.

“Like the one against the Saints at the Coliseum,” Stoops said.

“Back in 2018,” Kupp added.

“It looks like you did that same thing,” Stoops said.

Kupp: “Same thing.”

The Rams played the Saints on the road in 2018 and at home in 2019, so either Stoops got the location wrong or Kupp got the year wrong. Regardless, it was a great conversation between the two wideouts and an impressive callback by Stoops.

There may not be a better wide receiver in the NFL to learn from than Kupp so Stoops is in a great position to succeed in L.A.

Watch: Brian Baldinger raves about Rams’ combination of Jared Verse and Braden Fiske

Brian Baldinger can’t wait to watch Jared Verse and Braden Fiske continue playing together with the Rams

There’s no question the Los Angeles Rams are going to feel the absence of Aaron Donald on defense. This will be their first season since 2013 without him at defensive tackle and replacing a future Hall of Famer is never easy.

That being said, the Rams are excited about what rookies Jared Verse and Braden Fiske bring to the table. It’s unfair to expect either player to fill the shoes of No. 99 but it was smart for the Rams to keep the two former Florida State Seminoles together on the same defensive front.

NFL Network’s Brian Baldinger can’t wait to see Verse and Fiske continue to work as teammates in the NFL, sharing a quick film breakdown of their play at Florida State on Thursday.

“You watch how they play together – they’re great individually, but together, they’re even better,” Baldinger said. “You watch how they play together. Braden’s taking two, Verse wins inside and here comes Fiske cleaning it up.

“These two in combination are relentless and they’re powerful.”

Verse and Fiske showcased their best ability in the Seminoles’ win over Louisville in the ACC title game where they absolutely lived in the backfield and feasted on stunts like the ones Baldinger showed in the video above.

It’ll be tough to replicate that level of play in the NFL against better guards and tackles, but they’re both full of potential as pass rushers.

McVay: No one ‘really understands’ how much Cooper Kupp was playing through in 2023

Sean McVay says similar to Matthew Stafford in 2022, Cooper Kupp was playing through more than people realize last season

Cooper Kupp did not have the season many were expecting in 2023. He was limited to just 12 games after dealing with a hamstring injury in the summer, causing him to miss the first four games of the year; he also sat out in Week 18 to rest for the playoffs.

In those 12 games, he averaged just 61.4 yards per game, the second-lowest of his career. He finished with 737 yards and five touchdowns, also the second-fewest totals since he came into the NFL in 2017.

It was evident throughout the season that Kupp never seemed fully healthy. He did have four 100-yard performances but in the other eight games he played, he never had more than 52 yards and was slow to get up from the turf on more than one occasion.

Sean McVay said on Tuesday that Kupp was dealing with more than people realize. He compared it to Matthew Stafford in 2022 when he was playing through various injuries, including an elbow issue that limited him greatly throughout the spring and summer.

“Really, similar to Matthew in ‘22 and then Cooper last year, I don’t think anybody really understands the amount of things that both of those guys were working through in each of those years,” McVay said. “That gives you an appreciation, and I think both of them an appreciation for how much they love this game and how much more fun it is when you’re feeling good. But you talk about a guy that’s really set the tempo for the way that this offseason has gone. I’m not surprised, but you sure are impressed with just the consistency, the work ethic, the growth mindset, and how that influences and affects the rest of the guys that he’s around. This guy’s a stud. I love him. I’m really happy to see where he’s at right now.”

The good news is Kupp’s finally healthy. He’s said multiple times this spring that it’s the first time in a while he feels 100% during the offseason program. That’s certainly encouraging, and McVay can see the benefits of his star receiver being healthy again.

“Yeah, I think he’s put the work in. He’s such a stud of a person,” McVay said. “You see the benefits of the work that he’s put in overtime and how that’s translated into good things on the field. But you see he’s been able to build the foundation the right way. He’s been able to have an offseason program where he really understands his body and how to be able to build it from the ground up. He looks strong. He looks sturdy. He’s having fun. He’s enjoying it.”

If the Rams have a healthy Kupp and Puka Nacua in 2024, the offense could be really dangerous. With Kyren Williams in the backfield and Demarcus Robinson likely working as the No. 3 wideout, the Rams have a chance to field one of the better offenses in football.

Kupp and Nacua have been hard at work this offseason, training together at Kupp’s house before OTAs began, so they’re really aiming to take the next step in 2024.