Category: Latest Rams news

Matthew Stafford can’t wait to play in big games instead of 1 o’clock Sunday kickoffs

Matthew Stafford only played in 22 prime-time games with the Lions. He’ll play in five this year, which has the QB excited.

The Detroit Lions weren’t exactly a major threat in the NFC during Matthew Stafford’s 12-year tenure. They made the playoffs three times, never made it past wild-card weekend and only had four winning seasons.

So it should come as no surprise that the Lions didn’t play in many big games throughout Stafford’s career. Of the 165 games he played, only 22 were in prime time. The spotlight was rarely on Detroit.

Some of that falls on Stafford’s shoulders, which he would tell you himself. But he also didn’t have the best supporting cast, particularly on defense; the Lions finished better than 13th in scoring defense just once in 12 years with Stafford.

Things will be much different in L.A. The Rams had the best defense in football last season and are scheduled to play five prime-time games this season – including in Week 1 against the Bears, a team Stafford knows all too well.

Beyond just playing night games, Stafford wants to compete in meaningful matchups against good teams and make big plays at crucial moments.

“I just want to play in big games, you know? … I want to have opportunities to make big-time plays in the fourth quarter against really good teams, in big moments, rather than a one o’clock game on a Sunday somewhere,” Stafford told Seth Wickersham in a feature story on ESPN.

What quarterback doesn’t want to make a big play in a postseason game to help his team advance? Despite playing on many bad teams in Detroit, Stafford still leads all quarterbacks in fourth-quarter comebacks since he came into the NFL in 2009, bringing the Lions back 31 times in the final 15 minutes.

All-time, he’s third among active quarterbacks, behind only Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisberger. Stepping up in big moments is natural for Stafford, and hopefully he can do that quite a few times for the Rams – particularly in the postseason.

 

Les Snead: Rams are about 90 percent done evaluating roster before final cuts

The Rams still have one preseason game to go, but Les Snead says they’re about “90-something percent” done setting their roster.

Every team in the NFL will need to trim its roster down from 80 players to only 53 by next Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET. There will still be a lot of shuffling in the following days with waiver claims and free-agent signings, but for the most part, each roster will be just about set this time next week.

The Rams are going to have a lot of difficult decisions to make, particularly at deep positions such as cornerback, safety, defensive line and wide receiver. Fifty-three players seems like a lot, but cutting 27 guys at once is never easy.

With one preseason game left, there’s still time for players on the bubble to earn a roster spot. But according to general manager Les Snead, the Rams are almost done setting their 53-man roster and making key decisions with less than a week to go.

“A lot of them have been made,” Snead said on Wednesday. “I probably couldn’t give you an exact number, but there are some unsung jobs on the line. … There’s still definitely some jobs opening. Us in football, we’ll always – if we were saying right there, we’re probably 90-something percent, let’s call it completed, in our evaluation. But I do know this when there’s another test or there’s another opportunity to watch film, think things definitely change with another game to play because those games are their competitive moments and they’re definitely measurable. Things are going to change in Denver, in some form or fashion.”

While there are certainly players who will play against the Broncos despite already locking up a roster spot, they could be fighting for positioning on the depth chart. As Snead said, they might be jockeying to be active on gamedays after making the 53-man roster.

Players in that group might be Micah Kiser, Travin Howard, Justin Lawler, Bobby Brown III, Jake Funk and Bobby Evans. They’re all probably going to make the team, but they might not be active on gamedays.

Then there are the fringe players who haven’t yet secured a roster spot. This final preseason game will be critical for them – guys like J.R. Reed, Brycen Hopkins, Kareem Orr, J.J. Koski and Eric Banks, for example.

Snead knows how stressful this time is for them and the weight that comes with playing this last preseason game, which could be their last audition for a team.

“I’m telling you, it’s hard. Sometimes I don’t wish it upon my own kids,” Snead said of players battling to make the team. “Everybody reaches their dream in some way of getting the chance to fight for one of these jobs, but to sit there every day and know that you don’t really have one yet, like you can taste the dream but it’s not there. The stress, the anxiety there that these young men go through, not everyone – some people know they’re on the team or what have you, different stresses. Are they getting ready to really, really contribute? A unique part of the year. All these young men deserve credit getting to this week and persevering through it.”

Even if the Rams mostly know what their roster will look like, there will be some tough calls to make next Monday and Tuesday when they have to cut a lot of talented players.

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New terms of Sony Michel deal show Rams officially gave Patriots two picks

The official terms of the Sony Michel trade show the Rams gave the Patriots a 2022 6th-round pick and a 2023 4th-rounder.

It was first reported that the Rams traded conditional fifth- and sixth-round picks to the Patriots for Sony Michel, with the two selections converting to a fourth-round compensatory pick if Los Angeles received one. Well, those terms weren’t official with the league and the new compensation is slightly different.

According to Aaron Wilson, the Rams wound up giving the Patriots a sixth-round pick in 2022 and a fourth-rounder in 2023. It’s not much different than the original terms, but now the Rams are guaranteed to give the Patriots a fourth-rounder instead of it being on a conditional basis.

It’s still not a huge price to pay for a former first-round pick who will contribute in a meaningful way this year.

Michel joins Darrell Henderson Jr. as the two running backs who will get the bulk of the carries, with Xavier Jones and Jake Funk behind them – assuming they both make the team.

Ogbonnia Okoronkwo dealing with stinger issue

Ogbonnia Okoronkwo has battled injuries throughout his career, and another one has popped up.

Ogbonnia Okoronkwo is entering his fourth NFL season, but he’s played just 20 games in his first three years. Injuries have been a major issue for the former Oklahoma pass rusher, ranging from an elbow fracture last year to a hamstring issue in 2019 to a foot injury as a rookie in 2018.

Now, he’s dealing with a stinger. Sean McVay said after practice Tuesday that Okoronkwo was sidelined by a stinger after his shoulder was bothering him, causing the training staff to check him out.

“He was having some stinger issues, so he’s getting that checked out,” McVay said. “No, he’s just dealing with some things. His shoulder was bothering him a little bit and so, he was getting checked out today.”

That’s not good news for the fourth-year player. He’s already fighting for a roster spot with Justin Lawler, Chris Garrett, Terrell Lewis and others, but he’s going to struggle to make it if he can’t stay on the field. In his 20 games with the Rams, he’s only recorded 2.5 sacks and hit the quarterback seven times, making a total of 19 tackles.

He has potential as a pass rusher, with a killer spin move that he’s shown before, but Okoronkwo must find a way to stay healthy and compete every day.

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Sony Michel adds a ‘flavor’ at RB that the Rams didn’t have

Les Snead discussed the addition of Sony Michel, pointing to his north-south running style that complements the Rams’ other RBs.

Seeing a hole at running back due to the injuries suffered by Cam Akers and Raymond Calais, the Rams made a pretty significant move to acquire Sony Michel from the Patriots for two conditional draft picks. It’s not a huge price to pay, with a fourth-round compensatory pick being the highest possible cost, but for a player with one year left on his contract, the Rams are betting that Michel will help them in a meaningful way this season.

He’ll share the backfield with Darrell Henderson Jr., giving the Rams a solid one-two punch like they had in 2020 with Akers and Henderson. Michel offers a different style at the position than what the Rams have, too, being that downhill runner who doesn’t waste any energy dancing behind the line.

General manager Les Snead discussed the trade after it was made Wednesday, pointing out Michel’s north-south running style and how that complements Henderson and the rest of the Rams’ backs.

“That’s going to be a complementary backfield,” Snead said on a conference call. “What he does bring is this element of make a cut, get north and south and get north and south with some force,” Snead said. “The physics that he brings to the table – let’s call it a flavor of genre that we felt like complemented our group.”

The free-agent market wasn’t exactly rich with options at running back for the Rams, which is probably why they opted not to sign someone right away after Akers went down. They also took their time evaluating Jake Funk and Xavier Jones, but once Calais suffered a fractured foot, it was time to put the plan of acquiring Michel in motion.

The Rams had their eye on him from the beginning, knowing the depth the Patriots had at running back and the possibility that he could be dealt. Snead said there were other options, but they targeted Michel early on after Akers’ injury.

“At this point in time, there are always, let’s call it, other options,” Snead said. “But early in the down, we identified Sony for many reasons. Number one, being his experience – and experience, meaning like a player who has carried the ball in big games and in those big games, where there have been big moments, big drives, big series – is the experience of where he played, how he was coached. So, he was one of those players. If we were going to go the route of experience, he was someone who would definitely eying him from the start.”

It remains to be seen how the touches will be broken up between Henderson and Michel, but the Rams are just thankful to have two quality options in the backfield after suffering a significant blow with Akers missing the season.

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Rams undecided on whether Johnny Hekker or Corey Bojorquez will be their punter

The Rams still don’t know who their punter will be as Johnny Hekker and Corey Bojorquez continue to battle for a roster spot.

The Los Angeles Rams traded their longest-tenured position player this offseason when they dealt Michael Brockers to the Lions, but they may not be done parting ways with guys who have been with them a long time.

The team brought in punter Corey Bojorquez this offseason and there were immediate questions about whether Johnny Hekker’s job was in danger. As it turns out, he’s not a lock to make the 53-man roster. They could part with Hekker, who’s their longest-tenured player.

On a conference call with reporters Wednesday, general manager Les Snead said the team is still undecided on whether Hekker or Bojorquez will be the punter in Week 1.

Hekker is one of the best punters in the league, but there are two things working against him. For one, he’s the highest-paid punter in football, averaging $3.76 million per year. He has a $4.9 million cap hit this season, too, which is also the highest of any punter.

He’s signed through 2023, so there are still three years left on his five-year deal, but he wasn’t as sharp as he usually is last season, especially in the second half. He ranked 17th in yards per punt (45.6), 24th in net punting average (39.2) and tied for 10th-most in touchbacks with five. Yes, Hekker was third with 28 punts inside the 20, but too often, he wasn’t flipping the field like he often does.

Comparatively, Bojorquez was first in yards per punt (50.8) and fifth in net punt average (44.0) last season, but he only had 18 punts downed inside the 18 on 41 attempts, with seven touchbacks. Not a great ratio, to say the least.

It’s not an easy decision for the Rams to make because both punters are really good. But if the Rams can cut Hekker to save $3.75 million and only pay Bojorquez $1.02 million this year, they can save some money and still have a good option on special teams.

They have less than a week to pick a winner in this battle, but Hekker will be at an even greater disadvantage if he can’t come off the reserve/COVID-19 list before Saturday’s preseason finale against the Broncos.

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Rams waive LS Steven Wirtel to make room for Sony Michel

The Rams cleared a spot for Sony Michel by waiving Steven Wirtel, which means Matthew Orzech will be the long snapper.

After acquiring Sony Michel from the Patriots on Wednesday, the Rams needed to make a move in order to free up a roster spot. They made room for Michel by waiving Steven Wirtel, who was competing with Matthew Orzech to be the team’s long snapper.

With Wirtel now gone, Orzech has won that competition and will replace Jake McQuaide as the long snapper.

The Rams signed Wirtel in February before McQuaide hit free agency and eventually signed with the Cowboys. They prepared for McQuaide’s departure by adding Wirtel and Orzech, knowing the veteran might be on his way out.

Rams 53-man roster projection: Will Sony Michel cost Jake Funk a spot?

The Rams added Sony Michel in a trade with the Patriots, but will that cost Jake Funk a roster spot? Here’s our latest projection.

In less than a week, the Los Angeles Rams will need to trim their roster to only 53 players, down from the current limit of 80 players. They’ve already cut 10 guys from their offseason roster, but releasing another 27 will be incredibly difficult.

The running back position got a little more complicated on Wednesday when the Rams acquired Sony Michel from the Patriots. Might that bump Jake Funk off the 53-man roster? Or will the Rams keep four running backs?

And with Chris Garrett shining against the Raiders, he might’ve earned himself a spot on the team, too.

Here’s my latest roster projection for the Rams after the Michel trade and cutdown to 80 players on Tuesday.

32 potential trade targets, one from every NFL team

Highlighting one player that could be traded from each NFL team before Week 1.

Trades within the NFL are commonplace during the month of August. Teams must consistently trim rosters, and occasionally a trade makes more sense than a cut.

Trade talk around the league will heat up over the next week as all 32 teams decide how to get rosters down to 53 players. Teams with excess at one position can help out another with a need. For instance, just this week, the New England Patriots sent running back Sony Michel to the Los Angeles Rams for draft pick compensation.

Here is one player from each NFL team that could be traded soon:

7 things to know about new Rams RB Sony Michel

Get to know the Rams’ new running back Sony Michel, who played one year under RBs coach Thomas Brown in college.

The Los Angeles Rams welcomed a new player to their backfield on Wednesday when they agreed to trade two late-round picks to the Patriots for Sony Michel. The Rams backfield has been plagued by injuries leading up to the season, which led the front office to make this move.

Here are seven things to know about Michel, who has spent the last three years with the Patriots after a great career at Georgia.