The Rams lost JoJo Natson for the season last week against the Cardinals after he suffered a hamstring injury that landed him on IR. Natson doesn’t contribute on offense, but he is a contributor on special teams.
He’s been the Rams’ primary punt and kick returner this season, so with him sidelined, the coaching staff will need to find a replacement (or two) on those units. It didn’t take them long to decide who will fill in, leaning on two rookies.
Sean McVay confirmed Friday that Darrell Henderson will be the kick returner and Nsimba Webster will return punts, simply saying “yes” when asked if that’s the plan.
Henderson was a third-round pick by the Rams and has carried the ball 37 times for 140 yards – at times looking like the explosive player he was at Memphis. With the Tigers, he was a dynamic runner, but he also returned 25 kicks for 487 yards with one touchdown. He hasn’t returned any in the NFL, but he’s more than capable of making a big play or two in that phase of the game.
On punts, it’ll be the undrafted rookie Webster, who was a preseason standout. He’s not as shifty as Natson, but his speed is evident and he gets downhill quickly. He should be able to help the Rams out immediately beyond just calling for fair catches.
“Nsimba was a guy that did a really nice job with that in the preseason,” McVay said this week. “Consistently caught the ball and he’s a guy that can do a really nice job creating after the catch, getting vertical immediately.”
It’s somewhat of a risk to go with two rookies as their returners, but the Rams have almost no other options. The roster is full and there aren’t any better candidates on the team right now. Neither player has done much of anything on offense, so maybe this is their time to have an impact on special teams.