Tag: Braden Fiske

Braden Fiske wins NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month for 5-sack November

Braden Fiske joined Jared Verse as the 2nd Rams player to win NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month this season

After Jared Verse dominated the early portion of the season, Braden Fiske took over as the Rams’ top defensive lineman in November. And just like Verse, he’s now been recognized by the NFL for his outstanding play.

The league announced on Thursday that Fiske has been named NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month for November. In his four games last month, Fiske had five sacks, six tackles for a loss and a forced fumble. He also landed five hits on the quarterback in that span.

Fiske is the second Rams player to win NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month this season, joining Verse, who won it in September. Beanie Bishop of the Steelers is the only other player to win the award this year, taking it home for the month of October.

Fiske is now tied for the team lead with six sacks, matching Byron Young’s total through 12 games. Kobie Turner has five and Verse has 4.5, so it’s been a complete team effort up front when it comes to pressuring the quarterback.

According to TheRams.com, Fiske is only the third Rams defensive rookie ever to win this award. Verse and Turner (Dec. 2023) are the only other two players who have won it.

Rams fullback Braden Fiske? Fumble return vs. Saints got Sean McVay’s attention

Sean McVay was blown away by how good Braden Fiske looked as a ball carrier on Sunday, even if his 58-yard fumble return didn’t count

Braden Fiske is strictly a defensive player for the Los Angeles Rams but he made a play on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints that could lead Sean McVay to rethink that.

In the first quarter, Fiske scooped up what looked like a fumble and returned it 58 yards for a touchdown, only for the play to be called back because it was an incomplete pass. That didn’t stop Fiske from showing off his speed and skills as a ball carrier, sliding to pick up the loose ball, sprinting down the right sideline, cutting back to his left and barreling his way into the end zone.

McVay loved what he saw from Fiske on that play, even though it didn’t count, and he joked about the possibility of giving him goal line carries as a fullback.

“Oh, man! I think he answered the question of, ‘If you were going to give a fullback dive to any of the D-linemen, who would it be?’ He looked awesome,” McVay said excitedly. “I mean, he got up quick. I thought it was great examples of Kam Kinchens and Jaylen McCollough getting some blocks. Oh, man. The damn tuck rule.”

J.B. Long followed up by pitching the idea of red zone touches for Fiske.

“So you’re saying red zone package for Braden Fiske,” he said.

“I’m saying, hey, he’s a candidate,” McVay replied. “I mean, he looked smooth. … That was a fun play, though. We’ll have fun with that one on Wednesday.”

Look, it would be awesome to see Fiske get a goal line carry as a fullback at some point, but if the Rams give him a chance to run the ball after robbing Aaron Donald of that opportunity throughout his career, McVay will never be forgiven.

That said, give No. 55 the ball and let him bowl his way into the end zone. After all, he did play running back in his youth football days.

Only one Rams player is in the top 10 at his position in Pro Bowl voting

Is Braden Fiske on track to be a Pro Bowler in his first NFL season?

The NFL released its first update on Pro Bowl voting after one week of polls being open and the Los Angeles Rams were not well-represented. Not a single Rams player leads his position group in fan votes, which isn’t exactly surprising considering the up-and-down season Los Angeles has had thus far.

What’s more shocking is that only one player ranks in the top 10 at his position: rookie Braden Fiske. He has the fifth-most fan votes among all defensive tackles in the NFL, behind only Dexter Lawrence, Vita Vea, Quinnen Williams and Cameron Heyward. All four of them have already been Pro Bowlers, so Fiske is in great company.

Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp were outside the top 10 at wide receiver, likely due to their injury absences, and Kyren Williams didn’t crack the top 10 at running back despite being fifth in rushing yards and eighth in rushing touchdowns.

Jared Verse has work to do at edge rusher, as do Kevin Dotson at guard and Matthew Stafford at quarterback. Those are the Rams’ strongest candidates to get voted into the Pro Bowl if they continue to play well down the stretch.

Fan voting remains open until Dec. 23, so there’s still time for Rams players to inch up the board. Players and coaches will also vote for their Pro Bowl picks, making up the other two-thirds of the voting process.

Braden Fiske’s lightning-quick sack vs. Patriots was 3rd-fastest in NFL this season

Braden Fiske got to Drake Maye in a hurry, recording the fastest sack by a defensive lineman this season

Braden Fiske brings a lot of things to the table as a defensive tackle, including a relentless work ethic and rare athleticism. It’s what drew the Rams to him in the 2024 NFL draft, doing whatever they could to trade up for the Florida State standout in Round 2.

At the NFL combine, he tested as the most athletic defensive tackle in the class. He had the fastest 40-yard dash (4.78), best vertical jump (33.5 inches), broad jump (9-foot-9) and short shuttle (4.37), showing just how special he is as an athlete.

Well, that athleticism has shown up countless times this season and it was on display Sunday, too. His sack in the second quarter against the Patriots was the third-fastest in the NFL this season and the fastest of any defensive lineman, getting home in only 2.32 seconds, per Next Gen Stats.

Fiske is like a missile on the interior when the Rams successfully run their stunts like they did on the play above, shooting through the line with eye-popping speed and quickness.

Not that Fiske is in Aaron Donald’s stratosphere yet, but it’s reminiscent of No. 99 bolting into the backfield during his prime.

Two Rams defenders named to midseason All-Rookie team and they were easy choices

Jared Verse and Braden Fiske were easy choices for The Athletic’s midseason All-Rookie team, running away with their respective positions

The Los Angeles Rams seem to have hit another home run in the draft with their 2024 class, starting at the top of the draft with Jared Verse and Braden Fiske – two former Florida State teammates who have brought their dominance from the Seminoles to the NFL.

Verse and Fiske rank first and second among all rookies this season in pressures and they’ve each had multi-sack games already, showing they were well worth the cost of first- and second-round picks.

The Athletic released its midseason All-Rookie team for 2024 on Wednesday and both Verse and Fiske were selected. They were obvious choices, too. Verse was picked as the top edge rusher and Fiske was chosen as the No. 1 defensive tackle.

Here’s what Dane Brugler wrote about Verse.

There have been a couple slam-dunk picks in this exercise (Daniels, Bowers), and I would also include Verse, too.

With 39 pressures in eight games, Verse has almost doubled the number of pressures produced by Laiatu Latu (20, on almost the same number of pass-rush snaps). He also leads all rookies with 9.0 tackles for loss, which ranks top 10 in the NFL.

Fiske is coming off a two-sack performance against the Seahawks in a game where he lived in the backfield and was dominant against not only the run, but also as a pass rusher. His game against the Seahawks put him over the top for Brugler, saying Fiske is “running away with the top spot.”

Just like at edge rusher, a Rams rookie from Florida State is running away with the top spot. Fiske passes the eye test — you can’t watch the Rams’ defense without noticing No. 55 chasing the football. He also shows up in the stat sheet, with 26 pressures through eight games (no other rookie DT has more than 12).

Though Verse and Fiske were the only two Rams selected, there were a bunch of others who received honorable mentions: Jordan Whittington at wide receiver, Beaux Limmer at interior offensive line, Kamren Kinchens and Jaylen McCollough at safety and Joshua Karty at kicker.

It’s still early but the Rams’ 2024 draft class looks like another slam dunk by Les Snead and Sean McVay.

Braden Fiske is making everyone forget the cost of trading up for him

The Rams were criticized for the cost it took to trade up for Braden Fiske, but the Florida State DT is making it look like a great deal

The Los Angeles Rams were heavily criticized for the price they paid to trade up for Braden Fiske in the second-round of the draft this year. In order to make the jump from No. 52 to 39, they gave the Panthers the 155th overall pick and a second-rounder in 2025.

The trade value chart called it an overpay – a big one, at that – but the good news is no one will remember (or care) what the Rams gave up if Fiske keeps playing the way he has. There isn’t a single person who said, “yeah, but remember how much they traded away?!” when Fiske barreled through the Seahawks’ offensive line and sacked Geno Smith twice on Sunday.

Just eight games into his NFL career, Fiske is already making people forget the cost of trading up for him. He’s been that good so far, and he’s only going to get better.

He caught everyone’s attention in Week 9 during the Rams’ win over the Seahawks, finishing the game with two sacks, five pressures and three stops.

His 26 pressures this season are second among all rookies, behind only his teammate, Jared Verse (39). He also ranks 11th among all NFL defensive tackles in pressures, according to PFF.

Former second overall pick Chris Long has been blown away by Fiske’s production so far, calling Sunday his “coming out party.”

Sean McVay was at the forefront of that trade for Fiske and now six months removed from it, he has zero regrets. He doesn’t care what the trade value chart says or what analysts think because the Rams bought into a tireless worker and someone who made Jared Verse better at Florida State, too.

“Yeah, you look at it and there are always these draft charts and different things like that,” McVay said Monday. “When we were able to get Jared and then you look at the consistent across-the-board love that we had for Braden Fiske, we wanted to figure out a way to be able to go get him and pair him up with some of the other guys that we had in-house when you look at Kobie Turner and Bobby Brown III and then being able to see both Kobie and Byron [Young] in their second years and what Michael Hoecht can do as a versatile chess piece.”

Needless to say, McVay has been pleased with the way his young defensive tackle has played. And it’s not just his performance on Sundays. McVay loves Fiske’s dedication and work ethic each and every week.

He’s done a really good job and he’s been so steady and consistent,” McVay added. “This guy’s demeanor, he loves the game, he loves to compete, and I think he’s getting more and more comfortable, and I think he’s really understanding what we’re trying to get done.”

No one can replace Aaron Donald, but Fiske has done about as well as anyone could have when it comes to filling No. 99’s shoes. He’s off to a terrific start with the Rams and he’s only going to keep getting better.

Rams’ rookie pass-rushing duo is blowing away rest of 2024 draft class in pressures

Jared Verse and Braden Fiske lead all rookies in pressures through seven games and it’s not particularly close

Though they’re only seven games into their NFL careers, it seems safe to say Jared Verse and Braden Fiske have lived up to expectations as early picks by the Los Angeles Rams. They’ve each had a sizable impact on defense, starting every game so far this season.

Verse has been especially great, dominating as an edge rusher opposite Byron Young. He has 2.5 sacks and 29 total tackles, seven of which have gone for a loss. Verse has also landed 12 hits on the quarterback, more than one per game.

Fiske, Verse’s college teammate, has one sack, 22 tackles and two tackles for a loss as an interior defender, playing at a high level next to Kobie Turner – a guy who should’ve won Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2023.

What’s particularly impressive about the play of Verse and Fiske is how frequently they’re generating pressure. According to PFF, Verse leads all rookies with 31 pressures and Fiske is second with 21. The next-closest player is Laiatu Latu, who has just 17 pressures in eight games; the Rams have only played seven games.

Chatman played on Monday night for the Giants but he had just one pressure in the game, so he’s currently fourth with 12 pressures – still nowhere close Verse and Fiske.

Verse is the heavy favorite to win Defensive Rookie of the Year at -125, with the next-closest player (Latu) being +600 at BetMGM.

The Rams have to love what they’ve gotten from their top two picks in the 2024 draft and Sean McVay shared a little bit Monday about how impressive Verse has been thus far.

“He has fun. He loves competing. He loves the challenges,” he said. “There’s a certain play style that he has, which is one of the things that we loved about him coming out of Florida State, and being able to have that controlled aggression, as Aaron Donald always used to say. I think he is authentically himself. I think he’s played his two best games as a Ram against the Raiders and against the Vikings. What I mean by that is not necessarily what the stats will show. He had some really good numbers against the Vikings, but in terms of the production, his ability to make plays within the framework of where those play opportunities arise and being able to elevate his teammates. … He’s only going to get better and better. We love what we’ve seen from Jared Verse.”

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Braden Fiske’s status for Thursday night is uncertain due to back soreness

Braden Fiske came out of Sunday’s game with some back soreness and his status for Thursday night is uncertain as of now

Sean McVay didn’t report any injuries following the Los Angeles Rams’ win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, but he met with the media on Monday and shared a notable player who came out a little banged up. Rookie defensive tackle Braden Fiske felt some back soreness after the game and his status for this Thursday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings is up in the air.

McVay said “we’ll see what his availability looks like” with regards to the Rams’ upcoming game this week. With it being a short week, it doesn’t give Fiske much time to recover from any discomfort he’s experiencing.

The good news is the Rams will have a mini-bye after Thursday’s game before facing the Seahawks on the road in Week 9.

This season, Fiske has 20 total tackles, one sack, two tackles for a loss and a forced fumble. The second-round rookie has been a starter for the Rams on the interior and has played well alongside defensive tackle Kobie Turner.

Mic’d up: Braden Fiske’s chemistry with Jared Verse is undeniable

Braden Fiske was mic’d up against the Bears and his chemistry with Jared Verse is something special

Braden Fiske and Jared Verse were teammates for one year at Florida State, wreaking havoc up front for the Seminoles last season. The Los Angeles Rams kept them together by drafting both defensive standouts in April, something the two were overjoyed about.

There’s been a lot of talk about their chemistry on the field and it’s abundantly clear in the latest mic’d-up video from the Rams. Fiske was wearing a mic on Sunday against the Bears, which was perfect timing because he registered his first career sack.

He and Verse are always on the same page, whether it’s talking pre-snap or just giving each other a look.

“Not this first play but if we get them into a for-sure throwing down, I’m going to look at you. Let’s do it,” Fiske said to Verse.

And sure enough, Fiske let Verse know he was going to cut loose and get after Caleb Williams, which turned into his first sack.

“Hey, I’m gonna go,” Fiske said stoically to Verse before the play.

We did learn something new about Fiske in this video: He hates when teammates smack his helmet after a big play.

“The number one thing I hate after you do something good is everybody hitting your (expletive) head. I’m like, ‘Bruh, stop. That (expletive) hurts,’” he said.

After notching his first sack, Fiske asked Verse if he was jealous – not that Verse doesn’t have a sack of his own this season, but because he had two called back by penalties on Sunday.

“I’m sick. Two of them got called back,” Verse said, eliciting a laugh from Fiske.

“Want to know something crazy? When the first one did, I was like, ‘All right, we’re so close.’ After the second one, I was like, ‘All right, I feel bad,’” Fiske said.

One other highlight of the video was Neville Gallimore trying to hit a bee with his helmet because he’s allergic. Luckily, no bees or defensive linemen were harmed in the making of the video.

Rams rookie Braden Fiske had a big day against the Bears

Braden Fiske had himself a day against Chicago. One of the few bright spots, here’s how he impacted the game.

Rams fans have been waiting for second-round pick Braden Fiske to break out and he did so on Sunday. Not only did Fiske record his first career sack, but it was a strip-sack that was eventually recovered by Chicago.

Working a one on one matchup against Bears guard Matt Pryor, Fiske was flanked by Jared Verse, giving promise of a new pass rushing attack by the two.

Verse was on the receiving end of a powerful bullrush, as were Pryor, Bears left tackle Braxton Jones and Caleb Williams. Perhaps a view into his future, once Fiske is able to put on a bit more muscle, he should be a physical nightmare for years to come.

Fiske was massive in run defense, as well, as he finished his day with four tackles (two solo) and a tackle for loss.