Tag: Josh Reynolds

First look at rookie Cam Akers in Rams’ new uniform

Cam Akers is looking good in his No. 23 jersey.

Replacing a two-time All-Pro at running back won’t be easy, but after cutting Todd Gurley this offseason, it’s exactly what the Rams have to do. They quickly filled the void left by Gurley on the depth chart by drafting Cam Akers in the second round, adding another young running back to the mix.

Akers is probably the one rookie Rams fans are most excited to watch this season, and seeing him in the team’s new uniform has been a long time coming. The coronavirus pandemic has prevented players from doing official photoshoots with at the facility, but with everyone back in the building this week, Akers put on his No. 23 jersey.

Here’s a first look at him in L.A.’s all-royal uniform set.

Akers has impressed the Rams during this virtual offseason, asking good questions and giving the right answers in meetings. That’s a positive development because Akers’ time in practice will be limited, so if he can be prepared from the next up, it will help him get acclimated to the NFL quickly.

“Just the demeanor and the way that he has handled himself in these virtual settings, it definitely doesn’t seem like it’s going to be too big for him,” McVay said. “He is very smart. I’ve been really impressed with his ability to give us some feedback. When we ask him questions, he’s on the screws with all those answers.”

In addition to Akers, Josh Reynolds also put on the Rams’ new uniform for a photoshoot this week, showing off his new No. 11 jersey.

The Rams seems to have a strong preference for the all-royal uniform combination rather than wearing yellow pants with the blue jersey. We’ll have to wait and see which set they pick for the season opener on Sept. 13 against the Cowboys.

Rams plan for Josh Reynolds to be a ‘big-time part of this offense’

The Rams are still high on Josh Reynolds despite drafting Van Jefferson.

Don’t sell your stock on Josh Reynolds just yet – even after the Los Angeles Rams drafted Van Jefferson in the second round.

Reynolds, a fourth-year player who has been a solid fill-in for the Rams in the last few seasons, is expected to step up in place of Brandin Cooks, who the team traded to the Texans. Given his experience in this role, Reynolds should be able to produce as the No. 3 receiver.

Much of it will come down to opportunities and targets, but Reynolds has had an impact in limited action before. His role has never been bigger than it’s expected to be in 2020, especially with the way Sean McVay is talking about him.

McVay made it a point that the Rams wouldn’t have traded Cooks if they didn’t have Reynolds, and they didn’t plan on drafting a receiver until they dove into the class and identified Jefferson.

“He’s a guy that we have a lot of confidence in,” McVay said on a conference call this week. “We would not have made the move on Brandin Cooks had it not been for the confidence we have in Josh Reynolds. We were able to get a player we had a lot of value for in with Van Jefferson but that was not part of the plan going into the draft until we got a chance to dive into that receiver group and say, ‘OK, this is a guy that fits, has a skill set.’”

“Josh is a guy we anticipate being a big-time part of this offense. as far as those things in the future go, we’re really just taking it a day at a time right now.”

Reynolds has seen his fantasy stock ping-pong in recent weeks. It went up after Cooks was traded, for obvious reasons, but then it sank a bit with the arrival of Jefferson. Reynolds should have a leg-up on Jefferson as the No. 3 receiver, but the Rams clearly like Jefferson a lot.

They’ve shown a lot of confidence in Reynolds over the last few years, primarily because he showed the ability to play and succeed in a starter’s role.

“He’s stepped in and been a starter and he’s got the ability to play really our X or Z, he can play in the slot. I think, really, we just feel like he’s a capable starting receiver if you’re getting into some of those three-receiver sets,” McVay said.

Reynolds will be a free agent after the upcoming season, so it’s an important year for him. If he breaks out as the third receiver, he could land himself a nice contract next offseason. If he doesn’t stand out and remains nothing more than a backup, he might be cheap enough for the Rams to re-sign – especially if Cooper Kupp prices himself out of their range.

Regardless, this will be an extremely important season for Reynolds.

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Josh Reynolds shows off new jersey number for 2020 season

Josh Reynolds is going back to his college number.

Josh Reynolds is poised for a big year in an increased role, and he’ll go into the season with a new jersey number to boot. After asking fans last month if he should change his number to his old college number, Reynolds is indeed making the switch.

He announced the news on Twitter Wednesday, sharing a photo of himself in a No. 11 jersey – the same number he wore at Texas A&M. For the first three years of his NFL career, Reynolds wore No. 83 with the Rams.

With Brandin Cooks no longer in L.A., Reynolds will most likely take over as the No. 3 receiver with the Rams. Of course, that’s barring a big addition at wideout in the draft, but Sean McVay said the team’s decision to trade Cooks was a “big vote of confidence” for Reynolds.

He was a part-time starter in 2018 after Cooper Kupp tore his ACL, and again in 2019 when Cooks was out with a concussion, but now Reynolds will have his biggest role yet – and could be in for a breakout year.

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Josh Reynolds is considering changing jersey number to 11

Fans seem to like the idea of Reynolds wearing his college number.

Josh Reynolds has been buried on the Rams’ depth chart at wide receiver the last three years, playing behind the likes of Sammy Watkins, Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp and Brandin Cooks over that span. He’s made some big plays for Los Angeles, like his touchdown catch against the Chiefs in the Rams’ 54-51 win in 2018, as well as his two-touchdown performance against the Packers that same season.

Reynolds has found ways to contribute, even if not to the extent that he’s hoped. Entering 2020, he’s still the No. 4 receiver, but he’s thinking about changing things up before the season begins.

He floated a question to Rams fans Monday asking if he should go back to his old jersey number. Reynolds currently wears 83, but he wore 11 at Texas A&M.

The majority of fans seem to like the idea of him going back to his college number, with only a few objecting to the switch.

A few fans pointed out that No. 83 was worn by former Rams receiver Flipper Anderson, who holds the single-game record with 336 yards.

Another fan highlighted Reynolds’ touchdown grab against the Chiefs in that historic shootout as a reason he should keep No. 83.

But overall, the consensus was that he should change to No. 11, which is not currently worn by anyone on the roster.

5 wide receivers Jets should target on the trade block

The Jets need better wide receivers. These five players could be good options on the trade block.

Every offense needs playmakers and the Jets are in prime position to add several in free agency and the draft.

With Le’Veon Bell entrenched at running back and a quartet of tight ends led by Chris Herndon, Joe Douglas needs to shore up the wide receiver group, especially if he lets Robby Anderson and Demaryius Thomas leave in free agency. There are several free agent wideouts the Jets can target this offseason, as well as a dearth of prospects in the upcoming draft, but Douglas would be wise to scour the trade block as well for some players that could immediately upgrade his receiving corps.

The Jets aren’t tied directly to any of the following players, but all options should be on the table for Douglas his offseason. With that, here are five wide receivers the Jets should look at for potential trades.

(Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports)

Eagles WR Alshon Jeffery

Adam Gase needs playmakers on offense for Sam Darnold to work and Jeffery would be a solid addition to the Jets given his veteran skillset and connection to both Gase and Joe Douglas.

Jeffery caught 54 receptions for 807 yards and four touchdowns in 2017 with the Bears when Gase was his coach and when Douglas was the director of pro scouting. Jeffery also played for the Eagles for two years during Douglas’ tenure in Philadelphia.

Jeffery would become the Jets’ best wide receiver option with his 6-foot-3, 218-pound frame, but there are obvious concerns when it comes to his production and durability. He’s coming off his least productive season since his rookie year in 2012, hasn’t turned in a 1,000-yard receiving season since 2014 and hasn’t played a full 16-game schedule since 2017. 

Jeffery reportedly “would welcome the change of scenery,” according to The Athletic’s Connor Hughes, but there’s no telling what the Eagles would want in return for his services. Given his injury history – he just had Lisfranc surgery for his foot in December that comes with a nine-month recovery period – and the $9.910 million base salary the Jets would take in, it wouldn’t take much to acquire Jeffery, though it would be a huge risk.

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How Cooper Kupp, 3 other Rams doubled their salaries for 2020

Four Rams players entering their fourth seasons earned significant raises in 2020.

The NFL rewards players who outperform their draft position and earn significant playing time in their first three seasons, and four Rams players are earning raises in 2020 as a result. That’s done with Proven Performance Escalators, which players drafted in the third round or later can qualify for.

In order to earn the PPE, players either have to play 35% of their team’s snaps (offense or defense) in two of their first three years, or play at least 35% of the total snaps over the course of their first three seasons.

For 2020, these PPEs go to players drafted in 2017. The Rams nailed that draft class and have gotten key contributions from players selected that year, primarily with Cooper Kupp and John Johnson. Josh Reynolds and Samson Ebukam have also played key roles in the last three years and all three qualify for PPEs in 2020.

Kupp has played 63.7% of the snaps in his career, with Johnson playing 65.9%. Both players missed significant time in the last two years due to injury, each landing on IR. Ebukam was a starter in 2018 and has played 50.7% of the defensive snaps, while Reynolds has played 41.9%.

All four players will see their salaries increase in 2020, and not by an insignificant amount. Their base salaries will rise to the lowest restricted free agent tender amount in 2020, which is projected to be $2.144 million, according to Over The Cap.

Here’s how much each player’s base salary was set to be in 2020 before earning PPEs.

  • Kupp: $961,169
  • Johnson: $775,577
  • Reynolds: $735,000
  • Ebukam: $735,000

This will have an impact on the salary cap for the Rams, costing the team about $4.6 million more than originally expected. Of course, the Rams knew these raises were coming, so it’s not as if this is a surprise to Les Snead and the front office. If the salary cap is $200 million in 2020, the Rams will have about $21 million in cap space after these raises take effect.

All four players will also be free agents in 2021.

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Josh Reynolds says Rams got in their own way vs. Cowboys

Josh Reynolds says the Cowboys didn’t do “too much to stop us” on Sunday.

Based on the scoreboard, it didn’t look like the Rams were completely shut down by the Cowboys. They scored a respectable 21 points on the road, which isn’t a terrible number. However, 14 of those points came in the final minutes of the game when it was already out of reach.

The Rams finished with only 289 yards of total offense and were 4-for-12 on third down, gaining only 22 yards on the ground. Wide receiver Josh Reynolds says it wasn’t anything the Cowboys did particularly well, but more a matter of the Rams getting in their own way.

“One play at a time,” Reynolds said of the status of the Rams offense. “They weren’t doing too much to stop us. We were kind of stopping ourselves. We weren’t executing plays. Busted blocks. It falls on all of us. We are going to take another week to correct things, watch this film, and get better.”

The Rams committed five penalties, Jared Goff threw a costly interception before halftime and the ground game was non-existent due to poor blocking and execution. Los Angeles was a mess offensively and on defense, Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard could not be stopped.

Taylor Rapp didn’t have the same take on Dallas’ performance, saying the Cowboys “totally dominated us.”

There’s no doubt the Rams tripped themselves up with mistakes, but the Cowboys also played well and didn’t make many errors.