Tag: Kevin Dotson

Rams RG Kevin Dotson named to PFF’s midseason All-Pro team

According to PFF, Kevin Dotson has been the best RG in the NFL this season

It may not have been a very eventful or exciting offseason for the Los Angeles Rams, but Les Snead deserves a lot of credit for acquiring Kevin Dotson from the Pittsburgh Steelers just before the season began. The cost wasn’t very high, either; the Rams moved down from the fourth round to the fifth in 2024 and from the fifth round to the sixth in 2025.

Dotson opened the year as a backup at right guard but after Alaric Jackson went down with an injury in Week 3 and forced Joe Noteboom to move to left tackle, Dotson stepped in as a starter in Week 4 and hasn’t looked back since.

Dotson is the highest-graded guard in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus, and has allowed just seven pressures on 230 pass-blocking snaps. His run-blocking grade of 87.5 leads the team and is fourth-best among all offensive linemen in the NFL.

As a result, Pro Football Focus selected the Rams guard to its midseason All-Pro team.

Quietly putting together his best season in the NFL, the 2020 fourth-round draft pick’s 87.5 PFF run-blocking grade trails only Tyler Smith among guards. His pass blocking hasn’t reached that level, but he still ranks in the top 20 at the position in that regard.

Dotson never had a pass-blocking grade lower than 77.6 with the Steelers in his first three seasons, but he was just average as a run blocker. Well, that trend has flipped, with Dotson grading out exceptionally well in the run game and still above average as a pass blocker.

He’ll be a free agent after this season but he might be playing his way into an extension with the Rams.

Mike LaFleur: ‘It’s been a smooth transition’ for Kevin Dotson so far

Mike LaFleur has liked what he’s seen from Kevin Dotson so far since he joined the starting offensive line of the Rams.

Kevin Dotson joined the Los Angeles Rams’ starting offensive line earlier this season, and he’s performed extremely well so far. With Dotson set to make his fifth start for the Rams, Mike LaFleur spoke about how well the former fourth-round pick has performed.

“Yeah, he’s a pro’s pro too. He came from a really good organization with how they do things in Pittsburgh, obviously,” LaFleur said. “He’s a son of a coach. It’s been a smooth transition. Unlike Myles (Gaskin) where he came from a similar system, Pittsburgh runs a very different system than us from every aspect: protection, run game, and all that. So that was a learning curve for him hearing our terminology for the first time but every week just getting a little bit more comfortable with that and with comfort comes better execution.”

At the end of training camp, the Rams acquired Dotson from the Pittsburgh Steelers in exchange for fourth- and fifth-round pick swaps in 2024, along with fifth and sixth-round pick swaps in 2025. Dotson would begin the season behind Joe Noteboom at right guard, but Noteboom has been dealing with a variety of injuries.

Even with Noteboom active again in Week 7, the Rams elected to keep Dotson in the starting offense. Dotson has responded by producing an overall PFF grade of 87.4 (a career-best mark). He’s also allowed a total of four pressures and two sacks in his first four starts.

As mentioned by LaFleur, Dotson has needed time to get comfortable with an entirely different system since joining the Rams. That being said, Dotson has shown enough to warrant starting him over Noteboom for the rest of the season.

Former Steelers G Kevin Dotson highest-graded guard in NFL

The Steelers didn’t have faith in Kevin Dotson and he’s proving them wrong.

This week when the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Los Angeles Rams, they will face two former Steelers starters. One is cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon and the other is guard Kevin Dotson. Dotson flashed greatness as a rookie but was never able to recapture that magic after that.

Until now.

Dotson is currently the starting right guard for the Rams, having started the past three games in place of Joe Noteboom. According to the folks over at Pro Football Focus, Dotson is the highest-graded guard in the NFL this season with an 85.3 grade.

Meanwhile, for the Steelers, his replacement Isaac Seumalo has a 63.8 grade. Seumalo had his best game of the year against the Baltimore Ravens just before the bye week and hope he can continue to build on that.

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Matthew Stafford, 7 other Rams among NFL’s highest-graded players of Week 6

Matthew Stafford is the highest-graded QB of Week 6, but he’s not the only Rams player who ranks among the best at their positions

It’s amazing how one good half of football can change the narrative surrounding an entire game. That was the case for the Los Angeles Rams, who failed to score a touchdown in the first half against the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday before outscoring them 20-0 in the final two quarters.

They cruised to a 26-9 victory at home, in large part because of the way Kyren Williams, Matthew Stafford and the offensive line played in the second half. The defenses wasn’t too bad, either, allowing zero second-half points to Arizona.

When Pro Football Focus released its game grades for the Rams’ win, there were several players who received high praise from the analytics site. Stafford was chief among them, ranking as the highest-graded quarterback in the league for Week 6 with a grade of 90.0. The next-closest quarterback is Kirk Cousins, who had a grade of 83.5.

Dak Prescott and Justin Herbert still have to play on Monday night, but Stafford has been the best quarterback of the week so far. Seven other Rams players were also graded among the best players at their respective positions, all of them ranking in the top six.

  • Matthew Stafford: 90.0 (1st among QBs)
  • Kyren Williams: 84.8 (3rd among RBs)
  • Cooper Kupp: 87.0 (2nd among WRs)
  • Kevin Dotson: 86.1 (2nd among OL)
  • Rob Havenstein: 82.7 (6th among OL, 3rd among OTs)
  • Byron Young: 87.3 (3rd among edge rushers)
  • Aaron Donald: 85.2 (2nd among DTs)
  • Cobie Durant: 81.4 (6th among CBs)

All eight of the above players were instrumental in the Rams’ victory, with five representing the offense and three on defense. Dotson and Havenstein were dominant on the right side of the line, particularly in the run game, while it was Donald and Young applying constant pressure on Josh Dobbs in the pocket. Williams, Kupp and even Durant were excellent, too.

The Rams are building some momentum with this victory, heading into Week 7 when they host the Pittsburgh Steelers. Football is the ultimate team sport and it’s always good to see a collection of players like the one above come through with some stellar performances.

What will the Rams’ offensive line look like when Alaric Jackson returns?

When Alaric Jackson returns from his injury, what will the Rams’ offensive line look like?

Ahead of Sunday’s overtime win over the Indianapolis Colts, the Los Angeles Rams ruled out Alaric Jackson, prompting the team to shake up the offensive line again. Jackson suffered a hamstring injury in Week 3 against the Cincinnati Bengals and it remains to be seen if he’ll be available in Week 5 versus the Philadelphia Eagles.

When Jackson returns to the field, what could the offensive line look like?

Upon Jackson’s exit from the game against the Bengals in Week 3, Zach Thomas replaced him at left tackle. Thomas would struggle in relief of Jackson and the Rams elected to make him a healthy scratch on Sunday against the Colts.

Instead of starting Thomas, the Rams moved Joe Noteboom back to left tackle and activated Kevin Dotson for the first time this season. Dotson would make the start at right guard and he performed well in his first game since being acquired via trade from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

According to PFF, Dotson finished with an impressive 86.0 overall grade (89.3 run-blocking, 60.8 pass-blocking), which led all offensive linemen on the Rams in the overtime victory over the Colts. Comparatively, Noteboom concluded Sunday’s game with a below-average 44.5 overall grade and he now has a 42.1 overall grade on the season (51.0 pass-blocking grade, 24.7 run-blocking grade).

While PFF grades aren’t the end-all, be-all when dissecting players’ performances, Noteboom hasn’t been a bright spot on the offensive line. Whether it has been at left tackle or right guard, Noteboom hasn’t shown anything that suggests he should be a definitive starter.

Whenever Jackson returns, it’s clear that he’ll be the starting left tackle again with how good he looked before sustaining his injury. The other starters moving forward should be Steve Avila, Coleman Shelton, Dotson, and Rob Havenstein, leaving Noteboom on the bench as a backup tackle and guard.

Kevin Dotson excited to prove himself in fresh start with Rams

After three years with the Steelers, Kevin Dotson is excited to prove himself as a member of the Rams

Kevin Dotson started 30 games for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the last three years after being a fourth-round pick in 2021. He’s played left and right guard, showing good versatility between the two spots, but Pittsburgh wanted to go in a different direction this year.

With the Rams looking for offensive line depth, the two sides struck a deal just before final roster cuts, giving Dotson a fresh start in a new city. He comes to the Rams not as a projected starter, but a quality backup at either guard spot.

Dotson will have a chance to potentially earn a starting role at some point if Steve Avila or Tremayne Anchrum Jr. gets hurt, but for now, he’s just excited to prove himself to his new team.

“It’s a new opportunity,” Dotson told TheRams.com. “I like the places I’ve been now. California’s a nice state to be in weather-wise, a lot of stuff to do. I like the team, I like my o-line group, so I feel like it’s all going to come together.”

Dotson may have fallen out of favor with the Steelers, but he hopes to show he’s capable of being a starting guard again. He’s been a solid player in pass protection, earning pass-blocking grades between 77.6 and 87.2 in each of the last three years, allowing just seven sacks in that span.

In Dotson’s mind, though, he’s better as a run blocker, despite PFF’s grades suggesting otherwise.

“I feel like my strength is in run-blocking,” Dotson said. “I feel like I’m pretty good in pass (blocking) also. And I’m a real team player when it comes to it. Everybody on the Steelers, they’ll vouch for me knowing that I’m a good guy, so I just try to bring that energy here too.”

Dotson will be a free agent after this season but if he steps up and plays well, he could choose to re-sign with the Rams, potentially as one of their starters in 2024. He has a lot to prove this season, both for himself and to his new team.

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Les Snead comments on Rams trading for Kevin Dotson

Les Snead spoke about how the trade for Kevin Dotson came to fruition for the Rams.

The Los Angeles Rams recently acquired interior offensive lineman Kevin Dotson from the Pittsburgh Steelers in a trade before roster cuts took place. With the Rams still trying to decipher who will start along the offensive line in Week 1, Les Snead spoke about how the trade for Dotson came to be.

“I think that it started with he’s been a starter in Pittsburgh,” Snead said. “They drafted a good bit of OL. They signed some in unrestricted free agency so you did know that they had a surplus of OL who had played in NFL games and with the draftees coming in, they were a team that we targeted initially to monitor if we ever wanted to go in that direction. And then obviously you turn on the tape, you play the Pittsburgh (Steelers), they’re a fun team to watch. Their linemen play with an element of toughness, they like to run the ball, they like to go north and south. He’s a bigger player that helps in anchoring, especially in the pocket. So I think initially we got to get him up to speed. We’ve tried to trade for him most of the preseason. They wanted to hold onto him to make sure that they got through preseason healthy and didn’t necessarily need him and still have the surplus that we thought they might have. Right now, let’s get him up to speed and then from that point we’ll see where he fits in and what ends up being our best five along the way.”

Dotson was a fourth-round pick by the Steelers in the 2020 NFL draft out of Louisiana. The 26-year-old offensive lineman would make 13 starts for the Steelers in his first two seasons before starting in all 17 games in the 2022 campaign.

In recent years, the Steelers have retooled their offensive line, adding guys via free agency or through the draft. So Snead and the Rams knew that the Steelers had depth in the trenches, putting them on the team’s radar if they wanted to address the offensive line in the trade market.

With Dotson available, the Rams swapped a fourth and fifth-round pick with the Steelers in 2024 and swapped fifth and sixth-round selections in 2025 to land the former fourth-round pick. Given the current state of the offensive line, and Snead’s comments, Dotson figures to play a crucial role for the Rams in 2023.

PFF grades show where Kevin Dotson excels and where he struggles

Kevin Dotson has been rock solid in pass protection the last three years, but his run blocking could use work

The Rams’ offensive line depth got a little bit better this weekend when the team acquired guard Kevin Dotson from the Steelers in a swap of draft picks. It’s unclear if the team sees Dotson as an immediate starter on the interior or someone to back up Steve Avila and Tremayne Anchrum Jr., but Dotson has started 30 games in his three-year career so he’s gained plenty of experience in the NFL.

Obviously, the Steelers didn’t think very highly of Dotson coming into this season as he was slated to be a backup to Isaac Seumalo at left guard, but the Rams were willing to move down one round in each of the next two drafts and also pay him $2.74 million this year, so they must like his game.

Pro Football Focus’ grades for Dotson give us some idea of where he excels on the field and where he can improve. Here are Dotson’s run-blocking and pass-blocking grades in the last three years.

Run blocking

  • 2022: 61.1
  • 2021: 60.8
  • 2020: 55.1

Pass blocking

  • 2022: 77.6
  • 2021: 78.4
  • 2020: 87.2

It’s easy to see that Dotson has been a much better blocker in pass protection than he has been in the running game. As a rookie in 2020, he didn’t give up a single sack and allowed just one pressure in 219 pass-blocking snaps between left guard and right guard. In 2021, he allowed three sacks and 10 pressures, which are still very good numbers considering he played 354 snaps in pass protection. Last year, he gave up a career-high four sacks and 16 pressures but he also played a career-high 686 snaps as a pass blocker.

Penalties have plagued Dotson in his career, particularly last season. He was called for 12 penalties in 2022, which was the second-most of any guard in the NFL. His 16 pressures allowed were just the 10th-fewest of all qualifying guards in the league, which gives you an idea of the job he did in pass protection.

As a former fourth-round pick, Dotson has some talent, especially in the passing game where he’s been a consistent blocker on the interior, but he needs to cut down on penalties and improve as a run blocker.

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Rams take on Kevin Dotson’s $2.7 million salary this year

With Kevin Dotson coming aboard, the Rams will take on his $2.7 million salary in 2023 before he hits free agency next year

The Los Angeles Rams struck a deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday night to improve their offensive line depth, acquiring guard Kevin Dotson for two pick swaps in 2024 and 2025. Dotson is a candidate to start at right guard sometime this season, though it’s unclear if he’ll unseat Tremayne Anchrum Jr. there right away.

The Rams technically didn’t lose any draft picks in this deal, only moving down one round in each of the next two years. But they did take on Dotson’s remaining salary. Dotson has a base salary of $2.74 million in 2023, which will come off the Steelers’ books and go onto the Rams’ salary cap. Pittsburgh only takes on $164,704 million in dead money from his signing bonus.

With a cap number of $2.74 million, Dotson will have the ninth-biggest cap hit on the Rams this year. It’s just below Jordan Fuller’s cap hit of $2.79 million and is higher than players such as Cam Akers ($1.96 million) and Van Jefferson ($1.79 million).

It’s not a huge salary that the Rams must now pay, but it’s also not like they’re getting Dotson at the veteran minimum. It’s a sign of the confidence Los Angeles has in him to be more than just a depth piece this season.

Dotson will become a free agent in 2024, which means the Rams could net a compensatory pick in the 2025 draft if he signs a contract large enough in free agency.

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How the Kevin Dotson trade impacts Rams’ depth chart

The Rams are acquiring Kevin Dotson in a trade, which could shake things up at guard down the road

With roster cuts looming before Tuesday’s deadline, the Los Angeles Rams are shaking things up along the offensive line before they trim down to 53 players. On Sunday night, the Rams agreed to a deal with the Steelers that will send guard Kevin Dotson to Los Angeles in a swap of Day 3 picks in 2024 and 2025.

It’s not the blockbuster trade we’re used to seeing the Rams make in the offseason, but it is a move that changes the equation on the O-line – a position group that was already facing some uncertainty and a lack of continuity among the five starters. With only two weeks until the season starts, it’s hard to imagine the Rams shuffling the line again by plugging Dotson in at guard. However, this move certainly isn’t good news for Tremayne Anchrum Jr. or Joe Noteboom, the two players who have been competing at right guard.

The Rams might view this strictly as a depth move, but more likely, they see Dotson as a future starter at right guard. With Anchrum penciled in as the starter there, Los Angeles could be looking at Dotson as not only a quality backup, but someone who could take over at some point this season.

Noteboom is the one whose future is up in the air after this trade. He’s already been relegated to a backup role despite being the team’s highest-paid linemen, but now it might be even tougher to keep him on the 53-man roster.

The Rams wouldn’t save any money by cutting Noteboom but if they can find a taker on the trade market, maybe they’ll pull the trigger on a deal to offload his bloated contract. That could explain his peculiar absence from team drills because of an undisclosed injury that Sean McVay refuses to clarify.

Logan Bruss is also a player to watch after the Dotson acquisition. He’s struggled for two straight offseasons and while he’s been moved to right tackle, the Rams didn’t rule out moving him back to guard at some point.

Dotson has started 30 games in three seasons and the Rams will pay him a base salary of $2.7 million this year, so it’s not a tiny contract that they’re acquiring. It’s significant enough to make him a future starter for the Rams.

Don’t be surprised if the next shoe to drop is Noteboom being cut or traded. This move impacts him more than anyone on the roster.

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