rams depth chart – Syndication Server

Projecting Rams’ depth chart after initial wave of roster moves

Now that the Rams have set their initial 53-man roster, here’s a projection of what the depth chart might look like

With Week 1 right around the corner, the Los Angeles Rams have their initial 53-man roster and practice squad set. They’ll still do some tinkering in the next week, as they have already, but the depth chart is certainly taking shape as the regular season approaches.

The Rams haven’t yet released an unofficial depth chart and probably won’t until next week, but it’s not hard to project how it looks at the moment. The starting lineup is just about set and the coaching staff knows who the primary backups will be, likely having an idea of which 48 players will be active on game day.

Here is our best projection of the depth chart on offense, defense and special teams as of now. (Note: rookies are in italics)

Offense

	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
QB	Matthew Stafford	Stetson Bennett
RB	Kyren Williams	Blake Corum	Ronnie Rivers	Cody Schrader
WR1	Cooper Kupp	Tutu Atwell
WR2	Puka Nacua	Jordan Whittington
WR3	Demarcus Robinson	Tyler Johnson
TE	Colby Parkinson	Davis Allen	Hunter Long
LT	Joe Noteboom	Warren McClendon Jr.
LG	Jonah Jackson	Logan Bruss
C	Steve Avila	Beaux Limmer
RG	Kevin Dotson	Logan Bruss
RT	Rob Havenstein	Warren McClendon Jr.

No surprises on offense. Two players, Jimmy Garoppolo and Alaric Jackson, are missing from the depth chart because they’re serving two-game suspensions, so they’re not technically on the active roster and can’t practice until Week 3. Garoppolo will take Bennett’s place as the backup QB and Jackson is expected to be the starting left tackle when he returns.

Williams is the starting running back despite Corum’s strong summer, and the top three receivers appear set. That could change if Whittington gets opportunities early and plays well.

Along the offensive line, Havenstein’s status for Week 1 is in question so if he misses the game, McClendon is expected to fill in at right tackle.

Defense

	1st	2nd	3rd
DE	Braden Fiske	Desjuan Johnson
NT	Bobby Brown III	Tyler Davis
DT	Kobie Turner	Neville Gallimore
OLB	Jared Verse	Michael Hoecht	Brennan Jackson
ILB	Christian Rozeboom	Jake Hummel	Elias Neal
ILB	Troy Reeder	Omar Speights
OLB	Byron Young	Nick Hampton
CB	Darious Williams	Cobie Durant	Charles Woods
S	John Johnson III	Kamren Kinchens
S	Kamren Curl	Jaylen McCollough
NB	Quentin Lake	Cobie Durant	Russ Yeast
CB	Tre’Davious White	Josh Wallace

There shouldn’t be any question about the starting defensive line, with Fiske, Turned and Brown leading the way. They all sat out the preseason and are on track to be big parts of the defense – quite literally.

At edge rusher, the top three of Young, Verse and Hoecht are likely to rotate snaps depending on the situation, but Young and Verse should get the majority of the playing time.

Inside linebacker is where there are some serious questions and concerns. We don’t yet know who will replace Ernest Jones as the middle linebacker on all three downs, but Rozeboom seems like the most natural fit. Speights is the wild card because he had a great summer and has already been declared someone who will be active on game days.

In the secondary, Williams and White are the projected starters at outside cornerback, with Lake manning the slot as the “star” defender. Durant could also mix in at that spot when the Rams don’t need as much size, but he’s also capable of playing outside.

The safety group is extremely deep and while we know Curl will be one starter, it’ll be either Johnson or Kinchens starting at the other spot. Lake and Yeast can both play traditional safety roles, too, but they’re more of slot defenders now.

Special teams

	1st
K	Joshua Karty
P	Ethan Evans
LS	Alex Ward
KR	Cody Schrader
PR	Kyren Williams

The kicker, punter and long snapper are all set in stone, but the return specialists have some wiggle room. Sean McVay shockingly said Williams will return punts, but that was before the team claimed Schrader, who returned kickoffs for the 49ers this preseason.

If the Rams feel good about him on kick returns, he could contribute as the punt returner, too.

With Alaric Jackson suspended, Rams OL depth will be tested again

Alaric Jackson has been suspended two games, which will test the Rams’ OL depth

The Rams will start their 2024 campaign without starting left tackle Alaric Jackson, as the fourth-year man has been suspended for the first two games of the regular season.

In a year where the Rams’ offensive line was poised for a breakout season, losing a vital piece of the line has the potential to loom large against both the Lions and the Cardinals to open up the season. With the current Rams depth chart, it’s fair to assume Joe Noteboom will be the man at left tackle to start the season.

The performance of the backup offensive line has been impressive thus far in the preseason and, with a veteran like Joe Noteboom, the Rams should be able to stay afloat while Jackson serves his suspension. Noteboom notably stepped in for Andrew Whitworth during the latter part of the 2021 Super Bowl-winning season, playing well in his three starts on the year. Noteboom did, however, take a step back following a contract extension, eventually dealing with injuries that led to Jackson getting his shot at the left tackle spot.

Noteboom bounced back in 2023, getting eight starts on the line and proceeded to play well in those starts he was granted. Noteboom has proven he is capable of being a solid spot starter for the team but if the Rams staff feels there are better options on the squad, Warren McClendon or A.J. Arcuri could be options, as well.

The Rams season opener in Detroit is just over two weeks away, and any more hits to an offensive line that has dealt with injuries throughout training camp could truly test just how deep the 2024 Rams group really is.

Rookie DB Kamren Kinchens is ‘going to be a factor’ for Rams this season

Rookie safety Kamren Kinchens has had a great summer and Sean McVay says he’s going to play a role for the Rams this season

Every spring in the NFL offseason marks the time for the NFL draft, as former college stars realize lifelong dreams of having a shot to play with the best players in the world. The beauty of the NFL draft is, that no matter how much scouting is done, it’s impossible to know whether these prospects will turn out the way the team selecting them envisions them to be. Every draft produces prospects who fall exceedingly short of expectations, while some burst onto the scene to take the NFL by storm.

Last season, the Rams appeared to have one of the best draft performances in the league, nabbing multiple instant starters in Puka Nacua, Steve Avila, Kobie Turner, and Byron Young, none of whom were first-round selections. The Rams, of course, look to have that much success in every draft class, with the 2024 draft as no exception.

One player who was selected by the Rams in April was safety Kamren Kinchens out of the University of Miami. The Rams had a clear focus on improving their secondary throughout the offseason, so they selected Kinchens 99th overall to fit that focus.

Kinchens has already earned some high praise from head coach Sean McVay in his first training camp as a professional.

The Rams are known league-wide as a team that does not play their key players in preseason games. Kinchens was notably not on the field in the Rams’ second preseason game against the Chargers, so the media rightfully had questions as to why the third-round pick did not appear in the game.

McVay told media members, “We’ve been holding him out for precautionary reasons… He’s done a great job. It was really one of those deals that we didn’t feel it was necessary to expose him to possible injury. He’s going to be a guy that’s going to be a factor for us.”

Based on this quote from Coach McVay, it is clear the team has high hopes for what Kinchens could bring to the table for the Rams defense. In the first, unofficial depth chart of the preseason, Kinchens was listed as the backup to fellow safety Kamren Curl. However, with the aging John Johnson III listed as the starting safety opposite of Curl, there is a chance Kinchens gets a real shot to contribute throughout the 2024 season.

The ball-hawking Kinchens recorded 11 interceptions as a two-year starter at Miami, proving to be one of the best safeties at the FBS level during his collegiate career. The Rams finished ranked 30th in the NFL in takeaways last season, a statistic McVay believes Kinchens has a shot to help change this year.

Projecting Rams’ depth chart after 2024 NFL draft: How many rookie starters?

With the 2024 NFL draft in the books, we’re projecting what the Rams’ depth chart might look like

Over the course of the next few weeks and months, the Los Angeles Rams will begin onboarding their rookies and getting them ready for Year 1 in the NFL. They added 10 total players in the draft and while some of them have a chance to start, there’s no guarantee any of them will be atop the depth chart come Week 1.

With an already talented roster, the Rams’ veterans will try to hold off the young guns in training camp. That could be difficult at certain positions, though, as Jared Verse, Braden Fiske and Kamren Kinchens all look like early contributors on defense.

Excluding undrafted rookies, below is a projection of what the Rams’ depth chart could look like. There are three rookie starters, all on defense, and four backups on offense who could see time in the event of an injury – or in Blake Corum’s case, when spelling Kyren Williams.

A lot will change between now and September, but here’s how we see the depth chart as of this moment. (Note: rookies are italicized)

Offense

	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
QB	Matthew Stafford	Jimmy Garoppolo	Stetson Bennett	Dresser Winn
RB	Kyren Williams	Blake Corum	Ronnie Rivers	Zach Evans
WR1	Cooper Kupp	Tutu Atwell	Tyler Johnson
WR2	Puka Nacua	Ben Skowronek	Xavier Smith
WR3	Demarcus Robinson	Jordan Whittington
TE	Colby Parkinson/Tyler Higbee	Davis Allen	Hunter Long	Nikola Kalinic/Miller Forristall
LT	Alaric Jackson	Joe Noteboom	A.J. Arcuri
LG	Jonah Jackson	KT Leveston	Zach Thomas
C	Steve Avila	Beaux Limmer	Mike McAllister
RG	Kevin Dotson	Joe Noteboom	Grant Miller
RT	Rob Havenstein	Warren McClendon Jr.	Logan Bruss

Defense

	1st	2nd	3rd	4th
DE	Braden Fiske	Desjuan Johnson
NT	Bobby Brown III	Tyler Davis	Cory Durden
DT	Kobie Turner	Larrell Murchison
OLB	Jared Verse	Michael Hoecht	Ochaun Mathis	Zach VanValkenburg
ILB	Ernest Jones	Troy Reeder	Olakunle Fatukasi
ILB	Christian Rozeboom	Jake Hummel
OLB	Byron Young	Nick Hampton	Brennan Jackson	Keir Thomas
CB	Darious Williams	Cobie Durant	Tre Tomlinson
S	Kamren Kinchens	Russ Yeast	Tanner Ingle
S	Kamren Curl	Jason Taylor II
NB	Quentin Lake	Shaun Jolly
CB	Tre’Davious White	Derion Kendrick	Cameron McCutcheon

Special teams

	1st	2nd
K	Joshua Karty	Tanner Brown
P	Ethan Evans
LS	Alex Ward
KR	Blake Corum
PR	Tutu Atwell

Rams release Week 1 depth chart: No O-line clarity, John Johnson not starting

On the Rams’ unofficial depth chart for Week 1, John Johnson is still a backup, Tutu Atwell is starting and the O-line is still TBD.

In just a few days, the Los Angeles Rams will take on the Seattle Seahawks in the season opener, hopefully starting the year with a win on the road. On paper, the Rams look like the weaker team, which is evident when glancing at their first unofficial depth chart of the regular season.

The Rams released it this week and quite frankly, it’s not much different than what we saw at the start of the preseason – except for the fact that the recently cut players are now absent.

For the most part, the starting lineup remains the same. The Rams list three rookie starters or co-starters, while third-year player Tutu Atwell is also one of the top three receivers. The offensive line remains unclear in this latest depth chart, with two positions listing co-starters: left tackle and center.

See the full depth chart below, broken down by offense, defense and special teams.

Projecting Rams’ depth chart after first half of training camp

With the first half of training camp in the books, here’s a projection of what the Rams’ depth chart might look like

The Los Angeles Rams haven’t yet released an unofficial depth chart, though it’s possible they will before their first preseason game next week. Until then, we can only project how the depth chart looks, from the starters to reserve players.

With one half of training camp in the books, here’s how we see the depth chart on offense and defense, going position by position and predicting where everyone stands so far.

(*) = rookie

Projecting Rams’ depth chart following 2023 NFL draft: How many rookie starters?

Looking at the Rams’ projected depth chart, how many rookies look like potential starters?

There might not be a team in the NFL that has undergone more turnover this offseason than the Los Angeles Rams. As a result, their depth chart looks vastly different than it did a year ago when the Rams were trying to defend their Super Bowl title.

This roster is full of rookies, 40 to be exact. That’s almost as many veterans (44) as the Rams have on the team currently. Knowing that, there will be a lot of competition for roster spots and starting jobs in camps.

We’ve got a long way to go before the roster is settled for the regular season, but here’s how the depth chart could look at the moment.

(*) = rookie

Projecting Rams’ depth chart following 2022 NFL draft

The Rams added eight rookies in the draft this weekend. Where do they currently project on the depth chart?

There’s a long way to go before the 2022 season begins, with OTAs, minicamps and training camp still needing to take place. That’s when the Los Angeles Rams’ depth chart will become clearer as players beat out their competition for starting and backup jobs.

Even though it’s a bit early to be projecting the Rams’ depth chart, it’s a fun exercise to show where Los Angeles got better and which positions still need help coming out of the draft.

Here’s an updated look at the depth chart following the 2022 draft. It excludes the reported undrafted free-agent signings because they aren’t yet official, and none of them will be listed higher than “reserve” right now.

Note: Rookies are in italics

Reading the tea leaves of Les Snead’s comments on Rams RBs

Les Snead hinted at Malcolm Brown being a short-yardage and goal-line back for the Rams.

The Los Angeles Rams are in the process of transitioning from having an All-Pro workhorse handle the bulk of their carries to utilizing more of a committee approach. That, of course, comes after the team cut Todd Gurley in March and drafted Cam Akers out of Florida State a month later.

Akers joins Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson in the Rams backfield, though their exact roles are still to be determined. Will Akers be the No. 1 back? Will Henderson merely be a change-of-pace player? Will Brown only get one or two carries a game?

All of that will be decided as the season goes on, and we won’t know much until players get back on the field for either minicamp or training camp – whichever comes first. But on “Around the NFL,” Rams GM Les Snead shed some light on the backfield plan and hinted at Brown being a short-yardage or goal-line back.

“The playtime and what their role is will definitely evolve as we get back to training camp, begin practicing, get back on the field and start playing football,” he began. “The interesting thing, the tidbit early over the course of Malcolm Brown’s career, he has – and this is not for fantasy football and it’s probably not for highlights – but if you’re a fan of the Rams and you’ve watched 65 plays of offense down in and down out during a game, those people who tuned in for him know that he has moved the chains and scored some important touchdowns when defenses get tight and try to stop it. Whether it’s a third-and-1 or 2, or if it’s a second-and-goal from the 1 or 2, or third-and-goal. So touchdowns mean something in fantasy, so maybe that’s a good tidbit.”

It’s interesting that Brown was the first running back Snead mentioned, especially with Akers and Henderson receiving the bulk of the attention up to this point. He did discuss those other two, though, and likes what the Rams have in both.

Here’s what he said about Henderson after praising Brown’s work in short-yardage situations.

“Darrell Henderson showed at Memphis and we do think what he showed at Memphis definitely has a chance to translate to our league and that’s the ability to hit home runs and I know that means something in fantasy,” Snead said.

And then as for Akers, Snead once again mentioned the rookie’s ability to overcome poor blocking up front and a weak supporting cast at Florida State. It was one of the thing the Rams loved about his game and made them confident that he could succeed against NFL defenses where running lanes are tougher to come by.

“I know Cam has proven in the ACC playing for a team basically that hasn’t been as manned with the type of players Florida State is used to in the past and he was able to overcome that and be their go-to guy so that’s going to be fun to watch to see how that evolves,” Snead said.

So reading the tea leaves, we can almost determine that the Rams’ backfield will look something like this – depending on how each guy is playing and who they’re playing in a given week. Akers will likely handle the early-down carries, while Henderson will be a Kamara-type (which Snead mentioned last year) and Brown will be a short-yardage and goal-line specialist.

Snead didn’t explicitly say any of those things, but he mentioned short-yardage conversions for Brown, home runs for Henderson and Akers being a “go-to guy” at FSU.

“Time will tell. Time always tells,” Snead said. “We have three running backs, we have three that we really like and that is an honest answer to see how when you start with three important players that you want to give playtime to, how it evolves into how many carries or touches or snaps in a game they get is to be determined based on how we’re scheming against a certain opponent, how one of the players is playing or has gotten hot or not hot or is banged up or not. So those things will come to fruition during the 2020 season.”

However this all works out, Snead and the Rams have one goal: get the running game going again. After a down year in 2019 by just about every measure compared to the year before, the Rams want to get their running game back on track with this new game plan in the backfield.

“That’s a long-winded answer but our goal is to get that running game and our offense back to our 2017 and 2018 standards and we think those three players can help us do that,” he said.

Rams’ projected depth chart after 2020 NFL Draft

Here’s what the Rams’ depth chart could look like in 2020.

The Los Angeles Rams came away with some impact players in the 2020 NFL Draft this weekend, fortifying the offense early on before adding some versatile defenders on the other side of the ball. The team still has a long way to go before the season begins, whenever that is, and the roster is beginning to get filled out.

With the new rookies now in the mix, we’ve put together a new projection for how the depth chart could look for the Rams. It includes the latest additions to the roster, except for the undrafted rookies, who have little chance of making the roster.

Here’s how the offense and defense look right now on paper.

Offense

Position	Starter	Backup	Reserve	Reserve
QB	Jared Goff	John Wolford
RB	Darrell Henderson/Cam Akers	Malcolm Brown
WR	Josh Reynolds	Van Jefferson
WR	Robert Woods
Slot WR	Cooper Kupp	Nsimba Webster	Greg Dortch
TE	Tyler Higbee	Gerald Everett	Johnny Mundt	Brycen Hopkins Kendall Blanton Ethan Wolf
LT	Andrew Whitworth	Joe Noteboom
LG	Austin Corbett	Joe Noteboom	Jeremiah Kolone
C	Austin Blythe	Brian Allen	Coleman Shelton	Nate Trewyn
RG	David Edwards	Austin Blythe	Jamil Demby	Chandler Brewer Tremayne Anchrum
RT	Rob Havenstein	Bobby Evans

Defense

Position	Starter	Backup	Reserve	Reserve
DT	Aaron Donald	Tanzel Smart
NT	A’Shawn Robinson	Sebastian Joseph-Day	Greg Gaines
DE	Michael Brockers	Marquise Copeland
ROLB	Ogbonnia Okoronkwo	Samson Ebukam	Natrez Patrick	Jachai Polite
ILB	Travin Howard	Kenny Young	Clay Johnston
ILB	Micah Kiser	Troy Reeder
LOLB	Leonard Floyd	Terrell Lewis	Justin Lawler	Jeff Holland
LCB	Jalen Ramsey	Darious Williams
RCB	Troy Hill	Adonis Alexander
NCB	David Long	Terrell Burgess
FS	John Johnson III	Terrell Burgess	Nick Scott
SS	Taylor Rapp	Jordan Fuller	Jake Gervase

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