Tag: Troy Reeder

What is the Rams’ plan at inside linebacker for 2021?

The Rams haven’t added any linebackers yet. Are they waiting for the draft? Or will they roll with the same group from 2020?

Although the first wave of free agency is already in the books, the Los Angeles Rams still have plenty of opportunities to bolster their roster before the regular season begins in September. There are free agents to sign, prospects to draft and players to acquire via trade, but the Rams have yet to make a single move at inside linebacker.

They haven’t been linked to any free agents at that position, nor have they been reported to have met with any linebacker prospects. That doesn’t mean they haven’t looked into adding help to the linebacker corps, but it doesn’t seem to be a high priority for the front office.

This has made some wonder what the Rams’ plan is heading into the 2021 season. Are they going to roll with the same group as last season? Is Travin Howard going to become a starter after he was slated to be one in 2020? Will the draft bring notable reinforcements?

All of these are very possible for Los Angeles, given the way its defense is built. Despite getting subpar play from Micah Kiser, Kenny Young and Troy Reeder a year ago, the Rams still had the NFL’s No. 1 defense. That has to count for something, and it’s probably why the front office didn’t go out and sign Kyle Van Noy, Denzel Perryman or Christian Kirksey.

As unimpressive as the Rams’ linebackers were at times, all had their flashes of potential. Reeder had a three-sack game, Kiser won Defensive Player of the Week and Young had a pick-six. That doesn’t mean they should be locks to play significant snaps next season, but the Rams obviously see something in them to deprioritize the position in free agency.

(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

There are still players out there who could fit with the Rams, such as K.J. Wright, Kwon Alexander and Avery Williamson. All should come relatively cheap, even by the Rams’ standards.

But in all likelihood, Les Snead and the front office are waiting for the draft. It’s a somewhat deep class at linebacker, with plenty of athletic and rangy prospects available on Day 2. Jabril Cox, Jamin Davis, Monty Rice, Chazz Surratt and Justin Hilliard could all be options for the Rams in the second or third rounds, and all of them would be potential Day 1 starters.

If they add one of those rookies, it’s not unreasonable to think they could pair him with a player such as Reeder, Young, Kiser or Howard. Reeder and Kiser are better run defenders than they are in coverage, so ideally, the Rams would add a rangy coverage linebacker as a complement. Or, they could bring in a thumper to pair with Howard, who’s a former safety and has promising pass-defense skills. They have options available, it’s just a matter of which path the front office wants to take – or which way their draft board falls.

Regardless, it’s hard to imagine the Rams going into Week 1 without drafting at least one linebacker or signing one in free agency. They need talent in the middle of their defense and shouldn’t rely on the holdovers from 2020 to improve next season.

Rams have a decision to make at ILB when Micah Kiser returns

Troy Reeder is playing at a high level, which might make it hard for the Rams to take him off the field when Micah Kiser returns.

Troy Reeder was thrust into the starting lineup after Micah Kiser suffered a knee injury against the Buccaneers in Week 11. Kiser has missed the last three games while on injured reserve, and based on Sean McVay’s comments Monday, the linebacker won’t be activated for Sunday’s game against the Jets, either.

Assuming he doesn’t play this weekend, that’ll mark five missed games for Kiser this season. And in most of the games he’s missed, Reeder has stepped up in a big way, playing better football than Kiser was when healthy.

That leaves the Rams with a big decision to make: Should Kiser reclaim his starting role when he returns? Or should they stick with the “hot hand,” so to speak, and keep Reeder in there?

In all likelihood, both players will get some playing time when Kiser does come back. That’ll force L.A. to take Kenny Young off the field more often, too, which complicates things further because he’s playing his best football of the season right now.

But as logical as it would seem to continue giving Reeder playing time when Kiser is healthy, that wasn’t the case earlier this season. After Reeder recorded three sacks against Washington in Kiser’s absence in Week 5, Reeder didn’t play a single defensive snap until Week 11, when he played just six.

So the Rams made no effort to get Kiser and Reeder on the field together when both were available. Granted, the sample size of Reeder’s play was much smaller than it is now, but it’s important to note how the Rams handled this situation in the first half of the season.

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

In terms of how each player has performed when starting, it’s no contest. Kiser’s overall grade at Pro Football Focus is an unsightly 40.1. Reeder’s sits at 69.3 in limited action, with that number buoyed by his pass-rush efficiency.

On only 13 blitzes this season, Reeder has three pressures and three sacks, according to Pro Football Reference. Kiser, on the other hand, has blitzed 30 times and only has two pressures with no sacks. Of course, pass rushing isn’t the primary job of an inside linebacker, but that’s likely where the biggest discrepancy is in terms of PFF’s grading.

Both players have had tackling issues throughout the year, with Kiser missing tackles at an 11.5% rate and Reeder missing 11.7% of the time. In coverage, Reeder has allowed 7.8 yards per completion compared to 9.2 for Kiser, also allowing a passer rating that’s 18.1 points better than Kiser’s (79.3 vs. 97.4). In terms of impact plays, Reeder has made four tackles for loss, while Kiser has yet to make a single stop behind the line of scrimmage.

The eye test might be the most telling measure when it comes to evaluating these two players, though. Reeder has been much better against the run, and is a reason the Rams were able to shut down the Patriots’ rushing attack, and for the most part, the Cardinals’, too. In coverage, Reeder still has his struggles as a bigger linebacker, but Kiser hasn’t exactly thrived in that department, either.

This won’t be an easy decision for the Rams to make. Neither is a surefire starter in the NFL, but both have their strengths. It’s just that the defense has seemed to play better with Reeder as of late, which might lead the team to stick with the status quo when Kiser does return from IR – which could be in Week 16 against Seattle.

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Rams front office deserves blame for glaring issues at inside linebacker

The Rams chose to bet on themselves rather than replace Cory Littleton this offseason. The bet hasn’t paid off.

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On March 25, Rams inside linebacker Cory Littleton signed a three-year contract with the Las Vegas Raiders. Littleton was the Rams’ primary inside linebacker in 2019, leading the team in tackles and was often used as the only inside linebacker on the field. He was arguably the most important player on the Rams’ defense in 2018 and 2019 besides Aaron Donald.

To fill the major void Littleton was leaving behind, the Rams brought in – *checks notes* – nobody?

The current group of inside linebackers is literally last year’s group without Littleton and Bryce Hager, who also saw a few starts last year. The trio of Micah Kiser, Kenny Young, and Troy Reeder was tasked with filling the void left by Littleton. On paper, things may not seem that bad. Kiser is stuffing the stat sheet with tackles and even picked up an NFC Defensive Player of the Week award, while Reeder recorded three sacks against the Washington Football Team.

But anyone really paying attention could see the cracks in this defense, the majority of the cracks revolved around the inside linebackers. They’ve struggled to contain running backs – bad running backs – at times this season. They allowed the New York Giants to rush for a season-high 135 yards despite having the worst rushing attack in the league, and they allowed J.D. McKissic to plod his way to 46 receiving yards on six catches.

In Week 6, against an actual backfield led by Raheem Mostert, the Rams were torched in the first half, giving up a quick 21 points they were never able to come back from. Many of the big plays came from Mostert and tight end George Kittle, two positions that a guy like Littleton would have been asked to handle in the past.

Kiser and Reeder have shown the occasional flash of greatness. But both players have their flaws, and those flaws have been exploited heavily by opposing teams. It says a lot that Reeder barely saw the field a week after recording three sacks against Washington. Meanwhile, it’s hard to really have anything positive to say about Young’s performance this season, and he’s the guy that Reeder can’t beat out on the depth chart.

The lack of production at the inside linebacker position shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone who’s been paying attention. Littleton was one of the best players on the defense last season and was extremely valuable during the 2018 Super Bowl run. The trio of linebackers had collectively proved nothing in the NFL before this season. They still haven’t proved much of anything.

Some of the blame should fall on the current group of linebackers, as they have been disappointing through six games. But what was really expected of this group? Kiser has been a solid tackler who has struggled in pass coverage. Essentially, he’s been exactly what many would have expected him to be. Young has been even less productive in pass coverage than Kiser, Reeder is completely useless in that aspect of the defense.

Les Snead, Sean McVay and the brain trust of decision-makers in the front office should take far more of the blame for this situation. They chose to spend money on the defensive line instead of at linebacker in free agency. They chose to make luxury draft picks such as Cam Akers and Van Jefferson instead of addressing the position on Day 2 of the NFL Draft.

They basically ignored the position on Day 3 of the draft, as well. They drafted a tight end in the fourth round, so they can add a fourth-stringer to literally the deepest position on the roster. They finally grabbed an inside linebacker with the 234th pick in the draft, selecting Baylor product Clay Johnston. He didn’t make the team. The Rams drafted as many kickers in the 2020 NFL Draft as they did inside linebackers.

One saving grace about the situation going into the season was that many just expected the Rams to simply not use inside linebackers much. While Littleton played almost every snap in Wade Phillips’ defense, they often used an extra safety in a hybrid linebacker role nex t to Littleton, so the secondary inside linebacker only saw the field when a run was expected. But that has not been the case under new defensive coordinator Brandon Staley. Kiser and Young spend a ton of time on the field together, even on passing downs.

The 2020 Rams are using inside linebackers more than the 2019 Rams did, yet they have far less talent at the position. Snead had to have known that Staley planned to implement two inside linebackers quite often. But rather than address the position in free agency or the draft, they chose to roll with what they had. What they have is not cutting it, and they deserve more of the blame for these results than the players do. They needed help, and they didn’t get it.

Not filling this void is one of the biggest blunders of the Les Snead era. It was an obvious hole, and it was never addressed. We’ll see if the Rams choose to make a move before the trade deadline to improve the group.

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Rams’ PFF grades from Week 5: Fuller shines, Reeder underwhelms

PFF was not kind to Troy Reeder this week despite his 10 tackles and 3 sacks.

The Los Angeles Rams have looked like a legitimate contender in the NFC this season, and they certainly looked every bit like one on Sunday against Washington. In a rain-soaked game at FedExField, the Rams put up 429 yards on offense, scored 30 points and held Washington to only 10 points with 108 total yards.

It was as dominant a performance as the Rams have had this season, crushing a team they were expected to beat. Both the offense and the defense stepped up in a big way, with standout performances from the likes of Gerald Everett, Aaron Donald and Jordan Fuller.

Taking a look at Pro Football Focus’ grades for the Rams in Week 5, Everett, Donald and Fuller were unsurprisingly at the top of the heap. John Johnson also had an outstanding game with five tackles and a pass defensed.

Here are some of the most notable PFF grades, courtesy of J.B. Long of the Rams.

You’ll notice Troy Reeder is nowhere to be found. That’s because PFF wasn’t kind to the Rams linebacker, giving him an overall grade of 53.2, with a pass-rush grade of 87. Despite racking up 10 tackles and three sacks, Reeder didn’t play as well as the box score indicates.

His coverage grade of 36 was also unimpressive, but not surprising. Washington picked on him in coverage with running backs, and he had no answer in the middle of the field. That’s been his weakness since last season, and it was once again evident on Sunday.

On a more positive note, it’s great to see Fuller playing at such a high level after missing last week’s game. He had his best grade of the year at 89.9, and he only seems to get better with time. The defense played much better with him back on the field this week.

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Rams LBs coach sheds light on competition at ILB with Kiser, Reeder

Joe Barry indicated that it’ll be Micah Kiser and Troy Reeder competing at inside linebacker this year.

The Rams were unable to retain Cory Littleton this offseason as he left in free agency to join the Las Vegas Raiders. With limited cap space, it was almost expected that Los Angeles would lose two of its biggest free agents, and Littleton was certainly among them.

What was more surprising was the Rams’ decision not to address the inside linebacker position in free agency or early in the draft. The only addition they made was by drafting Clay Johnston in the seventh round, but he’s not expected to contribute immediately on defense.

Micah Kiser is the primary candidate to replace Littleton, but he’s not the team’s only option. Linebackers coach Joe Barry shed some light on the competition during an appearance on the Rams Revealed Podcast with J.B. Long, and it sounds like it’ll come down to Kiser or Troy Reeder in the middle.

As of now, Kiser is working with the starters, while Reeder is on the second-team defense.

“It’s great to have Micah Kiser healthy and back out there. We were excited about him a year ago and hurt his pec in that preseason game, so it’s great to have him back out,” Barry said. “When Micah went down, we had an undrafted kid that stepped in and did a great job for us as an undrafted rookie, Troy Reeder, so both those guys are battling, but Micah’s working with the first group right now, Troy’s working with the second group in our acclimation phase. But it’s just great to have the guys out there as we start ramping things up. The great thing about Sean’s program is it’s all about competition. The way I coach guys, I always tell the room, ‘Hey, I don’t have starters and backups. I have starters and starters in waiting.’

“I’ve got a great group of young up-and-coming guys so I’m excited for all of them.”

Kiser was in line to start next to Littleton last year before he injured his pectoral in the preseason and landed on IR. He has yet to play a defensive snap in two seasons, but the Rams are relying heavily on him to come through in 2020.

Travin Howard, Kenny Young and Johnston would be the next guys up after Reeder, but the fact that Barry didn’t mention them suggests Kiser and Reeder are the Rams’ top choices right now.

The pads haven’t even come on in practice yet, which will help decide the competition. But by the sound of it, Kiser will get the first crack at replacing Littleton.

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Why Troy Reeder is looking forward to Week 2 vs. Eagles

Troy Reeder has Rams-Eagles in Week 2 circled on his calendar.

There are a lot of highly anticipated games on the Rams’ 2020 schedule, beginning with their home opener against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football in Week 1. A lot of fans are looking forward to their two games against the 49ers, their matchup with the Tom Brady-led Buccaneers, and a game against the Patriots, too.

However, linebacker Troy Reeder has his eyes on a different game – one on the road early in the season. He can’t wait for the Rams’ showdown with the Eagles in Philadelphia in Week 2, the team’s first road game.

In a recent interview with TheRams.com, Reeder explained why he’s most looking forward to that matchup.

“Definitely most looking forward to playing in Philadelphia Week 2,” he said. “I grew up about 45 minutes outside Philly, surrounded by die-hard Eagles fans, so it will be fun getting to go back east and play in front of a lot of friends and family.”

Players always look forward to returning home to play a game in front of friends and family. Todd Gurley did it in the 2019 season opener when the Rams faced the Panthers in Charlotte, which was near where he grew up.

Aaron Donald went back home when the Rams faced the Steelers in Pittsburgh last season, too. It shouldn’t be the least bit surprising that Reeder has this game circled on his calendar as he looks to make an impact near his hometown – possibly as a starting linebacker, depending on how the offseason competition shakes out.

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Les Snead evaluates Rams’ ‘very experienced group’ at linebacker

Les Snead knows the Rams lack experience at linebacker, but he has high hopes for the group.

Only one inside linebacker on the Rams played more than a third of the defensive snaps last season. Of course, that player was Cory Littleton, who’s now a member of the Oakland Raiders.

His departure has left the Rams extremely thin at linebacker and lacking notable experience at the position. Troy Reeder played 298 snaps last season, which was second-most among the team’s linebackers. Travin Howard, Micah Kiser and Kenny Young are the other three players who could contribute next season, but only Howard played a single snap on defense for the Rams last year.

Los Angeles doesn’t have the cap space to add a surefire starter in free agency and the draft has players with even less NFL experience than the Rams’ current group of linebackers.

General manager Les Snead isn’t pretending linebacker is a strength in L.A., calling it a “very inexperienced group.”

“You always look internally first, right? Micah Kiser got an injury so you haven’t seen him play yet. Troy Reeder, a surprise starter has a lot of playtime. And then Travin Howard down the stretch last year was getting on the field. So it’s a very inexperienced group – even Kenny Young has experience, but with another team,” he said this week. “So with us, a very inexperienced group internally. We have solid to good to high hopes for this group and we’ve got to do our best to develop them and also look in the draft to see, hey, can you add a complementary piece to go with the group. And even if you do that, that human being will probably be inexperienced, as well. Could be talented but inexperienced. But it is going to be an inexperienced group for us, but we did like the fact that a lot of those players plus draftees have the chance to become solid to good to very good players while they get experience.”

It’s not exactly a glowing endorsement from Snead, but the group does have potential. Young is a former starter for the Ravens, and Kiser was projected to be the No. 2 linebacker next to Littleton last season before he suffered a pectoral injury. Reeder may have gotten playing time, but he really struggled in coverage and looked out of place as a starter.

Howard is the wild card in this group because of his athleticism and potential in the Rams’ scheme. He was adept in coverage late in the 2019 season, even tipping a pass to cause an interception against the Cardinals. He’s not a lock to start by any means, but he has a great deal of upside entering 2020.

Snead didn’t mention adding a veteran linebacker, probably because the Rams don’t have the money to. Instead, they’ll look to the draft where players such as Akeem Davis-Gaither, Troy Dye, Malik Harrison, Joe Bachie and a handful of others could be targets at some point.

But as Snead said, a rookie will be just as experienced, even if he is talented. This group will need to mature quickly if the Rams want to avoid being gashed in the middle of the field.

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