With the NFL Draft over and the dust beginning to settle, the new NFL season is right around the corner. The Rams have made their fair share of moves this offseason, but the roster still faces plenty of unanswered questions that should be solved before the 2024 season begins.
Cornerback depth
It came as a bit of a surprise when the Rams elected to completely ignore their cornerback room in the draft, but they opted to do so and their only additions came after in the undrafted free agent class. This signals that they are comfortable with Tre'Davious White's health and ability to be ready by the start of the season.
The issue with White has never been that. It's been the inability to stay healthy that saw him wind up as a free agent. If White goes down, the team is back to putting out the young cornerbacks that struggled throughout 2023. They might be comfortable with seeing how players respond in the new defensive scheme, but it remains a concern.
Who plays in base?
I've spoken about this at length pre and post-draft, but the Rams' plan for their base defense remains somewhat in question. For a brief scheme discussion, the Rams' front is likely going to resemble what it looked like under Brandon Staley under new DC Chris Shula (largely why they hired Giff Smith as DL coach). This front's base is mainly five-man fronts with three defensive linemen and two OLBs.
Your three DL are two DEs playing 4i and a true nose tackle playing 0. These players are playing gap-and-a-half, a blend of one and two-gapping where players aim to control gaps and play with vision instead of shooting gaps or controlling players. The issue that I have is that I'm not convinced the Rams have the personnel to be able to pull this off.
They are largely projecting Kobie Turner to play in base after he didn't in 2023. Turner is at his best as a three-technique, where he can shoot gaps and harass the quarterback. He's undersized with average length, making playing in these looks a bit harder but not impossible. It's safe to say that they believe Turner can play this position, so his spot feels assured. My hang up is at the other defensive end spot.
Who plays there? Second-round pick Braden Fiske isn't long and is smaller as well, and his college film doesn't show a player you'd be comfortable with playing gap-and-a-half. He is also best as a three-technique, overlapping with Kobie Turner in skill set. Are the Rams really comfortable playing two small defensive ends that are largely projections to play these roles? In a division where you have to play Kyle Shanahan twice a year and likely have to go through teams like the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles in the playoffs, that feels like a huge risk.
Wide receiver plan
Half of the Rams’ current receivers’ room won’t be under contract after 2025. Cooper Kupp‘s deal goes through 2026, but he will be 31 years old at the start of the season and has struggled to stay healthy the last two seasons, missing 12 games. The only wide receivers that will be on the team in 2025 will be Kupp, Puka Nacua, and sixth-round rookie Jordan Whittington. Kupp's age and this lack of depth was why wide receiver was connected to the Rams frequently throughout the offseason, but the Rams largely ignored these concerns in the draft.
This long-term plan at wide receiver, or lack thereof, is odd for a team that seems dead set on being aggressive to build around Matthew Stafford.
Long-term left tackle
The Rams are going into 2024 with two left tackles that have one year left on their deals, neither of whom have earned the right to be the team's long-term left tackle. Much like with wide receiver, it's hard to justify the team being "aggressive" around Matthew Stafford and not adding to either position and aiming to find upgrades at these key positions. Alaric Jackson is the presumed starter, and if he goes down, would they be comfortable playing Joe Noteboom out there again after the last time we saw him? Just a large question mark.
Linebacker depth
The Rams have an established player in Ernest Jones, who should earn a pretty nice payday in the offseason. Beyond that? The Rams' linebacker unit is largely UDFAs who frequently get taken advantage of when they have to see the field. If Jones goes down at all, that unit becomes a massive liability that teams will not hesitate to attack. This gets even more concerning if they do plan on playing small ball on the defensive line.
