The Los Angeles Rams announced their 53-man roster on Tuesday and their 16-man practice squad on Wednesday. There was some controversy given that the Rams cut their fifth-round pick in linebacker Chris Paul Jr. With that said, it was a strong reminder of what the team values on this version of the Rams roster. Let’s jump into my 10 takeaways.
1. Alaric Jackson moving in right direction?
There has been some uncertainty when it comes to the Week 1 availability of Alaric Jackson. While head coach Sean McVay has remained positive, he also hasn’t put any sort of timeline on Jackson. With that said, Jackson landed on the 53-man roster rather than starting the year in injured reserve. Even if Jackson doesn’t play Week 1, it would be a strong guess that he would be available within the first four weeks.
At the very least, Jackson landing on the 53-man roster is a positive thing for the Rams as they prepare for their Week 1 matchup against the Houston Texans. We’ll see how well Jackson plays when he returns to action, but for the first time this offseason, the Rams seem to have some answers at the left tackle position.
2. Rams valuing experience
All offseason, the Rams have approached the roster with the mindset of valuing experience and raising the floor at certain positions. That was the case at center when the Rams brought back Coleman Shelton. Shelton may not have the same ceiling as Limmer, but the floor is much higher.
The Rams also valued experience at tackle with their depth. Instead of keeping KT Leveston, the Rams traded him to the Cleveland Browns for a 2028 late-round pick. As tackle depth, especially on the left side, the Rams kept DJ Humphries and David Quessenberry. This is also a reason why the Rams kept Troy Reeder at linebacker.
3. It was never Troy Reeder OR Chris Paul Jr.
There has been a lot of discussion about the Rams letting go of what was effectively their fourth linebacker. While it’s disappointing that Chris Paul Jr. was released after having high expectations, it’s clear that it wasn’t a fit. The Rams didn’t even opt to bring him back on the practice squad. With that said, this was never a decision between Troy Reeder and Chris Paul Jr. This was more of Paul Jr. or Shaun Dolac. At the end of the day, it was Dolac that beat out the fifth round pick for a roster spot and will likely play a role on special teams.
That doesn’t make it less disappointing, but it’s the fact of the situation. While many would like to see Reeder gone, he is the most experienced player in the Rams defense. He’s not starting, but the Rams value that experienced depth. If needed in a pinch, Reeder brings that experience much more than another rookie. From the outside and with just a two preseason game sample, it can’t be definitively said that Paul was better than Reeder. That would imply that the Rams are purposely keeping worse players on the roster. Paul was taken with the fifth-to-last-pick in the fifth-round for a reason. He was a size anomaly from an arm length perspective. It simply didn’t work in Los Angeles.
4. Front Office okay admitting mistakes
It can’t be an easy decision to cut a draft pick just four months after taking them or even a little over one year later. That’s exactly what the Rams did with Paul. They also did it with Brennan Jackson and KT Leveston who were both from the 2024 draft class.
The Rams have continuously shown that they don’t mind eating a large salary if it isn’t working out with a player. In this case, it didn’t work with Paul while plans changed at edge and tackle for Jackson and Leveston. Instead of forcing them onto the roster, the Rams moved on and may end up better for it.
5. EDGE is a little thin
The Rams do seem to be a little thin at edge rusher after only keeping four. Those four are Jared Verse, Byron Young, Josaiah Stewart, and Nick Hampton. Behind Verse and Young, the Rams do have inexperienced, young talent, but there are questions with Stewart and Hampton. Stewart is also managing a concussion heading into Week 1.
Given Stewart’s concussion, it was a mild surprise to see the Rams only keep four edge rushers. They are clearly hoping to get a lot out of Verse and Young and then have Stewart or Hampton rise to the occasion. A player like Desjuan Johnson may be able to play on the edge as well. This may be a position to watch as the season progresses. The Rams did keep Jamil Muhammad on the practice squad.
6. This was a competitive roster
This is something that was mentioned multiple times, but this may have been one of the more competitive Rams rosters in recent memory. In most years, the Rams may find a way to keep Willie Lampkin or Chris Paul Jr. Brennan Presley may have been able to get on as a seventh wide receiver or AJ Green as a sixth cornerback.
The Rams have a deep roster, and that’s a good problem to have heading into a season with Super Bowl aspirations. This was a very difficult roster to make and the 53 that did make it should have a sense of accomplishment.
7. Deep on the defensive line
The Rams kept seven players on the defensive line, giving them one of the deeper groups in the NFL. This was already a good unit last year, but this is now a unit with a ton of depth. The Rams have invested in the defensive line in recent years and it has paid off.
Poona Ford, Tyler Davis, Ty Hamilton, and Larrell Murchison provide run-stopping ability on early downs. A case can be made that the Rams only needed to keep three of these players, especially with Davis taking a step forward this offseason. Still, having that depth is a good thing. Kobie Turner, Braden Fiske, and Desjuan Johnson is a good trio to have rushing the passer.
8. Rams get unlucky on Willie Lampkin
One of the standouts from the Rams preseason opener was Willie Lampkin. Unfortunately, the Rams waived Lampkin with an injury designation and he was picked up by the Philadelphia Eagles. The Eagles will now likely turn Lampkin into prime Jason Kelce.
Had Lampkin been able to play all three preseason games and been healthy, a case could be made that the Rams would have found a way to get him on the roster. With that said, the injury certainly tossed a wrench in that plan. Had the Eagles not claimed Lampkin, he would have gotten through the waiver process.
9. AJ Arcuri remains only developmental tackle
Over the past few seasons, the Rams have not put a lot of resources into the offensive line, specifically at tackle. In the last three drafts, they’ve selected two tackles. Neither Warren McClendon or KT Leveston were taken with picks inside the top-150. With Leveston cut, the Rams don’t really have a developmental tackle on the roster outside of AJ Arcuri. Arcuri allowed seven pressures last year in Week 1 against the Detroit Lions. In 2022, he gave up five pressures against the Kansas City Chiefs.
McClendon is good depth, but he is the only young tackle on the roster with some upside. Moving forward, it would be nice for the Rams to be able to rely on someone in-house instead of having to use resources to sign an aging veteran like Humphries or Quessenberry.
10. Brennan Presley gets through waivers
There were a few players that the Rams released that some were worried may not clear waivers. Wide receiver Brennan Presley was one of them. However, Presley cleared waivers and ended up on the practice squad after leading the Rams in receiving yards during the preseason.
Presley will be a player to watch over the next year or two. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him on the roster as soon as next year with Tutu Atwell’s contract set to expire. It was also nice to see that the Rams were able to keep Tanner Ingle and Nate Valcarcel along with Cody Schrader.
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