It’s time to panic about these 5 players for Rams

Tre White ranks in the bottom 10% of corners so far in 2024

The season might be over before it’s even in full swing for the Los Angeles Rams. LA is 0-2 and has the worst point differential in the NFL aside from the tragic Carolina Panthers that have already benched Bryce Young for Andy Dalton.

Change will be necessary if the Rams want to change course, and it’s time for the team to panic about several underperformers across the roster. Can Los Angeles make changes to its starting lineup and/or rotations in order to keep this weekend’s contest against the San Francisco 49ers competitive?

Tre White, CB

Prior to Monday Night Football and the Philadelphia Eagles taking on the Atlanta Falcons, veteran Tre White currently ranks as the 96th corner out of 105 with at least 30 defensive snaps according to Pro Football Focus (PFF). That puts White in the bottom 10% of players at his position. He’s already surrendered five catches on seven targets (71.4% completion) for 109 yards, three touchdowns, and a passer rating of 153.3.

For comparison, Cooper Kupp is the only receiver for the Rams that is over 100 yards at 147. Tyler Johnson is at 99 and Demarcus Robinson is at 92. Matthew Stafford has only thrown for a single touchdown pass and a middling quarterback rating of 88.32.

It’s clear that White is not the same player that he was earlier in his career, and the team may be forced to pull him out of the starting lineup even before Darious Williams returns from his stint on injured reserve. LA signed Ahekllo Witherspoon last week and he might need time to prepare. Cobie Durant has been battling a hamstring injury. Still, White is more of a detriment than a help at this point. Not having him on the field could be addition by subtraction.

Kamren Curl, DB

The outlook isn’t much rosier for another free agent signing from this offseason for the Rams. Curl is PFF’s 59th of 80 safeties with the same snap threshold which puts him close to the bottom quarter of the NFL. The veteran is tied for fourth across the league with four missed tackles. In coverage he’s allowed receptions on all five of his targets for 95 yards, a touchdown, and a perfect passer rating of 158.3.

We were told that Curl was one of the best bargains in free agency, but now it looks like there was a reason he was available at a lower cost. Do the Rams have buyers remorse in regards to the signing of Curl?

The Rams have played John Johnson in a rotational role so far, but it might be time to put him in the starting lineup over Curl full time (if healthy). Johnson has graded in the top five of defenders in both games for LA so far this year.

Christian Rozeboom, MLB

Rozeboom leads the NFL with missed tackles for off-ball linebackers with six on 20 opportunities (30.0%). PFF gave him a 28.6 tackling grade over the first two weeks of the season. He’s also struggling in the ground game with a 36.9 run defense grade that trails only Nakoke Dean, Patrick Queen, and Kenneth Murray. Rozeboom has an average depth of tackle (AVDT) of 5.2 yards which ranks in the bottom 10 at his position.

His production in the passing game is somewhat better, but nothing to write home about. He’s allowed seven receptions on eight targets for 62 yards and a passer rating of 105.7.

While Troy Reeder hasn’t exactly been good, he’s better than Rozeboom in nearly every major category.

Jonah Jackson, iOL

Of 173 offensive linemen (all positions) with more than 30 snaps, Jackson ranks 40th according to PFF. LA’s prized free agent signing has surrendered four pressures. His run grade of 53.7 would put him in the bottom 25 of all linemen.

That’s simply not the player the Rams thought they were getting when they signed Jackson to a three-year, $51M free agent deal. In fairness, the Rams sent mixed signals throughout training camp about which position Jackson would be playing. He took over as the starting center a week before the regular season. With Steve Avila getting hurt and creating a hole at left guard, LA asked Jackson to fill in.

LA has maybe doomed their signing of Jackson from the start, and they need chemistry along the offensive line if they want this group to gel and play as a unit.

Matthew Stafford, QB

It’s clear that Matthew Stafford gives the Rams their best chance to win games; however, if the team starts the year 0-3 their priority may no longer be to win games and they may instead turn towards the future. Only 3% of teams that start 0-3 go on to make the playoffs, and that may cause the Rams to position themselves in the draft to land a franchise quarterback.

While Stafford isn’t THE reason why the Rams find themselves winless, he hasn’t exactly helped the situation either. Of the 33 QB’s with more than 19 drop backs, Stafford ranks 26th before Kirk Cousins (31st) and Jalen Hurts (33rd) play on Monday night. Stafford is one of six passers yet to have a single big-time throw. He also is tied for third in the NFL with four turnover-worthy plays. Only Anthony Richardson and Caleb Williams have five TWP’s.

The pass protection woes certainly factor in. Stafford ranks 28th in average depth of target (ADOT) at 6.4. His average time to throw of 2.72 seconds is actually a tick longer than the rest of his career with the Rams have ranked, which could speak towards a lack of separation at receiver or a possibly diminished skillset.

Matthew Stafford needs to turn his play around before the Rams have no choice but to bench him and position themselves to land a long-term quarterback through the draft.