Some of those players will contribute out of necessity, but it's hard to rely on late-round picks to become difference makers. The Rams had 14 picks but 10 came in the fifth round or later. Quarterback Stetson Bennett was a curious pick in the fourth. Edge rusher Byron Young and defensive tackle Kobie Turner were third-round picks. The Rams did get back tight end Hunter Long (one career reception for eight yards) from the Dolphins in the Ramsey trade along with a third-round pick. Meanwhile, these are among the players they lost in free agency, cuts or trades: cornerback Jalen Ramsey, edge rusher Leonard Floyd, receiver Allen Robinson II, punter Riley Dixon, kicker Matt Gay, safeties Taylor Rapp and Nick Scott, linebacker Bobby Wagner, defensive linemen A'Shawn Robinson and Greg Gaines, and quarterbacks Baker Mayfield and John Wolford. What does life in the NFL look like if you keep kicking your cap issues down the road? The Rams' free-agent class this offseason is backup quarterback Brett Rypien and receiver Demarcus Robinson. We'll see if the Rams can drive in the slow lane for a while. We've seen their approach in chasing a championship, and that hyper-aggressive strategy might not work with a total rebuild. McVay and Snead are practically starting over. But there should be faith in the Rams' brass to fix things quickly. Donald, on a short list of candidates for greatest defensive player ever, has considered retirement too. Maybe Stafford, with growing health concerns, won't be around much longer. McVay and Snead are excellent at their jobs. McVay, who contemplated retirement after the Super Bowl too, looked miserable most of the season and it sounded like he was going to step away. Their 12 losses was the most for a defending Super Bowl champion, beating the record of the 1999 Broncos who went 6-10 after John Elway retired. The Rams built a top-heavy roster and those injuries made their lineup look like it was the preseason. They lost Stafford, Kupp and Donald to season-ending injuries. ![]() They did have a ridiculous comeback win against the Las Vegas Raiders with Baker Mayfield playing quarterback a couple days after he was signed, and a blowout of a Denver Broncos team that was having an even more awful season than the Rams. ![]() Those were three of the best teams in the NFL. It didn't look that bad before the bye, when they were 3-3 with losses to the Buffalo Bills, Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay was among the team's many questions this offseason. However, whenever the list of bad seasons for defending Super Bowl champions is brought up, the 2022 Rams will be the first one mentioned. That will be remembered a lot longer than the Rams' record these few seasons as they regroup. The many experts who want to dunk on their all-in approach seem to forget that. ![]() 12, 2022, when the Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals for the Lombardi Trophy. There was probably too much pride for that.Ī rough couple years are coming but you can't erase Feb. Maybe they should have dove in and traded anything of value, perhaps entering the Caleb Williams/Drake Maye sweepstakes. They have a full load of draft picks in 2024 including their first-rounder after a patient offseason. The Rams didn't totally tear it down when they traded Ramsey, but it seems like they're holding onto the past by not moving Stafford, Donald or Cooper Kupp. That doesn't mean a "remodel" will be easy, or that 2023 will show many signs of progress. Things can change, good or bad, in a hurry. Demoff's letter to season ticket holders pointed out that the Super Bowl-winning team had 19 starters that didn't start in the Rams' Super Bowl loss three years prior. ![]() That's two, maybe three, lifetimes in the NFL these days. If you hear that a team has set itself back a decade, you can ignore it. It doesn't have to take long for NFL teams to rebuild.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |