the Rams 17 man Practice Squad thread

The Rams are building their practice squad, which can be finalized at 4 p.m. ET today. Track all of their moves here. https://t.co/zIJRxYBN3S

— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) September 1, 2021

Rams practice squad (so far)
WR Landen Akers
RB Otis Anderson
TE Kendall Blanton
T Chandler Brewer
DE Earnest Brown IV
DT Marquise Copeland
DB Dont'e Deayon
G Jeremiah Kolone
WR J.J. Koski
DB Kareem Orr
DB Tyler Hall
LB Micah Kiser
LB Justin Lawler
T Max Pircher (exempt)

— Jourdan Rodrigue (@JourdanRodrigue) September 1, 2021

Los Angeles Rams are signing former Texans running back Buddy Howell to the practice squad, according to a league source @SportsTalk790 Howell (6-foot-1, 218 ) is a special-teams standout from Florida Atlantic who had a career-high 64 rushing yards last year and 16 career tackles

— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) September 2, 2021

LA Rams:
• Reserve/Injured T Tremayne Anchrum
• Reserve/Injured LB Ogbonnia Okoronkwo
• Reserve/COVID-19 LB Chris Garrett
• Activated, from Reserve P Johnny Hekker

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 2, 2021

A-Gap Open. A-Gap Closed.

RG Jared Hocker 👀@Coach_Henson pic.twitter.com/0YLwiun5K5

— Ben Fennell (@BenFennell_NFL) December 23, 2020

https://www.turfshowtimes.com/2021/9/3/22656066/rams-practice-squad-roster-transactions-depth-chart

Rams add former Steelers DB to practice squad

Antoine Brooks will continue his career in LA
By Kenneth Arthur@KennethArthuRS Sep 3, 2021, 12:21pm CDT

The Los Angeles Rams announced two practice squad transactions on Friday, adding running back/special teamer Buddy Howell and safety Antoine Brooks. We can continue to expect the 17-person practice squad to churn players in and out all season, especially with new rules that allow teams to activate up to two players from the practice squad to the 46-man gameday roster during the year.

That means that either Howell, Brooks, or any other Rams practice squad player could always be one play away from suiting up on Sundays.

LA Rams Practice Squad Transactions:
• Practice Squad DB Antoine Brooks
• Practice Squad Veteran RB Buddy Howell

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) September 3, 2021

Brooks was a sixth round pick of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020, appearing in four games during his rookie season — 29 snaps on defense, 10 snaps on special teams.

The 5’11, 220 lbs Brooks ran a 4.64 40-yard dash at the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine and posted a 34.5” vertical. As a three-year starter at the University of Maryland (making him college teammates with Rams running back and seventh round pick Jake Funk), Brooks had 232 tackles, 27.5 tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks, four interceptions, nine passes defensed, and one forced fumble.

Brooks did not make the Steelers’ 53-man roster coming out of camp last year, but was signed to the practice squad and eventually elevated to the active roster. He was waived on August 24th with an injury designation, then placed on IR, but is now on LA’s practice squad.

Howell is considered to be an ace special teamer. He went undrafted out of Florida Atlantic in 2018 and signed with the Miami Dolphins. Howell has been with the Houston Texans for the last three years but hasn’t played much offense; he has just 21 career carriers for 74 yards. But he’s been a full-time special teams player over the last three seasons with the Texans.

That is a big DB. He is down to 205 and plays the slot. Howell is already counted in this thread. That fills the Practice Squad.

from Get to know the Rams practice squad offensive linemen: https://www.turfshowtimes.com/2021/9/5/22657504/rams-practice-squad-offensive-lineman

Jared Hocker, Guard
Hocker is a 6-6 327 lb offensive lineman out of Texas A&M University who went undrafted. He fits the mold of the type of lineman the Rams are trying to transition to, big-bodied who excels in the run game. He was a three-year starter who started 10 games at right guard in 2020 and is highly regarded by his teammates as being a good leader. I know being undrafted and released by the Seahawks doesn’t sound promising but he has the physical tools to develop into a solid player. He needs to work at having quicker feet but he’s an absolute mauler. I thought this was a great addition for the LA Rams practice squad. Nfl.com listed his strengths and here were a few that are notable:

Fits into down-block with enough force to move opponent
Able to pull across formation, find target and secure block
Upper-body power and core strength to stall bull-rush tries
One thing that I saw from Hocker was his tenacity to not give up on a play, he drives through his opponent until the whistle.

Jeremiah Kolone, Guard
Kolone is a 6-3 308 lb OG who has been with the LA Rams since 2018 but has been waived and brought back a few times. For the Rams to keep bringing him back, they must see something they like from him. During his time at San Jose State, he was a four-year starter at left guard receiving two-time honorable mentions in the all-mountain west conference. He started 36 consecutive games for the Spartans as he proved to be an extremely reliable player who doesn’t often miss games. He even played in the AAF for the San Diego Fleet where he allowed 0 sacks.

Chandler Brewer, Tackle
A four-year starter at Middle Tennessee University, Brewer is a 6-6 320 lb offensive lineman who has versatility at guard and tackle. As a captain in 2018, he earned first-team all-conference USA honors as he allowed just two sacks in over 450 pass attempts. As a senior Chandler was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma during the summer and had to undergo radiation treatment in-between games. Understandably due to covid-19, he was the team’s only opt-out in the 2020 season. Brewer wasn’t a surprise cut but I’m sure the front office is excited to have him back after clearing waivers as they have stated their excitement about him in the past.