Peter King, from Here’s Why Super Bowl Will Be Rams-Bills, And More Predictions For NFL 2021: https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2021/09/05/super-bowl-lvi-prediction-nfl-picks-fmia-peter-king/

Bullish on the Rams. Let me give you an illustration about where the Rams have been, and where I think they’re going. The best iteration of the Sean McVay Rams came in the first 12 games of 2018. Remember the bombs-away Rams? With Goff proving (or so we thought) what a good deep-ball thrower he was, particularly on that Thursday night at the Coliseum when he strafed the Vikings? The Rams then, and the Rams since:

The first 12 games of 2018: Rams 11-1, averaging 34.9 points per game.

The 41 games since (including playoffs): Rams 24-17, averaging 23.9 points per game.

I think we’re going to see a Rams offense like that one in 2018. A couple of differences between then and now. That year, the Rams had the league’s 19th-rated defense. This year, the Rams are coming off a season when they had the top-rated defense in the league. Gone is coordinator Brandon Staley, who got the Chargers’ head job, but the three best defensive players are back: all-world Aaron Donald and one of the game’s best cornerback tandems, Jalen Ramsey and Darious Williams. And the quarterback is new and improved over last year’s model.

Simply put, Matthew Stafford gives McVay, one of the smartest offensive brains in the game, the first chance in his five seasons as coach to have confidence in calling everything on his play sheet. Everything. Stafford has the arm to make every throw, and the brain to know when to make one throw versus another. One coach who has faced Safford multiple times told me on my camp tour he thinks the marriage between Stafford and McVay will work well. “Stafford with Sean is going to be fantastic,” this coach said. “Sean’s been waiting for a guy who can execute everything he wants to call.” As I wrote in my training camp report on the Rams a month ago, McVay saw Goff as a student, and he sees Stafford as a peer. In his four months inside the Rams’ building, Stafford has become almost an extension of the coaching staff, and he’s done it organically, without usurping anyone’s authority. He trades ideas with McVay about the pass game. When the Rams traded for running back Sony Michel, it was Stafford, on a day off, who took it on himself to mentor Michel personally with a deep-dive into the offense. Last week, the Rams had their players vote for two offensive, two defensive and one special-teams captains. There were two unanimous picks: Donald, of course. And Stafford. That’s the impact he’s made in his first four months on the team.

So it’s the honeymoon period. I like taking teams on the way up, such as Tampa Bay last year. The Rams are on the way up. Now, they’re top-heavy, and a couple of major non-quarterback injuries would hurt the Rams more than, say, the Bucs. They’re playing with fire at left tackle in a 17-game season, with Andrew Whitworth turning 40 in December. You don’t find many 40-year-old left tackles in football. In fact, I can’t think of a single one in recent history. Overall, they’re thin. The Rams will need some luck from the injury gods to be playing February football at home. But I’ll take my chances with them.

3. Second straight team winning the Super Bowl at home—after it never happening before. I’m curious what kind of home-field advantage the Rams will have. Will Angelenos jump on the bandwagon, which L.A. is very good at doing? My guess is that by January, when the Rams have a home playoff game or two, front-running fans will be pretty revved up about their team.

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.

Rams add former Steelers DB to practice squad, one of two transactions posted on Friday https://t.co/plF3DZ8LCU

— TurfShowTimes (@TurfShowTimes) September 3, 2021

Top takeaways from Les Snead’s press conference on initial 53-man roster

Stu Jackson

* https://www.therams.com/news/top-takeaways-les-snead-s-press-conference-initial-53-man-roster

THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Rams general manager Les Snead met with local media Wednesday to discuss the team’s initial 53-man roster, covering the decision to carry three quarterbacks, the approach to the punter position, and more.

Here are some of the highlights and key takeaways from that conversation:

Perkins fit the prototype of the ideal backup

The Rams kept a third quarterback on their initial 53-man roster for the first time since 2018 with the decision carry Bryce Perkins on the 53-man roster.

A big reason why: Perkins fit the mold of the ideal backup who has the mobility to make plays out of structure, or in the chaos of when a play breaks down, according to Snead.

“We’ve seen, bringing John Wolford on the roster, having that element, that tool in the toolbox,” Snead said. “One of the reasons we signed Bryce Perkins as an (undrafted) free agent last year was that.”

Perkins earned it, and they also wanted to protect him being claimed by another team on waivers and avoid the risk of losing a player like him and the last year-plus invested into developing him.

Bojorquez presented a rare opportunity worth exploring

It’s not often that the NFL’s top punter in average yards per punt from the previous season becomes available, but it happened this spring when Corey Bojorquez – a pending restricted free agent – became an unrestricted free agent after the Bills (his former team) decided not to tender him.

“That’s kind of staring at you like a sore thumb,” Snead said. “That’s an opportunity we should explore.”

It also worked out in Bojorquez’s favor because, given that the Rams traditionally haven’t player their starters in the preseason in the McVay era, he knew he would have a chance to punt during that time.

With Bojorquez making the most of those opportunities, Snead said they realized, “wait a minute, there’s an element of choice here” between two punters. They weren’t going to keep two, so Bojorquez was traded with a 2023 seventh-round draft pick from the Lions to the Packers for a 2023 sixth-round pick before Tuesday’s 53-man deadline.

Confidence in the roster

Heading into the season, Snead feels confident about where the roster stands.

“Here’s what we do feel like, we definitely are confident and believe we can contend for our division, and if we accomplish that, we might have a chance to have a few home playoff games,” Snead said. “But at that point in time, it’s heavy-weight fights and we’re confident we’ll be ready to step into the ring and play those fourth quarters. We’re definitely going to start climbing. That’s the top of the mountain, but we’re at base camp and we’re ready to start climbing.”

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