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znModeratorBest free agent signing in Rams history https://t.co/CB2rtVpRPj
— World B. Flat (@Carl_noWinslow) June 7, 2021
znModeratorAndrew Brandt@AndrewBrandt
Us Cap managers would always say: “If we’re only worried about this year, we can do anything you want. But if you care at all about the future, we can’t.”znModeratorInside Rams’ scouting of Robert Rochell: Matching ‘eye-popping’ data with film, projections with Jalen Ramsey
Jourdan Rodrigue
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. — The Los Angeles Rams drafted cornerback Robert Rochell at No. 130 this spring, 611 days and 30 completed evaluation reports after they first began scouting him at Central Arkansas.
“We were doing some summer work, especially on guys from FCS schools — small schools. Usually, there is going to be some word of mouth and he came on my radar,” said area scout Cedric Jones, who was a lead on Rochell for the last two years.
“We turned on the film, and (first up) was Western Kentucky. Right away, you could see those physical traits.” Jones said. “And then you start seeing his ball skills.”
Rochell used to play quarterback and receiver in high school, at Fair Park in Shreveport, La., and Jones said it was pretty clear that Rochell is “used to having the ball in his hands.” The Rams, under general manager Les Snead, love drafting former quarterbacks who switched positions (Cooper Kupp, Cam Akers, Tutu Atwell among others). Jones was hooked. He dug deeper.
On one play, Western Kentucky tried to draw Rochell across the field via a dragging receiver. Jones planted, flipped and adjusted to the intended receiver, then closed on the ball and hit the receiver so hard the ball came loose. Excitedly, Jones scribbled something down in his notes for later — something that would come up in meetings about Rochell, as the scouting personnel and data analysts began to match and cross-reference their notes on 2021 prospects in collaborative meetings the following year.
In fact, behind the scenes, the Rams were about to draw up a pretty huge comparison for Rochell, specifically where his athletic traits and how they match them in their system were concerned — a comparison reserved for only a few players over their last five years of analysis. That comparison would, in the month or so leading up to the draft, get defensive coordinator Raheem Morris so excited about Rochell as a prospect that he deemed the rookie corner as one of his “pool party” picks (and one of the few non-front-7 guys on his personal list) — or, a pick who, should the Rams draft him, prompt Morris to dive into the pool at the Malibu draft house.
“Since 2015 — that’s when we started our internal scouting system, called ‘JARS’, we have 5,000 different defensive backs that we have (measurables) on,” said Jake Temme, who is a data and analytics manager for the Rams. “And within our internal mechanism for doing weight-adjusted/athleticism (measurements) — called RSDI (Rams Standard Deviation Index) — he was in the top 10 percent for the cornerback position.”
In that five-year data span, the Rams, said Temme, found there were just four players who satisfied all of the following conditions they use to evaluate defensive backs within their database (which Temme discovered by programming a query of these conditions into the system): The player was drafted, the player was 5-foot-10 or taller, the player was equal to or heavier than 180 pounds, the player jumped 40-plus inches vertically in testing and the player broad-jumped 10 feet or more and the player ran a 4.40-second-or-less 40-yard-dash when averaged between six different times collected between official and unofficial recordings.
“Those four players are Jalen Ramsey, Obi Melifonwu, Derwin James and Robert Rochell,” Temme said. “Pretty rare guy, athletically, to get that late in the draft … I think, in particular, when you’re talking about a guy who we had a ton of scouting on, who then satisfies the physical conditions that we’re talking about — he was really exciting to be a Day 3 guy, a guy who we had basically circled after taking Ernest (Jones) at No. 103, saying, ‘This is a guy we’re going to target tomorrow.’”
Before we get carried away at the comparison to Ramsey, remember: The Rams’ data process combines specific measurables, some of which are pulled from athletic traits, some from testing numbers and some from other variables to basically build a numerical model of a player, then they collaborate with scouts to match those data points to what is on tape and in a player’s background (including Snead’s favorite “intangibles”). They aren’t at all saying Rochell is “the next Jalen Ramsey” but …
“Jalen is elite,” Jones said. “And when you put (the numbers) side by side, Robert has some of those similar physical traits that Jalen has.”
One interesting detail, though, was a similarity they saw between how Rochell, who is 6-foot-2, and Ramsey, who is 6-foot-1, use their frames to add length when playing either a receiver or the ball.
“You’re looking on film and sometimes it’s kind of hard to tell — you’re looking, and (suddenly) you’re like, ‘Damn, that kid looks long,” Jones said. “He measured in at right about that 6-foot-range. But looking on tape, he looks every bit of 6-foot-3-ish. You see those long arms. … He uses every bit of his length.
“He’s able to disrupt releases on the line of scrimmage from receivers. You see those arms there. All of the sudden, you see the fluidity he moves with up in space. So you’re like, ‘Whoa.’ Then, when the ball is in the air, you see that vertical leap — and he elevates the play above the rim to pluck the ball out of the air. That’s when it’s eye-poppin’, and those traits really start playing.”
To describe how Rochell can operate in a vertical space, national scout Marty Barrett borrowed a phrase from his wife and daughters, who all either coach or play competitive volleyball: “Touch point” or the highest point a person can reach when height, jump, arm, fingertip and spatial awareness are all taken into consideration.
“I think you saw the measures play out, with Robert,” Temme said. “Whenever you watched him play, if you watched him go up for, like, a 50/50 ball — and he won a ton of those, got his hands on a ton of footballs — I think you start to … (believe) that this guy is a special athlete because of what you saw on film, because of how you saw him go sideline to sideline and be able to reach stuff that you didn’t necessarily feel like other corners could.
“He’s really good at isolating the boundary, raising up and getting his hands on the football.”
As the analysts, scouts and various cross-checkers and personnel people held prospect meetings, Temme got a kick out of the fact that Rochell and Ramsey were “comped” via many of their measurables and had some fun with the presentation of those findings.
“We were (meeting) over Zoom, and so I can just throw a picture in the chat,” he laughed. “So I could just throw a picture of those measurables — put Jalen next to Robert and stack them together. Someone will end up seeing it in the chat and pulling it up, having it resonate — maybe somebody’s all jacked-up because of the Jalen comp.”
Rochell was invited to the Senior Bowl but did not draw glowing reviews from analysts when matched up against a few of the top receivers there. Jones says that Rochell was dealing with an injury during that time and believes that Rochell would have been drafted a lot higher if he were healthy/competitive during that all-star event. Being a small-school prospect also likely limited his reach within draft rooms. Only nine non-FBS players were selected in the 2021 NFL Draft; the Rams picked up two of them.
So, as the third day of the draft unfolded, Rochell was still on the board. Jones and Temme were off-site (as was Snead), while head coach Sean McVay and Morris were at the draft house.
The scout and the data analyst anxiously watched the Rams’ draft board materialize as the fourth round continued. After picking defensive tackle Bobby Brown III at No. 117, Snead traded back with the Jaguars from No. 121 to No. 130.
Temme chewed on his nails. Finally, the Rams sent in Rochell’s card at about 10:10 a.m.
“We were hopeful that he would last those nine extra picks that we moved back (via Jacksonville) to No. 130,” Temme said. “That’s brutal. There’s a lot of energy, a lot of feeling — it’s palpable … you’re kind of feeling that energy between people.”
The Rams believe that Rochell will quietly grow into one of the leaders in this draft class. Jones, who spent a great deal of time digging into Rochell’s background, says that he’s “a mature kid” whose family leaned on him at a young age after his father passed away, and believes others will similarly gravitate toward him.
But Rochell also needs to adjust to the NFL, a jump that can sometimes be difficult for smaller-school players because of the juxtaposed size, speed and all-around talent of their opponents. Jones believes that putting Rochell in a room with Ramsey will be one of the best things that could happen for him as he develops. Ramsey’s attention to detail is what the Rams will also need from Rochell, who must grow his technique to match his promising traits if he wants to work into the starting rotation at some point.
“He’s going to have some good player models to see how to play the game at a high level,” Jones said. “When you have a guy like (Jalen) … you see day in and day out what it takes to be able to play that position at a high level. He can get the verbal (advice) from Jalen, but he’s going to get real, live examples.”
Rochell demonstrated coverage versatility on tape but did not play a ton of nickel in college — now, he may be asked to learn that position as well as shoulder duties on the perimeter because, within the Rams’ system, all players in the secondary do scheme to unlock Ramsey in some way.
“In particular, we say we have the best in the business with Jalen,” Jones said. “Well, we want to move him around the field for matchups. When you do that, you gotta have other guys back there also who are able to move and interchange.
“Robert is one of those special guys … with both length and those physical traits … we see him being able to move around and be one of those pieces that you can plug in all over the field. Be versatile and show that flexibility that we have.”
Added Temme, “We bet on people, not players. And Robert the person is a guy worth betting on. … The big picture on Robert was that he’s a person worth investing in. When you take that into consideration with the physical traits, he’s a really exciting bet relative to the acquisition cost …
“We have a high belief in our coaching staff, a high belief in our player development infrastructure that the right people are going to translate time and time again. That’s what we put our stock in.”
a State, she’s on a neveznModeratorfrom https://www.turfshowtimes.com/2021/6/7/22523201/rams-leonard-floyd-sacks-2021
How many sacks will Leonard Floyd have during the 17-game season in 2021?
The Chicago Bears took Floyd after he had posted 4.5 sacks in 13 games as a junior at Georgia. I’ve written several times before about Floyd’s career history but the short version of the story is that he showed promise as a pass rusher as a rookie and then that part of his game never developed. Prior to signing a one-year deal with the LA Rams in 2020, Floyd recorded three sacks — and zero tackles for a loss outside of those sacks — during 16 games with the Bears in 2019.
LA showed faith in Floyd that probably would not have existed if it weren’t for his draft status in 2016, but then he did respond with season totals that helped justify the signing.
Floyd set career-highs with 55 tackles, 10.5 sacks, 19 QB hits, and one forced fumble.
znModeratorBrian Allen returns as the starting center.
Somebody didn’t do their homework.
This article is dated June 7. But it ain’t up to date.
znModeratorfrom PFF: Ranking all 32 NFL offensive line units ahead of the 2021 season
https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-ranking-all-32-nfl-offensive-line-units-entering-2021-season8. LOS ANGELES RAMS
Last year at this time, we were trying to figure out how the Rams’ offensive line fell so flat in 2019. Regardless, the unit rectified things in 2020 and finished third in PFF’s final rankings.
Left tackle Andrew Whitworth is still going strong, even at 39 years old heading into the 2021 season. He graded out at 86.8 last season, the sixth-best mark in the NFL, though he did miss seven weeks of action and struggled in the playoff loss to the Packers. Whitworth is one of the best tackles of his generation, still performing at a high level when many of his peers have been retired for years.
Right tackle Rob Havenstein enjoyed a bounceback 2020 after an uncharacteristically poor 2019. His 80.6 overall grade tied for 14th, which is more in line with his 83.3 mark that was posted in 2018. It’s his 50.9 grade in 2019 that is the outlier at this point.
David Edwards had a strong second season at left guard, grading out at 70.5 overall — 18th-best among guards. Right guard Austin Corbett experienced the classic third-year breakout en route to a 73.4 overall grade that ranked 11th in the league. He still has room to improve in pass protection, where his 61.5 grade ranked just 43rd.
Brian Allen returns as the starting center. We last saw him in 2019 when he graded out at just 58.6 overall, including a 45.4 grade in pass protection. He’s replacing the departed Austin Blythe, who was solid in 2020.
The Rams have the pieces to rank as one of the league’s best offensive lines as long as they stay healthy.
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This reply was modified 5 years, 2 months ago by
zn.
znModeratorAnalyst’s Take: Matthew Stafford’s Postseason Play Still a Question Mark
Former Detroit QB an upgrade, but has to prove it in the playoffshttps://www.si.com/nfl/rams/news/la-rams-matthew-stafford-out-to-prove-he-is-ready-for-postseason
Brian Baldinger, an analyst for the NFL Network, believes Matthew Stafford is an upgrade over Jared Goff at the quarterback position for the Los Angeles Rams.
Stafford’s strong arm and downfield accuracy allows him to create more explosive plays in head coach Sean McVay’s offense.
“These guys with strong arms, it’s not like they are out there to show it off, but they feel they can thread the ball through the eye of a needle from 30 yards away,” Baldinger said. “They are just wired that way.”
While Stafford will assuredly make his plays and post big numbers during the regular season, there’s still a question about his postseason success, having gone 0-3 and never winning a playoff game during his 12 seasons with the Detroit Lions.
And for a team with Super Bowl aspirations, Baldinger says that’s something to watch for in the upcoming year.
“We don’t know what Matt’s going to be like if they get to the postseason,” Baldinger said. “Does he have big-game genes? You don’t know until they’re there. It’s a different level. I live in Philly and Donovan McNabb was a great regular-season quarterback, but not particularly great in the postseason and in the Super Bowl he was awful.
“So, you don’t know how these guys are going to play — if they are going to play tight, or if they are going to play loose. You just don’t really know, and they’ve got to go through it.”
While how Stafford plays in the postseason remains to be season, he likely will take the easy check downs, unlike Goff failed to do at times as Baldinger points out in the video below.
While busy preparing for the upcoming NFL season, Baldinger also is working with CoachTube.com, a portal that provides coaching courses for a variety of sports.
Baldinger has several football coaching and evaluation videos on CoachTube, including an offensive line series with legendary coach Bob Wylie as well as several positional breakdowns as part of his football coaching course.
While his postseason play is a concern, Baldinger said Stafford has two things in Los Angeles he did not have in Detroit — a top-ranked defense and a running game.
The ascension of Cam Akers with the Rams should help Stafford’s transition.
“They got back to running the football last year,” Baldinger said. “I think they found their back in Cam Akers. That’s a big part of it because the last thing Sean wants to do is throw the football every down, that’s for sure.
“It’s one thing that Stafford’s never really had. I don’t know how many 1,000-yard rushers he had in Detroit, maybe one or two? They’ve never really had a ground game. Nobody has gone through as many running backs in this league than Detroit has. They couldn’t keep them healthy, and when they did, they couldn’t keep them productive. So, I think that would be nice for Stafford to be able to hand the ball off, and then all the things they can do in play-action.”
With players like Jalen Ramsey, Aaron Donald, Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp and Stafford, Baldinger says the Rams need frontline players to play at a high level for L.A. achieve Super Bowl aspirations and wind up in the big game at SoFi Stadium.
“They’re a star-studded team,” Baldinger said. “And Stafford is the newest star. And when you’re built like that, your stars must play big — they have to have great seasons. Aaron Donald goes down in the playoff game early and they just fall apart. Your stars must show up in big games and all season long. That’s how your built.
“They went to the Super Bowl three years ago with a team with less talent than this. The division is tough. Everybody is going to kind of beat up on each other. We’ll see who comes out unscathed. But I think you might look at a division where nobody is under .500. It’s going to be a tough division. You get to the postseason, you’re going to see how these teams survive a 17-game schedule.
“Look, if they finish 11-6 or 12-5 — something like that — full speed ahead to SoFi Stadium and the Super Bowl.”
znModeratorAlabama authorities took his gun away after a violent domestic incident. 9 months later they gave it back, and he used it to shoot and kill his wife. https://t.co/qx7M9hO7Ve
— NBC News (@NBCNews) June 5, 2021
=
fixed your article with his booking photo https://t.co/B5Nj5AqT9i pic.twitter.com/RrTQIZ5j1T
— beth (@bethbourdon) June 6, 2021
znModeratorAdam Schefter@AdamSchefter
With the Packers mandatory minicamp scheduled to start Tuesday, Aaron Rodgers would be eligible to be fined $93,085 for not attending, though Green Bay could issue him an excused absence, which also would excuse him from the fines. It is an option the team has discussed.Geoff Schwartz@geoffschwartz
I was unaware of this until @AlbertBreer told me on the radio. In the past teams could just decide not to enforce the fines for no shows during mini camp and/or training camp. In the CBA the fines are mandatory and can’t be revoked. Unless they are excused absences …znModerator77 years ago our troops fought fascism in Europe
77 years later we fight fascism within our own borders
The call is coming from inside the house
— Lindy Li (@lindyli) June 6, 2021
znModeratorThis play changed the lives of many pic.twitter.com/RpIH988rbb
— JAKE ELLENBOGEN (@JKBOGEN) June 6, 2021
znModeratorRanking the NFL's worst-to-first candidates in 2021 (via @AdamSchein)https://t.co/TWtrB6Izje pic.twitter.com/11dmhl2OJE
— Around The NFL (@AroundTheNFL) June 6, 2021
znModeratorMatthew Stafford taking the #Lions on a 96-yard TD drive against the #Bears in Week 13. He was 6-of-7 for all 96 yards including a 25-yard TD to Marvin Jones. pic.twitter.com/BU2d54ktqD
— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) January 24, 2021
znModeratorReport: Multiple assistant coaches refusing vaccines, will be barred from field and meeting rooms
The COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective, but some NFL coaches are refusing to get it anyway, and as a result they won’t be able to coach players up close.
Assistant coaches on at least four NFL teams are refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccine, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports. If they don’t change their minds within the next week, they will lose Tier 1 status, which means they won’t be able to coach on the field or in meeting rooms and can’t interact face-to-face with players.
The NFL has said it will consider exceptions for coaches who request an exemption from getting vaccinated for health or religious reasons. It is unclear whether any of the coaches has a health or religious exemption from getting the vaccine.
It’s also unclear how effectively coaches can do their jobs if they can’t be in close proximity to players. Coaches refusing the vaccine are undoubtedly putting their teams in a difficult position.
znModeratorJoseph-Day doesn’t get much recognition, but he’s a critical part of the defense. https://t.co/HRfJHNbsSf
— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) June 6, 2021
…
[from above, which has the link]
…
Joseph-Day made 55 tackles on 400 defensive snaps, good for a 13.8 percent rate — the highest among interior defensive linemen, per NGS [New Generation Stats] (min. 300 snaps). On rushing downs, he significantly limited yards gained (ranking sixth-best among interior DLs) and first downs/touchdowns (ninth-best). PFF awarded him a 80.6 overall grade during the 2020 regular season, the third-best mark on the Rams’ defense (behind only Aaron Donald and John Johnson).
znModeratorAnti-Asian racist in Ireland tries to bully a storeowner and gets knocked out pic.twitter.com/sY84P8yAVW
— Fifty Shades of Whey (@davenewworld_2) June 6, 2021
znModeratorfavorite runs of the season 🐏🐏🐏💙💛💙💛🐏🐏 @thereal_cam3 pic.twitter.com/Zx73iAJZOU
— RamseysHouse (@RamsHowse) June 4, 2021
znModeratorfavorite runs of the season 🐏🐏🐏💙💛💙💛🐏🐏 @thereal_cam3 pic.twitter.com/Zx73iAJZOU
— RamseysHouse (@RamsHowse) June 4, 2021
znModeratorYou guys travel around Rams boards.
Is this guy still alive? I haven’t seen him in a decade, and I always wonder if he died of food poisoning. It’s not likely, but…damn. That guy ate rotten raw meat. A lot.
I am sorry to say I did not follow this one.
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Saavik: Humor. It is a difficult concept.
znModeratorI mean… dude this happened to you before and you still didn’t get vaccinated? Its hard to feel bad for the guy even though he was winning this tourny because he already GOT IT ONCE and had to go thru this and clearly chose not to get vaccinated
Hey ur choice, but consequences https://t.co/VCWR7JNy01
— JBro | SoCal Designs (@JBroFronk) June 5, 2021
znModeratorIt’s still early in the offseason, but Kupp has already been impressed by the speed of both Jackson and Atwell, saying it’s been fun to watch them run routes on the field together because of how fast they are.
“He’s done a good job,” Kupp said of Atwell. “We talk a lot about be quick, be fast, but not in a rush. And he’s done a good job with that, being able to get to his depths, push through his depths, not cutting things off short. He’s so fast. It’s pretty freaky seeing him – we’ve got him and DeSean lined up outside a couple times and seeing those guys race through 15, 20 yards on their routes, it’s pretty fun to watch.”
June 5, 2021 at 12:49 am in reply to: Rams off-season practices & camps (starting today, 5/17) #130309znModerator10 Observations from the Rams’ June 4 OTA session
Stu Jackson
https://www.therams.com/news/10-observations-from-the-rams-june-4-ota-session
The Rams’ organized team activity session on Friday, June 4, was open to the media. Here are staff writer Stu Jackson’s 10 observations from it. (Team reporter Sarina Morales contributed to this report.)
1) Leonard Floyd in attendance. The Rams outside linebacker was at the team’s facility participating in the OTA session, working with assistant linebackers coach Thad Bogardus. Floyd previously did this with linebackers coach Chris Shula during practice last season, when Shula coached the outside linebackers. Shula sometimes works with the inside linebackers on the field in his new role; when that happens, Bogardus steps in and works with the outside linebackers.
2) We continue to see quarterback Matthew Stafford connecting well with wide receiver Cooper Kupp. During 7-on-7 drills, Stafford hit a wide-open Kupp over the middle.
3) While much attention has been given to Stafford-to-Kupp, was also another solid Stafford to Van Jefferson connection during 7-on-7 drills, similar to the May 27 session. Rams head coach Sean McVay praised Jefferson during his post-practice video conference with reporters Friday, calling the second-year wide receiver “a major bright spot this offseason” and someone who the team is “expecting very big things from” this year.
4) DeCamillis’ energy as advertised. Rams kicker Matt Gay on Thursday described him as “super high-energy” on Thursday, and on Friday, DeCamillis was very vocal and energetic during special teams drills.
5) Tutu Atwell’s speed on display again. In the first OTA session open to the media (May 27), Atwell used his separate at the line of scrimmage and corral a short pass from Stafford. On Friday, he connected with Stafford on a deep ball.
6) Defensive coordinator Raheem Morris hands-on. While it’s expected and understandable given his title, it’s still worth noting that Morris was very involved during Friday’s drills, bouncing between the defensive backs, inside linebackers and defensive linemen.
7) Running back Darrell Henderson Jr. in action. It was good to see third-year pro participating in some drills Friday. When McVay was asked for a health update on Henderson during his post-practice video conference, McVay told reporters they expected Henderson to be full-speed by the time training camp comes around.
8) Undrafted rookie free agent signee Brontae Harris out of UAB had a nice pass breakup against quarterback John Wolford during 7-on-7 drills.
9) Second-year wide receiver Trishton Jackson, who made the Rams’ 53-man roster last year as an undrafted free agent out of Syracuse, had a nice grab during 7-on-7 drills.
10) Offensive lineman and International Player Pathway Program addition Max Pircher was spotted working with offensive assistant Nick Jones during Friday’s session. Given Jones coached offensive tackles – Jones’ most recent position while playing in Italy – at one of his stops during his college coaching career, it’s a natural partnership for one-on-one work as Pircher gets acclimated to the NFL.
znModeratorGil Brandt put together his list of the 10 most exciting quarterback-receiver (tight ends included) combinations in the NFL and at No. 10 was Stafford and Kupp.
Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods were among the NFL’s more productive receivers when catching passes from Jared Goff. The Rams are hoping that a QB with Matthew Stafford‘s passing ability will help the pair hit even greater heights. Of the two of them, I have an especially positive inkling about Kupp to thrive as the passing attack bounces back from a relatively down year; just take a gander at this nifty practice-field connection between the two [below]. Beyond Kupp and Woods, L.A. took a flier on DeSean Jackson, whose injury problems have kept him from remaining one of the league’s premier deep threats — but if the 34-year-old can remain healthy, watch out. And don’t sleep on rookie Tutu Atwell, either.
One hand snag.
Two feet in.😱 @CooperKupp pic.twitter.com/15NVbQahTp
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) June 1, 2021
June 4, 2021 at 7:33 pm in reply to: Rams off-season practices & camps (starting today, 5/17) #130304znModeratorRams OTAs: Which rookie impressed Sean McVay, injury updates for Terrell Lewis and Darrell Henderson
Jourdan Rodrigue
The Rams officially wrapped up their voluntary spring workouts Friday afternoon and are preparing for mandatory minicamp June 8-10 — complete with an open practice at SoFi Stadium on June 10, which fans will be able to attend.
One point of update: Per protocol established by Rams public relations, I am not able to report which players got first-team or second-team reps unless it’s directly addressed by head coach Sean McVay or the player himself (a policy that is pretty standard across the league). In video call interview sessions, there’s not always the opportunity to follow up on more granular details such as, “Hey Sean, how much comfort do you have in rotating between Brian Allen and Coleman Shelton at second-and-third-string center?” when there are also major storylines to get covered and about which to get commentary and context. So, please bear with me as I’ll do the best I can within these parameters, and please especially pay close attention to when depth charts and position outlook pieces are released in the coming weeks.
With that being said, notes and observations from Friday’s OTAs access:
• Cornerback Robert Rochell, a fourth-round draft pick this spring, is getting thrown right into the mix with the first-team defense out of necessity with Darious Williams and Jalen Ramsey absent from the voluntary programming. It’s a credit to Rochell that he sees this small window as an opportunity because once minicamp and training camp begin, he’ll be moved back with the second-teamers and really dig into more special-teams work. He matched up several times against receivers Cooper Kupp and Van Jefferson, who have been the lead receivers for quarterback Matthew Stafford with other veteran players trickling in and out of the workouts.
“That’s probably the best part about it, being thrown right into the mix,” Rochell said. “Just being able to transition and learn the speed of the game — seeing the guys full speed and the guys who do start, being able to just be there and go head-to-head with those guys is great. I’m taking advantage of each day … and just grateful that I am thrown in there a lot and getting those reps.
“I’m most definitely seizing the opportunity because it could have been granted to somebody else. They entrusted me to say that I could potentially be there. Just being able to rotate with guys and get practice reps at that position helps me out in all ways.”
• Running back Darrell Henderson is half-in, half-out of on-field work as he recovers from an unspecified injury and worked with vice president of sports medicine and performance Reggie Scott on the side of the field for about 50 percent of Friday’s practice. He did get some on-field work in with the offense, and McVay says he is “making good progress.”
“He’s feeling better and better, and we expect him to be full speed by the time training camp rolls around,” he said.
However, McVay was not able to provide any update on outside linebacker Terrell Lewis, who got a workout in with trainers but stood to the side with teammates during on-field work and did not participate in drills or installation. Lewis has been working through a recurring situation with his knee for the last year or so.
• McVay was asked if a rookie has stood out to him in the limited capacity of OTAs, and he quickly named tight end Jacob Harris — the raw, but explosively athletic tight end the Rams drafted in the fourth round this year. Harris has been working almost exclusively with tight ends coach Wes Phillips, who also communicated with him throughout the pre-draft process — so that should provide a clue as to where the Rams will slot him on their roster (although he clearly will be trained as more of a pass-catching and mismatch tight end).
“Jacob Harris is a guy who has definitely stood out,” McVay said. “Just his overall speed, athleticism — you kind of feel him on the field. That’s been in some of the limited seven-on-sevens and kind of running routes on air, and that’s not how you really play football. So there is a real variance when you actually include the offensive and defensive lines.”
With Tyler Higbee absent from the media-viewed portion of OTAs, Harris and second-year tight end Brycen Hopkins have both gotten a lot of reps with Stafford.
• Defensive tackle Bobby Brown III’s attention to detail in his note-taking has drawn attention from staff, which Brown says is attributed to his interest in writing and pursuit of the craft as a hobby. He added that his favorite writing and literature topic is mythology.
• Second-year running back Cam Akers took extra time to work on pass protection blocking drills with running backs coach/assistant head coach Thomas Brown in between drilling sessions. Akers wants to be an every-down back in 2021 and is preparing for the lead back’s share of snaps, so continuing to hone his blocking and pass protection ability will be important so that the Rams feel they can keep him in the game on passing downs. McVay has high expectations for Akers entering 2021.
“The biggest thing is that he’s got great natural run instincts, he’s really talented as a pass catcher,” McVay said. “It’s the nuanced understanding of where you fit in some of the protections where the back’s involved and I think (for Akers) that it’s about continuing to become more and more complete. He’s got the skill set, he’s capable. We really feel the same way about Darrell Henderson as well. Under Coach Brown’s leadership and guidance, I expect that group to really grow.”
• Veteran outside linebacker Leonard Floyd was present for Friday’s workouts and led off the pass rush drills throughout the day. What I found to be pretty interesting was the comparison of his length of frame alongside rookie outside linebacker Chris Garrett — Floyd is 6-foot-6 and Garrett is listed at 6-foot-4, but similarly to Floyd, Garrett seems to have the ability to use his frame (particularly his arms/wingspan) in a way that almost seems to give him a bit of extra length. Obo Okoronkwo, who has dealt with injuries the past two seasons, looked healthy and explosive — and may see a growing role in speed rush packages opposite Floyd if he can stay healthy. Justin Lawler worked his way into the No. 3 spot in drills, as Lewis was not participating in practice.
znModeratorNFL Concussion Settlement attorney Chris Seeger joins @AndrewBrandt on the latest Business Of Sports pod to discuss the latest in the settlement… pic.twitter.com/RlgnLOJraU
— Ross Tucker Podcast (@RossTuckerPod) June 4, 2021
znModeratorHenry Bear@HenryBearT
@JourdanRodrigue Which Rams player impressed you the most todayThinking faceJourdan Rodrigue@JourdanRodrigue
I’m not sure if “impressed” is the right word because he does this pretty routinely at this point but it was cool to see Cam Akers take extra time to work through pass-pro drills with Thomas Brown between practice segments. McVay also mentioned Akers’ pass-catching ability today.znModeratorCrushing (legal at the time) hit by Rams safety Devin Bush Sr. Bush won a super bowl with the Rams and now his son (Devin Bush Jr.) is a star Linebacker on the Pittsburgh Steelers, a 1 round pick from the 2019 draft pic.twitter.com/oYGPjYoGtl
— RAMS ON FILM (@RamsOnFilm) June 4, 2021
znModeratorJourdan Rodrigue@JourdanRodrigue
Sean McVay and Les Snead both firmly said pre-draft that there was no punting competition.However, Rams punter Johnny Hekker says he would be doing himself a disservice to not treat the addition of Corey Bojorquez as a competition. Adds he’s his own toughest critic after
an uncharacteristic season and “the financial component” can’t be overlooked. So, regardless of what was publicly said – Hekker is on his toes this summer and seems to be well aware of his situation. Laughing, he adds it “keeps him young”.
znModeratorNFL players urged to limit Toradol use. https://t.co/rDzxhLRC2Y
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) June 4, 2021
znModeratorNFL players urged to limit Toradol use. https://t.co/rDzxhLRC2Y
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) June 4, 2021
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