The last week of August is exciting for fans as it means Labor Day weekend is on deck and the NFL season is on the horizon. For players, the last week of August is a stressful and terrifying prospect as it’s when teams make the tough choices and pare their roster down to 53. For the Rams, that day was yesterday and it was a massive indictment of their scouting department and the previous regime of positional coaches.
The biggest cuts came in the form of their top pick from 2022 and a once-promising late-round corner. The below list of 53 isn’t set in stone as they currently don’t have a kicker and only have two quarterbacks. Plus, they still have a massive need for edge rushers and jettisoned in-house options so it stands to reason some cut vets might be coming in.
Los Angeles Rams 53-man Roster Announced
QB (2)
Matthew Stafford, Stetson Bennett
RB (4)
Cam Akers, Kyren Williams, Zach Evans, Ronnie Rivers
WR (6)
Cooper Kupp, Van Jefferson, Tutu Atwell, Puka Nacua, Demarcus Robinson, Ben Skowronek
TE (4)
Tyler Higbee, Hunter Long, Brycen Hopkins, Davis Allen
OL (10)
A.J. Jackson, Steve Avila, Coleman Shelton, Tremayne Anchrum, Rob Havenstein, Brian Allen, Joe Noteboom, Kevin Dotson, Zach Thomas, Warren McClendon
DL (7)
Aaron Donald, Bobby Brown III, Kobie Turner, Jonah Williams, Earnest Brown IV, Desjuan Johnson, Larrell Murchison
EDGE (5)
Byron Young, Michael Hoecht, Nick Hampton, Ochaun Mathis, Zach VanValkenburg
LB (3)
Ernest Jones, Jake Hummel, Christian Rozeboom
CB (5)
Ahkello Witherspoon, Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson, Cobie Durant, Derion Kendrick, Shaun Jolly
S (5)
Jordan Fuller, John Johnson, Russ Yeast, Quentin Lake, Jason Taylor
Special Teams (2)
P Ethan Evans, LS Alex Ward
That’s right, third-round pick Logan Bruss and fourth-round pick Robert Rochell were among the names cut, along with WR Lance McCutcheon, OT AJ Arcuri, K Tanner Brown, OLB Daniel Hardy, DT Marquise Copeland, and RB Royce Freeman. Bruss, Rochell, Arcuri, and Hardy could find their way back on the practice squad but in the case of Bruss and Rochell, this is a tough beat for the scouting department.
*Bruss and Arcuri were added to the practice squad on Wednesday.
Bruss could never really crack any starting lineup in the pre-season as he’s been coming back from tearing his ACL in camp last year and he was playing out of position. He played right tackle in college and yet was being developed as a guard. It might not be fair but sadly the trade for Kevin Dotson sealed his fate as the Rams were scrambling for interior line depth. The Rams drafted Bruss out of need and yet were asking more of Bruss than was possible for any rookie.
Rochell showed promise as a rookie but injuries hurt his development and he still couldn’t find a place in a post-Jalen Ramsey world. The Rams bringing in Witherspoon while rolling with Cobie Durant, Tre Tomlinson turning heads in camp, and the use of Russ Yeast in dime packages hinted that he no longer had a place on the team. If both can develop on the practice squad then it’ll be for the best but it’s still sad that four picks from 2022 are no longer on the roster.
Copeland being gone is also another tough beat for the front office as they chose him over Greg Gaines and A’Shawn Robinson. Yes, Copeland was likely cheaper but if the Rams had been able to bring back Gaines then the front line would be in much better shape. Instead, the Rams are gambling on the Aaron Donald tide rising the inexperienced boats of Bobby Brown III, Kobie Turner, and a crew of very young players.
It’s clear the Rams will try to find veteran help elsewhere given the disastrous state of the pass-rush in the preseason. Many fans are thinking that the Rams are doing a more subtle job of tanking than the Cardinals but that’s not the story of this roster, nor is it all about the consequences of going “ALL IN”. No, the story of this roster is that their model is predicated on devoting resources to nabbing top talent and using their later picks on uncut gems. They’ve let gems such as Nick Scott and Greg Gaines go and are hoping Cobie Durant and Ernest Jones continue to develop, but by and large, they’ve only managed to dig up cubic zirconium and it’s come back to bite them.
Their defense was always going to be an adventure this season but now it’s clear that the offense will have to carry the day if the season is going to be any kind of success. Improvements on defense will come in 2024 once they have real picks and cap space, anything that happens this year will be a bonus.
Since 2018, the Rams drafts have been spotty at best and it’s a sign that Les Snead needs to both overhaul the team-building model and his scouting department. Today was a tough day for players, fans, and if they’re being honest; the front office. It doesn’t mean the Rams are going to be in “Faleb for Caleb” territory but it does mean retooling this team for one last ride in ’24 just got a lot harder.
*Ochaun Mathis will be moved to IR, and K Brett Maher was signed on Wednesday