Getty Tanner Ingle blitzes and sacks Max Duggan on August 12, 2023.
It’s the season of downsizing across the NFL including the Los Angeles Rams. And on Monday, August 28 plus one day before teams across the league begin their process of finalizing the final 53-man roster, the Rams waived safety Tanner Ingle per Matt Lombardo of FanBuzz.
Lombardo, though, says that the Rams may not be done with the hard-nosed safety just yet.
“But, after a strong preseason where he flashed when blitzing, L.A. hopes to keep him on the practice squad,” Lombardo shared.
Ingle Brought Flair for Physicality in August Contests
As the Rams — from general manager Les Snead to head coach Sean McVay all the way to the entire front office — spent their August evaluating rookies, it’s likely they wrote down how physical Ingle was on the field.
After all, they received a front row view of Ingle’s destruction on blitzes as seen here versus the L.A. Chargers.
Rookie-on-rookie crime:
Rams undrafted rookie Tanner Ingle blows up Chargers seventh-round pick Max Duggan for a sack to end the third quarter. Ingle was always a missile at NC State.
Ingle blows up Chargers rookie quarterback Max Duggan on the designed safety blitz.
But before suiting up for the Rams, Ingle brought this kind of crash and smash toward the line of scrimmage:
Tanner Ingle! 😤😤🔨🔨
That type of brute force did enough to convince the Rams to lure him in as an undrafted free agent on April 29 following the NFL Draft.
Examining the Rest of the Safety Room, Plus How Ingle Fits if Lured Back
Again, while Ingle was waived, he can still rejoin the Rams once he clears waivers.
And in looking at the safety room for this upcoming season, it’s a position group that could still use depth — let alone a future special teams option given Ingle’s aggression level.
The Rams managed to bring back beloved fan favorite safety John Johnson III toward the end of training camp. Johnson was previously with the Cleveland Browns, where he racked up 101 tackles in his final season with the team before his release. The 27-year-old Johnson, though, has 350 total tackles in a Rams uniform from 2017 to 2020.
Johnson, per McVay following the Raiders preseason loss in Week 2 of the preseason, says Johnson is getting back into football shape in his return to the “Rams House.” While McVay says Johnson is in physical shape through weight room work, it’s getting reacclimated with football field work on Johnson’s end.
Meanwhile in the safety room, free safety and 2021 captain Jordan Fuller is another making his trek back from injury. Fuller was limited in 2022 due to a hamstring ailment. Before that, he had started in 28 games his first two seasons and snatched four interceptions with nine pass breakups.
The Rams have sounded high on 2022 day three draft selection Quentin Lake — who established himself as a late starter for the Rams and saw action in nine total games. Now, with leading tacklers Nick Scott and Taylor Rapp gone, the son of the multiple Pro Bowler for the Pittsburgh Steelers Carnell will aim to crack the starting lineup full time. Lake delivered three tackles in both Week 2 and Week 3 preseason games.
Every NFL team, including the Rams, has until 4 p.m. ET (1 p.m. PT for the Rams) to finalize their final rosters. And then add extra players to their practice squad.