Getty A quartet of Los Angeles Rams defenders tackle Cole Beasley of the Buffalo Bills during a 2020 regular season game. Last year, Pro Football Focus listed the Rams as having the league's 22nd best roster. But the 2021 roster rankings showed a significant jump the Rams made.
The Los Angeles Rams have a playoff ready roster, but do they have the most Super Bowl ready one established with training camp later this month?
Through all the aggressive moves during the offseason and in examining the current players, the Rams have the league’s seventh best roster according to Pro Football Focus, with the analytics site announcing its roster rankings for each team on July 1.
The top-10 rosters in the NFL, per @PFF_Linsey
How would you rank them?
It’s a major leapfrog for the Rams from a year ago. Before the 2020 season, the Rams were labeled as having the league’s 22nd best roster by PFF.
This time, with the Rams coming in at No. 7, L.A. is the highest ranked NFC West team – making them the favorite to claim the division crown per PFF analytics. No other divisional foe came in the top 10 and the closest one to the Rams were the San Francisco 49ers at No. 11 overall.
Strengths and Weaknesses Facing the Rams
Surprise surprise, PFF cited Aaron Donald first as a reason behind the Rams’ strengths. The analytics site called Donald the No. 1 overall player for the fifth straight season on June 25 with PFF’s Ben Linsey writing “The Rams have the best player in the NFL, regardless of position, on their roster.”
However, Linsey and PFF pointed out the biggest weakness residing on the defensive side of the ball, where the Rams produced the league’s best unit in 2020. The football kryptonite for the Rams? The linebackers. Here’s what Linsey wrote:
“Micah Kiser, Troy Reeder and Kenny Young each played roughly 500 defensive snaps for Los Angeles last season. They combined for an overall grade of 41.9 at the off-ball linebacker position, which ranked 28th among all 32 defenses. The Rams will return Travin Howard from injury and add third-round pick Ernest Jones to the mix, but it still projects as one of the weaker groups across the league.”
Turns out in last year’s PFF report, the site mentioned the LB unit as the biggest weakness there, saying “The Rams lack experience at linebacker in a major way,” and “There are other options — including Troy Reeder and Kenny Young — but none of those guys gets you excited. It will have to be a committee approach to replace the production that Cory Littleton gave the defense, particularly in coverage.”
Reeder and Young, however, established themselves as starters and witnessed a statistical elevation in their tackle totals in 2020, collecting 81 and 52, respectively, after settling for 58 and four the previous season. Reeder added three sacks as well to the Rams’ D last season.
The other dilemma facing the Rams? The secondary. Granted, Jalen Ramsey and Darious Williams put together strong campaigns a year ago, with the latter representing one of three Rams defenders with a player grade higher than 80 by PFF. But Linsey writes the Rams may face issues with their six-defensive back looks in certain situations.
“The losses of Troy Hill and John Johnson III (both signed with the Cleveland Browns) in free agency make it harder to rely on dime packages, as well,” Linsey wrote.
The ‘X-Factor’ for the Rams
Last year, the offensive line received the “X-Factor” label in determining the Rams’ success. Now, it’s who lines up behind the center.
That’s right, quarterback play is the proverbial “X-Factor” for 2021.
The Rams aggressively traded for Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford, exchanging Jared Goff for him back in January. The move was praised by most pundits and Ram fans and has been considered one of the better free agent moves this offseason, but it’s definitely going to be viewed as the one offseason move that could make or break the Rams. Linsey wrote:
“Jared Goff flashed high-end play when things were running smoothly but struggled to improvise and elevate McVay’s offense. The Rams bet two first-round picks that Matthew Stafford can. Stafford graded in the 73rd percentile of qualifying quarterbacks when under pressure last season, while Goff finished in just the 14th percentile.”
Who came in at No. 1 and No. 2 in the roster rankings? That would be last year’s Super Bowl champions the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the runner-up the Kansas City Chiefs, meaning that’s who PFF believes will play for the title in the Rams’ home stadium SoFi in February.
But, with an upgrade at QB, new weapons at wide receiver and PFF’s best player spearheading last year’s top D, those elements point to the Rams potentially climbing up from their No. 7 spot by season’s end.