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- May 9, 2018
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Last year at this time, we were wondering what the Rams were going to do about two key defensive starters, Corey Littleton and Dante Fowler, both of whom were UFAs.
The concern seemed significant. Littleton was the team's leading tackler with 134 stops, and also contributed 9 PDs, 2 FFs, 4 FRs, 2 INTs, and 3.5 sacks. Fowler was "Robin" to Aaron Donald's "Batman" as a pass rusher, with 11.5 sacks, 16 QB hits, and 2 FFs.
In the end, the Rams chose to retain neither, allowing Littleton to sign with the Raiders, while Fowler signed with the Falcons.
And its not as though the Rams brought in "sure things" to replace them. For Littleton's spot, the Rams penciled in Micah Kiser, an untested mid-round pick. At edge rusher, the Rams took a flyer on Leonard Floyd, who had averaged less than 5 sacks/year in his first four seasons.
The result, of course, was great. The Rams didn't miss a beat and, in fact, improved on defense in pretty much every category. Meanwhile, both Littleton and Fowler now appear overpaid.
So here we are, a year later, with a similar dilemma: do we re-sign (assuming we can find sufficient $ to do so) John Johnson and/or Leonard Floyd.
Perhaps history is repeating itself. Perhaps the best move is to save our money (maybe use what we have on the OL) and to trust that we can find another edge who can excel with Donald taking up multiple blockers, and a safety (who may already be on the roster) who can be effective with Jalen Ramsey locking down top WRs each week.
The bar has been set at a high level for the defense but, perhaps, a "next man up" approach is the most prudent. Or, is it possible that financially prompted attrition will finally catch up with the defense and, if JJ and Floyd to leave, we'll see it take a big step backwards?
I don't know the answer. Hopefully, Sean McVay, Les Snead and Raheem Morris get this one right.
The concern seemed significant. Littleton was the team's leading tackler with 134 stops, and also contributed 9 PDs, 2 FFs, 4 FRs, 2 INTs, and 3.5 sacks. Fowler was "Robin" to Aaron Donald's "Batman" as a pass rusher, with 11.5 sacks, 16 QB hits, and 2 FFs.
In the end, the Rams chose to retain neither, allowing Littleton to sign with the Raiders, while Fowler signed with the Falcons.
And its not as though the Rams brought in "sure things" to replace them. For Littleton's spot, the Rams penciled in Micah Kiser, an untested mid-round pick. At edge rusher, the Rams took a flyer on Leonard Floyd, who had averaged less than 5 sacks/year in his first four seasons.
The result, of course, was great. The Rams didn't miss a beat and, in fact, improved on defense in pretty much every category. Meanwhile, both Littleton and Fowler now appear overpaid.
So here we are, a year later, with a similar dilemma: do we re-sign (assuming we can find sufficient $ to do so) John Johnson and/or Leonard Floyd.
Perhaps history is repeating itself. Perhaps the best move is to save our money (maybe use what we have on the OL) and to trust that we can find another edge who can excel with Donald taking up multiple blockers, and a safety (who may already be on the roster) who can be effective with Jalen Ramsey locking down top WRs each week.
The bar has been set at a high level for the defense but, perhaps, a "next man up" approach is the most prudent. Or, is it possible that financially prompted attrition will finally catch up with the defense and, if JJ and Floyd to leave, we'll see it take a big step backwards?
I don't know the answer. Hopefully, Sean McVay, Les Snead and Raheem Morris get this one right.
