Preseason game 1: O-line review

[Merlin]

Also of note is that the Rams ran quite a bit of power/duo. Here's a rare camera angle (preseason doesn't offer all 22 unfortunately sigh) so feel inclined to put this one up.

This one you see what Staley did a lot of on run downs, which is play two big DTs in 2T. Rams are gonna duo both of them and try to power that shit up the gut.

At the snap Jackson/Brewer have the left side 2T, and Shelton/Evans have the right. Anchrum is about to lay down an outside seal on the edge.

Once again you can see Brewer get stood up and lose the leverage game here. How this is supposed to look in duo is both those DTs should be knocked back off the ball. Doesn't look like that though. But at least the right side duo has their guy contained.

Funk stuttersteps as he considers bouncing it here which, tbh, he would have been better served hitting the hole with authority. But he's not really a power back type. Great play by the San Diego DT there, textbook handling of the double.

 

[Riverumbbq]

Well, ... the last time the Rams had pre-season games was in 2019, and many of us were thinking that there was little rhyme or reason for how the OL was deployed over those 4 games. The infamous Jamil Demby along with Evans, Edwards & Brewer played every position other than Center while Kolone and another terrible Center received the bulk of the playing time at pivot. The extra poor Center play forced the Rams to seek out Coleman Shelton as the 2019 pre-season was then wrapping, not exactly a huge upgrade, but still somewhat of an improvement. The continued use and ultimate assignment to the 53 roster for Demby had us questioning managements sanity. Evans & Edwards also had some pretty poor pre-season games, although Edwards ended up doing well playing RG for 10 games as a regular season starter while Evans held up pretty well starting at RT for 7 games when Havenstein went down. Noteboom, who began the 2019 season starting at LG, went down to injury and then our starting Center, Brian Allen, followed in quick succession, thus precipitating our trade for the then little known C/LG Austin Corbett. With Noteboom out, Brewer became our only back-up to Whitworth at LT, so he wasn't going to be risked anywhere else along the line.

Our starting 2019 OL went from :

LT Whitworth
LG Noteboom
C Allen
RG Blythe
RT Havenstein

to

LT Whitworth
LG Corbett
C Blythe
RG Edwards
RT Evans


Fast forward to 2021 and I'd say our projected starting lineup on the OL looks pretty good with :

LT Whitworth
LG Edwards
C Allen
RG Corbett
RT Havenstein

While Allen is understandably still a question mark in many fans minds, he did come into camp with a healthy & improved body make-up which should offer some optimism going forward. IMHO, it is Evans poor play at RG that forced the hand of management to switching Corbett back to RG.

After reading a lot of mixed reviews on Saturday's OL play, only Anchrum & Meredith really come out of this game with positive scores. I won't be too critical of an undrafted Alaric Jackson in his very first NFL action while playing at the most critical position for safeguarding the QB, there were pluses & minuses, like most rookies, he's a work in progress.
Brewer hasn't played in an NFL game since 2019, and he was then playing behind Whitworth at LT, so again, lets see how & where he plays against the Raiders next week before we crash his party.
Shelton played about how I expected, if we have to rely on him to start a regular season game due to an injury, we'll be in trouble.
RG was the biggest disappointment Imo, the Evans experiment as an OG should be over, start getting him snaps back at the one position he briefly shined at, RT.

For the Raiders game, i'd really like to see a personnel change for game 2, something more like :

LT Brewer & Jackson splitting snaps
LG Meredith gets the entire game
C Kolone & Shelton, I just wish there was a third alternative ...
RG Anchrum
RT Evans

If the 2021 pre-season games go anything like the 2019 games, I suspect we'll see game 3 with a different Oline-up than either of the first two.

jmo.

 

[CGI_Ram]

RG was the biggest disappointment Imo, the Evans experiment as an OG should be over, start getting him snaps back at the one position he briefly shined at, RT.

For the Raiders game, i'd really like to see a personnel change for game 2, something more like :

LT Brewer & Jackson splitting snaps
LG Meredith gets the entire game
C Kolone & Shelton, I just wish there was a third alternative ...
RG Anchrum
RT Evans

Meridith played RG, in this game, right? Wouldn’t you leave him there?

 

[Riverumbbq]

Meridith played RG, in this game, right? Wouldn’t you leave him there?

Yes, he played RG against the Chargers, and I'd move him over to LG for his next outing, ... after all, this is the pre-season and he's a rook, I want to see him play multiple positions to see how well & where he fits best. Hell, if he'd had any practical experience at Center, I'd stick him there also, for game 3. He's passed his first test, let's see what the kid's got ...
I doubt we'll be seeing him at Center this year, lol, or probably anywhere else for that matter unless there's an injury, but I think you know where I'm coming from as far as getting him some cross-training and expanding his skillset.
Should the Rams move players around as they did for the 2019 pre-season games, I'd expect to see him getting in on the action as well. jmo.

 

[Tano]

Well, ... the last time the Rams had pre-season games was in 2019, and many of us were thinking that there was little rhyme or reason for how the OL was deployed over those 4 games. The infamous Jamil Demby along with Evans, Edwards & Brewer played every position other than Center while Kolone and another terrible Center received the bulk of the playing time at pivot. The extra poor Center play forced the Rams to seek out Coleman Shelton as the 2019 pre-season was then wrapping, not exactly a huge upgrade, but still somewhat of an improvement. The continued use and ultimate assignment to the 53 roster for Demby had us questioning managements sanity. Evans & Edwards also had some pretty poor pre-season games, although Edwards ended up doing well playing RG for 10 games as a regular season starter while Evans held up pretty well starting at RT for 7 games when Havenstein went down. Noteboom, who began the 2019 season starting at LG, went down to injury and then our starting Center, Brian Allen, followed in quick succession, thus precipitating our trade for the then little known C/LG Austin Corbett. With Noteboom out, Brewer became our only back-up to Whitworth at LT, so he wasn't going to be risked anywhere else along the line.

Our starting 2019 OL went from :

LT Whitworth
LG Noteboom
C Allen
RG Blythe
RT Havenstein

to

LT Whitworth
LG Corbett
C Blythe
RG Edwards
RT Evans


Fast forward to 2021 and I'd say our projected starting lineup on the OL looks pretty good with :

LT Whitworth
LG Edwards
C Allen
RG Corbett
RT Havenstein

While Allen is understandably still a question mark in many fans minds, he did come into camp with a healthy & improved body make-up which should offer some optimism going forward. IMHO, it is Evans poor play at RG that forced the hand of management to switching Corbett back to RG.

After reading a lot of mixed reviews on Saturday's OL play, only Anchrum & Meredith really come out of this game with positive scores. I won't be too critical of an undrafted Alaric Jackson in his very first NFL action while playing at the most critical position for safeguarding the QB, there were pluses & minuses, like most rookies, he's a work in progress.
Brewer hasn't played in an NFL game since 2019, and he was then playing behind Whitworth at LT, so again, lets see how & where he plays against the Raiders next week before we crash his party.
Shelton played about how I expected, if we have to rely on him to start a regular season game due to an injury, we'll be in trouble.
RG was the biggest disappointment Imo, the Evans experiment as an OG should be over, start getting him snaps back at the one position he briefly shined at, RT.

For the Raiders game, i'd really like to see a personnel change for game 2, something more like :

LT Brewer & Jackson splitting snaps
LG Meredith gets the entire game
C Kolone & Shelton, I just wish there was a third alternative ...
RG Anchrum
RT Evans

If the 2021 pre-season games go anything like the 2019 games, I suspect we'll see game 3 with a different Oline-up than either of the first two.

jmo.

Center position is going to be weak if Allen goes down (and even then I am not sure about Allen) unless we can find someone else to play right guard instead of Corbett.

 

[Riverumbbq]

Center position is going to be weak if Allen goes down (and even then I am not sure about Allen) unless we can find someone else to play right guard instead of Corbett.

I believe management overestimated Evans' skill level and potential development at RG, and this throws whatever concept for a starting Olineup we had earlier anticipated out the window. Allen being reintroduced as our starting Center may or may not bring the hoped for benefits we all had in mind earlier, but if either he or Corbett go down to injury, we could be facing some serious depth repercussions.
As many here are seeking a veteran RB thru cuts/waiver to bolster depth due to the Akers injury, I also hope we can land a C/OG once teams start paring down their rosters, I just don't see either Shelton or Kolone as an answer, although I'm still holding out some hope that Anchrum might answer the call as the first man up at RG back-up. jmo.

 

[BonifayRam]

What we had in Bobby Evans is a 3rd yr OL'er selected in the 3rd round of the 2019 draft being highly counted on to be in 2021:

A). Off-season/ OTA's & minicamps....Work hard to improve to a much higher level of abilities as the starting RG so Corbett could start @ center. This was due to the Rams had their most seasoned & experienced nonstarter Joe Noteboom as the top swing reserve OT already in place.

That situation did not materialize as plan, so several weeks ago the Rams Org then moved in this direction for Bobby Evans to be ready when the regular season began to be the top swing 3rd interior OG to mainly back up RG Austin Corbett or David Edwards again.

The conclusion from the first 2021 preseason game is the Rams' most experienced OL'er that lined up & played against the Chargers is far from being what is needed to start for either of the Ram starting OG's.

The question can the Rams find what they need from their current OL roster who can take over for Bobby Evans's previously assigned mission & run with it & be successful?

 

[LARAMSinFeb.]

I believe management overestimated Evans' skill level and potential development at RG, and this throws whatever concept for a starting Olineup we had earlier anticipated out the window. Allen being reintroduced as our starting Center may or may not bring the hoped for benefits we all had in mind earlier, but if either he or Corbett go down to injury, we could be facing some serious depth repercussions.
As many here are seeking a veteran RB thru cuts/waiver to bolster depth due to the Akers injury, I also hope we can land a C/OG once teams start paring down their rosters, I just don't see either Shelton or Kolone as an answer, although I'm still holding out some hope that Anchrum might answer the call as the first man up at RG back-up. jmo.

I think we have 5 solid OL, and Anch's one of them. I don't even trust Noteboom.

 

[Merlin]

What we had in Booby Evans is a 3rd yr OL'er selected in the 3rd round of the 2019 draft being highly counted on to be in 2021:

Btw @BonifayRam you appear to have correct in our previous conversation re: Evans and future plans. That last outing showed a player who has not improved as much as we had been led to believe. So it follows that he is no given in next year's lineup and at this point I am definitely seeing things your way on that. Couldn't remember where you and I had that conversation so wanted to throw that out there while I'm thinking about it.

And also right now I'm thinking that Carberry missing time early in camp was a bigger issue than we realized. Had he been there from the first snaps maybe they see the truth quicker idk. And yes the lack of hitting in camps probably contributes here too, but not having him could not have helped all that.

Last but not least aside from Evans... I am actually sort of impressed by some of these guys. Anchrum obviously made the most of the look. Also @oldnotdead was not completely off his rocker on Jackson, who actually did some good things and personally I did not expect him to do anything other than get beat.

Re: some of the others like Brewer, someone mentioned his time off and that's a good point. This was just the first preseason game and he had a lot of rust to knock off. Maybe he gets better from here on out.

Shelton's another guy who played better than I expected. My expectations on him were turnstile blocks and mistakes on snaps.

One good thing in all this is that Staley gave our depth chart one hell of a workout. Those guys really got tested and maybe it pays off. For the Raiders game what I'd like to see is one move: swap Evans and Anchrum. Evans on the edge might be better off. Anchrum will still look good on the interior and that should help give our backfield guys more chance to do their thing in game 2.

 

[Tano]

One good thing in all this is that Staley gave our depth chart one hell of a workout. Those guys really got tested and maybe it pays off. For the Raiders game what I'd like to see is one move: swap Evans and Anchrum. Evans on the edge might be better off. Anchrum will still look good on the interior and that should help give our backfield guys more chance to do their thing in game 2.

I would really like if they did this.

I think Evans is a much much much better right tackle than guard. He will need help on pass rushers but will still be good in the run game.

 

[BonifayRam]

Btw @BonifayRam you appear to have been correct in our previous conversation re: Evans and future plans. That last outing showed a player who has not improved as much as we had been led to believe. So it follows that he is no given in next year's lineup and at this point I am definitely seeing things your way on that. Couldn't remember where you and I had that conversation so wanted to throw that out there while I'm thinking about it.

And also right now I'm thinking that Carberry missing time early in camp was a bigger issue than we realized. Had he been there from the first snaps maybe they see the truth quicker idk. And yes the lack of hitting in camps probably contributes here too, but not having him could not have helped all that.

Last but not least aside from Evans... I am actually sort of impressed by some of these guys. Anchrum obviously made the most of the look. Also @oldnotdead was not completely off his rocker on Jackson, who actually did some good things and personally I did not expect him to do anything other than get beat.

Re: some of the others like Brewer, someone mentioned his time off and that's a good point. This was just the first preseason game and he had a lot of rust to knock off. Maybe he gets better from here on out.

Shelton's another guy who played better than I expected. My expectations on him were turnstile blocks and mistakes on snaps.

One good thing in all this is that Staley gave our depth chart one hell of a workout. Those guys really got tested and maybe it pays off. For the Raiders game what I'd like to see is one move: swap Evans and Anchrum. Evans on the edge might be better off. Anchrum will still look good on the interior and that should help give our backfield guys more chance to do their thing in game 2.

It's been mentioned here in ROD but IOL'er Shelton has been dealing with a toe issue.

Yeah, I've been running off a lot (most not positive) about Bobby Evans for a long time. I just never saw in him what everybody else saw. @Merlin I found just a few examples of my ramblings on or about Evans below:

The state of the Los Angeles Rams offensive line heading into preseason action

State of the Los Angeles Rams offensive line heading into preseason action Is the offensive line actually a strength? By Christopher Daniel Aug 13, 2021 https://www.turfshowtimes.com/2021/8/13/22623085/los-angeles-rams-offensive-line-preseason-action Despite returning four starters on what...

ramsondemand.com

Rams Offensive Line 2021

This depth chart here breaks down The Rams offensive Line. https://theramswire.usatoday.com/lists/rams-nfl-draft-depth-chart-offense-defense-2021/

ramsondemand.com

The state of the Los Angeles Rams offensive line heading into preseason action

Now I'm starting to wonder if we might start missing Blythe. If Allen made the leap to being our best Center, that would be FANTASTIC, but I'm going to have to see it to believe it. I noticed in one of the videos today Staff was taking snaps from both Allen and Corbet side by side. He had to...

ramsondemand.com

Bobby Evans looks to prove that the LA Rams made a good choice in not drafting more competition

The following article is a year old… What do we have in Evans? Bobby Evans is getting his chance to start this year. https://www.turfshowtimes.com/2020/5/6/21248073/bobby-evans-rams-oklahoma-career-history-allen-kyler-murray Bobby Evans looks to prove that the LA Rams made a good choice in...

ramsondemand.com

Rams Offensive Line 2021

I would think that Allen is maxed out his 6-2 short frame at this time. I would imagine he is solid as granite going into OTA's & TC. Short framed OL'ers like Allen & Anchrum can be very effective in getting under larger taller D:'ers as we know....can they learn to be successful @ the NFL level...

ramsondemand.com

 

[BonifayRam]

I would really like if they did this.

I think Evans is a much much much better right tackle than guard. He will need help on pass rushers but will still be good in the run game.

Okay, I will agree with you here. But Snead only has so many OL positions available on that master roster...... do you really keep a single one post reserve RT let's say over a multiple positional OL'er (RT/LT/RG/LG) player like Anchrum?

We are discussing specifically the subject of the Right OT post, not the Left Tackle post where a 40 yr old Whitworth resides now but will retire after this season. The 29 yr old Havenstein is the RT starter & has been since he was drafted in 2015 & under contract for several more seasons.

Outside being an LT reserve being groomed to future starter do NFL teams usually keep "One Post OL'ers as one of their 3 or 4 reserves?

Would it be prudent to keep a "One Post RT" as a reserve when you already have another more experienced & better reserve OT standing on the sideline? Then add in the fact the Rams are presently & probably frantically looking for their Swing Reserve LG/RG & a reserve center, not a backup RT.

Rams Org. went out & signed two future OT's early this year in hopes to groom OT's for the future in Alaric Jackson & Max Pircher to work along with RT Tremayne Anchrum.

How many reserve OL positions can the Rams afford to give to coach Carberry & rob & steal from other units like the depleted injured CB's (Williams/Rochell) or OLB'er (Lewis) units?

 

[Tano]

Okay, I will agree with you here. But Snead only has so many OL positions available on that master roster...... do you really keep a single one post reserve RT let's say over a multiple positional OL'er (RT/LT/RG/LG) player like Anchrum?

We are discussing specifically the subject of the Right OT post, not the Left Tackle post where a 40 yr old Whitworth resides now but will retire after this season. The 29 yr old Havenstein is the RT starter & has been since he was drafted in 2015 & under contract for several more seasons.

Outside being an LT reserve being groomed to future starter do NFL teams usually keep "One Post OL'ers as one of their 3 or 4 reserves?

Would it be prudent to keep a "One Post RT" as a reserve when you already have another more experienced & better reserve OT standing on the sideline? Then add in the fact the Rams are presently & probably frantically looking for their Swing Reserve LG/RG & a reserve center, not a backup RT.

Rams Org. went out & signed two future OT's early this year in hopes to groom OT's for the future in Alaric Jackson & Max Pircher to work along with RT Tremayne Anchrum.

How many reserve OL positions can the Rams afford to give to coach Carberry & rob & steal from other units like the depleted CB or OLB'er units?

I would keep Anchrum Noteboom Evans and Brewer as the back-ups (Evans is a game day inactive since he is primarily a back-up to Havenstein if he gets hurt)

Corbett can be the backup center if Allen goes down

Put Jackson Pircher and Shelton/Kolone (one of those two) on the PS

 

[Riverumbbq]

Re: some of the others like Brewer, someone mentioned his time off and that's a good point. This was just the first preseason game and he had a lot of rust to knock off. Maybe he gets better from here on out.

As far as Brewer goes, rust may be somewhat of a factor, but he was also the only starting OLineman in this game who was playing outside of his regular position. The last time Brewer played at LG was a few snaps during the 2019 pre-season, since then and throughout the 2019 regular season he's been a back-up LT. With Noteboom again healthy and Alaric Jackson presumably fighting to nail down a #3 LT role, perhaps we'll see Brewer in a real competition with Meredith for a swing job, one where Brewer might back-up an OT, LG or RG eventually, while Meredith might one day vie to become a swing RG, LG & Center.
If Whitworth does indeed retire following the 2021 season, having increased competition at LT along with no 2022 1'st round draft picks becomes a bit more dire for the position.
I'm just speculating here, hard to say how any of this plays out at this point, but the Evans demotion coupled Whitworth's imminent departure along with Allen's quick ascent to starter status again raises more questions going forward about the future of this OL. jmo.

 

[BonifayRam]

I would keep Anchrum Noteboom Evans and Brewer as the back-ups (Evans is a game day inactive since he is primarily a back-up to Havenstein if he gets hurt)

Corbett can be the backup center if Allen goes down

Put Jackson Pircher and Shelton/Kolone (one of those two) on the PS

Good afternoon Tano! Thanks for the quick return. I have what looks like a hurricane Fred coming right in over top of us so I am shut up inside for the rest of the day.

So you would go with 9 OL'ers on Master Roster. I agree with your number of OL'ers. I might have some heartburn keeping primarily four OT's as the Rams reserves myself.

If I had to make that decision right this moment.......{#6 Swing OT- J.Noteboom} {#7 Swing OT/OG- Anchrum} {#8 Swing OC/OG -Shelton} & {#9 Swing OC/OG -Meredith}. If Shelton does not have a much better showing in the next preseason game I might cut him for Chandler Brewer. I am concerned much more about that Ram interior OL than the exterior.

 

[Merlin]

I would keep Anchrum Noteboom Evans and Brewer as the back-ups (Evans is a game day inactive since he is primarily a back-up to Havenstein if he gets hurt)

Corbett can be the backup center if Allen goes down

Put Jackson Pircher and Shelton/Kolone (one of those two) on the PS

That's the 4 depth I have in mind for a roster strength of 9. Whit, Edwards, Allen, Corbs, Hav, Anchrum, Boom, Evans, Brewer. Evans makes it because of his draft status. Brewer because of his size and strength compared to the others below him on the chart.

How that 10th OL will compare to the final WR or RB or whatever will probably come down to special teams.

And btw guys like Jackson can change all that by continued improvement through these preseason games. These games really are important to our future on that line that's for sure.

 

[Tano]

Good afternoon Tano! Thanks for the quick return. I have what looks like a hurricane Fred coming right in over top of us so I am shut up inside for the rest of the day.

So you would go with 9 OL'ers on Master Roster. I agree with your number of OL'ers. I might have some heartburn keeping primarily four OT's as the Rams reserves myself.

If I had to make that decision right this moment.......{#6 Swing OT- J.Noteboom} {#7 Swing OT/OG- Anchrum} {#8 Swing OC/OG -Shelton} & {#9 Swing OC/OG -Meredith}. If Shelton does not have a much better showing in the next preseason game I might cut him for Chandler Brewer. I am concerned much more about that Ram interior OL than the exterior.

Oops I forgot Meredith - damn it - do I keep him or Evans now or put Brewer on the PS and hope nobody picks him up

Just an FYI - I was definitely thinking that Anchrum or Brewer could be the back-up guards

 

[Riverumbbq]

That's the 4 depth I have in mind for a roster strength of 9. Whit, Edwards, Allen, Corbs, Hav, Anchrum, Boom, Evans, Brewer. Evans makes it because of his draft status. Brewer because of his size and strength compared to the others below him on the chart.

How that 10th OL will compare to the final WR or RB or whatever will probably come down to special teams.

And btw guys like Jackson can change all that by continued improvement through these preseason games. These games really are important to our future on that line that's for sure.

Same as my own current list. Alaric Jackson & Meredith have great potential going forward, but they both need a year of strength training & good coaching before they are ready for prime time, ... imo. These two guys go straight to the practice squad.
It's difficult for me to look at Evans name here as sticking to the roster, but he's definitely on a bubble, and if he doesn't pick things up quickly, as long as Anchrum keeps playing well, Evans could quickly find himself in the team dumpster. I'd also like to improve on Shelton/Kolone with a vet cut pick-up for a different practice squad Center, although Shelton does know the calls. jmo.

 

[Rams43]

I like the suggestion made whereby Anchrum moves inside to RG and Evans gets a shot at RT in this upcoming Raiders ps game.

It would give the coaches invaluable info as to Evans’ Ram future. Meaning that Evans probably has no Rams future other than at RT, so it’s sink or swim time for him there.

Anchrum might just really prove valuable as a swing OG or OT. Hell, he might even be a potential OC down the road. But the thing is for right now whether Evans and Anchrum could thrive at RT and RG, respectively. If either or both can then the coaches’ cutdown choices become so much easier.

But if Evans struggles at RT too, then I think the Rams would probably want to move on from him.

I will say that I’m getting the impression that Carberry is a coach that doesn’t have ‘favorites’ and genuinely wants to start the Best 5 and keep the Best 9 on his roster. That’s a great quality in an asst coach for McVay.

There were whispers that Kromer kinda had his favorites to the detriment of the overall OL good.

 

[fanotodd]

Riverrumbbq:

I think you’re spot on when it comes to your take on the OL, I just don’t see moving Anchrum to Guard in anticipation of Evans bottoming out. Havs may end up playing his way outta LA and into a fat contract elsewhere. I’d like to see Anchrum get as many real game reps vs non-Rams as possible right now. It would be a major plus if he plays well enough to convince the Rams he can take over the job next season.

Meredith to LG though, is a different story. Cross training him to potentially be the swing guard would be invaluable should he prove up to the task. It would mean no more Noteboom at Guard and Evans would not necessarily be the next man up.

Going forward, a 2022 OL entering the draft that already featured Noteboom (LT), Edwards (LG), Allen (C), Corbett (RG), and Anchrum (LT) with Meredith as interior depth and Jackson and Evans backing up the tackles would not be a lousy spot to be in.