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After key departures, is the Rams’ offensive line strong enough?
By Vincent Bonsignore May 7, 2019
As the Rams’ scouting staff evaluated defensive line prospects in the 2018 draft class, especially those playing in the Big 12, it was standard routine upon locking in on a particular player for someone to say: “Let’s see how he did against Joe.”
That meant TCU left tackle Joe Noteboom, who had emerged as a draft favorite of the Rams — and specifically offensive line coach Aaron Kromer — after a dominating performance at the Senior Bowl. So much so that he also became a measuring stick by which they assessed other prospects.
“Because Noteboom locked people down,” said Rams senior personnel executive Brian Xanders. “He repeatedly shut people down.”
The way the Rams saw it, if the prospect fared well against Noteboom, it was a pretty good clue he was legit.
The Rams are about to find out if all their conviction in Noteboom is warranted. After making him their first selection in the 2018 draft — in the third round, with the 89th pick overall — and then playing him sparingly during a rookie season in which he largely developed behind the scenes, the Rams are counting on Noteboom to take ownership of the left guard job vacated by Rodger Saffold, their longest-tenured player and a respected anchor on one of the best offensive lines in the NFL.
Noteboom played only 79 non-special teams snaps last year, 46 of which came at left tackle in relief of Andrew Whitworth in the last game of the season. The others came in spot appearances across five other games.
Now he’s in line to replace one of the best guards in the NFL.
It’s one of two huge holes the Rams are trying to fill along an offensive line that enjoyed uncommon health and consistency the last two years and, not coincidentally, provided the sturdy foundation on which the highest-scoring offense in the NFL operated.
Jared Goff could count on a whole bunch of things while taking the field each week alongside one of the most dangerous offenses in football, not the least of which was being protected by one of the most-experienced offensive lines in the NFL. And overwhelmingly, it was the same five linemen each and every game.
That won’t be the case this year — at least in terms of experience.
In addition to losing Saffold to free agency, the Rams also released John Sullivan, their starting center the last two seasons. Sullivan’s level of play took a noticeable dip last year, but he still provided a dependable voice and much-needed wisdom inside the locker room and at the line of scrimmage, where he was responsible for communicating blocking calls. There was a nuanced value to Sullivan that isn’t easily replicated.
Brian Allen, a fourth-round pick out of Michigan State last year, will get the first crack at replacing Sullivan. He’s a wide, rugged, sturdy brawler whose base power holds up well at the point of attack. His strength and street fight should mitigate some of the pressure opposing defenses were generating along the interior of the line late last year, but there will be a learning curve relative to the intricacies of playing center.
And while there is hope that Noteboom and Allen will make seamless transitions to their starting roles — and expedite the transition process of replacing two-fifths of the offensive line — there is no getting around the fact that the departures of Saffold and Sullivan mean 19 years of experience just walked out the door.
To replace it, the Rams are counting on two players with a combined 116 NFL snaps.
And until Noteboom and Allen prove capable, it’s fair to wonder how much fire the Rams are playing with as they prepare to defend their NFC championship.
Here is a look at how the Rams offensive line looks heading into the summer.
The starters
The Rams caught a break when Whitworth announced he’d be back for another year, as it eliminated the potential need to either replace the entire left side of the line or make the difficult decision to let outside linebacker Dante Fowler Jr. walk in order to retain Saffold.
The Rams eventually will have to replace Whitworth — most likely by sliding Noteboom from guard back to his more natural left tackle position — but thankfully that’s a challenge for a different day. That means Goff’s backside will be protected by one of the best in the business in Whitworth, and Noteboom can ease into a starting role while playing alongside a dependable veteran.
In spite of battling through some injuries, Whitworth graded out even better last year than he did the season before, according to Pro Football Focus, and finished as the third-ranked tackle in the NFL. So while he’s approaching age 38 and his 14th NFL season, his level of play is holding up extraordinarily well.
Right tackle Rob Havenstein, whom the Rams rewarded with a long-term contract extension last summer, is coming off his best statistical season while finishing with the seventh-highest grade among tackles by PFF. No other NFL team had two tackles ranked among the top seven by PFF, and only the Saints had two within the top 10.
Austin Blythe, who beat out Jamon Brown for the right guard position last year, finished 2018 as PFF’s 12th-ranked guard. That said, Blythe has considerable room to grow and needs to develop more consistency. That was an issue across the second half of last season, and specifically in losses against the Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles and in the Super Bowl against the Patriots, when he yielded far too much ground to defenders in both the run and pass games.
Blythe’s challenge moving forward is to consistently replicate his divisional-round playoff performance against the Dallas Cowboys, arguably his best game of the year. If so, he’ll take a major step forward.
The uncertainty is at center and left guard, where Allen and Noteboom are being counted on to fill some very big shoes. The Rams drafted both players with this situation very much in mind, knowing Noteboom would fill a starting role at guard or tackle as early as 2019 and that Allen, a favorite of general manager Les Snead during the 2018 draft evaluation process, would be groomed to take over for Sullivan at some point.
While neither player got extensive playing time last year, they both played relatively well. Noteboom graded out much better as a pass-blocker than a run-blocker according to PFF — 88.8 to 62.7 in his 79 overall snaps — which is not surprising given he played in a pass-heavy offense at TCU. His task ahead is to improve his run-block mark, and he possesses all the necessary tools to be a formidable force in that part of the game.
Allen’s most-extensive action came in the regular-season finale against the San Francisco 49ers, when he played 18 snaps at center and graded out at a respectable 70.7 by PFF. Like Noteboom, Allen fared better against the pass than the run, but given his strength, skill set and competitiveness, he’s got a chance to develop into an effective run blocker. If he can conquer the mental aspects of the position, he’s got a chance to provide an upgrade over Sullivan in time.
“The really good thing about those two players in particular and the way we were able to do it is, we were able to draft them a year earlier than we expected them to contribute for us — and both of them did,” Snead said. “They both have played at this point in time. But the nice thing about that is it gives them a chance to get into Sean (McVay)’s system and then (Aaron Kromer) to do his magic developing them, so when you do ‘call their name,’ per se, they’re ready or more ready than they would’ve been as a rookie. So, that’s the benefit of being able to do that.”
Said McVay: “When you look at where we are at offensively, we feel really good about Brian Allen and Joe Noteboom stepping up into big-time roles this year.”
The reserves
The departures of Sullivan and Saffold and the expected promotions of Allen and Noteboom resulted in a major hit to the Rams’ depth. And it means they’ll be relying mostly on rookies and inexperienced veterans for backup support.
In fact, only G/T Jamil Demby, C/G Aaron Neary and G Jeremiah Kolone return from last year’s regular and practice squad rosters to compete for reserve roles in 2019. That means 2019 draft picks Bobby Evans (T, Oklahoma) and David Edwards (T, Wisconsin) have real opportunities to win jobs in training camp. The Rams also signed undrafted free agents Chandler Brewer (G, Middle Tennessee), Brandon Hitner (G, Villanova) and center Vitas Hrynkiewicz (Youngstown State) to add to the competition.
Of that group, only Neary has played a regular-season NFL game, and that was in 2017.
Given the fact that only three of their five offensive linemen — at this point — have starting experience in the NFL and the backups have appeared in just one game, you’d be hard-pressed to find a more inexperienced group from top to bottom in the NFL.
The coach
Even with this obvious level of inexperience along the offensive line, there is a reason the Rams aren’t freaking out. Well, three actually.
First and foremost, the starting group is bookended by two of the best tackles in the NFL in Whitworth and Havenstein, both of whom are willing and gracious veterans with a knack for helping teammates in the classroom, locker room and on the field. That will play well with a group as green as the Rams, and a starting unit that has to blend two new players into the fold as quickly as possible. Whitworth and Havenstein will be critical to that process in setting a tone of communication and accountability.
“I think the rapport that these guys play with up front — I know it’s not under-appreciated in our building – but, I think the continuity that we’ve been able to sustain has been really instrumental in a lot of the success that we’ve had,” McVay said. “You look at a Brian Allen and Joe Noteboom potentially playing at a different spot — and Coach Kromer does a great job moving guys around — but, it’s getting a feel if it’s playing that left guard spot, the rapport with Andrew Whitworth. It’s Joe getting a feel for playing next to Brian Allen or whatever it is. It’s Austin Blythe and Brian getting comfortable playing with one another, the communication the way that they work in unison.
“Those five guys are really a unit and their ability to work in coordination, to understand the calls, the different things that take place, really, outside of what we’re exposed to as coaches is something that’s going to be fun watching it evolve. I think what’s been special about that group up front is really the ownership that they’ve taken in terms of what we’re trying to get done offensively and then taking it to a whole new level. So just the experience factor is going to be big. It’s going to be something that we’ll get a feel for as it progresses. We have a foundational outline of what we want it to look like, but then really the players take it to the heights or the levels that you want it to, hopefully, when they take that ownership on.”
Just as importantly, the confidence the organization has in Kromer to identify and develop talent, and then mold that individual talent into an effective group, greatly reduces the level of angst. Keep in mind the 2017 hiring of Kromer, as respected a talent evaluator, teacher and tactician as there is in the NFL, coincided with the turnaround of the Rams’ offensive line from the worst in the league to one of the best. That is not a coincidence.
Aside from Havenstein, whose arrival pre-dated Kromer by two years, every lineman on the offensive line is here primarily due to a vote of confidence from Kromer.
That includes the members of this year’s draft and undrafted free-agent classes, all of whom come to Kromer as pieces of clay to be sculpted and molded over the next four months into potentially reliable contributors. That means not getting too locked into positions, either. When you learn under Kromer, it’s best to embrace mobility and versatility. He usually figures out the right place for you.
Havenstein and Brown flip-flopped positions during the 2017 offseason before Kromer settled on Havenstein as his right tackle. Saffold was moved up and down the line of scrimmage until Kromer came aboard and made him the full-time left guard. Blythe was a center in college and with the Indianapolis Colts during part of the 2017 season, but Kromer saw a potential starting right guard when the Rams claimed him off waivers. Demby and Noteboom have trained at both tackle and guard under Kromer. Allen has trained at guard and center.
“I always say, when you bring a guy to Coach Kromer, there’s no one position with him,” Snead said. “He may start at this position on the first series and then three series later, he went from right tackle to left guard. I think that’s a really great quality with Coach Kromer is he definitely throws them in the fire, allows them to get a feel for what it’s like getting in stances from different sides of the ball, whether you’re outside or inside and how you think in that. He gets a feel for who can truly, truly be a versatile lineman. The goal is to get those guys and be as versatile as possible.”
In summary
The Rams absolutely have their work cut out for them in getting Noteboom and Allen up to speed as full-time starters. They are both highly regarded inside the Rams’ building and possess all the necessary skills to be effective NFL players. But there are no guarantees it all works out. Given how lofty the Rams’ aspirations are for 2019, they are walking a bit of a tightrope.
Just as important, the Rams face a challenge making sure their inexperienced backups can step in and produce when called upon. That process kicks into high gear over the next month as the Rams continue their offseason program ahead of the start of training camp in July.
Nevertheless, they have established an effective infrastructure to help ensure their objectives are met.
One way or another, in a season of high expectations, it will be a fascinating subplot to keep an eye on.
