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By: Steve Rebeiro | 21 minutes ago
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
When you have 90 players on a roster to start the preseason, everybody is out there for a different reason. Some guys are looking to prove they deserve to start. Others are fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster. Star players will use it as a time to work themselves back into playing form. On the opposite end of the spectrum, camp bodies with no chance of making the roster will be trying to earn a look from other teams or a spot on the practice squad.
For the majority of the roster, the first preseason game is a big deal. It’s a time to shine against real NFL players. Even if the best of the best aren’t out there, this is where teams work out the fringes of their roster and get a feel for how the depth chart will play itself out.
The first preseason game doesn’t mean everything record-wise. But it certainly means a lot for plenty of players on the team. Here are five guys who need to prove themselves and shine in Oakland later this week.
WR KhaDarel Hodge
Injuries led to Hodge being called up from the practice squad to the main roster early last season. A big reason Hodge was even on the practice squad to begin with was his stellar play in the preseason. Hodge was easily the most impressive Ram on the offensive side of the football last August, and his incredible reception on a lofty Sean Mannion deep ball was the play of the summer for the Rams.
Unfortunately for Hodge, he didn’t get much of a chance to prove himself last season, and is right back on the roster bubble again. The Rams are loaded at receiver. With Robert Woods, Brandin Cooks, Cooper Kupp, Josh Reynolds, and return specialist JoJo Natson locked into roster spots, it’s likely that the team only keeps one more receiver to round out a six-man core.
Fourth-year wideout Mike Thomas seems to be the early favorite after a stellar camp so far. Both Thomas and Hodge will be receivers to watch this preseason. Hodge needs to deliver another incredible summer to force the Rams into a tough decision.
It’s possible that the team would keep both guys, but it seems unlikely given how strong the top four receivers are.
ILB Micah Kiser
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Kiser became the de facto starting inside linebacker after the Rams cut Mark Barron last offseason. While it seemed unlikely that anybody would even challenge for the job, veteran reserve Bryce Hager has been making a push for the job. The Rams have been allowing the two to split first-team reps so far this offseason.
Why wouldn’t the team want to make it interesting? Kiser has yet to prove much of anything as a Ram. It makes sense to give Hager, a guy who’s been with the team since St. Louis, a fair shake at the starting job.
Still, the Rams have Kiser locked up for a few more years and it seems like it’s his job to lose. He needs to be a tackling machine this preseason. The Rams will be looking to Kiser to be a reliable run-stopping tackler if he’s named the starter come September. All he needs to do is prove that he can be. A nice start against Oakland would go a long way.
RB Justin Davis
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Davis was able to overcome the odds and make the Rams 53-man roster as an undrafted free agent in 2017. He did it yet again last year, sneaking onto the roster as the team’s fourth running back after a stellar preseason. Despite touching the ball just twice last season, Davis was still able to nearly triple the number of games he appeared in thanks to his role on special teams.
The odds are once again stacked against Davis to make the roster. The Rams have three stone-cold locks at the position with Darrell Henderson entering the mix. John Kelly seems much more likely to be the team’s fourth running back than Davis. If he wants to have a chance to make the roster, Davis is going to have to have one hell of a preseason.
His best shot to get work will be against the Raiders. It’s unlikely that Malcolm Brown will get much, if any, work in the team’s first preseason game, and they’re not going to rush right into it with Henderson. This will be Davis’s best chance to get a good amount of touches. He needs to, literally and figuratively, take the ball and run with it this week.
NT Sebastian Joseph-Day
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Out of the four second-year Rams taking over starting jobs in 2019, Joseph-Day feels like the unlikeliest of the bunch. The 2018 sixth-round pick is slated to fill the void on the defensive line left by Ndamukong Suh and start at nose tackle.
Unlike Kiser, who has a veteran special-teamer trying to take his job, Joseph-Day has fourth-round rookie waiting patiently behind him on the depth chart. Many expected Gaines to enter the season as the starting nose tackle. It’s still not out of the question.
Joseph-Day needs to prove that he deserves to be the starter. If Gaines impresses, the tide will shift quickly in his favor. Joseph-Day needs to show out and prove that he deserves to be the man in the middle on this defensive line. A hot start against Oakland could go a long way.
OL Jamil Demby
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Demby was a sixth-round pick for the Rams last season and had an impressive camp. He quickly became a favorite among Rams fans. So much that when he was unceremoniously cut early in the season, you would have thought the Rams season was over based on some of the Twitter reactions.
Demby was claimed off waivers by the Lions, who then signed him to the practice squad after waiving him in September. The Rams decided to sign him from Detroit’s practice squad, adding him to their active roster. Now, Demby has a chance to earn the role as the first man off the bench in a thin offensive line rotation. He’s currently listed as the backup LG on the team’s unofficial depth chart.
The Rams thought highly enough of Demby to bring him back into the fold, but that doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed to make the roster. Last season proved that. Demby needs to assert himself with a strong preseason, especially out of the left guard spot. He needs to show the Rams that they made a mistake by cutting him.
https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2019/08/08/nfl-rams-raiders-preseason-players-shine/
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
When you have 90 players on a roster to start the preseason, everybody is out there for a different reason. Some guys are looking to prove they deserve to start. Others are fighting for a spot on the 53-man roster. Star players will use it as a time to work themselves back into playing form. On the opposite end of the spectrum, camp bodies with no chance of making the roster will be trying to earn a look from other teams or a spot on the practice squad.
For the majority of the roster, the first preseason game is a big deal. It’s a time to shine against real NFL players. Even if the best of the best aren’t out there, this is where teams work out the fringes of their roster and get a feel for how the depth chart will play itself out.
The first preseason game doesn’t mean everything record-wise. But it certainly means a lot for plenty of players on the team. Here are five guys who need to prove themselves and shine in Oakland later this week.
WR KhaDarel Hodge
Injuries led to Hodge being called up from the practice squad to the main roster early last season. A big reason Hodge was even on the practice squad to begin with was his stellar play in the preseason. Hodge was easily the most impressive Ram on the offensive side of the football last August, and his incredible reception on a lofty Sean Mannion deep ball was the play of the summer for the Rams.
Unfortunately for Hodge, he didn’t get much of a chance to prove himself last season, and is right back on the roster bubble again. The Rams are loaded at receiver. With Robert Woods, Brandin Cooks, Cooper Kupp, Josh Reynolds, and return specialist JoJo Natson locked into roster spots, it’s likely that the team only keeps one more receiver to round out a six-man core.
Fourth-year wideout Mike Thomas seems to be the early favorite after a stellar camp so far. Both Thomas and Hodge will be receivers to watch this preseason. Hodge needs to deliver another incredible summer to force the Rams into a tough decision.
It’s possible that the team would keep both guys, but it seems unlikely given how strong the top four receivers are.
ILB Micah Kiser
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Kiser became the de facto starting inside linebacker after the Rams cut Mark Barron last offseason. While it seemed unlikely that anybody would even challenge for the job, veteran reserve Bryce Hager has been making a push for the job. The Rams have been allowing the two to split first-team reps so far this offseason.
Why wouldn’t the team want to make it interesting? Kiser has yet to prove much of anything as a Ram. It makes sense to give Hager, a guy who’s been with the team since St. Louis, a fair shake at the starting job.
Still, the Rams have Kiser locked up for a few more years and it seems like it’s his job to lose. He needs to be a tackling machine this preseason. The Rams will be looking to Kiser to be a reliable run-stopping tackler if he’s named the starter come September. All he needs to do is prove that he can be. A nice start against Oakland would go a long way.
RB Justin Davis
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Davis was able to overcome the odds and make the Rams 53-man roster as an undrafted free agent in 2017. He did it yet again last year, sneaking onto the roster as the team’s fourth running back after a stellar preseason. Despite touching the ball just twice last season, Davis was still able to nearly triple the number of games he appeared in thanks to his role on special teams.
The odds are once again stacked against Davis to make the roster. The Rams have three stone-cold locks at the position with Darrell Henderson entering the mix. John Kelly seems much more likely to be the team’s fourth running back than Davis. If he wants to have a chance to make the roster, Davis is going to have to have one hell of a preseason.
His best shot to get work will be against the Raiders. It’s unlikely that Malcolm Brown will get much, if any, work in the team’s first preseason game, and they’re not going to rush right into it with Henderson. This will be Davis’s best chance to get a good amount of touches. He needs to, literally and figuratively, take the ball and run with it this week.
NT Sebastian Joseph-Day
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Out of the four second-year Rams taking over starting jobs in 2019, Joseph-Day feels like the unlikeliest of the bunch. The 2018 sixth-round pick is slated to fill the void on the defensive line left by Ndamukong Suh and start at nose tackle.
Unlike Kiser, who has a veteran special-teamer trying to take his job, Joseph-Day has fourth-round rookie waiting patiently behind him on the depth chart. Many expected Gaines to enter the season as the starting nose tackle. It’s still not out of the question.
Joseph-Day needs to prove that he deserves to be the starter. If Gaines impresses, the tide will shift quickly in his favor. Joseph-Day needs to show out and prove that he deserves to be the man in the middle on this defensive line. A hot start against Oakland could go a long way.
OL Jamil Demby
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Demby was a sixth-round pick for the Rams last season and had an impressive camp. He quickly became a favorite among Rams fans. So much that when he was unceremoniously cut early in the season, you would have thought the Rams season was over based on some of the Twitter reactions.
Demby was claimed off waivers by the Lions, who then signed him to the practice squad after waiving him in September. The Rams decided to sign him from Detroit’s practice squad, adding him to their active roster. Now, Demby has a chance to earn the role as the first man off the bench in a thin offensive line rotation. He’s currently listed as the backup LG on the team’s unofficial depth chart.
The Rams thought highly enough of Demby to bring him back into the fold, but that doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed to make the roster. Last season proved that. Demby needs to assert himself with a strong preseason, especially out of the left guard spot. He needs to show the Rams that they made a mistake by cutting him.
https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2019/08/08/nfl-rams-raiders-preseason-players-shine/
