Ogbonnia Okoronkwo is wild card in Rams' pass-rush rotation

[den-the-coach]

Ogbonnia Okoronkwo is wild card in Rams' pass-rush rotation

When discussing the Los Angeles Rams defense, the obvious names always come up: Aaron Donald, Michael Brockers, Marcus Peters, John Johnson, Dante Fowler Jr. The list goes on. It takes a while to get to the man with arguably the hardest name to pronounce, Ogbonnia Okoronkwo.

He was viewed as one of the steals of the 2018 draft after the Rams landed him in the fifth round at No. 160 overall. Some thought he could go as early as the second or third round, but he slid all the way to the fifth due to concerns about his size and transition to the NFL game.

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[theramswire.usatoday.com]

 

[den-the-coach]

So many of us were on this train and now hopefully we get to see what Ogbonnia Okoronkwo brings to the table. The article actually states that Samson Ebukam was inconsistent and isn’t assured a large role this season and the signing of Clay Matthews and the base defense of Matthews & Fowler on the outside and Littleton & Kiser inside underscores that information.

Now I'm not sure the Rams can afford Fowler long term, so it would be nice for Okoronkwo to make some plays in order to offer up something in 2020. One thing for sure, barring injury, last season there was a lack of edge rushers, now it appears there are more options and Okoronkwo will have every change in preseason to prove he can be part of the rotation come September Morn.

 

[RamsJunkie]

Pretty damn excited about this kid and are potential rotation of edge rushers this year. Hell I'm excited about the whole D this year. I think were going to have a much better run defense on top of having way better edge pressure. Throw in the two new studs we added to the secondary and this D could be scary good this year especially since we will be playing with the lead most games so they will be able to pin there ears back up front and get after the QB and ball hawk in the secondary.

 

[snackdaddy]

I remember getting excited about later round draft choices and UDFA's during camp. Some guys were camp stars. Nelson Spruce was supposed to be our savior. In reality, those guys don't normally make a big difference. But then again, that was before the McVay era. So I will reserve the right to look forward to seeing what this kid can do. We sure could use another bonafide edge rusher.

 

[Psycho_X]

I will be greatly disappointed if he doesn’t make the 53. Really seems like he has the skills to be a key rotational pass rusher at the very least. Come in on passing third downs on outside edge opposite Fowler with Mathews and Littleton on the inside. That has the makings of something wonderful. Unless Ebukam steps up his rushing game that’s the four I’d like to see on 3rd downs hopefully.

 

[Florida_Ram]

So many of us were on this train and now hopefully we get to see what Ogbonnia Okoronkwo brings to the table. The article actually states that Samson Ebukam was inconsistent and isn’t assured a large role this season and the signing of Clay Matthews and the base defense of Matthews & Fowler on the outside and Littleton & Kiser inside underscores that information.

Now I'm not sure the Rams can afford Fowler long term, so it would be nice for Okoronkwo to make some plays in order to offer up something in 2020. One thing for sure, barring injury, last season there was a lack of edge rushers, now it appears there are more options and Okoronkwo will have every change in preseason to prove he can be part of the rotation come September Morn.

I'm guilty of riding on this train....

Because of his similar height and size along with his athletic ability, he seems to be a version of Ebukam,

Obo might only be a glorified version as a situational pass rusher that isn't big enough to be more than a specialist..

Some fans and scouts think Obo is merely another Ebukam but deserves more hype because he played at a division 1 college.

Their NFL pedigree might end up being the same and if that is the case, Obo probably wont'be on thie team n the 2019 season..Camp and Preseason are going to define this smaller sized 3-4 OLB pass rushing specialist. At this stage of his career, Wade doesn't have time to develop projects unless they are rare and special,

On paper Obo is a 5th round draft pick outside rushing LB that will be situational pass rusher that needs to prove himself after his foot injury in 2018.

Samson Ebukam 6'3 245 lbs
Ogbonnia Okoronkwo 6'2 253 lbs

 

[bubbaramfan]

Don't forget Morgan Fox will be back in the mix at DE.....

 

[Ramstien]

Some thought he could go as early as the second or third round, but he slid all the way to the fifth due to concerns about his size and transition to the NFL game.

I believe the reason he slid as far down the draft as he did was because of a broken bone in his foot that would keep him from playing his first year.

 

[den-the-coach]

Don't forget Morgan Fox will be back in the mix at DE.....

Anxious to see him too.

 

[Ram65]

Rams will give Obo lots of early chances to show what he can do. He will get his chances in preseason. He had a year as a Ram to get bigger/stronger so he should be ready to go. It really is a wait and see approach at this time. It will be interesting to see if he works his way into the rotation. He is going to have to do well on special teams too. Hopefully, he shows something as the Rams could use him more in the future as Fowler may cost too much after this year. I think he can stick but, it is not a given.

 

[Riverumbbq]

Don't forget Morgan Fox will be back in the mix at DE.....

Wasn't Morgan Fox expected to move into the ROLB rotation last season with Longacre prior to injury, leading to the inevitable acquisition of Fowler ? Early injuries can really shake up a depth chart, I believe the oft-injured Easley was expected to rotate with Brockers at LDE, thankfully the young Franklin-Myers was able to step up. I'm certainly hoping for a healthy outcome as we move towards the regular season in 2019.

 

[Merlin]

He is a good all around backer. Would not surprise me if he ends up next to Littleton on the inside.

I do expect him to push for playing time too, regardless of where his snaps end up being.

 

[fanotodd]

I'm guilty of riding on this train....

Obo might only be a glorified version as a situational pass rusher that isn't big enough to be more than a specialist..

On paper Obo is a 5th round draft pick outside rushing LB that will be situational pass rusher that needs to prove himself after his foot injury in 2018.

Samson Ebukam 6'3 245 lbs
Ogbonnia Okoronkwo 6'2 253 lbs

I have become skeptical of guys who come into the league getting hurt and then...get banged up again. It seems to end up being a pattern that follows them until they run out of chances. If O-O's biggest challenge ends up being just getting on the field, then I see no reason why the Rams can't replace him with another "late round steal" next year. The Rams are stacked with COMPETITION on the edge, they're just trying to find guys who are above average.

I would love to see this guy get out there during preseason and showing what he's learned over the he last season.

 

[fanotodd]

He is a good all around backer. Would not surprise me if he ends up next to Littleton on the inside.

I do expect him to push for playing time too, regardless of where his snaps end up being.

Are you talking about O-O? Based on what?

Are you talking about Ebukam? I agree. Late round draft picks playing his position(s) don't usually make an instant impact, but can turn out just fine after development. I think Ebukam is doing just fine, and I am still thinking he is potentially vital to the future of this defense.

 

[JonRam99]

anyone see him at OTA's?

 

[Merlin]

Are you talking about O-O? Based on what?

Based on his college film. I have put up cutups of his games many times. He looks pretty good off ball.

 

[oldnotdead]

Ebukam is faster than Obo, and is developing into a pretty good SAM LB. Obo is slotted to play behind Fowler which is technically and OLB in a 3-4 hybrid defense which Wade runs. But that position (sometimes called a rush LB) is played more like a 4-3 DE. Obo doesn't have the speed to play the SAM or WILL in this scheme.

I don't see him having a lot of pressure on him per se. He had a red shirt year last season so he's basically like a rookie. At the very least he could provide a good depth player. Wade really wants to be able to rotate his dline as frequently to keep them fresh. As such rotational (traditional backups) can see a lot of reps during the season, particularly in the 3rd quarter when Wade has the depth to do so.

At the very least Obo could provide important depth at a critical position.

 

[Rams43]

Ebukam is faster than Obo, and is developing into a pretty good SAM LB. Obo is slotted to play behind Fowler which is technically and OLB in a 3-4 hybrid defense which Wade runs. But that position (sometimes called a rush LB) is played more like a 4-3 DE. Obo doesn't have the speed to play the SAM or WILL in this scheme.

I don't see him having a lot of pressure on him per se. He had a red shirt year last season so he's basically like a rookie. At the very least he could provide a good depth player. Wade really wants to be able to rotate his dline as frequently to keep them fresh. As such rotational (traditional backups) can see a lot of reps during the season, particularly in the 3rd quarter when Wade has the depth to do so.

At the very least Obo could provide important depth at a critical position.

Obo’s Status is yet to be determined, oldnotdead.

But I’ll say this. Ebu may be fast in a timed 40, but he sucks at edge contain. The Matthews signing speaks volumes about how Wade sees Ebu as a starter, IMO.

Wade wants better and I suspect that he will continue to tinker until he finds the best fit over there.

Here’s hoping that Ebu takes a big step forward this season, but I’m not holding my breath. I don’t see Ebu as a starter this year.

 

[Merlin]

Yeah Ebu's prob is lateral quickness which I think will hurt him inside on passing downs. He would undoubtedly be good vs the run though, aggressively filling his gap.

I think these depth guys are going to get moved around a lot in camp and the ones who show the best versatility will be kept around. And I say that because none of them have elite rush skills.