Rams Coaches see solid progress on offensive line after two good drafts

[Selassie I]

L.A. Rams position analysis: Coaches see solid progress on offensive line after two good drafts

By RICH HAMMOND

http://www.ocregister.com/articles/rams-701715-offensive-line.html

It’s called a line, but rarely is it constructed in a linear fashion.

The process of putting together an NFL offensive line is comparable to herding animals. Get one end together, and the other side might begin to stray. The ability to keep five linemen healthy and productive during a 16-game season can be vexing, and there’s no perfect formula.

Nobody needs to tell Rams coach Jeff Fisher. As Fisher enters his fifth offseason, he and General Manager Les Snead are putting the final touches on what he hopes will be a long-term successful Rams line.

“Since our arrival here, we’ve been wanting to build that offensive line through the draft,’’ Fisher told reporters after the end of the season. “This is going to be a good group, and it’s going to be a good group for a long time, with depth.’’

The Rams have in place 23-year-old tackles Greg Robinson and Rob Havenstein, plus 22-year-old guard Jamon Brown. All three starters were drafted by the Rams within the first three rounds in 2014 and 2015.

That’s a shift in focus. From 2010-13, the Rams used only three of their 36 draft picks on offensive linemen, and only one of those – starting left guard Rodger Saffold – is still on the active roster.

The Rams had to deal with two season-ending injuries on the line in 2015, but allowed the fewest sacks in the NFL (18) and helped produce an 1,100-yard rusher in rookie Todd Gurley. That’s progress for the Rams, who had what was considered one of the NFL’s weakest lines in recent seasons.

“They’re young and inexperienced and they’ve got a long way to go to reach a high level,’’ Jackie Slater, Pro Football Hall of Famer and former Rams offensive lineman, told the Register this week. “It hasn’t really worked out, to this point, but they’re trying to build it and get some experience.’’

There’s clear evidence that drafting and developing is the way to go.

Of the 16 offensive linemen originally selected to this year’s Pro Bowl (not counting replacements), 14 still play for the team that drafted them, and 10 were first-round draft picks. Only two of the Pro Bowl linemen were not selected within the first three rounds of their respective drafts.

According to analytic research by the website Pro Football Focus, Dallas had the best offensive line in the NFL this season. Starters included tackle Tyron Smith, center Travis Frederick and guard Zack Martin, who were first-round draft picks of the Cowboys in 2011, 2013 and 2014, respectively.

That’s not to say it’s the only way. Carolina, a Super Bowl team and PFF’s second-ranked line, did not draft any of its starting linemen in the first round. The Panthers feature a second-round pick, a third-round pick, an undrafted free agent and two linemen they signed as free agents.

The Rams, it seems clear, are following the Dallas model. Seven of their 20 draft picks in 2014 and 2015 were used on offensive linemen, and it’s likely that this year, the Rams will use a mid-round pick on a center to replace Tim Barnes, who is set to be an unrestricted free agent.

Otherwise, the Rams have stability. They’d like to see increased progress from Robinson, the No. 2 overall pick of the 2014 draft, but might have found a gem in their other tackle, Havenstein, a 2015 second-round pick who started 13 games and did not allow a sack or get called for a penalty all season.

“I think it’s a pretty tight-knit group,’’ Havenstein told reporters after the season. “No matter who was in there, I think we did a pretty good job of stepping up and playing well.’’

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L.A. RAMS BY POSITION

OFFENSIVE LINE
• 2015 starters: LT Greg Robinson, LG Rodger Saffold, C Tim Barnes, RG Jamon Brown, RT Rob Havenstein
• Key reserves: G Cody Wichmann, G Garrett Reynolds, C Demetrius Rhaney
• Likely to leave: Barnes (unrestricted free agent)
• Biggest strength: The Rams have built solid depth at guard and, because of injuries in 2015, several young guards got game experience. Pass protection improved late in the season and helped quarterback Case Keenum enjoy success.
• Biggest weakness: Robinson, the No. 2 overall pick in 2014, perhaps hasn't progressed as quickly as the Rams had hoped, and the individual brilliance of running back Todd Gurley made the Rams' run blocking appear stronger than reality.
• Help in the draft: C Nick Martin (Notre Dame), C Ethan Pocic (LSU), C Evan Boehm (Missouri)
• By the numbers: The Rams allowed an NFL-low 18 sacks in 2015, down from 47 the previous season (which was tied for eighth-most). The Rams had six rookie linemen on their roster in 2015 and they accounted for 40 percent of all offensive-line starts.
RICH HAMMOND

 

[F. Mulder]

See I'm not sure that's progress unless you consider adding a lot of young, unproven, guys to the OL. For me progress will be developing say 50% of those into starters and further, hoping they become above average. I expect Robinson to become an Above Average starter based on his talent and his draft position but he obviously isn't there yet. I think Hav was solid but many players play their whole career as solid. Can Hav step up to be more than that. I though Brown showed FLASHES but seemed to fall off as the year went on before the injury and is in need of a lot of technique work. I am not a huge Barnes fan (I know he's not a new guy). I think Saffold is talented when he plays but who can dish out that type of money for a china doll? I was unimpressed with Donall (sp?) and frankly don't see him as anything more than a low-end utility lineman. I think Reynolds is perfect as a swing guy, but not as starter. I don't get the Rhaney love. Battle, the book is out. A year in the weight room and film room and who knows. They other guy who got hurt on the same INT that Brown did in the Bears game (Richardson??) is intriguing.

My point is that if experience and coaching allow Robinson and Hav to be above avg and the Rams to find solid starters like a Battle and/or Brown then they succeeded both in their approach and in limiting the number of holes they need to address in the future via FA and future draft picks. I personally think they need a center and think Brown will be ok. Robinson is a wildcard and Battle can make things very positive if he reaches his potential. I'll take 2-3 good starters out of that mix vs a whole lot of JAGs. which is what they basically seem like right now.

 

[OC_Ram]

I sure hope that GRob can make the grade. I do not want to see another year of floundering.

 

[bubbaramfan]

Understand that GRob came to the NFL about as raw as you can get. He's been learning as he goes and the last 4 games of the season he was MUCH better. No false starts, no holding penalties. With Reynolds next to him pointing out D packages and helping him recognize potential blitz' he played much better. When GRob gets to the point where he doesn't have to think and just react, he will reach his potential. Rams knew it would be 2 or 3 years before GRob would come into his own. Be patient, he's getting there. He has passion for the game and is working to get better. If he picks up where he left off this last season, GRob will be just fine at LT.

Havenstien will be better when he gets a good off season in the weight room getting stronger. Good fundementals and skill set. Brown and Wichmann look like keepers. Barnes could be better by getting stronger, but looks to be no better than a backup. Saffold should be kept for swing guy, he can play everywhere on the line, (except center?) just too fragile to start.

Rams have the makings of a decent OL going into LA. Draft a center in the 2nd or 3rd, Saffold, Reynolds and Williams as backups. A much more experienced starting OL than last season.

OL is finally looking less of a disaster as it did going into last season. We have to keep in mind that O-linemen coming out of college are the least ready of all position players to step into the NFL and start. With spread O's and O-linemen lining up without a knuckle on the ground, then coming to the NFL with much more complicated plays and much faster players, the learning curve is greater and it takes them longer to get to the NFL level.

Rams OL isn't there yet, but they had to start somewhere else and the draft was it. That Vet FA turnstile wasn't working. Bell, Brown, Barksdale, Joseph, Dahl. The QB's will play better too, when they don't have someone in their face 2 seconds after the snap.

 

[Merlin]

It irks me that it took them that long to draft the position, particularly given the quality of their OL coach who is an established and quality teacher. But better late than never right?

Anyway, when you look at a great line, they will typically have 3+ difference makers. Good OLs will have two, and it's best if you have one on each side. Look at the GSOT Rams line for example and you can see it was a good, not great line. They had 2 difference makers in Pace and Timmerman, guys who played at the highest level for their positions.

Some great lines in NFL history:

LA's late 70s OL with Mack, Harrah, Saul was so good they had Smith and Slater as depth back in 78. Insane. One of the best OL ever assembled IMO.
Oakland's line in the 70s with Upshaw, Otto, and Shell. Those three dudes... wow.
Washington's Hog line in mid to late 80s had Grimm, Jacoby, and three other guys who were very near to elite, a truly great OL.
Dallas' line in the 90s with Allen, Stepnoski, Newton, are you kiddin me? So dominant and they had a QB and RB in their backfield behind them.

I could keep going, but there is a clear trend of 3 being the sweet spot for greatness in a line. Also we can talk LT by itself in terms of importance, but overall you will have a great OL if you can field 3 at the top of their positions provided the other two are not liabilities. Looking at our current line here's how i see them:

LT Robinson - currently a good run blocker and a liability in pass pro against elite rushers. But he has a ceiling with elite level possibility only question with him is if he ends up at OG. I think he's due to arrive with one more camp. Has the talent to be a dominant difference maker.
LG Brown - started his rookie season with very strong play, I'd rank him as solid and balanced in run/pass blocking. Another guy with an elite ceiling who might develop into that level of a player.
C Barnes - solid overall and balanced in pass/run. Impressed me this season but will they get him back? Not sure, think it's very possible they draft a center. Right now we can not expect an elite player at this position any time soon.
RG Wichmann - like with Brown he is a solid rookie who showed he can play at this level right away. I do not see his ceiling being elite, however.
RT Havenstein - I think this guy is better than the Rams expected him to be. They did not foresee him playing as well as he did, and his ceiling is higher than he is given credit for. When he was out our OL played like garbage. This guy is special and will be one of those three players we need as a difference maker for a great OL.

So, by my estimation the Rams have the makings of an elite OL at LT, LG, and RT. Some of you will probably mock my mention of LT with GRob but ceiling is ceiling. I think he's closer than many realize or give him credit for. As soon as he gets to the point where he can play without thinking, he's going to show what he can do consistently. His floor, if you will, is as a difference maker at OG but I don't think it will come to that.

Some will mention Saffold. But I don't see him as a player we can rely on to stay healthy. He is best served as a guy off the bench but will they pay him that way for being a backup? I suspect he's a cut, so leaving him out for now.

Looking at our depth chart there are two intriguing guys in Williams and Battle, but neither look like big time difference makers. Overall, depth is really nice with this line with the exception of the Center position which I personallly am not a fan of with Rhaney; never have liked what I've seen of him. IMO draft a good Center prospect like Boehm and this line will be ready to rock and roll.

 

[Young Ram]

We can't have all pros at every position and I see a lot of posters say that they would like to replace x player when x player is playing at a solid level because they think we can do better. Don't get me wrong it's always nice to find upgrades but why keep on replacing guys, especially on the Oline, when they play solid enough to become starters?

Barnes is one of them and I think he did a solid enough job to resign him. I would not replace him with a rookie.

The good thing is a lot of our youngsters got playing time due to injury and that only makes our depth that much better.

 

[bubbaramfan]

My concern with Barnes is he gets pushed back into the pocket way too often and lets blitzers leak into the backfield. He needs to strengthen his lower body. A full season under his belt, and an offseason of strength and contioning should make him a better player next season, but I still think he's more suited as a backup. rams should draft a center with a 3rd or 4th round pick for the future.

 

[Young Ram]

My concern with Barnes is he gets pushed back into the pocket way too often and lets blitzers leak into the backfield. He needs to strengthen his lower body. A full season under his belt, and an offseason of strength and contioning should make him a better player next season, but I still think he's more suited as a backup. rams should draft a center with a 3rd or 4th round pick for the future.

I would definitely draft a center but not to start unless he's exceptional which is unlikely. I think Barnes did a solid job. Did he get beat at times? Yes, but he held his own most of the time and had some key blocks and moments on some victories. I agree that with another year of training and experience he can get better.

 

[ramfan46]

I honestly didn't see enough of Jamon Brown at one position long enough to make any real judgement. I was surprised by how solid Reynolds was immediately. He's definitely a keeper if he can keep playing like this. Also, I like Cody Wichmann. I think with a full off season where he can work on his craft and overall strength will do him well. I see him pushing for the RG job. This looks like a good year to grab a young and talented Center. I liked the guy from Michigan while I was watching Senior Bowl practice. I'd bring back Barnes if he's reasonable about the price. If Rhaney has improved at all that might make Barnes more expendable. Could also grab a guy in Free Agency as well. Should be fun though, O line is close to being a good with depth IMO.

 

[tavian]

Barnes ranked as one of the worst centers in the league last year according to PFF .Ranking 29th.His pass blocking did improve slightly,however his run blocking dropped significantly from beginning of year.Center in my opinion is a position where some good competition is needed.

 

[jrry32]

I actually saw the same thing. It seems like we might have ourselves a good OL next year. Especially if we find competition for Barnes.

Now, the rest of the offense...

 

[Faceplant]

The LT position will have to be addressed unless they feel that Battle can compete this off season. After 2 seasons, GR looks more like Jason Smith than Orlando Pace. I don't even want to hear how he has only played x amount of games, or that he was raw coming out, or that he shows "glimpses" of dominance. I have seen far too many lapses in judgement and straight up physical (strength and weight) mismatches in the games I have watched to just hope he turns it around. That position is STILL one of the most important on the field. There has to be competition.

 

[tavian]

The LT position will have to be addressed unless they feel that Battle can compete this off season. After 2 seasons, GR looks more like Jason Smith than Orlando Pace. I don't even want to hear how he has only played x amount of games, or that he was raw coming out, or that he shows "glimpses" of dominance. I have seen far too many lapses in judgement and straight up physical (strength and weight) mismatches in the games I have watched to just hope he turns it around. That position is STILL one of the most important on the field. There has to be competition.

Can't disagree with your assessment.Was watching some of Battle's college tape last night.The reason I was watching it was that
I didn't see anything from Robinson last year that makes me think he is ready to make leap forward.I did.however see where Jake Matthews made a huge leap last year.He had a terrible rookie year.He was supposed to be the NFL ready tackle out of that group.Maybe It's just gonna take Robinson a extra year to get to that point.fingers crossed

 

[BonifayRam]

Current signed 2016 offensive line:

OLT- Robinson 24-3/ Williams 23-2/ Battle 22-1
OLG- Brown 23-2/ Reynolds 29-8
OC- Kush 27-4/ Rhaney 24-3/ Folkerts 26-4
ORG- Wichmann 24-2/ Saffold 28-7
ORT- Havenstein 24-2/ Donnal 24-2

That's a ton of talent & a ton of youth! Only real issue with this current signed 2016 Ram OL is @ center. A loss of Tim Barnes removes our main centerpiece of the 2015 OL. Barnes should be high on the Rams list to resign to a new contract. Not sure if the three signed Rams centers listed above can prove to be a legit game day back up @ center??

Its just me but I am not concerned over the Left OT position. Rams have currently four OL'ers we are OLT's. Saffold who is rehabbing two surgically reconstructed shoulders can be plugged in @ OLT if the three talent youngsters are not up to par. With these 4 OL'ers available surely the OLT post can not be a real concern.

 

[wolfdogg]

I don't see how anyone can look at what Hav did as a rookie and go, meh, show me something more. You can't get less than zero sacks and no penalties--longtime ram issues with vets even. Some improvement on technique that usually comes with experience should be expected but they did have the 7th best run game in the league. You have to be very hard to please to not be impressed with this kid and excited for his future.

 

[jrry32]

The LT position will have to be addressed unless they feel that Battle can compete this off season. After 2 seasons, GR looks more like Jason Smith than Orlando Pace. I don't even want to hear how he has only played x amount of games, or that he was raw coming out, or that he shows "glimpses" of dominance. I have seen far too many lapses in judgement and straight up physical (strength and weight) mismatches in the games I have watched to just hope he turns it around. That position is STILL one of the most important on the field. There has to be competition.

The LT position isn't going to be addressed this off-season. Robinson will get a third year. We'll see what he does with it.

 

[Dodgersrf]

I was surprised at how effective our pass blocking was at times last year. Definitely an improvement from recent past years.

I was also surprised at how poor our run blocking was. For something that was to be the strong point from our line, I was disappointed. We need big strides in this area next year.

 

[Tailback]

Understand that GRob came to the NFL about as raw as you can get. He's been learning as he goes and the last 4 games of the season he was MUCH better. No false starts, no holding penalties. With Reynolds next to him pointing out D packages and helping him recognize potential blitz' he played much better. When GRob gets to the point where he doesn't have to think and just react, he will reach his potential. Rams knew it would be 2 or 3 years before GRob would come into his own. Be patient, he's getting there. He has passion for the game and is working to get better. If he picks up where he left off this last season, GRob will be just fine at LT.

Havenstien will be better when he gets a good off season in the weight room getting stronger. Good fundementals and skill set. Brown and Wichmann look like keepers. Barnes could be better by getting stronger, but looks to be no better than a backup. Saffold should be kept for swing guy, he can play everywhere on the line, (except center?) just too fragile to start.

Rams have the makings of a decent OL going into LA. Draft a center in the 2nd or 3rd, Saffold, Reynolds and Williams as backups. A much more experienced starting OL than last season.

OL is finally looking less of a disaster as it did going into last season. We have to keep in mind that O-linemen coming out of college are the least ready of all position players to step into the NFL and start. With spread O's and O-linemen lining up without a knuckle on the ground, then coming to the NFL with much more complicated plays and much faster players, the learning curve is greater and it takes them longer to get to the NFL level.

Rams OL isn't there yet, but they had to start somewhere else and the draft was it. That Vet FA turnstile wasn't working. Bell, Brown, Barksdale, Joseph, Dahl. The QB's will play better too, when they don't have someone in their face 2 seconds after the snap.

Totally agree with you about drafting a center. I think historically Centers don't start to get picked till around the 3rd round. If the Rams were to pick a smart slobber knocking true center (not a project) then they'd be in pretty good shape.

 

[PressureD41]

I like the making of our OL. Nav & Brown look like they will be at or close to pro bowl in short order. Wichmann looks like he can play. The jury is still out on GRob, but I don't think he will get any added competition for him this off season. Maybe Battle will surprise but thats a stretch at this point.. Im in the camp that Barnes is best served as a back up. With TG3 and the makings of our two rookie OGs you add a good OC that can get to the second level blocking and explain to me how we can't be a top 3 rushing team moving forward. I would use a 2nd or a 3rd to target a OC!!! If we don't use up most of our draft resources to move up for a QB (Wentz I hope) then I might be willing to move up a little to get a top 2-3 OCs in this draft class, w/ the thought WE OUR THE FRICKIN' LA RAMS AND WE DO OLs LIKE NO OTHER TEAM. ITS MANDATED BABY!!!
Plus after we get our next face of the franchise QB we need to give him a clean pocket

PS Didn't Jackie Slater want to coach the Rams OL, but the wife refused to move? I say get him training GRob all off season and maybe add him as an assistant OL coach or at worst special guest coach all training camp! Fisher make it so!!!

 

[Merlin]

We can't have all pros at every position and I see a lot of posters say that they would like to replace x player when x player is playing at a solid level because they think we can do better. Don't get me wrong it's always nice to find upgrades but why keep on replacing guys, especially on the Oline, when they play solid enough to become starters?

Barnes is one of them and I think he did a solid enough job to resign him. I would not replace him with a rookie.

The good thing is a lot of our youngsters got playing time due to injury and that only makes our depth that much better.

This is very true that we can't have all pros at every position, and we really don't in order to have a dominant OL. But the thing with Barnes is what if Brown struggles in year two? One subpar OG plus a very average at best starter in the middle means a defense like that of Minnesota that charges A gaps will eat you alive. Center can be had pretty darn easy too, you can get really good ones in round 4 range.

Rams have 5 picks through round 4. I'd take a center in round 3 or 4, with one of those two picks. Boehm, Martin, investing in the position would be a very, very wise move for this team. Just like with kicker it is an easy way to significantly upgrade this roster and make this team better.