Rams continue search for a solution at outside linebacker

[hotanez]

Not feeling the concern at all at OLB. Ebukam looks legit to me, he has excellent footwork and hand usage and has been all over the quarterback in preseason. Longacre looks like a poor man's Chris Long to me. He probably good for 7-8 sacks on effort alone with this DL Easley is at 265 lbs, not sure why anybody is surprised, I'm sure this move was orchestrated as part of his rehab. And Easley is a beast.

Assuming Donald signs - these edge rushers will be playing along side arguably one of the most dominant DL's in NFL history. We don't need elite talent at OLB, just hard workers.

I agree we don't need elite at OLB although Samson looks very good so far. We just need Longacre to get and stay healthy

 

[Jacobarch]

https://www.profootballfocus.com/news/pro-preseason-top-10-rookies-on-offense-defense

Preseason top 10 NFL rookie standout performances
BY MICHAEL RENNER

Justin Lawler, Edge, Los Angeles Rams

With how weak the edge position is in Los Angeles, any semblance of hope from their seventh-rounder is a good thing. He’s given them more than that with two sacks and an added run-stop through two games.

If Lawler ends up being a good OLB we will be set on defense. We just need to see how the guy does against starters and not 2nd and 3rd stringers. Hopefully he gets some serious playing time in the next two games.

 

[Ram65]

I'm not counting Easley out just yet. They could have him rushing the passer on most downs he plays. He has a great get off at the snap of the ball. Never been the strongest D Lineman around. He is quick for a bigger player. I'm sure they could rush him as a down lineman on occasion.

 

[Ram65]

https://www.profootballfocus.com/news/pro-preseason-top-10-rookies-on-offense-defense

Preseason top 10 NFL rookie standout performances
BY MICHAEL RENNER

Justin Lawler, Edge, Los Angeles Rams

With how weak the edge position is in Los Angeles, any semblance of hope from their seventh-rounder is a good thing. He’s given them more than that with two sacks and an added run-stop through two games.

I thought Landry was a great fit for the Rams but, Rams went with Cooks and Landry feel to round 2 pick 41. Lawler a late pick has been playing well above his draft position. Hope he keeps it going.

 

[BonifayRam]

I'm not counting Easley out just yet. They could have him rushing the passer on most downs he plays. He has a great get off at the snap of the ball. Never been the strongest D Lineman around. He is quick for a bigger player. I'm sure they could rush him as a down lineman on occasion.

Your are correct here...back in his HS days he was competitive in Track and field running & shot put. His running times were good for a DT sized athlete.

I would suspect that Easley past playing weight has dropped off considerably after his 3rd ACL surgery & rehabbing event. keeping the lbs off is always a normal preferred Rx when a serious knee injury happens. So IF Easley has dropped more pounds down from his early summer weight @ 273 lbs then this 6-1 1/2 tall DL'er is getting down there close to where Longacre 265lbs, Price 5-11 255 lbs, Davis 6-2 260 lbs & Okoronkwo 255lbs are.

When I review the current interior DL Wade has outstanding pass rushers @ all his DL posts but Westbrooks/ Donald & Brockers were less effective @ run D. His run defense was exposed often last season & the ability to stop the runs up the middle of our defense caused big problems. The season ended with this being the reason we departed the playoff picture way too early.

Wade wasted no time dumping off some of the biggest weak links in run defense with departures of veterans Quinn, Ogletree, Barwin, Tyrunn Walker & benching of rookie Tanzel Smart. But Wade had desires to keep & re-signed the pass rushing skills of Easley?

Maybe this new wrinkle or twist has been in the back of Wade's brain fro some time now & he wants to try out his new slimmed down play-toy where Easley quickness & 10 yd lightning speed will work for him further out from either side of the Defensive front. If this experiment does not work out just means we have another pass rusher to play with Brockers/Suh/Donald/Westbrooks. If nothing else Easley can fill the early loss vacancy of Morgan Fox. If Wade can get a full "injury free season" out of Easley like the Rams did in 2016 its a very big deal.

 

[pmil66]

Guessing Ebukam, Longacre, Lawler and Price as the 4 OLB's on the 53. Easley and JFM will get snaps at the spot. Tough break that Oko was injured and missed camp. Rams will be on the lookout for help at the spot at cutdown time. ILB looks set with Barron, Littleton, Wilson, Kiser and Hager.

 

[BonifayRam]

Guessing Ebukam, Longacre, Lawler and Price as the 4 OLB's on the 53. Easley and JFM will get snaps at the spot. Tough break that Oko was injured and missed camp. Rams will be on the lookout for help at the spot at cutdown time. ILB looks set with Barron, Littleton, Wilson, Kiser and Hager.

I am thinking that if Rookie Trevon Young is fully healthy he will beat out Ejuan Price. I believe he has more upside. With the young rookie duo of Trevon Young 6-4 259 & Justin Lawyer 6-4 265 we have two legit future prospect @ OLB'ers. The 6-4 288 lb John Franklin-Meyers is sure to see a ton of OLB'er in his rookie season but I suspect he will grow larger/Bigger into a starting 300 lb 5 tech DL'er not OLB when Brockers returns to NT when Suh departs.

 

[Curt760]

With this defensive line, I don't think having a superior edge rusher is necessary. Containment, covering quick passes to rb or te, applying some outside pressure is all we need. We need sure tacklers.

 

[RamWoodie]

This is the first off season/pre season I haven't posted a lot. Working is the main reason for that...BUT...this has been my main concern on the defense...the LBs.

The only one I'm sold on is Hager. Perhaps I just haven't seen enough but I'm gonna be watching hard this game.

 

[WestCoastRam]

My guess is that this position is gonna be a tough one to fill, you'd like a guy who could rush the passer, know his position assignments (could be tough for rookies) and be able to drop into coverage. We're asking a lot here.

I would not be surprised if "ability to drop" is the biggest issue here.

 

[BonifayRam]

My guess is that this position is gonna be a tough one to fill, you'd like a guy who could rush the passer, know his position assignments (could be tough for rookies) and be able to drop into coverage. We're asking a lot here.

I would not be surprised if "ability to drop" is the biggest issue here.

Yes we are asking a lot but we are paying a lot too. Wade is super quick to run 4 down linemen out on that field & with only 2 ILB'ers & with five DB's. This 4-2-5 is really the base defense for Wade.

Those five DB's might just be the best back five in the NFL. Talib- Peters- NRC- Johnson III & Joyner! I wonder why Littleton was injected into the lineup so fast....could it be his outstanding performance in pass coverage late last season, plus we all know why the Rams are paying the bang up often injured still not up to full strength Mark Barron 10 million this season....his proven ability to be very effective in pass coverage. I still have not lost my on my ole mug having Donald/ Suh/ Brockers/ Westbrooks as our four DL'ers.

Those very young Rams drafted Edge Rushers/OLB'ers i.e. Ebukam- Okoronkwo- Lawler- Young have a great coach in Joe Barry who is the Rams’ assistant head coach/linebackers coach to learn how to drop in coverage.

 

[BonifayRam]

Pass Rush In Peril: The Rams Defense Has A Fatal Flaw
https://www.sportsaldente.com/pass-rush-in-peril-the-rams-defense-has-a-fatal-flaw/

By Chauncey Telese Aug.23rd 2018

 

[Merlin]

Dominique Easley will get cut. Unless a miracle happens and he can actually play OLB at a decent level.

Agreed. Him being out there means he got squeezed out of the DE mix. Bad sign, unless he shows something here real soon at OLB.

 

[Merlin]

I thought Landry was a great fit for the Rams but, Rams went with Cooks and Landry feel to round 2 pick 41. Lawler a late pick has been playing well above his draft position. Hope he keeps it going.

He was a great fit but dude has a lot of lazy tape and fell for a reason. Him doing well now is great and all, but there's a reason they say you need to wait a few years to judge a draft.

 

[Prime Time]

Pass Rush In Peril: The Rams Defense Has A Fatal Flaw
https://www.sportsaldente.com/pass-rush-in-peril-the-rams-defense-has-a-fatal-flaw/

By Chauncey Telese Aug.23rd 2018

Hey Chauncey,

A starting defensive line of Suh, Michael Brockers, and Aaron Donald looks like King Ghidorah to an opposing offense.

First of all, wth is a King Ghidorah? And no, I'm not googling it.

Unfortunately, this super D has one glaring flaw and that’s a yet to be determined pass rush.

What do you think Suh, Brockers, and Donald will be doing when the QB drops back to pass?

The Rams are razor thin at linebacker. That might not seem like a big deal when Donald and Brockers are coming from the outside but it becomes a problem when there isn’t any other outside pass rush that scares an opponent.

Donald will be coming from the inside as well. The inside rush is the main reason AD is so scary to opposing teams.

The one veteran pass rusher the Rams were able to bring in is seventh year Ryan Davis.

Now you're talking. Btw what about Ramik Wilson? He's a veteran as well.

The pass rush is taking a by committee approach. On paper that might be a problem because if the team has this many pass rushers to on the field, they still might not have an actual pass rush. Still, there isn’t a better person to chair a committee of would be pass rushers like Wade Phillips.

Most teams take a committee approach when it comes to the pass rush. LB's along with DB's take turns harassing opposing QB's and no one is better at dialing that up than Wade Phillips.

Ogletree, in particular, was an athlete that never learned the position. His preseason with the Giants looked like a continuation of last year where he couldn’t be more toast if the coaching staff covered him in butter.

Now that's funny.

 

[Memento]

Hey Chauncey,

A starting defensive line of Suh, Michael Brockers, and Aaron Donald looks like King Ghidorah to an opposing offense.

First of all, wth is a King Ghidorah? And no, I'm not googling it.

 

[1maGoh]

Pass Rush In Peril: The Rams Defense Has A Fatal Flaw
https://www.sportsaldente.com/pass-rush-in-peril-the-rams-defense-has-a-fatal-flaw/

By Chauncey Telese Aug.23rd 2018

Why do I instantly distrust anything from someone named Chauncey? It might be a Dresden Files thing. Anyone else have this experience?

 

[Legatron4]

View: https://twitter.com/vinnybonsignore/status/1032692767695073280?s=21

Good news

 

[SeminoleRam]

View: https://twitter.com/vinnybonsignore/status/1032692767695073280?s=21

Good news

Great News! Really looking forward to seeing him play! If Healthy, I think he will really contribute (Maybe, Not as a starter but I think he will get quite a bit of playing time!) to the Rams Defense this season!