Rams’ offensive line problem isn’t as bad as it looks

[So Ram]

We need to draft an OL on Day 2. If the veterans beat out the rookie, good. That likely means they've improved and earned it. But this is one of the best Center classes in quite some time, and we have a need on the interior.

Not going to happen

 

[So Ram]

Can Noteboom and Allen even be counted on at all this year? If so why are we assuming their play will be better coming off of injury when they looked so over-matched and lost last season?

We need to draft interior line 100%. "Isn't as bad as it looks" is completely subjective and doesnt mean the line will be "good." IMO we need at least a good OL to have a shot at the playoffs.

Well I don’t see The Rams giving up on there investments.There are bigger needs, especially at RB.

Even if the offensive line was bad Henderson did not show that much.
Gurley is gone & M.Brown is just a special teams all-purpose back.

 

[So Ram]

Somebody like one of the UDFA at the bottom of the roster over Allen and Evans. Or Noteboom starts the year on the IR thereby opening another spot on the roster. Nothing I said or about drafting a lineman in the first couple picks means Allen or Evans will be cut.

Well that depends on how many lineman Kromer keeps. I’m going by how McSnead & Kromer drafted in 2017. That draft worked out pretty well. I see The Rams drafting a RB & OLB/DE at 52. I also think a WR is drafted in 3rd or 4th rd.
I don’t see The Rams drafting an OLineman at all, a Safety is another position of need late.

 

[So Ram]

I understand your post. I would also agree with you on most. It just takes so much more time to groom college OL'ers to play in the NFL in comparison to all the other NFL posts. When most drafted OL'ers fair better in run blocking but fail miserably in pass protection. NFL OL units are subjected to more overall injuries too.

I would say drafted rookie OL'ers Edwards/ Evans & others Brewer & Corbett all had impact & improved our 2019 OL situation. How would our OL survived without those four OL'ers replacing the fallen or benched starters? All four of those mentioned above appear to have good futures here with this Ram team.

I know Rookie Edwards improved the RG performance over former starters Blythe/Demby. I know that Rookie Evans improved the RT post over Havenstein & keep Havenstien on the bench for the last 3 gms of the season. I also know that Corbett improved the LG post performance over Noteboom/Demby.

I do not believe most ROD forum members would agree with this statement "spending draft picks on an offensive lineman automatically upgrades the offensive line".

In truth the selecting of 3 OL'ers in the 2018 draft (LT Noteboom/ OC Allen & OG Demby) resulted in very little OL improvement in 2018 season. Even in 2019, those same 3 who all started, did very little to nothing that could be called improvement. But there were injuries involved with 2 of the 3 in 2019. The big Questions surrounding those three 2018 OL Ram draft class remains Unanswered @ this time too.

Actually that has been my point in December. This young group is up & coming.The DB group as well,but they still need depth.
The sad thing about the 2018 class is they did not get any game experience. HOW can you IMPROVE without getting that valuable playing time. The good thing is 2019 class did get that experience.
With Corbett he came right in mid-season & started. I’m sure after a full training camp he will improve a lot more .

 

[Tano]

We still need a top notch center - Blythe is not the answer - he is just a fill in

 

[BonifayRam]

Actually that has been my point in December. This young group is up & coming.The DB group as well,but they still need depth.
The sad thing about the 2018 class is they did not get any game experience. HOW can you IMPROVE without getting that valuable playing time. The good thing is 2019 class did get that experience.
With Corbett he came right in mid-season & started. I’m sure after a full training camp he will improve a lot more .

This upcoming season we will see how this OL story unfolds in so many interesting OL elements to study. One that should give us Ram fans a good case study will take place in this OL.

2018 first Ram season OL class of Noteboom/Allen/Demby getting very few snaps with the offense & zero starts & how all three performed the following season when tasked with the duties as starter vs the 2019 first Ram season OL class of Evans/ Edwards/ Brewer/ Corbett getting a heavy-duty number of snaps with 31 starts from 3 of the 4.IMO there is a large difference in the amount of talent in Evans/ Edwards & Corbett compared to Noteboom/ Allen & Demby.

Snead staying close to his beliefs on procuring OL talent....many press statement on his preference of drafting & securing OT's over OG's & OC's. In the last 2 drafts he has secured 5 starting college OT's vs one starting college OG/OC that being Allen. Snead might fill he is set @ both starting OG posts this season. He has a college starting LT now @ LG & a college starting RT now @ RG. Snead's mind set @ this current time ....Mission Accomplished.

I should remind myself that Brian Allen {who most here have written off in 2020 as a Ram OL} was a versatile interior OL'er who had many more starts @ OG than center. BA was HS starting OG &DT. In BA's first 3 seasons @ Michigan state (FR) was reserve OG, (SO) was starting OG, (JR) season was starting OG. (SR) was starting center. BA's college career was seriously accomplished.....Four-year letter winner, team captain, All-Big Ten accolades three straight years (2015-17), three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree..., team's most inspirational player (Biggie Munn Award), received the Downtown Coaches Club Award, given to the team's most outstanding offensive player and the Up Front Award, semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, Academic Heisman'...was the 2017 Michael R. Sadler Scholar-Athlete Award recipient. named a first-team Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America and Scout.com. Just maybe we might want to hold off a bit before we delete him as a Ram in 2020.

Kromer did BA no favors in his rookie season when he only gave BA 39 snaps with the 2018 offense. If Allen is unable to win his previous two NFL OC positions back (2018 main reserve OC & 2019 starter @ OC) Kromer may rethink moving the fire hydrant into competition @ both OG reserve posts. It might be a good bet that Kromer will go with Blythe/Shelton/Trewyn as his 3 main OC's with Blythe as starter, Shelton securing position on 53 player roster & Trewyn earning a practice squad position. If the OG starting posts are set then Allen would join Brewer, Demby & Kolone to fight it out for the reserve swing OG position. Or is 4 not enough OG competition for the one swing OG OL position?

 

[BonifayRam]

I keep seeing Brewer's name pop up in these conversations. Where's the optimism wrt him coming from?

Good bet you can look no further than me.

Having many yrs experience in the vocation as a musician back in the decades of the 70's & 80's .....I can beat the drum trap set real hard & LOUD when desired.............I am guilty of beating the drums of positive & optimistic comments on our Rams OL'er Chandler Brewer.

I was highly impressed with his four preseason games. Brewer started 3 of the 4 of those games @ LT when he was primarily a starting RG in college. As those games wore on Kromer moved Brewer into the LG/ RT & RG posts. While Brewer did not over power all his opponents he played mistake-free football. He made good run & pass blocks. I would think that with the cancer now a year passed & far in the rearview mirror he can gear up & get focused on his vocation with the Rams.

Plus the below articles are great reads for many too:

Florence grad overcomes cancer to achieve dream of playing in NFL

Florence grad Chandler Brewer overcame cancer to make the Los Angeles Rams' roster.

www.timesdaily.com

Grad overcomes cancer to achieve dream of playing in NFL

Anyone who’s ever put on a helmet and shoulder pads in their youth has thoughts and dreams of making it to the NFL. Few, however, have been able to do so while also fighting cancer.

www.washingtontimes.com

MTSU's Chandler Brewer says he played 2018 season after being diagnosed with cancer

MTSU offensive lineman Chandler Brewer announced on Twitter he played the 2018 season after being diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

www.dnj.com

NFL Draft Notes: Chandler Brewer's NFL hopes survive cancer scare

He concealed cancer treatment from scouts to avoid the distraction. Now Chandler Brewer is gaining his strength back in time for the draft.

www.si.com

 

[Malibu]

Guys seriously this line is mediocre at best and most likely leaning towards terrible again.

All second rate talent with alot of deficiencies at run blocking, and massive deficiencies at interior line play all across the interior. Note that Goff is a pocket passer he is not buying time with his feet. Sure he can roll out but that most of the time is NOT by design.

I think everyone needs to watch the 2017 and 2018 seasons, Goff had all day to sit back and survey the field. Compare that to 2019. Even after the first 3 wins it felt like something was really off and it continued throughout the season. I know the knee jerk reaction is to say we had a lot of injuries and thus a lot of shuffling of players sure, but those players are the players we have now and in any configuration whether begining of season before injuries we sucked and during the last 5 games when the line was in tact we still sucked.

Guys it is time to bite the bullet and find some BETTER talent than currently on the roster. Start with Trent Williams restructure Goff and sign him he solidifies the LT spot for multi years just like when Whit came. Move Whit to LG or RT. Draft the top G or C and watch the run game soar, Goff will have way more time and most of all the Rams Offense will get to 30-32+ ppg again which would be 6-8 ppg more than last year.

Biggest key to remember look up PFF Rams oline ranking it was 31st only Miami's was worse. What is so scary about that fact we have the same line as last year with zero additions. Not to mention two of this 9-10 linemen are injured and who knows how that will effect us (Boom/Allen) both were starters.

C'mon Snead/McVay/Komer please prioritize the line and come up with real fixes not hoping and praying we will be better which is astronomical unrealistic!

 

[Allen2McVay]

Guys seriously this line is mediocre at best and most likely leaning towards terrible again.

All second rate talent with alot of deficiencies at run blocking, and massive deficiencies at interior line play all across the interior. Note that Goff is a pocket passer he is not buying time with his feet. Sure he can roll out but that most of the time is NOT by design.

I think everyone needs to watch the 2017 and 2018 seasons, Goff had all day to sit back and survey the field. Compare that to 2019. Even after the first 3 wins it felt like something was really off and it continued throughout the season. I know the knee jerk reaction is to say we had a lot of injuries and thus a lot of shuffling of players sure, but those players are the players we have now and in any configuration whether begining of season before injuries we sucked and during the last 5 games when the line was in tact we still sucked.

Guys it is time to bite the bullet and find some BETTER talent than currently on the roster. Start with Trent Williams restructure Goff and sign him he solidifies the LT spot for multi years just like when Whit came. Move Whit to LG or RT. Draft the top G or C and watch the run game soar, Goff will have way more time and most of all the Rams Offense will get to 30-32+ ppg again which would be 6-8 ppg more than last year.

Biggest key to remember look up PFF Rams oline ranking it was 31st only Miami's was worse. What is so scary about that fact we have the same line as last year with zero additions. Not to mention two of this 9-10 linemen are injured and who knows how that will effect us (Boom/Allen) both were starters.

C'mon Snead/McVay/Komer please prioritize the line and come up with real fixes not hoping and praying we will be better which is astronomical unrealistic!

They would have to trade for Trent Williams before signing him. Their top pick (#52) might not be enough to get a trade done, so now you would be looking at next year’s draft picks when they are already without their #1.

So Williams does not seem possible.

Restructuring Goff’s $ to create cap space may be needed just to get through the recent signings. May also be needed for next year for players like Kupp and Johnson.

I share the OL concerns but think the hope is that we get the 2018 Havenstein and not the 2019 version; and that young linemen improve. Corbett, Noteboom, Edwards and Evans all have less than ten career starts.

 

[LARAMSinFeb.]

We still need a top notch center - Blythe is not the answer - he is just a fill in

Yep. If he had strong guards both sides of him he'd be fine. But we don't.

 

[BonifayRam]

LA Rams' offensive line counting on boost from continuity
By GREG BEACHAM/AP Sports Writer

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If NFL teams are unable to hold offseason workouts amid the coronavirus pandemic, Andrew Whitworth and Austin Blythe believe continuity will be a valuable commodity this fall.That's an area where the Los Angeles Rams' offensive line should be much stronger this season.

Whitworth and Blythe are both returning to their starting jobs on the line after re-signing with the Rams as free agents. Whitworth has been Los Angeles' starting left tackle for each of coach Sean McVay's three seasons, while Blythe has started at all three interior spots on the line over the past two years.

Injuries and turnover were key factors in the offensive line's less-than-stellar performance last season, but all five starters are returning this year. They expect to be tougher and more dependable and after spending much of last season frantically filling injury holes. “I look forward to us having a fantastic rebound,” Whitworth said Thursday.

After the Rams' offensive line had remarkable durability and consistency during McVay's first two seasons, it went through upheaval last year. Second-year pros Brian Allen and Joseph Noteboom took over starting roles with little NFL experience, and both incurred season-ending injuries that forced more shuffles.

“Other guys had to step up and play, so having that experience is going to help us a lot coming into training camp,” Blythe said. “I think it will let us hit the ground running, even at the end of OTAs if we’re getting to go out there and do some football stuff. But if it happens to be training camp before we get on the field, that’s going to serve us really well.”

When the Rams hosted the Bears last November, they had four starters playing new positions on the offensive line, including Blythe moving to center from right guard. Aside from Whitworth and Blythe, the Rams' other three starters against Chicago - Bobby Evans, David Edwards and Austin Corbett - had barely played in the NFL.

“A lot of these guys unfortunately didn’t to play a lot of football before they got thrust in there to play a lot of football,” Whitworth said. “Considering at one point we had three guys who had never played in an NFL football game starting, that’s a heck of a challenge. I don’t care where you are. I think there’s a lot to build off of. I think we have a lot of young guys that will step up and play well, and they’re going to grow up and mature."

The backups are mostly all back with a year of experience. Allen, Noteboom and right tackle Rob Havenstein also are returning to the Rams' offensive line, which will be blocking for a new running back. Los Angeles released Todd Gurley last month to get out from under his onerous contract extension before it had even kicked in, leaving career backup Malcolm Brown and second-year pro Darrell Henderson as the Rams' top running backs.Whitworth didn't sugarcoat the setback for the Rams' offense, saying Gurley will be missed in the locker room and on the field.

“He’s just somebody who’s infectious with his attitude, and really just his toughness and how much he loves football,” Whitworth said. “Guys just gravitate to him because of that."

Whitworth officially agreed to a three-year deal this week to return for his 15th NFL season, but he isn't thinking about his future beyond the current season. To that end, he built a weight room in his garage in California over the past month to make sure his training doesn't slip while he's unable to go to the Rams' training complex.

Whitworth knows he'll need every advantage to stay on top at 38 years old, and he started planning for this possibility well before North American sports had come to a standstill. Whitworth and his wife parked their cars in the driveway, and their four children helped with the cleanup and sterilization of the garage before he trucked in plenty of weights with help from the Rams.

“I was paying attention enough to realize things would be changing and be different,” Whitworth said. “I really started almost a month ago ordering equipment and stuff that I thought I might need, and now I’ve got a full-fledged weight room at the house. The only problem is she wants to know what in the world we’re going to do with all of it when things go back to normal. So I’ve got to figure that one out, but other than that, we’re good."

 

[Flint]

It’s true that all the kids will probably be better with a year in the program under their belts but I’ve read stuff about how the line came together near the end. Is that really the way it was? Seemed like against the tougher defenses like the niners it was all smoke and mirrors, there was nowhere to run and no time to throw. That’s when McVay started the boots and rollouts, using Higbee in the middle, but if your qb can’t run( like Goff) aren’t you handcuffing your offense? If you’re rolling out you cut down on your receiving options, unless you’re Mahomes. The Rams were getting throttled and were in the niner game cuz McVay used every trick he could come up with, and then there’s Baltimore, same story can’t run or throw.
I don’t think we can just put any old FA back there at rb, I think we need a little more size. The run game has to be there, Whit is slipping and these young guys are still learning pass pro. This offense needs a quality run game.

 

[payote75]

I think I'm thinking outside the box a bit but I would not be surprised if the Rams took a wideout at 52. As a cooks replacement. If they trade cooks post June it shows they save about 12 million cap space. Regardless if they trade him they have Reynolds and the rook. The rook gets some valuable playing time with Reynolds who would help hold it down probably play for his next contract elsewhere ......and next year if it worked out and the dude we pick is good which in this draft is quite possible the rec. core remains intact maybe better if the dude we draft is fast and big.

 

[CoachAllred]

I don't disagree with personnel upgrades, but I think the affect of Kromer no longer being weighed down with run game planning will play a important role in our olines improvement.
I have never liked position coaches being too involved with game planning.Especially when you have a top notch
position coach such as Kromer. This guy is a master at his craft, so let him focus on what he does best.

Maybe you can get by with dual responsibilities when your oline is a veteran group for the most part.
We are now dealing with a younger group, so we need our oline coach focusing on one thing and one thing only.
Player development.

 

[BonifayRam]

Matt Miller's Scouting Notebook: Latest 2020 Draft Rumors
Matt MillerApril 3, 2020
View: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2884704-matt-millers-scouting-notebook-latest-2020-draft-rumors-for-every-nfl-team
As the draft gets closer, the information from team sources gets more accurate and starts to flow more freely. Head coaches who are still digesting draft information will reach out for tips on a player or position group. Scouts, who've been studying this class for a year, are bored and anxious to talk.As those conversations happen, what information can be relayed to readers will be. And that's what this week's Scouting Notebook hinges on—the top team-by-team buzz in NFL circles right now.

LOS ANGELES RAMS: Sources expect a running back early and an offensive tackle to potentially be the priority in Round 2 if one is on the board.

 

[thirteen28]

don't look at it in a vacuum. Compare to what other teams have. This line is bad.

True. But also, don't look at it as a static entity that was the same for all 16 games. It was most definitely better at the end of the season than at the beginning.

As good as '17 and '18? No. There is still an awful lot of work to get to that level

Better in game 16 than in game 1. Absolutely.

Trending in the right direction? Yes.

Were a lot of valuable reps gained by Evans, Edwards, and Corbett? Yep, and it will at least give us quality depth in the future.

Other than Demby, I don't think there is anyone we have that is a hopeless case that absolutely MUST be replaced. If we can get better guys than the ones we have, go for it.

 

[BonifayRam]

I think I'm thinking outside the box a bit but I would not be surprised if the Rams took a wideout at 52. As a cooks replacement. If they trade cooks post June it shows they save about 12 million cap space. Regardless if they trade him they have Reynolds and the rook. The rook gets some valuable playing time with Reynolds who would help hold it down probably play for his next contract elsewhere ......and next year if it worked out and the dude we pick is good which in this draft is quite possible the rec. core remains intact maybe better if the dude we draft is fast and big.

To set the table here in side the box for my below comments I should make it clear that I consider a Brandon Cook trade as "Not going to happen". I even believe if BC rebounds this season as most think will happen it would make his future trade also unlikely in 2021.

I know Kupp/ Reynolds & Everett will be UFA's in March 2021 & that might give pause to consider a very talented TE or WR who would be an excellent steal @ #52. However, if that were to be the case I would hope Snead would cease this event & trade such a draft steal or bargain WR commodity to the highest bidder (trade). A trade down to gather more draft ammo for the 3rd or 4th rounds would be the wiser move to make. Myself I would have real issue with the selection of a wide out @52 when LT, ER, RB, OC, CB, ILB & safety all would benefit this 2020 roster much more.

Its real hard for me to see any reason for a rookie wide out. This team is well-endowed with proven OUTSTANDING receiver talent now. Our TE unit has 2 NFL caliber starting TE's & our WR unit has 4 starting caliber pass catchers who barely broke out in a perspiration during regular games last season. Then when you consider the extra large amount of team salary cap $$$ invested into our present receiving unit hard to see why there would be a need to invest more in 2020 when the team is running in the red now in salary cap. Those six players all want the ball often. All of them are playmakers.

 

[FarNorth]

Matt Miller's Scouting Notebook: Latest 2020 Draft Rumors
Matt MillerApril 3, 2020
View: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2884704-matt-millers-scouting-notebook-latest-2020-draft-rumors-for-every-nfl-team
As the draft gets closer, the information from team sources gets more accurate and starts to flow more freely. Head coaches who are still digesting draft information will reach out for tips on a player or position group. Scouts, who've been studying this class for a year, are bored and anxious to talk.As those conversations happen, what information can be relayed to readers will be. And that's what this week's Scouting Notebook hinges on—the top team-by-team buzz in NFL circles right now.

LOS ANGELES RAMS: Sources expect a running back early and an offensive tackle to potentially be the priority in Round 2 if one is on the board.

The combination of RB and o-line early seems plausible. Both need reinforcement. Tackle over center might seem unexpected, but we really don't know how the Rams view the existing roster and what o-line position could best be improved through the draft. So maybe this report could have some basis.

 

[BonifayRam]

The combination of RB and o-line early seems plausible. Both need reinforcement. Tackle over center might seem unexpected, but we really don't know how the Rams view the existing roster and what o-line position could best be improved through the draft. So maybe this report could have some basis.

Ref. OT need.......Rams have invested in 4 OT's in the last two years & resigned 2 OT's.

When you dig deep in Rams investments in OT position:

*2015 2nd rd ORT pick Havenstein won starting post. New contract 2018 & turned in a deplorable 2019 performance & benched.
*2018 3rd rd OLT pick Noteboom is recovering from a late October 2019 ACL/MCL surgery status in 2020 unknown.
*2018 6th rd OLT pick Demby failed @ OT was moved into OG posts then failed there. Present OT value zero.
*2019 3rd rd OLT pick Evans won starting RT post late 2019. One season appraisal indicates strong RT post prospect.
*2019 5th rd ORT pick Edwards won reserve LT post early in 2019. Forced move inside & won starting OG post. Consider starter OG 2020.
*2020 Last 3 seasons starting LT Whitworth renewed contract.

Summary:
Rams have 3 to 4 healthy RT post prospects & 1 healthy LT & NO healthy reserve LT prospects.

 

[So Ram]

This upcoming season we will see how this OL story unfolds in so many interesting OL elements to study. One that should give us Ram fans a good case study will take place in this OL.

2018 first Ram season OL class of Noteboom/Allen/Demby getting very few snaps with the offense & zero starts & how all three performed the following season when tasked with the duties as starter vs the 2019 first Ram season OL class of Evans/ Edwards/ Brewer/ Corbett getting a heavy-duty number of snaps with 31 starts from 3 of the 4.IMO there is a large difference in the amount of talent in Evans/ Edwards & Corbett compared to Noteboom/ Allen & Demby.

Snead staying close to his beliefs on procuring OL talent....many press statement on his preference of drafting & securing OT's over OG's & OC's. In the last 2 drafts he has secured 5 starting college OT's vs one starting college OG/OC that being Allen. Snead might fill he is set @ both starting OG posts this season. He has a college starting LT now @ LG & a college starting RT now @ RG. Snead's mind set @ this current time ....Mission Accomplished.

I should remind myself that Brian Allen {who most here have written off in 2020 as a Ram OL} was a versatile interior OL'er who had many more starts @ OG than center. BA was HS starting OG &DT. In BA's first 3 seasons @ Michigan state (FR) was reserve OG, (SO) was starting OG, (JR) season was starting OG. (SR) was starting center. BA's college career was seriously accomplished.....Four-year letter winner, team captain, All-Big Ten accolades three straight years (2015-17), three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree..., team's most inspirational player (Biggie Munn Award), received the Downtown Coaches Club Award, given to the team's most outstanding offensive player and the Up Front Award, semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, Academic Heisman'...was the 2017 Michael R. Sadler Scholar-Athlete Award recipient. named a first-team Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America and Scout.com. Just maybe we might want to hold off a bit before we delete him as a Ram in 2020.

Kromer did BA no favors in his rookie season when he only gave BA 39 snaps with the 2018 offense. If Allen is unable to win his previous two NFL OC positions back (2018 main reserve OC & 2019 starter @ OC) Kromer may rethink moving the fire hydrant into competition @ both OG reserve posts. It might be a good bet that Kromer will go with Blythe/Shelton/Trewyn as his 3 main OC's with Blythe as starter, Shelton securing position on 53 player roster & Trewyn earning a practice squad position. If the OG starting posts are set then Allen would join Brewer, Demby & Kolone to fight it out for the reserve swing OG position. Or is 4 not enough OG competition for the one swing OG OL position?

Well you now see why I think The Rams don’t draft a O”lineman.I go back to 2017 MCSNEAD’s first draft. This even more of a point that Kromer was a part of these Lineman as well.
I look at The Rams drafting playmakers. Mcvay said when he first got here that you could never have enough of those type of players in a team. Playmaker as well being a DE/OLB.
Blythe has been the starting OG so I see Allen being the backup center & Blythe being the backup RG. Just like you always said Roger Saffold was the backup LT, which I never believed. Thankful we never found out. I also don’t think Brian Allen deserved playing time in 2018,but should have had to earn the starting center spot. I actually liked Sullivan better than both,but also thought The Rams needed to sign a OG last year , especially when Saffold left.was on board with Noteboom playing guard as well.He needed preseason reps as well that he did not get. I believe because Mcvay played it scared both players got injured when real bullets were being fired. —Confidence plays apart in the development of players imo.

— I think it was said that the 3 years(2) that Whitworth signed was because of Notebooms health. He should be the LT of the future. I could see him being brought on slowly & signing him to a long term contract without much starting experience.
Bobby Evans or Brewer will more than likely be the backup LT until then. I think they were in 2019 as well ??