The Los Angeles Rams will be one of 21 teams that begin organized team activities (OTAs) on Monday. Scheduled with five OTA practices, the Rams have OTAs on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday pf this week before going on Tuesday and Wednesday next week to wrap up the OTA period. What are the biggest questions for the team heading into the beginning steps of the 2024 season?
1. Who starts on the defensive line?
I went into more detail about this on my article breaking down the fronts of new DC Chris Shula's scheme, but the Rams' base defensive line has plenty of question marks remaining. Kobie Turner will take one of their base defensive end spots, but he is a projection there after the Rams didn't play him in base at all last year. Bobby Brown III and Tyler Davis will rotate at the nose tackle spot, but the remaining other base defensive end spot is a relative unknown.
Braden Fiske has been assumed to be that player, but he wouldn't make a good 4/4i-technique that the Rams use due to his average size, length, and play strength. That leaves the Rams with Larell Murchison or Desjuan Johnson, neither of whom have proven to be capable full-time starters. This, and the Rams' lack of a real 1T in nickel is their biggest question mark heading into the season for me.
2. How does Steve Avila handle moving to center?
Steve Avila put together a tremendous rookie season at left guard, quickly assimilating into the Rams' offense and becoming a stalwart player inside. Avila's efforts there helped pave the way for the Rams' offense and saw him named to the PFWA NFL All-Rookie team.
Now, Avila makes the transition over to center to replace Coleman Shelton. This is a task significantly easier said than done, as center is one of the hardest positions to learn in sports, and made even more difficult due to the complexities of Sean McVay's offense. Fortunately, Avila has already played center before, otherwise I doubt the Rams would have made such a move, but it is still a significant question mark for the team.
3. Is their move to 12-personnel real?
The Rams have been hinting at their move to more 12 and 13-personnel looks after being a heavy 11-personnel offense for all of McVay's tenure. The team brought in Colby Parkinson as a free agent, and Davis Allen had quality moments as a rookie. The Rams will have to wait for Tyler Higbee to return late in the season, but they have their deepest tight end room in years now. Are they ready to commit to more of a shift to heavy-personnel looks?
4. How does Tre'Davious White look in his recovery post-Achilles?
The Rams need Tre'Davious White to be ready to play and stay healthy, given their unproven secondary. The issue is, White has only played 10 games over the last two years due to an ACL and Achilles tear. White will be a valuable mentor to many of the team's young players, but his ability on the field is something the Rams need even more.
The Rams team doctor, Dr. Neal ElAttrache performed the surgery on White’s Achilles, giving the team unique access and familiarity with his process. The Rams are familiar with Achilles injuries, given their experience with Cam Akers. Hopefully, they can get a similar earlier-than-expected recovery for White like they did with Akers.
5. What rookie stands out immediately?
The Rams had several rookies stand out right away last year, with Puka Nacua, Kobie Turner, Steve Avila, and Byron Young immediately delivering.
Jared Verse and Braden Fiske will draw a lot of eyes, but I'm keeping an eye on how players like Kamren Kinchens, Brennan Jackson, Tyler Davis, and Jordan Whittington pick things up. These players are critical for the Rams' depth and personnel moves. A good OTA period would go a long way in assuring their depth.
6. Just how much change will Chris Shula install to the defense?
I've gone into plenty of detail on what changes I expect new defensive coordinator Chris Shula to implement to the Rams' defense, but admittedly most of it has been speculation. While it's a pretty educated guess, we've yet to really see just how Shula wants to run the defense out of some coach-speak talking points.
7. Which young player takes the biggest step forward?
While they enjoyed a tremendous rookie year out of several contributors last year, the Rams have plenty of other promising young talents. However, none of them have really stepped up to the plate just yet.
Players like Cobie Durant, Tre Tomlinson, Quentin Lake, Jake Hummel, Nick Hampton, Ochaun Mathis, and Jason Taylor II taking that next step as players would be a significant boon to the overall state of the Rams' roster.
8. When will Matthew Stafford's contract be wrapped up?
Stafford's camp made it known that they are seeking a new deal for the quarterback, one with more guaranteed money for protections in 2025 and 2026. The Rams have danced around the subject over the last few weeks, but it could become an issue the longer it remains unresolved.
The team goes as Stafford goes, and they need him to be back fully throwing with the team once more.
9. Can they field a full linebacker room?
I was genuinely surprised the Rams opted not to add a single linebacker in the 2024 NFL Draft, once again opting to throw UDFA players at it. Ernest Jones is a budding star and Christian Rozeboom has held up well, but the depth of that room is close to a disaster. Jones is entering a contract year, and if he misses any time due to injury, the state of that room completely falls apart.
Young players like Jake Hummel, Omar Speights, and Olakunle Fatukasi stepping up and proving themselves on special teams and capable on defense would calm a lot of nerves about that room.
10. How does the Blake Corum/Kyren Williams rotation work out?
I'm not so sure this question will really be answered by OTAs, but it's still worth noting. Corum and Williams are two talented backs, one finishing second in rushing last year and the other a third-round rookie, and how the Rams split duties between the two has been a topic of discussion since Corum was selected.