Turf Show Times
A new look in the WR room will pay dividends for Stafford...
There has been some early chatter throughout the Los Angeles Rams OTAs and at the start of minicamp of players making impressions on the coaching staff. Sean McVay recently spoke to J.B. Long and the media about players performances and who has caught the coaching staff’s eyes so far.
Its still very early and Sean McVay is typically not the type of coach to throw players under the bus, but rather praise efforts and their aptitude. But after reading the tea leaves, let’s buy or sell stock for the Rams offensive players thus far...
Let’s start with the franchise quarterback. Matthew Stafford is entering his age-37 season and most pundits would think that he is bound to fall off the cliff. However, Stafford’s TD % as a Ram is better than his 12 years in Detroit along with the other following categories: Completion percentage (LAR - 65.7% > DET - 62.6%), Passing Success Rate (LAR - 50.1% > DET - 46.6%), Adjusted Yards Gained per Pass Attempt (LAR - 7.53% > DET - 7.11%), Passer Rating (LAR - 95.2 > DET - 89.9), and Net Yards Gained per Pass Attempt (LAR - 6.72 > DET - 6.45). That even accounts for the Rams bad offense in 2022 when everyone was hurt. With the addition of Davante Adams, I believe Stafford is in for a 30+ touchdown season and the offense while not as electric as 2021, shows more consistency than it did in 2024.
As for the backups, I think Jimmy Garoppolo entering his second year with McVay provides huge upside in case Stafford were to miss any time. In addition, Stetson Bennett’s life off the field as seemed to have “no news is good news” vibe. Bennett will likely get almost all of the snaps in preseason. I am going to buy that he performs well, although he could still be cut when the 53 man roster is announced.
Barring an injury in training camp, Kyren Williams is going to be the starting running back for the Los Angeles Rams. However, its the production that I see declining. After 316 rushing attempts in the regular season, Williams seems likely to cede carries to Blake Corum and/or Jarquez Hunter. My main argument against Williams is that his rushing yards per attempt dropped significantly from 2023 to 2024 and there was evidence of a lack of explosion in his game. You can’t get something back that you never had to begin with.
I’ll buy Jarquez Hunter even though it will be in a limited capacity. His explosiveness gives him an edge over the others in the running back room. Blake Corum will likely have a similar season to that of last year.
