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3 underrated players who could make all the difference for the Rams in 2025
Five weeks into the 2024 season, the Los Angeles Rams did not look like a team to be taken seriously. They had bottomed out with a 1-4 start, neither Puka Nacua nor Cooper Kupp was healthy, which affected Matthew Stafford’s ability to be Matthew Stafford, and a defense that had the league talking about its potential before the season started wasn’t realizing it.
We all know what happened after the Week 6 bye. Sean McVay’s team went 9-3 down the stretch in the regular season, won the NFC West, beat the daylights out of the Minnesota Vikings in the Wild Card round, and lost a real nail-biter to the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles in the Divisional frame.
Now, it’s onto the next. The Rams lost Cooper Kupp to the Seattle Seahawks, and picked up Davante Adams (more on him in a minute) as a potentially dynamic replacement. Stafford looks to be every bit the quarterback he’s always been on what looks to be a two-year plan. McVay’s run game, led by Kyren WIlliams, has moved decisively from inside and outside zone to the NFL’s highest rate of straight-up man-blocking (by far) to great effect. The addition of Oregon tight end Terrance Ferguson with the 46th overall pick in the second round of the 2025 draft could portend a move to 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends, two receivers), something unusual for McVay, who’s been the NFL’s most ardent 11 personnel advocate for years.
The defense is a complete bear to deal with when it comes to the front – just ask Sam Darnold about that. And now they have free-agent defensive tackle Poona Ford, and third-round Michigan edge defender Josaiah Stewart, whose 2024 tape really impressed me. The rich get richer there. Behind that, the Rams faced the league’s third-most passing attempts in dime defense, but as we’re about to see, that may change with a new cadre of linebackers.
There’s been a lot of change this offseason for the Rams, and the obvious hope is that they’ll be able to recreate their outstanding second-half surge without the unnecessary drama at the beginning. If that happens, it’s easy to see this team as more than just a default division winner.
It takes more than just the big names to get that done, of course. In the continuation of SB Nation’s “Hidden Gems” series, I take a look at one underrated veteran, free-agent acquisition, and draft pick. All three of these guys could (and should) play major roles in whatever becomes of the Rams in 2025.
The Rams did what they did last season despite a cornerback group that allowed 15 touchdowns to just four interceptions. The opponent completion rate (53.2%), opponent EPA per play allowed (+0.02), and opponent passer rating (87.9) for those cornerbacks weren’t quite as problematic, but there’s a reason the team is still...
