Turf Show Times
The Rams issues against the run come down to more than just the linebacker position
It’s almost too many offseasons to count at this point when it comes to the Los Angeles Rams fanbase pleading the team to draft a linebacker. That’s no different heading into the 2025 offseason with Christian Rozeboom set to leave and Omar Speights the only starting linebacker set to return.
The first half of the 2024 season seemed to be navigating the loss of Ernest Jones. Once the Rams plugged Speights into the defense following the injury to Troy Reeder, that position group got much better. Rozeboom went from a bottom-tier linebacker to middle of the pack. From Weeks 9-17, Rozeboom was PFF’s fifth-highest graded linebacker and graded out third in coverage. Speights ranked sixth against the run and was a top-10 tackling linebacker.
At the end of the day, it was a group that improved once they found their starting duo. Their two worst games came against the same team that managed to do it to most defenses throughout the season.
To be clear, this isn’t to say that the Rams don’t need an upgrade at linebacker. They should look to replace Rozeboom this offseason in the draft. However, to think a linebacker fixes all of the issues on defense isn’t understanding where the cause of the issues lies. In the same breath, Dre Greenlaw 34 snaps off of a torn Achilles or another big name linebacker isn’t magically fixing the Rams run defense. An upgrade at linebacker may help improve it to an extent, but it’s not making the issue completely disappear.
Before we go much further, it’s also important to note that the Rams have never placed high value on the linebacker position under Sean McVay. They’ve never drafted a linebacker inside the top-100. Players that they could have re-signed such as Ernest Jones and Cory Littleton, they traded away or opted not to bring back. When the Rams did sign Bobby Wagner, general manager Les Snead noted that they, “weren’t really planning for the opportunity.” It was more about Wagner wanting to play for his hometown team than it was the Rams seeking out Wagner.
The Rams defense has been modeled after the Vic Fangio scheme. While Chris Shula has his own variations and twists, that can be said about any schematic tree. The Eagles defense this season was led by a castaway at linebacker in Zack Baun and Nakobe Dean who had started four games in two seasons. Former top-10 pick Devin White was signed in the preseason by the Eagles and cut in October after not playing in any games. When Dean got injured in the playoffs, Oren Burks stepped in and played well. This is the same Oren Burks that was scapegoated by the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl just a year ago.
This is all to say, the Fangio defense doesn’t need an elite linebacker to succeed. In fact, with a strong player in the...
