Rams First Depth Chart Revealed, Rams Sign Three Offensive Lineman, Injury Updates & More

the Rams make some roster moves they cut two players they sign three offensive linemen will they be more than just Camp bodies and the first unofficial depth chart of the 2024 season is out that's coming up next I'll locked on [Music] Rams you are locked on Rams your daily Los Angeles Rams podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day what is up ramley and welcome to another episode of lock on Rams your daily podcast covering your Los Angeles Rams free and available wher get your podcast locked on Rams part of locked on podcast Network your team every day we're also available over on YouTube so if you haven't yet do us a huge favor and subscribe to the lockon Rams YouTube channel trying to get to 14K before the first preseason game so hit that subscribe button hit that notification Bell hit that like button and on a scale of 1 to 10 how concerned are you about the training camp injuries let us know down below my name is Doug McCain friends call me dmac you can follow me on X and Instagram at dmac forla I've been covering LA Sports for over a decade 247 Sports Bleacher Report Dodgers Nation SI the Rams for locked on as always I'm joined by the Rams preap and postgame show host for the Rams flagship radio station ESPN 710 La he's entering his ninth season covering your Los Angeles Rams the people's champ Mr Travis Rogers you can follow him on X at Travis Rogers and on today's episode the Rams bring in three offensive linemen they make some roster moves and also they released the first depth chart of the preseason it is gameweek for your Los Angeles Rams for the first time in a long time we're breaking it all down but first this episode of lockon rams is brought to you by FanDuel make every moment more as the playoffs wind down the sports stopped sporting like we want them to but this summer FanDuel is hooking up all customers with the boost or a bonus daily that's right there's something for everyone every day all summer long visit fanduel.com to get started okay Travis so we know the injury bug has really sunk its teeth into the Rams during training camp in the Rams they made some moves to definitely get some at the very least Camp bodies they make three moves they release two players they wave tight at Neil Johnson and safety Kenny Logan Jr both those of course at positions where they have some depth have some Surplus so not a huge surprise there but they bring in three offensive linemen you bring in Matt casy Alec Lindstrom and Connor mcdermit of course you're dealing with the injuries of Jonah Jackson Aller Jackson and Rob havenstein so hopefully as we talked about before the show these are just cam bodies and these key offensive line can get back healthy before the opener and that this is not a narrative that storyline that follows the team for the entire entire season it's the million-dollar question right dmac that you know I we were talking about this on my uh my radio show yesterday traven Lee 10 to one on ESPN 710 and it really you know I'll ask you the same question we talked about there do you want the optimistic version or do you want the Travis version you know the optimistic version is these are Camp bodies they're a little light in these position groups right now they got some games coming up they play the Cowboys coming up on Sunday afternoon which is pretty exciting you know just a see them out in real uniforms and real tackles and that kind of stuff uh and they just need to get through it and the guys like uh both Jackson's and Rob havenstein will be back by the time that the season starts or very close to it and everything's fine that's the optimistic version the more pessimistic version and the one that I worry about having seen what it looked like in the 2022 season is they're worried that their their depth is going to be a problem they're worried that guys that are are going to start are going to be un aailable guys they're going to back up are going to have to start and they need depth at these spots I think havenstein and alar Jackson are both guys that are are probably going to be ready to go when the time comes I don't know about Jonah Jackson and if you're starting to test depth already here in the first week of August I don't love it we we know how this goes this is this is always the thing oh it's not a big deal be ready to go with the start of Camp oh it's not a big deal he might miss this or he might miss that and the next thing you know The Season's here and guys still aren't back or they're back but they're not quite where they're supposed to be when it was as many people as we're talking about it has to make your eyebrows go up I hope it's just the first thing live Warm Bodies that you need to get through these games and it's not that hey our depth is already being tested and we need to bring in reinforcements yeah absolutely I think when you look at this Rams history what they do with sha McVey the coaches they bring in is when they need cam bodies when they need guys to plug in holes and fill in spots especially during training camp they typically like to do it with players they're familiar with so Conor mcder he has the familiarity with Ryan Wendell and it's time with the Patriots in the bills with casy he's someone that they brought as an undrafted free agent a few years back so I mean you saw even last season bringing back Ronnie Rivers right I mean bringing guys that they're familiar with that know the system that know the culture that at the very least that can keep things running smoothly as far as Conor mcder goes he's not someone that really fits with what the r are trying to do with their offensive line he's not the road grading kind of driving force type of offensive lineman that they're looking for right now it's a more beefed up group they're trying to impose their will it's a gap scheme they trying to run Duo it's not really the wide Zone type of blocking that we've seen in the past and that's something that Conor McDermot is more built for and yeah if you look at his career he does have some experience he does have the size and measurables as well 68 and 18 307 PBS at UCLA and yeah unfortunately really I love for him to be a big impact player for this team and find a role but I just don't think the fit is there I'll take off the the blue and gold colored glasses there and just be honest about it yeah look I I hope that this is something that we don't even remember we talked about a month from now you know what I mean like in a perfect world this is something that by the time you know the the Rams hit their byway which we all know is very early in the season we're not talking about anything other than all right let's get some guys you know a little bit of rest get them off their feet get them ready to go for the long push ahead and we're still not talking about hey the offensive line seems to be a problem hey what happened to those guys they brought in Camp why did they bring in a guy that didn't fit the scheme and all these sorts of questions hopefully this is all stuff that Fades into the background but again Rams Fans know this every dayers know this somebody that has covered this team since they came back uh uh handful a couple handfuls at this point years ago the one time that Shawn McVey has had a bad team the one time this is the eighth year coming up right now the one time they had a bad team it's because the offensive line came unglued early in the season it's the only time they haven't been competitive and they had good skill positions Matthew Stafford was still here sha McVey was still here they Aaron Donald was still here for the most part but the offensive line was just absolutely crushed with injuries and they just were never able to dig out from underneath it and you know that that's a that's a wound that hasn't entirely healed and when you see what's happened so far through the first few weeks of Camp it's hard not to let your mind go there thankfully like we've said these are relatively minor things for havenstein and Jackson uh or AJ Jackson I should say as far as Jonah Jackson goes maybe it's a little bit more significant and you know you any team in the NFL's got to be able to survive Miss an a guy that's just life in that League two guys you start to wonder about okay now we're now we're down to you know just three of our five starting lineups once you get that third guy down you you can't do it you just you just simply can't do it so this is the story of camp this is the thing to keep your eye on and hopefully that these guys are back by the time we get to Sunday Night Football in Detroit exactly and I think that you mentioned it just a couple years ago that was what derailed this team and that's why this is getting more attention I think from Rams Fans specifically because we live through 2022 it's PTSD no it's PT right I mean we look back at what happened that year and it felt like every single week it was another offensive lineman and it that season just never had a chance because of it and you look at the guys they brought in they're not guys that you think are going to even really be Dept piece I me the Rams just kind of typically STI stick with their Death at a lot of different positions you have AJR Curry Logan bruss KT Leon and Conor McDermot he has started good amount of games in the NFL in his career but nothing where you say okay I mean 17 starts 1,210 offensive snaps has also played 181 plays on special teams you look at Matt Casi he has never started on the offensive line he's never had an offensive line snap but he's played one special Team snap in his career that was with the Panthers in 2020 he was with the Birmingham stallions the last couple years so kind of point I'm trying to make is they're not having high hopes to kind of find some diamond in the rough for any of these guys they're just trying to keep things moving while guys get healthy and let's hope that's the case other than quarterback which we can all stipulate as just a category entirely of its own this is the one position group you can't overcome you can have a pass rush that isn't quite good enough and you can survive you can deal with a secondary that maybe isn't quite better than League average and you can survive you can deal with a running back who's not a thousand- yard guy you can deal with wide receiving group room uh that that is just collectively o if your offensive line is crushed it is a wrap it is it is simply you C nothing else works if that group doesn't work this is a big deal until it's not a big deal until I see those guys line up in Detroit I'm GNA be I I'm I'm worried I you know hope hopefully it's over nothing but until I see it it's going to be my number one priority telling you Travis I know you got I know you're a big shot I you got I know you got sham mcve on speed dial you got to tell my idea do the rest of training cam on zoom and everyone will be fine wrap them bubble wrap they'll be good to go but coming up next we are going to take a look at the Rams first depth chart of the 2024 preseason that's coming up next on locked on Rams all right we're getting down to it in Major League Baseball and not to uh put too big of a of an alarm on this but the Dodgers are officially in a pendent race so why not get yourself out to the local ballpark right because game time is an authorized ticket Marketplace of Major League Baseball which makes getting your baseball tickets faster and easier and if you're thinking I'm gonna go no I'm not going to go I don't want to buy the tickets yet because I might not go game time and the game time app prices on the game time app they go down the closer you get to first pitch so you don't have to pre-plan you can do it last minute and it's a great way to do it killer last minute deals all in prices views from your seat and of course their lowest price guarantee game time's taking all the guest work out of buying MLB tickets and I 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special shout out to those everyday listeners out there we know you've been watching and waiting all offseason for a game you're going to get that this Sunday you can definitely join that everyday listeners Club too hit that subscribe button hit that notification Bell watch and listen every single episode and then you won't miss a thing about your Los Angeles Rams all right Travis so here in our second segment we're going to talk about The Unofficial unofficial depth chart for the Rams first preseason game that takes place this Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys and this first depth chart it's released by the media Department not the coaching staff so that's why they call it the unoficial depth chart but it still definitely gives you a really good idea about where the Rams are heading into their first preseason game and really no massive surprises Kiren Williams is ahead of Blake corm Matthew Stafford Jimmy garoo Stetson Bennett of course the quarterbacks how they're lined up wide receiver you got puka Tyler Johnson Drake Stoops at the other wide receiver then Demarcus Robinson 22 Atwell so 22 is behind Demarcus Robinson and yeah I mean all in all pretty solid I mean Colby Parkinson in front of Davis Allen and Co Cooper cup and then Jordan Winnington so really this is kind of what we were expecting but when you see it on paper it kind of just gives you a good idea of just how this roster looks how this depth chart looks heading into the season yeah I guess it kind of depends on your jumping off point right that how how feel about what you see when you look at this depth chart because you're right dmac there there are no surprises here right maybe maybe maybe maybe but not really the tight end you know maybe there was a a scenario where Davis Allen jumps ahead but they went out and got Kobe park or Kobe Parkinson for for a reason not not to bury him on the bench so I there there really aren't any surprises there if you believe that this is a good team then you're pretty happy with what you saw if you believe that this team needs to improve in some certain areas then maybe this is something that makes you go okay this is about exactly what I thought and now they're chasing this team or that team I like it I I think the Rams are are a really interesting team because I think that of all the teams that made the playoffs last year I think the Rams are probably the team that have the biggest Delta in what might happen this year if if they get if they stay healthy which is a wild card for everybody and they perform at the level that you would expect the Shawn McVey team to perform at this could be an 11 or 12- win team I really believe that if you have an injury in a key place here or there if you get performances that are a little bit below the line you don't have to squint too hard to see a team that wins seven or eight games right they and and you're talking from seven to 12 that's a five game swing that's a big deal and it this isn't like baseball or basketball where you Shuffle the deck and the team that you start the season with is not the team that you finish the season with that's not how the NFL works for the most part this is going to be the team this is how it goes so you know I I think what you looked at in that first depth chart is if if you like this roster and I do I think you're excited about it uh but this is this is a team you know we talk about it every year half the teams that made the playoffs from the year before don't the following year um I I think the Rams are right on the the razor edge of that I wouldn't be surprised at all if they went back I wouldn't be surprised if they won the division I also wouldn't be knocked me over with a feather shocked if they missed all together this is just the way that this league Works absolutely I mean it's the NFL anyone who pretends like they know it's going to happen hey we know that's just not the truth I mean you got to let these games play out you got to see who gets the luck of Health really which has been a story Line's fall of this team but I think what really stands out when I look at this depth chart is you don't see Tyler higgy's name right yeah and how does this team adjust and does Colby Parkinson realize that potential because we know he's got the physical attributes he's big and tall he can absolutely be a red zone threat he's proven himself to be a blocker but can he be that pass catching tight end that they think he can grow into and then will Davis Allen take a big step forward we saw during the practice squad session with the Chargers he was the guy that was getting the big gainers when they were actually doing something on offense so I think Davis Allen Kobe Parkinson massive x-factors and also I look at the running back position I mean we know this is kyen Williams running back team right we know that this is his position but to see Blake corn behind him really kind of gets you kind of excited about the potential of a little bit of a onew punch element someone that can really just be a bowling ball and has that nose for the End Zone down in the red zone so I'm excited about those two positions and how they're going to play out yeah I I'll start with the running backs Doug I I I agree with you I think that the the more we see him the more we get uh close to the beginning of the season the more I like the Blake korm pick I I I think this is a really interesting guy I think that he's very similar to what Kiron Williams brings to the table and Kiren Williams will get to catch his breath Kiren Williams will get to remain as healthy as possible that you're not going to have to give him a workload that is that is disproportionate or uh you know if you even wanted to say all right we'll take him off the field and put someone else in there your production I don't think is going to drop off a cliff because Korum is going to be able to kind of give you I I think a pretty good performance the the only thing with Corum that you keep your eye on and and again this kind of goes back to we'll see if when we see it against Detroit on Sunday night on that first weekend is pass protection right that with rookie running backs that's always a big question rookie running backs with an offensive line that may or may not have questions a quarterback that was we talked about this the other day that was you know a a thumb injury last year that he thought may be potentially career ending Matthew Stafford mentioned that so you need to make sure that number nine is upright and having a guy all it takes is one time where you don't know where to be and something very bad can happen so I think that's the big question for Blake corm but I agree with you I I think that's really good and the tight end as far as that goes I'm kind of turning into a Davis Allen fan and and it what we've seen so far through camp this year and what you saw at the end of the season last year you could tell that McVey and Stafford both started to trust him in a way that was not true at the beginning of the Season he was not being used very much early in the season and by the time you got into that last quarter and by the time that you got into some pretty important games Davis Allen was not only on the field he was making catches he he was a Target that they used I think that's really exciting yeah I mean they invested in Kobe Parkinson PID him over 22 million I think David Salon is one of those guys where it's like okay maybe he's not this maybe he's not that but every time we throw him the ball he catches it right so it's kind of as simple as that and if he's going to make plays with that big catch radius and become a weapon I absolutely think that you got to tap into that for sure I think Blake corai agree with you on the pass protection I also think ball security too that's we can see that deril young running backs he did have a fumble during the joint practice session so yeah lots of pressure on him I think just kind of being that migan guy people see the hype around him so I absolutely think though I'm really excited to see that that tandem in when the season begins but coming up next we're going to take a look at the defense a little special teams You Know Travis loves his special teams to so we talk about that coming up next on lock on Rams all right when you're hiring for your small business you want to find quality professionals that are right for the role that's why you got to check out LinkedIn jobs LinkedIn jobs has the tools to help you find the right Professionals for your team faster and for free let's talk about this for a second right we're just talking about the right not just an open job offensive line but the right type of offensive lineman for that job same is true for your business that's not just filling the spot it's filling the spot with the right candidate filling the spot with the right person for the job that's where LinkedIn comes in because it's not just a job board LinkedIn helps you hire professionals you can't find anywhere else even those who aren't actively searching for a job but might be open to that perfect role in a given month over 70% of LinkedIn users don't visit other leading job sites so if you're not looking on LinkedIn you're looking in the wrong place on LinkedIn 86% of small businesses get a qualified candidate within a day within 24 hours hire professionals like a professional on LinkedIn post your job for free at linkedin.com lockon NFL that's linkedin.com lockon NFL to post your job for free find the right person terms and conditions apply and welcome back to lockon Rams thank you for making lockon Rams your first list in every single weekday free and available rev GE your podcast all right so here in our third segment take a look at the defensive side and this one's a little more interesting and just how it's laid out because they only have two starting defensive line spots in this one which I find interesting you have nose tackle Bobby Brown and defensive tackle Kobe Turner but of course we know that Braden Fisk is definitely going to be one of the starters at defensive end so that definitely doesn't give you the full picture and then you look at the edge rusher spot Byron young he's starting at one of them Jared verse the Rams first round pick number 19 out of Florida States at the other one with Michael Hoy as the outside linebacker depth piece there then you got Brenan Jackson he's the head of Osan Mattis there with that battle as far as providing death but really the big takeaway too also is Ernest Jones of course the inside linebacker spot man they definitely need to make sure he's healthy as far as there's not a ton of depth there yeah no uh you know if we if if Aaron Donald was the guy that were all kind of crossing our fingers and said all right let's make sure that he's ready to go I think Ernest Jones is the guy on that side of the ball this year I you know for the every dayers you heard me talk about him when I got a chance to to speak with him earlier in Camp this uh this season and he's ready to go he's locked in he's very excited about what he gets to do this season and he's still a young player but he's been around I think he I think he's ready to kind of take that next step in his development as an NFL player and I wouldn't be surprised if this is the guy that you and I are talking about a whole heck of a lot on Monday mornings about did you see him do this did you see him do that that being said if he's unavailable for whatever reason injuries then uh yeah I mean where where where where do you go from there I think is a very good question this has been a position that typically the Rams have not spent a ton of time on I think this is uh this is a little bit different because he's so important to what you're doing defensively he he is your your veteran he is your experience he is your eyes and ears for that defense calling the plays the Green Dot guy it it it's a big big season Fus Jones big season they're going to need him he's going to be massive for this team a good thing he has been durable and he's just ready to just take his game to a whole another level and I think he also wants to get that bag too that's the ultimate motivator we know that and also you look at the secondary you have Quenton Lake listed as the nickel but he's been playing safety all throughout the training camp they have John Johnson with Cam curl at the other safety spot so we know cam Cur is going to be one of the starting safeties we have a really good indication that Clint Lake's going to be the other one John Johnson probably provides some depbt there so that's another interesting thing to see as well yeah talking with Clinton Lake last week he I I asked him the question I said you know you've been spending a lot of time at one spot to kind of try to fill in some of these holes or you know are you comfortable going wherever they need you and he was very clear like he he's going to go where they need him to go he he is they need him to play safety great they need him in the Box fine they need him in the star roll fine they need him outside fine that he can do it and you know the Dodgers and you know you and I talk about this all the time back the Dodgers have like seven Chris Taylor on their team right now I don't think you need seven of them but you do need one or two and I think that Quinton Lake kind of fits that role a guy that you need me over here got you you need me over there got you so I think he's G to be on the field I think it's likely like you're saying he'll probably be at that other safety spot but uh I think he can pencil Quinton Lake in as a starter for sure no out about it the versatility made plays last year took a big step forward and I think that that's one thing they really like about him at that spot and then also with Kobe Durant having success that gives them another guy really in the defensive back field they can lean on as well and then you look at the specialist Ethan Evans punter out of Windgate Josh cardi ahead of Tanner Brown the Rams sixth round pick out of Stanford so Joshua cardi definitely has impressed during training camp at least he's made the kicks that he's supposed to make which is absolutely what this team needs and then I think the biggest takeaway though is punt returner kick returner 2 two Atwell ahead of Boston Scott so for the tut two truthers out there if you want Tut two Atwell to have a role on this team this could be that role it better be because he doesn't have another role you know if he's not gonna return kicks then I don't know what he's gonna because they're not going to throw him the ball very often and that you know to to have a guy on your roster that is so specialized like that uh everything else better be cranking I I thought it was interesting what sea McVey said about the Special Teams the other day where he goes it does not rese and not speaking specifically about the Rams but just the new kickoff rules in general that it does not resemble anything he's ever seen on a football field before that I think I think sha McVey is gonna take a little convincing that this is a good rule uh I I I'm fascinated I know I'm a broken record on this topic I'm fascinated to see what this looks like um some is either gonna get fired or somebody's GNA make a lot of money figuring out how to crack the code on this play um we we'll see what it looks like but I I don't know if Shawn McVey is loving these new kickoff rules and I think he may be just looking to you know get the ball down get the ball to the 30 yard line or the 35 or how I'm still trying to figure my way through these rules of when it goes where but uh yeah I think the Special Teams R the here here's what matters for me special teams Josh cardi make everything he needs to make under about 48 yards cool everything else we'll figure out after the fact just make the kicks just make the kicks especially after what we saw last season but yeah I did see that with sha McVey him talking about the new kickoff rolls I love about sha McVey is he can get as eloquent as you want as a head coach but for this you just said it's just weird you know he's like a f all us it just feels weird it looks weird it feels weird I I I look I am not the smartest guy in the history of the world but I think I'm in the top 51% of smart people right I'm just above average right I've read those kickoff rules 49 times I don't know what the rules are I you you I I guarantee you there's going to be something that happens like why is it at the 20 oh right if it bounces in and gets down it's the 20 but if it bounces in and they return it it's to the I I have no idea what's going on G give me until the bye we to know what these rules are and we can go from there the beautiful thing is it's already created a little bit of a buzz I mean it's most we've talked about kick returns in a long long time so definitely excited to see how it plays out and like the most important thing that sham McVey mentioned too is how can you find some way to create an advantage out of it and last year they were the worst special teams team in the NFL so that hopefully is the turning point I wonder if that's the goal right is to to find a way to turn it into an advantage or is the goal let's not turn it into a disadvantage can we just go to a push here where if you just said hey look you the the opposition you can have the ball in the 30 yard line every time we don't care you could take it to the 30 we'll deal with it from that point because the alternative is you try to get cute and you give up a couple of big plays and as we know you know a couple of big plays in the kicking game that go against you you're probably losing yeah if it doesn't hurt you it'll only help you really right with the way that they run their offense but I totally agree but that's going to do it for this episode of lockon rams my name is Doug McCain you can follow me on xit Instagram at dmac corla and you follow the people's champ Mr Travis Rogers at Travis Rogers are you going to be at the game this Sunday you doing the game uh I'm going to do the game from the studio so I will not be Sofi so those phone lines Travis Rogers yourself that's gonna do it and until next time whose house is locked on Rams house