Another week of practice has passed, and so has another game. Well, that means another update on the “stock up/stock down” roster report for the Los Angeles Rams.
Stock Down
OT Pace Murphy
Pace Murphy lined up as the second string LT against the Dallas Cowboys, and struggled mightily. The difference between Whitworth and himself was very evident, and apparently enough that the Rams coaching staff made a change for this past game vs the Oakland Raiders. Darrell Williams actually came in after Whitworth at LT, and from first-look, he seemed to do a much better job protecting the blindside.
RB Lance Dunbar
Another week, another no show from Lance Dunbar. He hasn’t practiced at all so far, and has already missed two games now. For a guy like Sean McVay a receiving back is crucial, and could almost be considered as another starter for the offense because of the amount of playing time they receive, and how truly involved they are in the offense. Now, the problem is Dunbar just can’t seem to recover from his slew of injuries from prior years, and with everyday that passes in which Dunbar is still on the trainers table, he loses.
WR Tavon Austin
The same situation for Dunbar applies here for Austin. He hasn’t been healthy all offseason, then the Rams go out and add Robert Woods, Josh Reynolds, and Cooper Kupp, and that wasn’t all… They go out and trade for Sammy Watkins too. It was clear the front office and coaching staff didn’t believe in Tavon to be anything more than a fun and exciting gadget player who can offer much with the ball in his hands, but not much more. He’s been in the league for four years now, and has seemingly not progressed at all as a real WR, consistently running sloppy routes and dropping passes. Now, luckily for Tavon, he doesn’t need to be relied upon as something that he isn’t – a number one WR – but can now revert to his real role, an explosive gadget player who needs plays designed for him, and one of the better punt returners in the league.
Stock Up
WR Cooper Kupp
I feel like every week I can just copy and post this exact paragraph about this rookie. Kupp is incredible, and there really isn’t much more to say that hasn’t already been said. His rapport with Jared Goff is very clear, and it’s evident that Goff trusts him to be where he should, specifically on the money down. Kupp absolutely roasted whatever CB was trot out in-front of him against the Raiders, all the way to a six reception – 70 yard – one touchdown night.
QB Jared Goff
Everyday we receive all kinds of reports from how Goff’s been performing in training camp. From being sharp and accurate to multiple INT’s and deep overthrows, but none of that matters once the real games start, and for the QB who struggled mightily as a rookie, he couldn’t have had a more impressive start against the Raiders. Goff was sharp and accurate all night, made zero bad passes, and had an absolute dime to Sammy Watkins that would have resulted in a big touchdown had Watkins not been held (which wasn’t called btw). This is the exact kind of game that can start building confidence for the young signal caller, and hopefully it translates to this Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Take a look at the gif I made. Jared Goff starts looking right at the snap, works his progression all the way across the field, and used his eyes so well that he held the Safety long enough to give Sammy Watkins plenty of space. Not only that, he dropped an absolute dime.
I went for someone a little more under-the-radar here, with rookie second-round pick TE Gerald Everett. Now, it’s not necessarily that Tyler Higbee has done anything wrong, but can you really keep Everett off the field? The main transgression is that “rookie TE’s rarely ever have a big impact”, and that seems to be true, because more often than not a rookie TE has a minimal impact… but it’s not impossible. For a guy who has as good ability as Everett does to break tackles and continue to gain extra yardage, it’ll be hard for Coach McVay and company to keep him on the sidelines.