Who replaces Todd Gurley? First look at Rams 2020 roster

A blow-by-blow review of the Los Angeles Rams roster as they start training camp.

According to head coach Sean McVay, the Los Angeles Rams will have their first team meeting to open training camp at the team's practice facility in Thousand Oaks, Calif. on Monday.

And the Rams made a few transactions over the past few days in anticipation of that event.

The team announced on Friday that offensive lineman Chandler Brewer has opted out for the 2020 season because of a history with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Due to his healthy history, Brewer appears to be eligible to receive a $350,000 stipend for 2020 under the COVID-19 amendments outlined in the agreement between the league and the NFLPA for the 2020 season.

Also, the Rams placed defensive lineman Michael Hoecht and outside linebacker Terrell Lewis have been placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. However, the Rams brought Hoecht back to the active roster on Sunday.

After waiving undrafted rookies linebacker Daniel Bituli, running back James Gilbert, defensive end Greg Reaves and defensive tackle Sam Renner on Saturday, the Rams currently have 80 players on the roster.

With talented running back Todd Gurley now plying his trade for the Atlanta Falcons, one player to keep an eye on is second-round selection running back Cam Akers.

It’s no secret the Rams struggled to the run the ball last year, They were particularly bad on early downs, averaging 3.7 yards per carry on first down runs last year, No. 28 in the NFL last season.

The electric Akers gives the Rams a dynamic playmaker in the backfield who can break tackles and make plays in the passing game. 

Yeah, it’s college and he will have much tougher sledding in the NFL, but Akers averaged 4.94 yard per carry on first down at Florida State last season.

McVay said he loves Akers' versatility, but will lean on veteran Malcolm Brown to be a leader in the running back room.

Here’s a closer look at the Rams roster as we head into training camp.

Quarterback (4): Starter – Jared Goff. Reserves – John Walford, Josh Love, Bryce Perkins.

The skinny: The Rams have little NFL experience in this group if Goff gets injured or struggles a second straight year. Perkins and Love are two undrafted rookies that join Wolford – who spent last year on the practice squad – in the Rams’ quarterback room. Neither of the three have played an NFL snap, so experienced depth is a concern here, even though Goff has not missed a game in four seasons due to injury.

Running back (5): Starter – Cam Akers. Reserves – Malcolm Brown, Darrell Henderson Jr., John Kelly, Xavier Jones.

The skinny: The Rams need more consistency out of this group to take some pressure off Goff. Akers should give them a dynamic presence on early downs and in the passing game, while Brown and Henderson should also find complementary roles in the offense. While there are question marks, this group has the potential for solid production.

Tight end (5): Starter – Tyler Higbee. Reserves – Gerald Everett, Kendall Blanton, Brycen Hopkins, Johnny Mundt.

The skinny: Higbee and Everett give the Rams one of the more dynamic pass-catching TE duos in the league. Hopkins, a fourth-round selection in this year’s draft, also has the ability to create separation in the passing game. The Rams could use more two-TE sets this year with the talent at this position, but hard to see McVay moving away from his trademark, three-WR sets.

Wide receivers (10): Starters – Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, Josh Reynolds. Reserves – Greg Dortch, Earnest Edwards IV, Van Jefferson, J.J. Koski, Brandon Polk, Nsimba Webster, Easop Winston Jr.

The skinny: The receiver group is probably the deepest and most talented unit on this year’s team. According to Football Outsiders, Rams receivers caught 249 passes last year, second only to the Atlanta Falcons. Interested to see how Jefferson is used as part of the receiver rotation.

Offensive line (13): Starters – Andrew Whitworth, Austin Corbett, Austin Blythe, David Edwards, Rob Havenstein. Reserves – Brian Allen, Bobby Evans, Joe Noteboom, Jamil Demby, Tremayne Anchrum Jr., Cohl Cabral, Jeremiah Kolone, Coleman Shelton.

The skinny: With Noteboom and Allen still recovering from knee injuries that cut short their 2019 seasons, I’m going with the most experienced and healthy starting five for now. After using just one starting offensive line combination in 2018, the Rams used five different offensive line combination last season, so keeping a consistent front five healthy and allowing them to build chemistry is key this year.

Defensive line (10): Starters – Aaron Donald, Michael Brockers, A’Shawn Robinson. Reserves – Sebastian Joseph-Day, Morgan Fox, Greg Gaines, Jonah Williams, Eric Banks, Marquise Copeland, Michael Hoecht

The skinny: Might we see Aaron Donald at defensive end more in 2020? He played a career-high 121 snaps there last season, totaling two sacks. New defensive coordinator Brandon Staley needs to find innovative ways to use the best defensive player in the league.

Linebacker (13): Starters -- Leonard Floyd, Micah Kiser, Troy Reeder, Samson Ebukam, Reserves -- Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, Justin Lawler, Patrick Natrez, Jachai Polite, Kenny Young, Travin Howard, Bryan London, Christian Rozeboom, Clay Johnston.

The skinny: Probably the weakest position in terms of NFL experience and depth is hurt even worse by rookie Lewis starting camp on the COVID list. The Rams need someone to emerge as a leader in the middle of the defense to replace tackling machine Cory Littleton, who led L.A. in tackles last season and signed with the Las Vegas Raiders in free agency.

Defensive backs (14): Starters – Jalen Ramsey, Troy Hill, John Johnson III, Taylor Rapp. Reserves – Dont’e Deayon, David Long Jr., Terrell Burgess, Darious Williams, Jordan Fuller, Nick Scott, Adonis Alexander, Tyrique McGhee, Dayan Lake, Juju Hughes.

The skinny: With the Chargers inking defensive end Joey Bosa to a lucrative, multi-year deal, Ramsey is the next man up from the 2016 draft class to get paid. UW product Rapp will step in to replace the cerebral Eric Weddle at safety. We should see the Rams in nickel defense (five defensive backs) more in 2020.

Specialty (5): Starters – K: Samuel Sloman. P: Johnny Hekker. LS: Jake McQuaide. Reserves – K Lirim Hajrullahu, K Austin MacGinnis.

The skinny: Hajrullahu played six years in the CFL and is an interesting prospect. However, general managers usually do not like cutting draft picks, so this year’s seventh-round selection Sloman is the frontrunner for now. Greybeard McQuaide is the longest-tenured player currently on the team, entering his 10th season with the Rams.