Rams Cut LB Terrell Lewis; Coach Raheem Morris Reveals Reasons
The Los Angeles Rams rank bottom-10 in the NFL in sacks, and yet, on Thursday, decided to waive third-year outside linebacker Terrell Lewis, a former third-round pick who entered the season as a potential breakout candidate.
Lewis, 24, played in 11 games with three starts prior to his departure, recording three quarterback hits, two tackles for loss and one sack. Still lanky, athletic and young, the former Alabama standout seems to still have upside - but he won't be able to show it in Los Angeles.
So, why did the Rams choose to move on from Lewis? According to defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, it had less to do with Lewis' play and more to do with the recent emergence of other young players up front.
“As you guys have seen (defensive tackle) Michael Hoecht last week and the last couple of weeks, actually getting acclimated to that position," Morris began. "We've been able to see (linebacker) Keir Thomas get activated, and then last week our young rook (linebacker Daniel Hardy) came back up off the injury stuff and was able to play for us."
Hoecht, 25, rose to stardom with a two-sack performance in Los Angeles' 27-23 loss to the Seattle Seahawks two weeks ago, while the 24-year-old Thomas, a preseason star, has played in each of the last two games, his first action since Week 2.
The same is true for another 24-year-old in Hardy, a seventh-round pick from Montana State who debuted against Seattle and saw a bigger snap share on both defense and special teams the week after against the Las Vegas Raiders.
As such, Lewis was likely going to see his role decrease, with Morris claiming he "probably ... wouldn't have been active" Monday night against the Green Bay Packers. Thus, the Rams opted to lean on the "people first" philosophy of coach Sean McVay, attempting to aid Lewis' career in the process.
"In order to give Terrell the best chance to get back on the grass, we decided to part ways and let him move on and have an opportunity somewhere else where it was probably going to be more fruitful for him," Morris said. "These young guys are coming and playing, (and) we've done some really good things the last couple of weeks.
"In order not to have a disgruntled worker, Sean really means what he says, people first. We decided to let (Lewis) go, give him an opportunity to go play somewhere else and move on.”
In essence, the Rams are doing Lewis a favor while aiding their efforts of evaluating other young talent. It's not guaranteed to be the end of the line for Lewis in Los Angeles, but Morris doesn't seem to expect a return ... though he made sure to point out that it has nothing to do with Lewis' character or being a "disgruntled worker."
“You never rule out a guy," said Morris. "But you definitely give a person a chance to go explore on what they can do and how they can affect their careers and get a chance to see who they are, get some clarity there. I'm never going to say we're not going to bring a guy back. It was nothing disgruntled like 'oh, we hate you T-Lew.' No, it wasn’t that way. It was the due diligence of Sean when he tells you we are in a people first business, and he absolutely means it.”
Ultimately, Lewis didn't produce enough to force the Rams to keep him around - and in the midst of a lost season, the idea of splitting up seems beneficial for both parties.
The Rams lost a talented player off the edge but gained additional snaps for evaluation purposes. Lewis, meanwhile, now has a chance to search for work elsewhere rather than spending time as a healthy scratch.
An early exit is not the ending either side would've hoped for after Lewis was drafted inside the top-100 some two and a half years ago, but it's evidently the best path for both ... as the two sides now search for a path back to the same point: opposing quarterbacks.
You can follow Daniel Flick on Twitter @DFlickDraft
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