Rams to Place Darrell Henderson Jr., Ernest Jones on Injured Reserve, Cam Akers Could Play in Week 17 vs. Ravens

Darrell Henderson Jr. and Ernest Jones will land on injured reserve, while Cam Akers has a chance to play Sunday against the Ravens.

Nicholas Cothrel | Dec 28, 2021

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Sony Michel's surging efforts in the second half of the season have been just what the Los Angeles Rams needed to become a more physical team down the final stretch of the regular season.

He isn't the type of rusher that will consistently break of big gains, though he is capable of doing so at times. But rather, his style of play can be categorized as one that punishes opposing defenses by wearing down their efforts against the run.

While Michel is trending up with his recent contributions, the Rams will be without his counterpart for a period of time. Rams coach Sean McVay said Monday that running back Darrell Henderson Jr. will be placed on injured reserve because of a right MCL sprain.

Henderson has experienced a tough month of December in which he worked to overcome a quadricep injury and a bout with COVID-19, causing him to miss two games. In Week 16 against the Vikings, Henderson received his first handoff in the third quarter in which he broke of a run for 17 yards but suffered an injury that will sideline him for three to five weeks.

"Poor Darrell can't catch a break," McVay said. "He has a great run and it was one of those deals – it was kind of a freak way that he went down on a good run."

While Henderson will be put on the shelf for the remainder of the regular season and into the playoffs, the Rams will be getting back a key contributor to working alongside Michel.

McVay stated Monday that running back Cam Akers would have the chance to play Sunday in Baltimore when the Rams take on the Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium.

"There is a possibility that he plays this week," McVay said of Akers. "He looked really good last week in practice."

Akers was activated to the active roster over the weekend, two days after being designated from the non-football injury. That marked a five-month recovery from the Achilles injury he suffered in July just before training camp opened.

Even with his activation coming ahead of the Rams' Week 16 game, Akers didn’t travel to Minnesota with the team. Akers reportedly received an early activation in order to receive credit toward his pension for the 2021 season, as players must be activated for at least three games.

Meanwhile, the Rams' starting rookie linebacker Ernest Jones also suffered a high ankle sprain that will land him on injured reserve.

"Ernest was really just starting to hit his stride," McVay said of Jones. "Hopefully he'll get a chance to maybe come back this year."

The Rams promoted Jones into a starting role in Week 8, following the team's trade of linebacker Kenny Young to the Denver Broncos just ahead of the NFL Trade Deadline. Since then, Jones has become a key member of the defense, locking down the middle of the field with his sideline-to-sideline ability.

Following Jones' injury in the first half, the Rams turned to second-year player Travin Howard, who then proceeded to log four tackles, two pass breakups and one interception – the first of his NFL career.

With the Rams' recent injuries sidelining two players for multiple weeks, the Rams will be required to undergo some re-tooling ahead of the Week 17 matchup in Baltimore.

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Nick Cothrel is the publisher of Ram Digest. Follow Nick and Ram Digest on Twitter @NickCothrel & @RamDigestSI for more Rams coverage.

Published Dec 28, 2021

NICHOLAS COTHREL

Nick Cothrel covers the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated.