St. Louis Rams Must Focus On Offensive Line in 2015 Offseason

There is no question that the St. Louis Rams have a plethora of needs headed into the 2015 offseason. When listing those needs, positions such as the quarterback, cornerback, or safety will most likely find themselves on their list in any given order.

However, at the top of that list you will most likely and unfortunately find offensive line. With the investments that the Rams have put into the offensive line i.e. Greg Robinson and Jake Long, the fact that this is the Rams’ biggest need is troubling.

According to Pro Football Focus the St. Louis Rams had the 31st ranked offensive line last season and it’s hard to argue. You could probably even argue that the Rams had the worst offensive line in football last season.

On Pro Football Focus, the Rams had three of their starting five offensive lineman graded in the bottom ten at their respective position.

While blame can be put on the quarterback for some of the miscues like Austin Davis undeservedly did in the first half of the season, at some point, blame has to go where the problem lies, and that is with the offensive line itself.

The Dallas Cowboys proved just how important having a top offensive line is. Americas team was predicted to win eight games before the season began. Yet when all was said and done, they had 12 wins, one of which being in Seattle against the Seahawks.

The story of the Cowboys season was their offensive line and for good reason. Heck, rookie Zack Martin got a vote for offensive rookie of the year, and for an offensive lineman, that says something.

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If the Rams want to compete with teams in their own division, they need to be able to win the battle up front. This is something that they conistently did on the defensive side of the ball, but on offense it was a different story.

In the final three games against NFC West opponents last season, Tre Mason didnt pick up over 50 yards rushing. In fact, in the final meetings against the Seahawks and Cardinals, Mason didnt even have three yards per carry.

Thats not how you’re going to win football games consistently let alone in the NFC West. If the Rams want to be a ground and pound defensive football team, they are going to have to build up the offensive line.

Head coach Jeff Fisher may have drafted only one offensive lineman in the first round, the one being Greg Robinson last season, but in order to improve the offense, he’s going to have to make it two years in a row.

The Dallas Cowboys proved it all starts up front, and currently, the Rams aren’t built that way on offense.

When you have the tackle that allowed the most quarterback hurries, center that allowed the second most quarterback hurries, and the guard that allowed the fourth most quarterback hits among their positions on your team, you know you have a problem.

And unfortunately the Rams are that team with that problem.

This offseason must be focused on the offensive line. With Joe Barksdale and Davin Joseph set to hit free agency, and the likely releases of Scott Wells and possibly Jake Long, the Rams will need to focus this offseason on what was a big problem in 2014, and that is the offensive line.

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