Rams need Aqib Talib to be fully healthy for Week 1 meeting with Panthers

The Los Angeles Rams realize the importance of making sure Aqib Talib is healthy enough to play in Week 1 against the Carolina Panthers.

Last offseason, the Los Angeles Rams pulled off a surprise move out of nowhere by acquiring Aqib Talib from the Denver Broncos to put the defense in better shape at the cornerback position.

Prior to the move, the Rams also managed to trade for Marcus Peters from the Kansas City Chiefs, providing the unit with a new dynamic duo to work with at cornerback.

Despite some questions surrounding the decision to bring Talib on board due to the veteran being a hot head at times during his career, it was difficult to deny his reputation for being one of the top cornerbacks in the league as well.

Without question, Talib’s presence made a huge difference on the defensive side of the football when he was out there for the Rams, and the excitement level will be high once again entering his second season with the team in 2019.

As for what to expect from Talib come Week 1 when Los Angeles takes on the Carolina Panthers, well the goal at the moment is for the cornerback to be ready to go after recently dealing with a hamstring injury.

The fact that Talib will be resuming full participation this week is a great sign for Los Angeles, but also this is far from a guarantee that he will be ready to go for Week 1.

Plus, the last thing Los Angeles wants to do is overwork Talib to the point where they make the injury worse by having him push too hard this week, so these next few days will be extremely important from a monitoring perspective.

Either way, even if Talib needs a little extra time, the good news for the Rams is the defense has a few players at cornerback such as Nickell Robey-Coleman and David Long ready to step up if needed.

Deep down, Talib is well aware that 2019 could very well be his last NFL season since he’s not only up there in age, but also entering the final year of his contract with Los Angeles.

With this in mind, hopefully the Rams will benefit from Talib feeling a little extra motivated over the next few months to help Los Angeles earn another trip to the Super Bowl, with hopefully better results than last February.