LA Rams safeties Rapp plus Johnson equals better 2020 defense

LA Rams safeties Taylor Rapp and John Johnson III shared the lead on Rams defense with 2 interceptions each. With more playing time in 2020, look for both to be huge contributors for the 2020 defense

The LA Rams defense has plenty of stars. Defensive standouts like DT Aaron Donald, CB Jalen Ramsey, ILB Cory Littleton, DE Michael Brockers, OLB Dante Fowler Jr, and OLB Clay Matthews, and even CB Marcus Peters before being traded. So many stars played for the Rams defense in 2019. Despite the presence of marquis defensive stars, it was the Rams little known safeties who shared the lead for interceptions- Taylor Rapp and John Johnson III each had two picks for the team in 2019.

The most curious part of that fact?  Johnson only played six games before falling to injury, and Rapp played a bit role before taking over at strong safety for Johnson. Johnson is a solid safety standout, while Rapp was a rookie who flashed star potential.  But can the defense work with both covering the backend of the field?

Most certainly yes!  It’s no secret that the San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, and now even the Arizona Cardinals, lean heavily upon the running game. Additionally, NFL offenses feature tight ends in the passing game more each year.  Since wide receivers typically command the attention of cornerbacks, it falls upon the safeties to defend tight ends on passing routes.  The Seattle Seahawks TE Will Dissley, San Francisco TE George Kittle, and Arizona Cardinals TE Charles Clay all had measured success against the Rams in 2019.

An ability to defend tight ends would be an improvement for the Rams defensively for 2020. Add defending the run and you’ve got the makings of a Top Five defense for 2020

Bench Weddle = improved 2020 defense

But what of safety Eric Weddle?  He is most definitely a veteran safety who still has some play in him. The LA Rams signed Weddle to a 2-year $12.5 million contract in 2019.  Even before he played a single down for the Rams, he was projected as a potential cap casualty in 2020.  Now that 2020 is now, and the Rams need cap space, his future with the Rams is in question.

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Weddle played all 16 games for the Rams, and wracked up 108 tackles, second best on defense. While he had 0 interceptions, he did record 1.5 tackles for a loss, defend four passes, and stuff one run.  In comparison, Taylor Rapp played just 15 games, six of which on a part-time basis, and scored 100 tackles, two interceptions, 4.5  tackles for a loss, four run stuffs, and eight passes defensed.

To place that all in context, Rapp is an NFL rookie, while Weddle played in his 13th NFL season. Johnson is equally adept, in 16 games from the 2018 season, he put up 4 interceptions, 119 tackles, 11 passes defended,

While these are just box  stats, they do offer some solid evidence that the Rams safety duo of Johnson and Rapp would be an upgrade for 2020.  But what to do with Weddle? Is he ready to sit on the bench?

Weddle on the trade block

Eric Weddle is a veteran safety who still contributes to the defense. When the Baltimore Ravens faced a similar decision regarding Weddle’s fate, the team outright cut him to save $7.5 million in salary cap dollars.  The 2019 free agent market was thick with talented safeties.

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This year, there are seven safeties appearing in Pro Football Focus’ 2020 top 50 free agents. While that is a pretty healthy crop, the Rams could test the waters by putting Weddle on the trading block for NFL Draft picks.  He won’t command a second rounder, but even a fifth or sixth round pick in 2020 would be welcome.

The 2020 NFL Draft also has a fairly healthy number of draft-worthy safeties. We’ll know more about those prospects when the NFL Combine results are made public.

Even if the Rams successfully trade Weddle, don’t look for the team to be drafting one in the draft this season.   They have plenty of depth in the role now, and recently signed nine players to reserve futures contracts.

One such player, defensive back Adonis Alexander, is a safety/cornerback hybrid and could play a larger role for the team in 2020.

2020 Rams field strong defensive backfield

Even with Weddle on the field, the Rams secondary ranked eighth in the NFL by PFF for 2019. That’s significant in two way.

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The Rams secondary suffered setbacks with injuries to cornerbacks Aquib Talib, Marcus Peters, and even Jalen Ramsey in 2019. Talib’s injury forced him to injured reserve. As a result, the team traded him and a pick to the Miami Dolphins to clear cap space. Peters was traded to the Baltimore Ravens in a similar move.  After freeing enough cap space, the Rams then traded with Jacksonville Jaguars for cornerback Jalen Ramsey.

Far too many personnel changes for one defensive backfield in 2019. Yet, the Rams got better as the season passed.

In 2020, the Rams will boast even more talent in the defensive backfield.  Not only will Johnson and Rapp suit up, but the Rams should be able to benefit from an entire season of Jalen Ramsey.  Two Rams cornerbacks, Nickell Robey-Coleman and Troy Hill had very strong seasons, both finishing in PFF’s Top 25 Cornerbacks , coming in at 19 and 20 respectively.

Even if the Rams release Weddle outright, it makes sense from a salary cap perspective. The Rams are in a real battle to win the NFC West in 2020, and will need every available dollar to build the roster to do so.

Evidence suggests that the Rams could improve the defense significantly by opting to start Rapp and Johnson at the safety positions. They’ll have other places to park more dollars.  Saving millions by trading or releasing veteran safety Eric Weddle will help the team find those dollars immensely.