7 LA Rams players who must step up this season

Get Whit the program!

With the exodus of LA Rams veteran left tackle Andrew Whitworth, the team must find a new blind side offensive tackle on a shoestring budget. That is, of course, unless the Rams believe they already have his replacement on the roster. And veteran right tackle Rob Havenstein had a bad season as well. So many holes to plug, so little time.

OT Bobby Evans

Rookie Bobby Evans picked up starts at right tackle when Rob Havenstein fell to injury, and did a surprisingly respectable job.  Surprising in that Evans was a natural left tackle in college.  Respectable in that he actually performed far better than long time veteran RT Havenstein whom he replaced.  While that was the way the 2019 season shook out, the Rams got a lot of mileage and experience into their young offensive linemen.

Now the Rams must capitalize on that robust experience among their young linemen, and fill openings on the line for the 2020 NFL season.  Evans was a typical third round projection for an offensive line.  Projected NFL starter with plenty of solid fundamentals, good power, long arms, and solid versatility along offensive line positions and in both the running and passing game.  His draft analysis cited a need for more coaching to improve his footwork and leveraging techniques.

With a year under his belt, those lessons have been taught. This year’s training camp will now likely be a doubly effective refresher course.  Of course, the team has additional options in Joe Noteboom and Chandler Brewer, but Evans auditioned successfully in 2019. Now he will have a chance to learn the starting left tackle role throughout training camp.