Returning left guard Austin Corbett stabilizes LA Rams offensive line

The LA Rams offensive line struggles in 2019 strained the teams’ offense and defense. Returning Austin Corbett to left guard restores dependability

When the 2019 NFL season started, the LA Rams did not have interior lineman Austin Corbett on the roster.  Less than a year later, we’re asserting that Corbett could be a key to stabilizing the offensive line in 2020. I’m certain skepticism is rising right now. Let me explain why this will likely be the case in 2020.

The LA Rams failed in three areas in 2019 where their offensive line was concerned: continuity, dependability, and depth. That wasn’t the plan when the team entered the season, of course.  The LA Rams began the season with Andrew Whitworth, Joseph Noteboom, Brian Allen, Austin Blythe, and Rob Havenstein.  Within a month, the Rams were swapping in reserve offensive linemen to fill in for injured starters.  And then again. And then again.

And then once more.  The team had depleted their roster and needed to find offensive line talent from the rosters of other NFL teams.  Rams general manager worked quickly to trade with the Cleveland Browns which sent a 2021 fifth-round pick to the Browns for interior offensive lineman Austin Corbett.

Was Corbett worth a 5th round pick? If he fills the Rams’ interior line position as a capable starter, then it’s a steal for Los Angeles.  If he regresses and simply warms the bench for the Rams, then that answer is most certainly a no.

Split personality

Corbett began the season as a Cleveland Brown. While there, He saw action as a Brown in three 2019 games, all as a special teams contributor.  In 2018, he started one game for the Browns and saw action on just 14 offensive plays. Upon joining the LA Rams, all that changed rapidly.  He played in eight games and started seven on the offensive line.

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Offensive linemen are incredibly vulnerable to the play of their teammates. Each player’s responsibility on the field picks up where his teammate leaves off. And interior linemen have the more difficult task of reading defenses pre-snap and defining their blocking assignments based upon what they see.

The linemen train together and develop ways of communicating and handing off defenders over the course of practices, scrimmages, and pre-season games. If two offensive linemen, playing side-by-side, see things differently, huge holes appear where unblocked defenders rush the quarterback unchallenged. That resolves as they play together, watch the film together, and fix missed assignments on the next day’s practice field.

Corbett played some center, and when Austin Blythe returned to health, he moved to the left guard where he finished out the season. From spot special teamer to starting offensive lineman in a new city, with a new team, surrounded by new teammates, coached by new staff, and executing plays from a new playbook.

Winds of change may stop blowing in 2020

That is a lot of change over the span of two weeks. It’s the equivalent of trying to change your shirt and pants while driving 65 miles per hour on an interstate freeway.  Not only did he survive,  he actually played well.

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Now the 2020 season is on the horizon.  Some see the challenges that face the LA Rams in the upcoming season.  But there are many opportunities as well. After all, the starting point of the offensive line in 2020 is where they left off in 2019. That’s much better than where the 2019 version of the offensive line started.

According to the recently announced dates for the LA Rams offseason program, the LA Rams have scheduled Phase I in March 2020, Phase II in early May 2020, and finally Phase III in late May 2020.  Three of the LA Rams end-of-season OL starters were not even on the team at this time a year ago.

Despite a perception of poor offensive line play carrying over into 2020, I’m not convinced that it is a fair assessment of the state of the 2020 unit. With the return of Corbett, David Edwards, and Bobby Evans, the LA Rams bring back three starters who can finally make introductions, get acquainted, train as a unit, and learn to play alongside one another.

Stability at offensive line fixes…everything

Stability at the offensive line fixes everything. if that is too much to accept at face value, think of the 2019 experience, but in reverse.  The Rams won the first three games of the season, despite facing good opponents. But as offensive linemen began to drop, the team struggled on offense and defense.

Winning is a 53-man effort in the NFL.  The offensive line, even when not playing like the best unit in the NFL, play within the week’s game plan.  Running plays work to set up passing plays, even when not moving the chains. Passing plays work to set up running plays. Offenses set up defenses, who then set up special teams. It’s all connected in the course of a game.

LA Rams offensive line coach Aaron Kromer can work miracles with offensive linemen, as long as he has enough time to work with them. With a 2020 season beginning with Corbett at the left guard, Kromer will have that chance.

With so much discussion about fixing the LA Rams rushing offense, it starts with the men on the offensive line. Austin Corbett was the 33rd player selected in the 2018 NFL Draft, a collegiate tackle who projected as a second-round talent to the NFL as a guard. Talented or not, he found himself buried on the Cleveland Browns depth chart. Now, one of the top 2018 offensive line talents is playing for the LA Rams. As such, Austin Corbett stabilizes the LA Rams offensive line at the left guard position. After the constant changes endured in 2019, that would be a most welcome change.