LA Rams Taylor Rapp named to CBS Sports 2020 breakout team

LA Rams safety Taylor Rapp is named to CBS Sports Edwards 2020 breakout team

The LA Rams continue to be overlooked by the national media in terms of the 2020 NFL playoff picture. But they seem to have plenty of respect for individual players. We know that All-Pro defensive lineman Aaron Donald continues to be lauded for his incredible production. Not only has he received recognition for his past success, but he’s already been named the top NFL player for 2020.

Of course, that type of praise also attracts detractors, and Donald has his share of those as well. But there are other players on the LA Rams who deserve some recognition. Second-year safety Taylor Rapp is one such player.  That is why CBS Sports writer Josh Edwards has named Rapp to his NFL 2020 breakout team.

That’s a Rapp

Rapp may not be a household name to NFL fans as of yet, but fans of the LA Rams know him quite well. He is the rookie safety who was promoted from a nickel defensive back role to starting safety alongside veteran Eric Weddle when teammate John Johnson fell to a season-ending injury in the sixth game of the 2019 season.

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Rapp saw action in 15 games in his rookie season and started 10 of those contests. In his first NFL season, he had 100 tackles, eight passes defended, three tackles for a loss, two interceptions, with one of those a pick-six. He was surprisingly effective in pass coverage, being targeted 62 times and allowing just 38 completions for a 61.3 percent completion rate.  While he allowed 9.8 yards per completion, he allowed just 6.0 yards per attempt, a statistic that is surprisingly good for an NFL safety.

2020 breakout stars

In his article, Josh Edwards makes his case for second-year starters from each NFL position to have a breakout season in 2020. He excluded second-year players like San Francisco 49ers edge rusher Nick Bosa and Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray because they had significant rookie seasons. Furthermore, the article highlighted just one second-year player per position.  The LA Rams had several players who might have been named on this list but were not.

Running back Darrell Henderson, a second-year running back who could have a solid season, failed to be named over Philadelphia Eagles second-year running back Miles Sanders. So too did second-year offensive guard David Edwards fail to be named over either Denver Broncos offensive guard Dalton Risner or Green Bay Packers offensive guard Elgton Jenkins. Even linebacker Troy Reeder qualified as a second-year player, but he could not dethrone Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Devin White nor Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Drue Tranquill.

The LA Rams must rely heavily upon young talent this year.  As such, there is plenty of hope that the players will step up and have very productive seasons. While that includes many players who had little to no previous NFL experience, the Rams coaching staff hopes to have them all ready for the 2020 NFL season. By this account, Taylor Rapp definitely will be.