Will LA Rams regret decision to go younger in 2020?

What flavor? It’s all vanilla anyways

Anyone who was either a child or is the parent of a large family knows not to ask what flavor of ice cream to purchase at the store. Whenever my well-intended father would dare to ask us what flavor ice cream we wanted, the requests would always outnumber the number of children by a two to one margin.  His response to this impossible question?  “That’s it! We’ll settle for vanilla!” and that was that.

So too the LA Rams prep time for an NFL season has been an extended period of virtual training, followed by a crash course training camp beginning on July 28, 2020.  While we are very confident the LA Rams coaching staff is up to the challenge, the limited amount of time and the very nature of streamlining the entire process has significant consequences.  In short, there will be limited options for the team to open the season.  Limited in that playbooks will be less dense.  Playcalling on both offense and defense will be less complex.

Will the LA Rams rewind, renewed, or revisit the Roster?

So who has the inside track for the Rams roster now? Unless an extremely gifted player stands out, the Rams will likely fill roster spots with returning players. For those who are gifted rookies, the team will likely tend to place them onto the practice squad for now. The new collective bargaining agreement has made provisions for a team to reassign a called-up player back to the practice squad without the burdensome process of cutting the player and forcing that player to clear waivers before doing so.

The LA Rams have already baked rookie players into the roster. Running back Cam Akers will likely get the lion’s share of carries. WR Van Jefferson will be involved in offensive rotations. So too will defensive backs Terrell Burgess and perhaps even Jordan Fuller see some defensive snaps.  But for the most part, the LA Rams roster is as locked down as commercial businesses. That may or may not be best for the team. And it’s by no means a slight on the talented rookies who may be picking up the Rams playbook with ease. It’s the limited opportunities to demonstrate to coaches that the new players have mastered the playbook is where the concern remains. Life comes at you fast. So too does an NFL season with just three weeks to prepare. Here we go.