6 hot takeaways for LA Rams from HBO Hard Knocks: LA -episode 4

Takeaway III – LB Bryan London never really had a chance

Along a similar theme of not catching the coaches-eye is that where the team truly never affords a real opportunity describes undrafted linebacker Bryan London II to a tee. He is cut from the roll-up-your-sleeves-it’s-time-to work cloth. That simply was a path to a dead-end in 2020. It was neither him nor the Rams. It was simply the scenario that 2020 forced upon the NFL.

Bryan London is one of the purest football players of yesteryear you will find today. He is a grinder, a player who just keeps coming back, making plays, dusting himself off, and coming back again.  It’s that endless persistence, that back to make the next play, that begins to earn him respect on the team’s roster. In a nutshell, London doesn’t bring any flash, he brings substance.

New rules

Still, 2020 has changed the rules. It’s now a drive-up, keep-your-distance, no-direct-contact world now. London’s forte is that grind. He relies upon making solid plays over and over and over. But he never really had the chance with the Rams.

He was buried on the depth chart at a time when the Rams focused virtually all the time and energy available into buoying the performance of projected starters. That meant that he had too little snaps, too little playing time, and too few opportunities.  Will he be back? I hope so. The Rams will certainly have a need for ILB depth this season, and next year.