LA Rams ST coordinator Joe DeCamillis plans to ignite ST unit

The LA Rams have wasted no time to address disappointingly poor performances in the 2020 NFL season by the special teams unit. Of course, the 2020 NFL season was a mixed bag of some good and some bad, some hot and some not.  It was difficult to impossible to expect a huge turnaround with a unit that never played together until just days before the start of the regular season.

ST coordinator John Bonamego couldn’t find the right combination for the special teams. From kicker tryouts to coverage units to the return game, the Rams seemed to hesitate, overthink, and underperform. That was how the Rams opened the season, and it seemed to plague them until the 2020 season was nearly over.

Now the burden of rapidly improving the special teams play falls upon veteran ST coach Joe DeCamillis. What does he bring to the role that is unique? Well, for one thing, he brings a passion and energy seldom seen by the Rams in the role in recent years.

The LA Rams will have a short leash on DeCamillis. After all, the team only afforded Bonamego a single season before turning the reigns over to DeCamillis.  But the Rams did make some headway.  The performance of placekicker Matt Gay received public praise from the head coach Sean McVay. That means that the Rams will be able to start the 2021 season without casting a net to audition key contributors.

But the Rams may focus upon the return game.  While KR/PR Nsimba Webster was the best of the bunch, that is not an attestation for anything worth noting. Surprisingly, the Rams seemed to have some good pieces assemble for the 2020 NFL Season. But the Rams selection process seemed to involve secret algorithms to weigh the final decision.

Kicker Sam Sloman appeared to lag throughout training camp, but he mysteriously emerged as the starter. The Rams return game seemed to try a huge number of players, but RB Raymond Calais, the obvious speedster of the bunch, seldom was given a chance to return the ball.

I like what DeCamillis says. He is one sharp cookie, and he gives off a good vibe of someone who is holding pocket aces. The LA Rams need to improve at kickoff and punt coverage, at kick and punt returns, and even to weigh a touch decision over the punting game. Longtime All-Pro Johnny Hekker’s punt average was in the bottom half of the league in 2020. At some point, the Rams will need to reconcile paying Hekker among the Top-Three punters in the NFL, but only getting a bottom half production from him.