What roles can 10 remaining UDFAs fill with LA Rams in 2021?

Defensive end

The 2021 NFL Draft class is not very deep in defensive linemen. So perhaps that is why the LA Rams stockpiled so many from the deep and talented 2020 draft class.  The Rams signed four defensive linemen after the 2020 NFL Draft concluded. And the first player to talk about is DE Jonah Williams.

He is a 6-foot-5, 275-pound defensive lineman from Weber State who is fleet-footed and powerful. He was the truest of late bloomers, growing to just 6-foot-3 and 230-pounds by the time he entered his senior season. But by the time he had emerged, he had shot up another two inches and bulked up another solid 20 pounds. He needed a solid Pro day, but COVID-19 derailed the hopes of the fifth-round projected prospect.

He joins Michael Hoecht (discussed later) as two of the fastest yet powerful defensive linemen tandems in the NFL who have yet to see a single defensive snap. But the Rams defensive line configuration is such that there may not be much of an obvious chance of Williams cracking that defensive rotation. But there is the exodus of DE Morgan Fox, a young promising player who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 276-pounds, who leaves a wake that Williams could certainly fill if given the opportunity.

He is pretty much an athletic freak on the defensive line. He pumped 30-reps at the 225-pound bench press and reached 35 inches of height during his verticle leap. He arrived new, unfamiliar, and disoriented. This year he knows the NFL, he knows the Rams, he knows the coaches and his teammates. Now, all he needs is a chance, and that should be forthcoming. He had a fifth-round grade but fell under many teams’ radar.  This year, he will have the chance to show what a mistake that was.