5 LA Rams players most hurt by no OTAs this year

Offensive center

When the LA Rmas signed offensive lineman Coleman Shelton from the Arizona Cardinals practice squad, I was happy. Shelton was an outstanding offensive lineman for the University of Washington Huskies, and showed a promising upside for the NFL, either as a competent backup or even in competition for a starting role.

Still, the way Shelton arrived set in motion a chain of events that were so out of the ordinary that it could not have been planned any worse for his chances of competing for a role on the team.  You see, the LA Rams signed Shelton to a role on the team in the middle of the 2019 NFL season for roster depth. The team had agreed to trade a future draft pick to the Cleveland Browns for interior offensive lineman Austin Corbett.

Then the coronavirus pandemic hit in 2020, and the NFL so severely restricted training camp that it was all the LA Rams coaching staff could do to line up the same 5 healthy starters from 2019 and send them out to do it all over again for 2020. For the team, it was a successful move. For Coleman Shelton, that relegated him to the reserves once more. There simply was insufficient time to test out various starting line configurations.

Now, those similar circumstances are imposing limits to Shelton’s chances to compete and impress the Rams offensive line coaches, who are new to the team this year. Even if he breaks ranks and trains in front of coaches through all OTA’s, he will not be able to work with the starters on the offensive line. If and when the LA Rams do regroup, the Rams will likely be forced to fast track a prescripted starting five to work with new quarterback Matthew Stafford. Will Shelton be among that initial starting five? Without a chance to raise eyebrows on the coaching staff, the chances of that happening are slim-to-none.