LA Rams: Let’s make this season be a memorable one, Big Whit

We’ll follow the old man wherever he wants to go…

As long as he wants to go, opposite to the foe.  We’ll stay with the old man as long as he wants to stay, as long as he wants to stay away from the battle’s fray.
Because we love him, we love him… – The Old Man, as per Irving Berlin’s White Christmas

That song pretty much describes how the offensive linemen feel about Andrew Whitworth. Particularly after falling to a knee injury halfway through the 2020 season that often requires a year to fully heal, even for a much young man. But Andrew Whitworth, being who he is, vowed to return to the team in time for the playoffs.

And he did. But even before the injury, he was playing in the best form of his career.

That pretty much sealed it right there. There is no question that Whitworth is the lead dog, the Alpha Male, the sire of this stable. He sets the tone, the mindset, the leadership by example that prompts all others of that unit to fall into line. He is the guy whose house everyone shows up to for a group workout session.

Players who command that much respect need not bark orders, shout, or walk into a room with a scowl to get things done. That would never work for a matter-of-fact roll up his sleeves and let’s get-‘er-done kind of player like Andrew Whitworth.  He is the guy who sizes up the situation pretty quickly. He knows his true value, and simply enters any and every negotiation with the bottom line opening of ‘this is what it will take to sign me. Take it or leave it.’  That same approach allowed the Rams to negotiate a $3 million concession from him as he was on injured reserve for half of the 2020 season.