LA Rams OLB Justin Hollins played too hot to come off the field

Cheap at twice the price

Since arriving in the NFL, Hollins has demonstrated steady development and improvement.  In his first season of 2019, he played 25 percent of the defensive snaps and recorded one quarterback sack. In 2020, he played 34 percent of the defensive snaps, and his sack total rose to three. In just one game, he played 74 percent of the defensive snaps, and he had two sacks in just one game.

That’s making serious progress.

The LA Rams had just three healthy outside linebackers on the roster before activating Justin Lawler. The pregame distribution for Hollins was very likely to get him 50 percent of the defensive snaps and see how he could handle the increased workload.  Well, to the surprise of many, once he stepped onto the football field, he made it very difficult for the coaches to take him off the field.

Sure the offense did its part. And for the most part, special teams held up their end of the game in many areas.

In the offseason, the LA Rams defense lost both Michael Brockers and Morgan Fox this year, both of whom contributed to a very effective pass rush in 2020. Their defections left the 2021 defense with a void of pass rushers. Well, it appears that Justin Hollin has stepped up to fill the void. Two quarterback sacks in a healthy first step for this defense. Now, can he follow up with similar production next week?