LA Rams teammates love DL Greg Gaines performance, here’s why…

Just how good is LA Rams defensive lineman Greg Gaines? Well, the teammates of All-Pro defensive lineman Aaron Donald are beginning to compare him to… Aaron Donald. That is high praise indeed from those who witness the daily workouts, the tireless hours of drilling and preparation, the passion of one of, if not the, best players in the NFL today.

Gaines is not one for the spotlight. He is content to be exactly how his defensive line coach, Eric Henderson, describes as a DAWG. He is the type of player who celebrates his teammate’s great play as enthusiastically as his own. And it’s not something he learned in the NFL. It’s always been a part of who he is.

He was an under-ranked defensive lineman who played on a scholarship for the University of Washington Huskies. There, he played alongside defensive linemen Elijah Qualls and Vita Vea, both of who would hear their names called in their respective NFL Drafts. He was lauded less for his individual work than what he did as a partner to another defensive lineman. Gaines was happy to take on multiple blockers so his teammate could make the play.

Gaines makes teammates look better

Gaines directly contributed to the willingness of the Philadelphia Eagles choice of selecting Elijah Qualls. Qualls is a 6-foot-2 320-pound defensive lineman who was selected by the Eagles due to his remarkable athleticism. The only problem was that he was unable to shed blocks and only played his rookie season. In six games, he played 104 defensive snaps made four tackles. He needed somebody to help him shed blockers.

Another teammate was Vita Vea. While Vea has certainly delivered as a strong nose tackle who can make plays, you could make a case that being the 12th player off the board in the 2018 NFL Draft had a higher bar set. Vea has played 538 defensive snaps, and he’s made 30 tackles, 4.0 quarterback sacks, and 11 quarterback hits.

2021 is the best NFL season of Vea’s career, and the Buccaneers are no doubt quite pleased.  But you could say that expectations of a player chosen so high in the draft should be double that production? Perhaps, like Qualls, part of Vea’s buzz had to do with playing next to Greg Gaines?  Let’s look at this a bit further.

Whoa, he did what?

Greg Gaines is a shining example of how these LA Rams convert Day 3 drafted players into an NFL starter. He was selected with the 134th pick (Round 4) of the 2019 NFL Draft, and due to the LA Rams’ depth including Michael Brockers, Aaron Donald, and rising star Sebastian Joseph Day, Gaines was eased in slowly in his rookie year.

In fact, he was kept in his role of backup when the LA Rams added veteran A’Shawn Robinson to the roster in 2020 but then re-signed veteran Brockers. At that point, the Rams appeared to be content to allow Gaines to cycle onto the football field as part of the normal but rapid defensive line rotation. But an opportunity would come a-knockin’, and Gaines would swing the door wide open.

Playoff Gaines > 2020 season Gaines

Gaines flashed his future potential in the Divisional Round of the 2020 NFL Playoffs. While the Green Bay Packers seemed to have no trouble moving the football against the Top-rated defense, they didn’t have much success whenever they tried to run at Greg Gaines.  In just 20 defensive snaps, Gaines made two tackles, one for a loss. But if you watched the game, he forced the Packers to reroute their running plays, giving his teammates time to shed blockers and make the play.

Typically, players have less success in post-season play than in regular-season play. But that was most certainly not the case for Greg Gaines, who recognized that his teammates needed him, and proceeded to put up the best Pro Football Focus grade of his career at 75.2. That burst of excellence has carried over into the 2021 season, where he is now boasting a grade of 75.0.

Gaines is truly a 2021 defensive star

Okay, so Gaines had a good game in the playoffs. Perhaps it was an anomaly? Perhaps it was a game where he happened to eat his Wheaties and had a dietary edge on his opponent? Or it may simply have been that the LA Rams needed Gaines to step up, and he answered the call for help?

Let’s revisit Vita Vea’s production for 2021, shall we? Vea has played 538 defensive snaps, and he’s made 30 tackles, 4.0 quarterback sacks, and 11 quarterback hits. So far this season, Greg Gaines has played 642 defensive snaps, and he’s made 48 tackles, 4.5 quarterback sacks, and 13 quarterback hits. Whether or not you argue about the per-defensive-snap performance, it’s plain as day to come to the conclusion that Gaines is having a season that is every bit as impressive as that of the first-round selection, Vita Vea.

Still, let’s be perfectly clear. The Rams front office found him a year later, in round four. The Rams are paying Gaines a fraction of what the Buccaneers are paying Vea. Perhaps just as impressive, the Rams will have Gaines on a rookie contract one year longer than Vea. Go figure.

Here’s something you can’t do

Okay, so we’ve sung a pretty long chorus about the sudden spike of production from Gaines this season. But so far, all we have cited are the same statistics and production that any defensive lineman puts up in the box stats after any given NFL game. But Greg Gaines is a bit more special than that. In fact, he can do things that no other defensive lineman can do.

Forgive me, that that reminds me of a scene from Firefly, and you have to see it to truly appreciate the next point we want to illustrate here:

So now that you are back from that momentary cinematic tangent, we were bringing up the fact that nose tackle Greg Gaines can do things that no other defensive lineman can do. Like what? Like chasing down one of the fastest mobile quarterbacks in the NFL He can run like a gazelle and literally can chase down incredibly quarterbacks who are running to daylight, like this moment where he chases down Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray.

As more and more NFL teams turn to mobile quarterbacks to run their offense, the value of a defensive lineman like Greg Gaines will increase exponentially.  No, he doesn’t seek the spotlight. But in 2021, his performance has directed the spotlight to him. How will he hold up? My money is on Greg Gaines.

The perfect DAWG for the LA Rams DAWGWORK

While his selfless mindset may not have gotten NFL scouts and analysts all abuzz, the LA Rams, boasting Donald on the defensive line, saw the potential of adding a defensive lineman to the rotation who could take on some of the blockers who routinely double and triple-teamed their star defender on the line of scrimmage. That’s the LA Rams calling card on the defensive line. That is why DL Coach Eric Henderson is so very good at what he does.

The only thing is, a selfless player who consumes blocks does not often ‘stand out,’ in training camp or practice drills. It’s difficult to truly assess the individual contribution of a player who flourishes when lined up with his teammates. It’s that synergy, that cohesive chemistry, that is so very difficult to pick out in individual drills.  And that is why it sometimes takes time for stars to rise from the ranks of reserves and backups to starter and star.

Gaines gets respect from teammates and more

Make no mistake. Greg Gaines is an NFL starter. And furthermore, Greg Gaines is an NFL star. Don’t believe me? Just ask his teammates, starting with All-Pro veteran outside linebacker Von Miller:

Or what about another teammate, defensive lineman A’Shawn Robinson, who gives kudos to Gaines for being a beast on film:

What about the views of NFL Network analyst, Steve Wyche? He has plenty of praise to heap on the young Rams standout defensive lineman.

It’s pretty clear that the Rams have plenty of respect for Gaines. And why not? He is showing up huge on the football field each week. But what about behind Gaines?

The LA Rams have Bobby Brown III, Marquise Copeland, and Michael Hoecht, who are all training to deliver the goods when their number is called. Even though they may not be ready to shine just yet, they will when the Rams defense needs them. For now, this is Greg Gaines’s moment to shine. But don’t tell him that. You see, he doesn’t seek out the spotlight. He just hates to let his teammates down.