Here are 8 LA Rams players who will be back in 2022

Too valuable tight end 2

If you had any doubts as to just how important tight end Johnny Mundt is to this Rams’ offense, you have witnessed just how much the team missed him when he was injured and lost for the season. After his absence, the Rams truly did not have anyone who could replicate all of the various roles on offense that he performed with precision.

Eventually, the Rams discovered through painstaking trial-and-error that Mundt’s role could be reproduced with either two tight ends or one tight end and an additional offensive lineman. That seems like a bit of overkill, so it makes far more sense for the team to simply bring back Mundt.

Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain

While you may not appreciate what Mundt brings to this LA Rams offense, I can assure you that the coaching staff and his teammates most certainly do. His versatility allows the Rams to place him in virtually any spot in an offensive formation. While he does not carry the football (and I’m not quite sure why not), he does offer plenty of usage as a lead blocker, blocking tight end, or any type of play where the offense needs one more helmet to helmet matching up to clear a running land for the ball carrier.

But Mundt can also help in pass blocking as well. With Mundt participating in the first six games of the season, quarterback Matthew Stafford was sacked just six times. In the next nine games, Stafford has been sacked 18 times, or double the rate experienced when Mundt played.

Since he is coming off an injury, the Rams should be able to land Mundt on a good team-friendly deal. But hopefully not too cute. The Detroit Lions would be interested in getting a familiar tight end for quarterback Jared Goff in 2022. While they may show interest, I expect Mundt to remain on the Rams roster.