LA Rams to go with 3rd OL configuration in 3 games

Life with the LA Rams comes at you fast. Blink and you may miss something. Step away for a meal, or for a conversation with a beloved family member or close friend, and wholesale changes may have taken place. Such is the pace for the reigning Super Bowl Champion LA Rams, a team that has already endured a season’s worth of injuries, and a flurry of roster moves, just to get to Week 3 of the NFL season.

The third week of the typical NFL season is the week when contenders begin to look like contenders and those marginal NFL teams that found early success begin to falter under the ever-improving level of NFL competition.  But for the LA Rams, Week 3 has taken on a far different meaning.

In just three weeks of NFL competition, the LA Rams will be playing their third different starting offensive line.

So how have the guys in the trenches played so far? Let’s look at the Rams’ offensive line configuration planned for Week 3:

Week 1 – Buffalo Bills

Joe Noteboom – 67 snaps, 0 penalties, 3 sacks allowed
David Edwards – 67 snaps, 1 penalty, 2 sacks allowed
Brian Allen – 67 snaps, 0 penalties, 1 sack allowed
Coleman Shelton – 67 snaps, 0 penalties, 0 sacks allowed
Rob Havenstein – 67 snaps, 0 penalties, 1 sack allowed

Week 2 – Atlanta Falcons

Joe Noteboom – 62 snaps, 0 penalties, 0 sacks allowed
David Edwards – 62 snaps, 0 penalties, 0 sacks allowed
Coleman Shelton – 62 snaps, 1 penalty, 0 sacks allowed
* Tremayne Anchrum – 2 snaps, 0 penalties, 0 sacks allowed
Alaric Jackson – 60 snaps, 1 penalty, 0 sacks allowed
Rob Havenstein – 62 snaps, 1 penalty, 0 sacks allowed

* denotes starter

Week 3 – @ Arizona Cardinals

Joe Noteboom – xx snaps, x penalties, x sacks allowed
David Edwards – xx snaps, x penalties, x sacks allowed
Coleman Shelton – xx snaps, x penalties, x sacks allowed
Alaric Jackson – xx snaps, x penalties, x sacks allowed
Rob Havenstein – xx snaps, x penalty, x sacks allowed

Looking ahead

The Rams got the most bang for their buck so far with their Week 3 configuration, as Alaric Jackson did a solid job filling in for injured starter Tremayne Anchrum.  We’ve been tracking the weekly performances of offensive linemen, and we’re glad that we are. When Brian Allen, the LA Rams starting offensive center, is medically cleared in the next week or so, the Rams will have a choice to return to their Week 1 configuration or to reset the players one more time.

I am confident that the LA Rams’ offensive line will be solid against the Arizona Cardinals. The Rams front office has continued to sign additional NFL veteran offensive linemen, adding both Oday Aboushi and Matt Skura in less than one week’s time.

What’s next for the team’s big men in the trenches?  That remains to be seen. Since the LA Rams opened training camp, both Logan Bruss and Tremayne Anchrum have already been lost for the season. The front office has compensated for those losses to the Rams roster by adding two veteran offensive linemen.

Now, we wait for the results of Week 3.