What if…? This LA Rams IOL shockingly opts for free agency?

The LA Rams offensive line was not exactly a strong suit for the team in 2022. But if you sit down and watch the games, you may notice that one of the team’s unsung heroes on that offensive line, IOL Coleman Shelton, did a pretty good job for the team when he played. And of all the offensive linemen who suited up for the LA Rams in 2022, Shelton played the second most number of offensive snaps at 788.

Only right tackle Rob Havenstein had more playing time, as he played 1018 offensive snaps. So what’s the problem?

The LA Rams signed Shelton to a two-year inexpensive contract in 2022 to return to play for the team in 2022 and 2023. That contract cost the Rams $3.25 million over two years, but the second year was optional.  And that option is not reported to be at the player’s, and not the team’s, discretion.

Yikes!

In a word? Yikes!

Well, before we show fear and concern, let’s talk about Coleman Shelton, and why I believe he is one of the keys to getting this Rams offensive line back on track in 2023. He is both young and quite versatile, starting at all three of the Rams’ interior offensive line positions and playing well.

As the second most dependable player on the Rams roster on the offensive line, Coleman Shelton was often associated with the poor performance of the group over the course of the 2022 NFL season. But don’t let a bad apple spoil the bunch for you. Shelton was remarkably active and effective as a blocker for the LA Rams. I love how the team performed when he was under center.

Can’t argue with the results

The trouble with assessing any NFL offensive lineman as an individual is limited on two fronts. Despite advances in technology, offensive linemen do their best work away from the football. That negates the ability of that football-embedded data chip from generating any meaningful data about offensive linemen. Data about quarterbacks, running backs, tight ends, and wide receivers in plentiful now. But there is no data stream created for the guys in the trenches.

And so, it falls to analog visual observation. But even that has its limits. The challenge is understanding how the play should evolve versus how it does evolve. In many cases, offensive linemen who do the bare minimum get better grades simply because they do not extend themselves on plays.  How can that be misinterpreted by data analysts?

Let’s run a scenario

It’s quite easy to do unless you factor in the results of the game. When you look at how the Rams’ offense seems to gel with Coleman Shelton under center, the Rams’ offense is far more balanced. In fact, over the past two seasons, the Rams have enjoyed 100+ yards rushing by a single running back just five times. It’s no coincidence that the offensive center in all five games was Coleman Shelton:

But what to do with his Pro Football Focus grade in 2022 of just 58.0? Well, one of the greatest weaknesses of that scoring system is the fact that it relies upon the frequency and ignores effectiveness. What do I mean? When a quarterback throws a pass, DB Taylor Rapp is not penalized for playing out of position. In fact, he is not graded for his error. Instead, the site grades the completion on the nearest defensive back, or in this case Jalen Ramsey, because he was the nearest defender.

How does Shelton hit Rams’ free agency in 2023?

So too does a player like Coleman Shelton, who will block several defenders, get shafted in that type of analysis? Where a stationary offensive lineman like Brian Allen gets graded on one block on one defender, Shelton gets graded on two or three blocks on multiple defenders. And if that defender makes a tackle eight or nine yards downfield, then Shelton will be scored poorly despite the effectiveness of that play.

I prefer to have an offensive lineman make those blocks downfield on running plays. With the past five 100+ yards rushing falling on the same games that Shelton is playing at center, I don’t believe that is the coincidence that some may make it out to be.

Will Shelton become the Rams free agency highest priority?

The problem is simple economics. Coleman Shelton was the absolute cheapest starter on the Rams’ offensive line in 2022. And he outplayed that contract. I did not have privy to his contract details, but Pro Football Focus reports that Shelton’s second year under his current contract is a player-option year.

Outplayed the contract and a player option year to return. Do you see where this is heading?

Now the Rams must face the possibility that Shelton could and likely will test his value in the NFL Free Agency market in 2023. So the LA Rams face a dilemma. Many have suggested that the Rams draft a center and a franchise offensive left tackle. And the Rams certainly have the picks to do so in the 2023 NFL Draft if they target a left tackle in Round 2 and an offensive center in Round 3.

But is that what the Rams will do? Historically, the Rams have opted to sign veterans to cover their bases on the offensive line, and then allow training camp competition to designate the other players who make the 53-man roster. But the Rams may simply opt to slot second-year IOL Logan Bruss at RG, and let Coleman Shelton sign the best contract he can find in the NFL Free Agency market.

I didn’t expect this as a development, as I believe that Coleman Shelton is one of the better players on the Rams’ offensive line. But after the team started Jeremiah Kolone and Bobby Evans due to injuries on the offensive line, nothing will surprise me this season

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