4 LA Rams defensive players who step out of the shadows in 2023

The Texas Tornado touches down in 2023

Defensive lineman Bobby Brown III needs to step up, and I truly believe that he will do exactly that this season. In two seasons with the Rams, Brown has been less than prominent. He has competed in 186 defensive snaps in 19 games and one start. Of those opportunities, he has just nine tackles to his credit and one tackle for a loss. That being said, business for Brown is about to pick up.

It's tough for a young man to keep his head in the game when he is averaging under 10 defensive snaps per game. That was due to the fact that he played behind veterans A'Shawn Robinson and Greg Gaines. This will be his third season playing for the LA Rams, the year when everything seems to slow down and players seem to grow in their on-field production.

The suspense is over

Keep in mind that Brown's career has not been smooth sailing. He was suspended for six games in 2022, a factor that he never seemed to truly recover from. The suspension did not only exclude him from games but from all team activities over that time frame. That meant that he did not play for the first six games of the season, but was inactive for two more weeks after his return as he had to ramp up to get on par with his teammates once more.

Brown's 6-foot-4 325-pound frame will be tested on every play this season, as he will inevitably be playing nose tackle for the Rams this year. The Rams deploy a 1-tech, which is a nose tackle who shades over one of the shoulders of the center and usually is responsible for just one gap. While that helps in terms of gap responsibility, it often allows the guard and center to double-team that player on passing downs.

Brown will need to learn how to use his massive form and leverage his strength to be a more consistent and dominating force for the Rams at the line of scrimmage this year. I, for one, believe that he will do exactly that.