5 players who need to play large role in LA Rams success this season

While we have confidence that the LA Rams can compete successfully in 2024, some players must show up this season in a way they may not be accustomed to. In short, the team will not climb the 2024 NFL season mountain just by standing back and observing what a steep climb lies ahead. That's not how it's done in the NFL.

At the same time, it's unfair to lash rookies or even second-year players to the yolk and expect them to shoulder the burden of this season. After all, some of the team's younger players have not seen the opposing teams that they must face this season. So to expect those players to shine in the spotlight seems, unnecessarily naive.

But this is a team with a kaleidoscope of experience at its disposal, and what may present as too premature of a task to assign to young players, more seasoned veterans are ideally tasked with positions of leadership. After all, stepping up is a bit self-serving, as the roles filled by veterans are typically set as the flagship role for that positional group. Meanwhile, any spike in production on the football field will either attract a more lucrative contract offer next season or will squelch questions about compensation for underperformance this year.

The Rams team is young and hungry. As such, there is an ample supply of young football players who are eager to get an opportunity to show what they can do to begin and extend their NFL careers. In my military days, we had squadron mottos that translated well into life mottos. One such motto was "Lead, Follow, Or get out of our way."

For the Rams this season, that is an appropriate description of what the team is asking from players on the team. They either take on a leadership role, they align with the leaders of the team, or they prepare to be released when the team pares down to the 53-man roster limit. So, let's see who are natural leaders for this team, and why it's so vital that they step up and set the pace for their particular positional group this season.