6 players who must perform well for Rams Game 2, including Stetson Bennett

(6) - WR Drake Stoops

The 5-foot-10 189-pound undrafted rookie wide receiver Drake Stoops out of Oklahoma had a pretty good game for a player with limited offensive snaps in his first NFL preseason game. This young man had a limited role, playing just 26 offensive snaps in the game. And yet, he was targeted four times, hauled in three receptions for 27 receiving yards, and was a productive player in the offense.

Now he must be better.

It is almost a certainty that WR Jordan Whittington's debut was effective enough to give coaches enough to see to hold him out of Games 2 and 3, just as they had done with rookie WR Puka Nacua in 2023. WIth that action, if if happens, the team will be looking for a dependable wide receiver who can be counted on to make plays. Based on his Game 1 production, that favorite target could be Stoops.

It seems unlikely that the team will carry more than six wide receivers on the initial 53-man roster in 2024. And if you are keeping a running total of who has earned roster slots already, you can rattle of the names of:

1. WR Cooper Kupp
2. WR Puka Nacua
3. WR Demarcus Robinson
4. WR Tutu Atwell
5. WR Jordan Whittington
6. WR Tyler Johnson/Xavier Smith/???

As you can see, opportunities to remain on the team at the wide receiver position are going fast. But regardless of the pace of securing a roster spot, I'm not convinced that either veteran WR Tyler Johnson or Xavier Smith has a lock on a roster spot. If undrafted rookie Drake Stoops has a big game this week against the Los Angeles Chargers, he could leapfrog both Johnson and Smith for that final roster spot.

But to do that, he will need to put up more than 27 receiving yards.