6 promising 2023 rookies risking release after Rams Game 3 of preseason

The 2024 NFL preseason ends for the LA Rams on or about 1:00 pm PT today. After that, it's the nerve-wracking waiting period over the next 72 hours to see who the team chooses to release. Up to 37 players from 32 NFL teams. or just under 1200 hopeful NFL prospects will need to put their dreams of making an NFL roster on hold. to

It's probably the one aspect of the NFL that fans will never truly comprehend. While there is euphoric joy and celebration in the hearts of rookies hearing their names called out in the NFL Draft, fans mimic that enthusiasm and celebration at some level as well. But the horror and disappointment of release from an NFL team, particularly the first time it happens, can be soul-crushing for players. And no matter how sympathetic or empathetic fans try to be, they cannot replicate that emotional tsunami.

None of the team's 2023 drafted rookie class had to face the brunt of that disappointment. 14 rookies were selected in the 2023 NFL Draft, and all 14 earned their spot on the team's initial 53-man roster. The thing is though, the team got better, competition grew fiercer, and those same 14 rookies are not as guaranteed of a roster spot this season.

It's a tough spot to be in for fans. You want the team to field the most competitive group of 53 players in 2024 as possible. But that means that some very talented players will not get past the NFL roster cut deadline on August 27, 2024, at 1:00 pm PT. One day later, the team can re-sign 16 players to the practice squad. That is, if no other NFL team claims them, or if they opt to sign with another NFL team for a better chance of making that team's roster.

In the interim, this team has benefited from some rather gutsy play from players. The defense has been swarming and stingy, two descriptive terms that you love to see from an NFL defense. The offense has been feisty and opportunistic. But in the end, the numbers game wins out. Who might the team release? Here are six 2023 rookies who are not assured of making the 2024 Rams roster: