Final LA Rams injury report for Week 2 as the team labors to reform the OL

As Week 2 looms large for both the visiting LA Rams and the host Arizona Cardinals, it's time to pause for a moment and review and recap their respective rosters, at least in terms of their final injury reports for Week 2. For Rams fans, weekly injury reports have gotten progressively worse, and have not only been outshadowed by the Week 1 post-game injury report.

The injury report will no longer reflect a number of players who have been recently place on injured reserve by the team, such as C/G Steve Avila, or WR Puka Nacua. In fact, the Rams have 12 players on various rosters. They are:

Suspended (Week 2 of 2)

• QB Jimmy Garoppolo
• OT Alaric Jackson

IR Physically Unable to Perform (IR/PUP)

• TE Tyler Higbee - Eligible to return Week 5 (1)

IR Designated to Return (IR)

• OT KT Leveston - Eligible to return Week 5 (2)
• DT Larrell Murchison - Eligible to return Week 5 (3)

Reserve Injured (IR)

• C/G Steve Avila - Eligible to return Week 6 (4)
• DB Derion Kendrick (Out for the season) (5)
• OT Conor McDermott - Eligible to return Week 5 (6)
• WR Puka Nacua - Eligible to return Week 6 (7)
• OT Joe Noteboom - Eligible to return Week 6 (8)
• DB Tre Tomlinson - (Out for the season) (9)
• DB Darious Williams - Eligible to return Week 5 (10)

As you can see, the team has, on paper, already filled all IR designations that allow players to return to the active roster as early as or before the BYE Week in Week 6. Of course, few players will actually be healed by that time. Yet, the complexity of so many IR players this early is unthinkable. How can the Rams possibly compete by season's end with the team already forced into a swap of players this season?

What that means is that if the team opts to designate any future players to IR this season, the team is committing some player's season to be finished for the year. Either the team will save an IR transaction (limited to eight such moves in a season) to restore that player, but robbing an existing player of coming back who is already on IR. Or the team will restore another player, and view that and any future players assigned to IR going forward as lost for the season.

Rams Injuries

• S Quentin Lake - Hip- Questionable
• G Kevin Dotson - Foot - Questionable
• CB Cobie Durant - Toe - Questionable

The Rams have full green lights on OT Rob Havenstein (foot/ankle), ILB Christian Rozeboom (hip) and DB Tre'Davious White (veteran rest) for Week 2. To that point, the team will have rookie center Beaux Limmer in his first start of the season, and backup swing tackle Warren McClendon likely moving from his right tackle role in Week 1 to a left tackle role in Week 2.

But there are more reasons for optimism in Week 2.

Cardinals Injuries

• CB Max Melton - Concussion - Questionable
• WR Xavier Weaver - Oblique - Questionable
• QB Kyler Murray - Knee - Unspecified

The Cardinals are struggling a bit early in the season as well. WR Zay Flowers has been suspended for the first five games of the 2024 NFL season. And they have three offensive linemen, one outside linebacker, one defensive lineman, and one defensive back on IR. The Cardinals will likely welcome back WR Xavier Weaver in Week 2m, as he has been upgraded to questionable status. And both TE Tip Reiman and S Joey Blount are full goes for Week 2.

While not quite as lopsided as Week 1 in terms of pure personnel, the Rams are not quite 'there' in terms of throwing strategy out the window and simply viewing Week 2 as a means of just imposing their collective wills on their opponents.

But the team is beginning to heal. Slowly. If there are no setbacks this week in terms of injuries, the Rams could sneak back into respectable status to take on the San Francisco 49ers in Week 3. But this team needs a win. And the team must stay healthy in the process.

It's already a tightwire act, and we are only in Week 2. Such is another NFL season with the LA Rams.

Stay tuned. And thank you for reading.