LA Rams owe a lot to these 3 veteran additions in 2023

There is no dispute over the fact that the LA Rams had strategically and intentionally laid a foundation for the Rams roster upon rookie players added in 2023. It was not a mistake and it was not an accident. The Rams roster was depleted by injuries in 2022, and the powers that be realized that this Rams team no longer had sufficient depth to make a playoff run feasible in 2023.

Nor did the LA Rams finances have sufficient salary cap space to continue to retool the Rams roster with accomplished game changers. No, the Rams brain trust understood that the path that had taken this team to Super Bowls LIII and LVI would take them no further. The Rams had to develop and adopt a new strategy, one that would be sustainable.

So the Rams front office deliberately tore the roster down to the studs (pun intended), and has been restoring the team this season. But this was not all done via rookies and the 2023 NFL Draft.

Rams added veteran shop stewards to accelerate rookie development

The process of taking the Rams roster down to its foundation left far too many holes in the Rams roster to entrust entirely to first-year NFL players. Rookies have energy, but it's a bit raw and unharnessed. Rams coaches knew that the team needed to do more than simply spend OTAs and the 2023 Training camp on teaching rookies how to train in the NFL

The Rams have not been overly frugal with their roster investments. Instead, whether the Rams have added via the 2023 NFL Free Agency market, or gone the way of trading for the right player, the Rams seem to have mastered the art of value-added returns. That breaks down to simply the fact that the Rams have committed only a few dollars and gotten great performances.

Now let's reflect on three low-risk high-reward players who have made a difference for the Rams this season. All have earned an extension by the Rams front office to return and play for the team in 2024 and beyond. So, who are they?

These 3 LA Rams veteran additions have been gold in 2023

1. III: RB Royce Freeman
2. Rams offense installed 4-wheel drive
3. II: DB Ahkello Witherspoon
4. Witherspoon quietly squelches receivers
5. I: IOL Kevin Dotson
6. Dotson delivers