Reboot, rebuild, or restock? Reviewing LA Rams roster and D depth chart

If you are nervous about the state of the LA Rams roster, particularly on the defensive front, you have cause to be. This is the toughest part of the LA Rams entire 2023 NFL season, the darkness of disappointment as the Rams shed key contributors in their quest to reset the entire team, and once everything is stripped down, to reassemble the Rams roster once more.

With just 44 players under contract, and just $11 million to spend, this is not the Rams front office playing possum, or waiting to spring into action when the price of NFL veteran players falls to ridiculously low levels. The LA Rams ran aground in 2022, a team that miscalculated on the players invested in, their fit, the coaches ability to develop them, and the ability of the entire organization to pivot from party to preparation. The Rams reloaded their 2022 roster with veterans who were very accomplished, but did not fit their roster model. When it came to the 2022 NFL Draft, the Rams did not have a single selection among the first 100 players selected.

The Rams roster pruning has been going on for months

Does parting of ways with key players disappoint you? Well, this is a patter that has been happening for nearly seven months now, as the team released a promising OLB Chris Garrett in August 2022, and have never looked back.

The Rams roster has been adept in the past at identifying and acquiring elite NFL players, and then swelling the roster with complementary young contributors who would balance out the financial picture, but produce enough to keep this team winning. Elite players were paid by the LA Rams. Young players rose through the ranks and signed lucrative contracts to play elsewhere. In return, the Rams were awarded compensatory picks to refill the pipeline and start all over again.

But the Rams front office and the needs of the team's roster fell out of alignment in 2022. The offensive line depth was too shallow, the defensive backs were too raw, and the Rams pass rush was simply too ineffective. And so, the Rams organization has made the decision to reboot the roster. What does that mean?

Forget semantics. Rams roster in long term revision

To understand the timing, it's important to see this not as a team's knee-jerk reaction to a 5-12 record in 2022. Rather, the team's constant turnover on the coaching staff changed the goalposts, and the Rams were acquiring the wrong players for the wrong needs. It was a rush job after winning Super Bowl LVI. The Rams roster and coaching staff were cannibalized once more, but the team had not the time to vet decisions that would seriously impact 2022.

The LA Rams roster is at 44 players. But if the Rams had their way, that might be as few as 42 players. I don't believe that the Rams front office or coaching staff made Miami Dolphins TE Hunter Long a priority acquisition. The Rams wanted to trade away DB Jalen Ramsey, and Long was the best player that the Rams could pry from the Dolphins to pair with a 2023 third-round draft pick. And with the team shedding both TE Jarred Pinkney and TE Roger Carter, Long is thrust into the offensive rotation simply by default. Will he pan out? Who's to say? The Rams need contributors, and the field right now is wide open across the roster.

Rams roster will be filled with young inexpensive players

With 44 players currently under contract on the Rams roster for 2023, 23 - or more than half - are due to earn less than $1 million for the 2023 NFL season. Another 12, or 35 out of 44, will earn less than $2 million. That will not improve as the Rams enter the 2023 NFL Draft. When the LA Rams hit 90 players, the roster could be made up of 75-80 players who will be earning less than $2 million for the season.

I'm not here to argue for equitable salaries. Rather, the compensation illustrates how incredibly young and inexperienced this 2023 LA Rams roster projects to become. That not only means inconsistent play, but the team will not benefit from veteran leadership that it had relied upon in the recent past. All of these factor will contribute to a great deal more uncertainty over this team in the 2023 NFL season. But perhaps most of all, it will mean a lot of young players will get On-The-Job (OJT) training throughout the 2023 season.

So what of the team's depth chart? Let's take a look at that next:

2023 Rams defensive depth chart (21 players)

As we take our first look at the 2023 LA Rams roster and focus on the team's defensive depth chart, two items may jump out at you. With the exception of defensive lineman Aaron Donald, the LA Rams defense is incredibly, almost painfully, young. And with the exception of DL Aaron Donald and ILB Ernest Jones, I would say without hesitation that every starting position is completely up for grabs.

Defensive End - Aaron Donald, Jonah Williams
Nose Tackle - Bobby Brown, T.J. Carter
Defensive End - Larrell Murchison, Earnest Brown IV

The LA Rams' defensive line will need reinforcements. The Rams historically enter training camp with no fewer than nine defensive linemen, but with the uncertainty of contributions of who is currently under contract, I would be shocked if the team did not try to add up to six more prospects. Aaron Donald will anchor the group. And the Rams saw enough out of both defensive linemen Bobby Brown and Larrell Murchison to project rotational roles for both players.

Rams need reinforcements in the defensive trenches

But as for starters? They may not be on the Rams roster just yet. Certainly, the team will likely target at least one solid defensives lineman in the draft. But the Rams may be signing four after the 2023 NFL Draft concludes. This will be a huge rookie class for the team, I'm afraid.

While I love Rams Defensive Line Coach Eric Henderson, even the best positional coach in the NFL needs talented players who can be coached, and are given enough time to learn all the intricacies of their NFL roles. And with the team on the lower end of NFL experience, this is a team that will need more prospects to pan through to find the gold nuggets.

The Rams will need to invest in a defensive line this year to some degree. Like it or not, DL Aaron Donald is not getting any younger, and the wear and tear on his body from facing double and triple teams constantly is beginning to take a toll.

Behind the defensive line of scrimmage

Outside Linebacker - Daniel Hardy, Keir Thomas
Inside Linebacker - Ernest Jones, Jake Hummel
Inside Linebacker - Christian Rozeboom
Outside Linebacker - Michael Hoecht, Zach VanValkenburg

While I like the synergy of the Rams inside linebacker pairing of Ernest Jones and Christian Rozeboom, only Jones holds a certain starting role for the team at inside linebacker for 2023. I do believe that either Rozeboom or Jake Hummel will surprise a bit this season, and will do enough to hold their own. As far as outside linebackers? I give a starting nod to Michael Hoecht, as he did quite a bit with almost no prep in 2022. But I definitely believe that the Rams will draft at least one potential starting outside linebacker on Day 2 of the 2023 NFL Draft.

The Rams face a deep edge rushing rookie class this season, and those types of players have skillsets that translate incredibly well to covering kicks and punts on special teams. As such, I believe that the Rams could land four outside linebackers and anywhere from 2-3 inside linebackers during and after the 2023 NFL Draft.

'Sup with that Rams secondary?

Outside Cornerback - Robert Rochell, Shaun Jolly
Slot Cornerback - Cobie Durant
Strong Safety - Russ Yeast. Richard LeCount
Free Safety - Jordan Fuller, Quentin Lake
Outside Cornerback - Derion Kendrick

There is nothing about the LA Rams secondary that tells me that this is a unit that is NFL ready to face the 2023 NFL season. Even the return of starting safety Jordan Fuller is of little comfort, because the Rams may or may not view him as the starter this year. With this as the team's current secondary, I believe that the first time the LA Rams step up to the podium, the team will give very serious consideration to adding a defensive back with the 36th pick of the 2023 NFL Draft.

The Rams defense may not come close to rising to among the Top-10 defenses in the NFL. But a strong secondary will create turnovers, which gives the ball back to the offense. Right now, with the team losing Jalen Ramsey, Troy Hill, Nick Scott, Taylor Rapp, and David Long Jr., this secondary is begging opposing quarterbacks to throw at them all day. And as long as that happens, the Rams own offense is not getting any work.

The LA Rams appear, as of right now, to be in need of two starting outside cornerbacks and one starting safety from the 2023 NFL Draft. While that is a very tall order, the Rams can do it if that is a priority. I for one think that it must be. Even if the strategy for the 2023 season is to fill the offense with weapons and outscore opponents, wouldn't you say that the Rams WR Cooper Kupp, Van Jefferson, Tutu Atwell, Ben Skowronek, TE Tyler Higbee, and RB Cam Akers and Kyler Williams as hand-picked offensives weapons?

That's the current Rams defensive depth chart as of March 19, 2023. While there are not a lot of certainties, the Rams draft class this season will have incredible levels of opportunity to earn playing time and perhaps even a starting role. Even with 11 picks, with the Rams roster remaining so barren, I am leaning more and more towards the Rams trading back in this draft to amplify the number of picks chosen in the 2023 NFL Draft. If the Rams continue at their current pace, the team will have over half of the roster as rookies. While inexpensive, that would leave 2023 open to an incredibly poor-performing team. But the LA Rams have plenty of picks in 2024. Will they be looking at a new QB next year?