Why Rams C Brian Allen is no sure thing to start in 2023

The LA Rams offensive line returns four of five starters from the 2022 NFL season. And while it may be the smart money to bet on the Rams simply going with all of their 2022 starters and looking to fill the vacancy left at the left guard postion created by veteran David Edwards leaving via free agency. Still, I wouldn't pen in offensive center Brian Allen's name to start for the team on the offensive line this year just yet.

"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." is a common license used in literature to lay the blame for being fooled at the feet of the person who was fooled by the same trick on multiple occasions. But it does have some relevance when discussing injuries and the Rams' offensive line.

Neither Joe Noteboom nor Brian Allen has proven to have a durability factor (stay healthy) of better than 50 percent. Those are not very good odds when penciling both players as starters for the 2023 Rams roster. Both will be playing about 25 percent of the time, and one or both will be injured the other 75 percent of the time.

I'm not in the category of the LA Rams to do anything more that simply bench Brian Allen this season. I'm simply of the opinion that it would be smart for him to backup this year, stay healthy, pick up the slack if and when the Rams have need of him in 2023, and earn back the starting position by proving that he is durable enough to last an entire 17 game NFL season without any time lost due to injury.

Between Tremayne Anchrum, Coleman Shelton Logan Bruss and Steve Avila, the Rams should be able to mix and match an optimal interior offensive line. That allows Allen to backup the starting center. Try that plan out, and then see what happens by the end of the 2023 NFL season to tweak it further for 2024.