Rams desperately need breakout players at 4 key positions in 2025

While the Los Angeles Rams were the NFC West Division Champions in 2024, there are plenty of area of the team that need to show up with some level of upgrade and/or leveling up this season. Some areas you may not think of right away, but we are not talking about Fantasy Football now. The Rams must view the team as a whole.

And some aspects of the Rams total package was simply a bit lacking in the grand scheme of things in 2024.

If a team is downtrodden and aiming to do better, any upgrade or improvement over the previous season is welcome. But after the Rams have earned a playoff seeding in each of the past two seasons, that bar is a bit higher now. It's no longer enough to catch passes, but now the need is to tack on yards after the catch. It's no longer enough to turn 1000 snaps of the football into high production, it's now necessary to make every snap count on a per snap basis.

Defenders need to tackle. Offensive weapons have to put up plenty of yards per reception or carry. Each player must do more than earn a paycheck. Every Rams player on the football field has to make every play special.

Some of the improvement has to come from individual players, but some of the improvement has to come from a better use of existing resources. In 2024, the team opted to carry four running backs and, ultimately, four tight ends on the active 53-man Rams roster. However, the offensive workload for those positions on gameday did not warrant the overload. What do I mean?

If you review the actual usage of positions on offense per Lineup.com, you get the following breakdown of offensive snaps per position:

• Quarterbacks (3) - 1,090 offensive snaps
• Running backs (4) - 1,090 offensive snaps
• Tight ends (3/4) - 1,247 offensive snaps
• Wide receivers (5/7) - 3,113 offensive snaps

As you can see, the Rams were rather heavy at tight end, and absolutely heavy at running back. Did the Rams intend to do more on game day at those two positions? Or did the team simply miscalcule the demands of a 17-game season from previous season shortages?

The problem with overstocking the roster at running back and tight end is the logjam created at other positions. The Rams roster can only hold 53 players. That includes veterans with specific roles now, plus younger players who need to develop through gradually increasing workloads.

So where should Rams fans look for improvement in 2024? Here are four areas that need breakout players this season: