Rams SB LVI legend Eric Weddle gives surprising endorsement for this FA signing

(3) - The Rams were running DC Chris Shula's new defense

Perhaps the most obvious and most overlooked aspect of the tenure of veteran ILB Troy Reeder is the fact that he opened as a starter of a brand-new defensive scheme in 2024. While almost everyone knows that Reeder was the defensive play caller before the Rams Week 6 BYE, a span that resulted in the team falling to a 1-4 record, many do not easily recall that he was on the football field in Week 7, leading the defense to a 15 point game against the Las Vegas Raiders that the team won by a score of 20-15.

The Raiders scored just five field goals on the day.

Reeder was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Every NFL defense that changes defensive coordinators has a period of acclimating to how that defense intends to stop opposing offenses. The problem is more frequently attributable to unfamiliarity than a gross lack of talent. That's a hard distinction to make from the stands or by viewing the broadcast.

NFL players can discern the difference. And it's that ability to recognize what the defense wants to do, and a holistic view of what individual players must do to ensure success, that gives veteran NFL players a leg up on knowing the true quality of a player.

Unfamiliarity is not limited to players. The Rams defense was a series of experimental, rapidly changing configurations that were meant to assess the compatibility of players to specific down, distance, and scheme scenarios. With each snap of the football, the database for players increased, allowing the Rams to hone in on who should be on the football field and who comprised the most effective units.

Of course, it helps to have all players on the 53-man roster healthy. That was not the case for the team as the 2024 NFL season opened.