This Rams unit might be the biggest problem no team knows how to solve

Are you ready for this? Perhaps you’d better sit down, because this is pretty unbelievable. Just two seasons after the retirement of All-Pro defensive lineman Aaron Donald, the Los Angeles Rams have reformed a rather formidable defensive front. This is not just pre-game hype. This is a bona fide fact, and the same team that put up 16 quarterback sacks in two playoff games last season may be even better this year.

The path to this point hasn’t been easy. The front office invested heavily in the defensive line in each of the past two NFL Drafts, leaning into edge rushers and down linemen with two early selections in both 2023 and 2024. Now, the four horsemen of Byron Young, Jared Verse, Kobie Turner, and Braden Fiske are joined by veteran nose tackle Poona Ford. And if you stop right there, you have one of the best defensive fronts in football, just as NFL Insider D’Marco Farr claims:

But the roster doesn’t stop there. The group includes a host of hungry, hungry defensive Hippos eager to make their presence felt and contribute. And with a starting core of elite playmakers, the rotational guys just need to show up, line up, and do their best to keep up. Two players to keep on your radar are DL Tyler Davis, who enjoyed a remarkable offseason, and DE/OLB Desjuan Johnson, the 2025 answer to the versatility lost when Michael Hoecht signed elsewhere in free agency.

The Rams may have assembled the NFL’s most dangerous D-line

The team appears to have all the right pieces in place. So all that remains is turning that potential into production. That was the challenge in 2024, as the group was full of young players facing the NFL for the first time. Now, one season later, the same core has coalesced through the trials and tribulations of a full year together.

This is a defensive front that got stronger as the season wore on. While the rookie tandem of Verse and Fiske was making headlines, Kobie Turner was making plays against the run and the pass. Now, with the addition of Poona Ford, he has a true counterpart on the line.

Ford is an accomplished veteran nose tackle with a low center of gravity and long arms who proved to be the bane of Eagles center Jason Kelce. Throughout training camp, fans heard a steady stream of positive reports about Ford, a run-stuffing savant who fills a glaring weakness from last season.

The loss to Philadelphia in the Divisional Round of the 2025 NFL Playoffs is locked in. But had the defense been able to slow down Saquon Barkley, the outcome might have been different. While nobody can go back and change history, this team is better prepared for a similar test in 2025.

It’s a long season. The defense will have strong games and some struggles. But if this group stays healthy, it could be the best defensive front in the NFL. Not just because D’Marco Farr says so. Because the Rams have the right pieces in the right roles to make it happen.

As always, thanks for reading.

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