After winning a playoff game last winter, the Rams are hoping to put together another special run in 2025. Here’s a look at four questions that could determine the ceiling of this year’s Rams:
How does Matthew Stafford’s back hold up after he gets hit?
The quarterback, 37, has three full weeks of practice under his belt after missing the first four weeks of training camp with an aggravated disk in his back. That is a big deal, both in terms of him knocking off the rust of reading a defense in real time and rekindling the chemistry with his offense.
But what hasn’t happened is Stafford hasn’t taken a hit. Not that he would have to this point in the year if he had been able to practice all summer, but we wouldn’t be asking this question if it weren’t for the back.
For his part, Stafford said he is ready for the physical part of the game. And over the course of his 17-year career, he has battled through a litany of injuries to stay on the field, even in lost seasons in Detroit.
But he’s also been sidelined three times by back injuries in his career, because sometimes a back doesn’t care about your desire to battle on. So if you hold your breath the first time a pass rusher wins against the Rams’ offensive line Sunday, you probably won’t be alone.
What does a ‘more versatile’ offense mean in practice?
The above quote was how head coach Sean McVay described his aspirations for the 2025 offense all the way back in January. And the Rams’ actions this offseason – from keeping Tutu Atwell to signing Davante Adams to drafting Terrance Ferguson and Jarquez Hunter – indicated McVay wanted to assemble a set of skill position players with a variety of skill sets.
Sunday, we’ll get a better idea of how McVay will utilize that assortment, even if it takes a few weeks to come to full fruition. Are there packages that utilize the speed of Atwell and Hunter? How do Adams and Puka Nacua play off each other? Is 12-personnel deployed more to get Ferguson and Tyler Higbee on the field together? Stay tuned to find out.
Are the Rams ready to stop the run?
This was the Rams’ biggest weakness in any phase last season. They might not have needed to convert that final red-zone trip against the Eagles in the NFC divisional round if they had been able to get Saquon Barkley on the ground.
The free-agent additions of defensive tackle Poona Ford and linebacker Nate Landman are the biggest moves the Rams made to fix this shortcoming. Both had strong camps. Landman worked well in unison with second-year linebacker Omar Speights, whose growth after a strong rookie year could help spur improvement in run defense, too.
Can the cornerback position hold up over the course of a full season?
The Rams kept just five cornerbacks on their 53-man roster, one of whom (Josh Wallace) primarily played safety during camp. The two starting outside corners are Ahkello Witherspoon, 30, and Darious Williams, 32, and those ages beg the question of whether they can stay on the field.
Witherspoon dealt with calf issues early in training camp. Then he was a surprise “did not practice” on Thursday with a knee injury, though McVay said Friday that Witherspoon would play in Sunday’s season opener. Williams missed four games last year from a hamstring strain that pestered him throughout the season. Reserve Emmanuel Forbes dealt with his own hamstring issue during camp.
The Rams bet that they did not need to add to the cornerback room because their pass rush would compensate for any mismatches against receivers. But if the original starting group of corners can’t stay on the field, that could complicate things for the defense.
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