Sean McVay is taking a different approach to this season than in previous years, relying on younger players in key roles like The Los Angeles Rams plunge into rebuilding for 2023.
The Rams have lost 16 veteran players in free agency. And with the league’s highest 14 draft picks and a total of 40 freshmen now on the team’s 90-man roster, the seventh-year head coach is gearing up for a season focused on teaching and develop young talent.
“You have a lot of people eager and excited about their opportunities,” McVay told reporters this week during organized group activities. “I think there were a handful of players last year who could develop confidence and say, ‘OK, I’m here.’
“And then we were able to really reset the way we wanted to operate. How are we teaching these things in a way that makes the players as receptive as possible? What’s the solution? How I can’t say enough about the work our coaching staff has done and we know we want to keep doing it every day from here on out. “
With a roster built around young, growing players, McVay, his coaching staff and team veterans are emphasizing helping this green team quickly learn the systems. and new plan to play better in September.
“I have 6-year-old daughters and I thought to myself: ‘Some of them were 6 when I started playing in the NFL,'” joked 35-year-old defender Rams. Matthew Stafford. “So it’s hard to sit there and think about it.”
Stafford, who has been unable to throw for most of this past season because of a tired arm, said he has fully recovered from the bruising spinal cord injury that saw his 2022 campaign cut short. Having the ability to engage in off-season work helps Georgia The product develops relationships with young players during the preparation for training camp.
“It’s great to be able to go out there and throw and work with other people,” Stafford said. “At this time last year, I wasn’t throwing at all. I didn’t really do much, so I enjoyed playing. I loved being out here.”
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A young player who is expected to make an early impact for the Rams is the second round pick Steve Avilathe team’s top pick in the 2023 draft. Los Angeles enjoys the versatility of the inside offensive leader – TCU The product can play both guard and center positions.
The O-line is one of LA’s top areas of need going into this season because of the injuries the Rams went through last season. Avila is arranged to start in the left guard position.
“For me, I know the transition from high school to college is very difficult,” Avila told reporters this week. “But I feel like you’re getting a feel for the way things are [in OTAs], so this transition is a lot easier. This is actually my first time away from home. But it’s California, a great place, so this transition is amazing.”
Another rookie that has stood out during off-season work is a cat-quick receiver Puka Nacua. The BYU The product selected in the fifth round showed potential in team drills for the Rams. Nacua finished with 48 tackles from 625 yards and five points in his final season for the Cougars. He also scored an extra 209 yards of charge and 5 times of TD dash.
With receiver No. 1 Cooper Kupp sat out the OTAs as he returned to training from an ankle injury at the end of the season and Van Jefferson dealing with knee problems last season, the Rams could use some additional depth in the studio.
Stafford said of Nacua: “Every time I looked up, it was running around somewhere. “He did a great job, getting some productions for us.
“But it’s really just trying to develop all these people. Let them see what NFL practice looks like, how it feels, how it stands, all that stuff. And that’s the purpose of this time and then just trying to get out there and commit our offense.”
The Rams also added in the midfield with a fourth round pick Stetson Bennett and free agent Brett Rypien. Los Angeles signed the four-year veteran because of his familiarity in a similar strike system with Dancer broncosso Rypien provides some extra experience alongside Stafford.
As for Bennett, he will be tasked with quickly learning McVay’s complex attack plan and the Rams’ unique way of doing things at the team’s practice facility in Thousand Oaks.
McVay said he is counting on new offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur and quarterback coach Zac Robinson to get young men like Bennett ready to play.
“Zac and Mike are really important tools for a lot of young men, not just midfield,” McVay said. “Mike looks at the game through a great lens. …He has an amazing ability to understand the game from the perspective of all 22. He’s a great communicator. He and Matthew set it up. a really quick relationship.
“I think Mike has come in and it’s a lot of the same fundamentals but small tweaks here and there can only help us attack better.”
After the 5-12 season, the Rams had to play better on both sides of the ball. They are counting on young players to help them get there.
Eric D. Williams has covered the NFL for over a decade, covering the Los Angeles Rams for Sports Illustrated, the Los Angeles Chargers for ESPN and the Seattle Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Follow him on Twitter at @eric_d_williams.
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The Los Angeles Rams
Matthew Stafford
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