The Los Angeles Rams were mostly quiet during the first wave of free agency, becoming the only team not to sign a player who would qualify for a compensatory pick all offseason. That was the case until Los Angeles dipped its feet into the free agency pool on Tuesday by signing Clay Matthews, who was their first signing as a player who wasn’t released by his former team.
With the additions of Matthews, Blake Bortles, Eric Weddle and the return of Dante Fowler Jr., the Rams’ roster is beginning to take shape. They did lose quite a few players, as well – Rodger Saffold, Lamarcus Joyner, Mark Barron and most likely Ndamukong Suh – which alters the depth chart even more.
After slotting in the Rams’ recent additions and excluding players who are free agents, we’ve broken down the depth chart on both sides of the ball, beginning with the offense.
Offense
| Position | Starter | Backup | Reserve | Reserve |
| QB | Jared Goff | Blake Bortles | Brandon Allen | |
| RB | Todd Gurley | Malcolm Brown | John Kelly | Justin Davis |
| WR | Brandin Cooks | KhaDarel Hodge | Mike Thomas | |
| WR | Robert Woods | Josh Reynolds | Austin Proehl | |
| Slot WR | Cooper Kupp | JoJo Natson | ||
| TE | Tyler Higbee | Gerald Everett | Johnny Mundt | |
| LT | Andrew Whitworth | Joseph Noteboom | ||
| LG | Joseph Noteboom | Aaron Neary | ||
| C | Brian Allen | Austin Blythe | ||
| RG | Austin Blythe | Jamil Demby | Aaron Neary | |
| RT | Rob Havenstein | Darrell Williams | Kyle Murphy |
Bortles steps in as Jared Goff’s backup, replacing Sean Mannion. That’s an upgrade for the Rams, and at $1 million, Bortles is likely to be cheaper than Mannion, too.
Malcolm Brown is in danger of leaving for the Lions, which would cause the Rams to become fairly thin at running back. C.J. Anderson is always an option to return, but without Brown, it’d be up to John Kelly and Justin Davis.
No changes were made at wide receiver, nor at tight end. It’s still the same group at both spots with Tyler Higbee and Gerald Everett being interchangeable as the “starter.”
The offensive line looks dramatically different. Andrew Whitworth is fortunately back, but Saffold is gone, as is John Sullivan. Joseph Noteboom and Brian Allen figure to step in at left guard and center, respectively, to plug those holes. Noteboom would also probably be Whitworth’s backup if the season started today. Thankfully, it’s only March.
Austin Blythe can play center and guard, as can Aaron Neary. Overall, there’s a good amount of versatility up front.
Defense
| Position | Starter | Backup | Reserve | Reserve |
| DT | Aaron Donald | |||
| NT | Michael Brockers | Sebastian Joseph-Day | Tanzel Smart | |
| DE | John Franklin-Myers | Morgan Fox | ||
| ROLB | Clay Matthews | Ogbonnia Okoronkwo | Trevon Young | |
| ILB | Cory Littleton | Travin Howard | ||
| ILB | Micah Kiser | Marqui Christian | Clay Matthews | |
| LOLB | Dante Fowler Jr. | Samson Ebukam | Justin Lawler | |
| LCB | Aqib Talib | Troy Hill | Kevin Peterson | Darious Williams |
| RCB | Marcus Peters | Dominique Hatfield | Ramon Richards | |
| NCB | Nickell Robey-Coleman | Dont’e Deayon | ||
| FS | Eric Weddle | Blake Countess | Steven Parker | |
| SS | John Johnson III | Marqui Christian |
As you can see, the Rams’ depth on the defensive line is, well, thin. They don’t have a viable backup to Aaron Donald, while Morgan Fox is probably best suited at outside linebacker and not defensive end. But with the line looking barren, he slots in as a defensive end behind John Franklin-Myers.
The Rams can also start Sebastian Joseph-Day at nose tackle and keep Michael Brockers at defensive end, which would force Franklin-Myers to remain a backup for the time being.
Clay Matthews can play both inside and outside linebacker, which is why he appears at each spot. Most likely, he’ll be a starting pass rusher on the edge, but also contribute inside when the Rams go to sub-packages. Depth is almost non-existent behind Cory Littleton and Micah Kiser, so as of now, Matthews is needed at both spots.
In the secondary, it’s much of the same with the exception of Weddle replacing Joyner. The starting cornerbacks are locked in once again, and John Johnson III maintains his role as the other starting safety.
