Aaron Donald built on his remarkable legacy this season, finishing second in the NFL with 13.5 sacks and a league-high 98 pressures. But while he deserves all the attention and recognition he’s received, he wasn’t the Rams’ only productive defensive lineman in 2020.
Sebastian Joseph-Day stepped up in a big way in his second year as the starting nose tackle, lining up between Donald and Michael Brockers most of the time. In 16 games, all of which he started, Joseph-Day made 55 tackles, had one sack, hit the QB four times and batted three passes.
He finished with an overall grade of 80.6 from Pro Football Focus, which was one of the highest for a defensive interior player. And heading into 2021, PFF sees Joseph-Day getting even better.
Sam Monson picked one breakout candidate for each team next season and Joseph-Day was the selection for the Rams.
Aaron Donald is a one-man pass-rush upfront, but the Rams have been trying to find quality help alongside him for a while. Michael Brockers has been solid, but the team wouldn’t mind moving on if it found a cheaper alternative. Sebastian Joseph-Day has played a little under 500 snaps in each of the past two seasons, seeing his impact and overall PFF grade steadily improve over that time. He had 38 defensive stops and a 72.0 PFF run-defense grade in 2020, including the playoffs, and could be in line for a bigger role in 2021.
Joseph-Day had big shoes to fill in 2019 after Ndamukong Suh left, and he did an admirable job in his first season as a starter. He got even better this season, clogging up running lanes and proving to be a big reason the Rams ranked third in rushing defense.
Los Angeles should feel good about Joseph-Day remaining a starter in 2021, which will be the last year of his rookie contract. He’s shored up that position in a big way.
