There are a handful of position groups on the Rams’ roster that look especially weak. The offensive line is certainly among them after seeing how disastrous the unit was for most of the 2019 season.
As of now, only left tackle is set with Andrew Whitworth penned in as the starter. Rob Havenstein is likely to regain his job at right tackle, but the other three positions are very much up in the air.
The absence of OTAs and minicamp sure didn’t help the offensive line, either, leaving only training camp and possibly two preseason games to determine who will enter Week 1 as the starters. No matter which direction the Rams choose to go, though, it’ll be an offensive line ranked near the bottom of the NFL on paper.
According to Pro Football Focus, it’s currently the 25th-best line in the league, ahead of only seven other teams, only one of which made the playoffs last year (Seattle).
No offensive line took as big of a step back as the Rams, a team that dropped from one of the league’s best to 31st during the 2019 regular season. They had eight linemen pass protect at least 250 times and only left tackle Andrew Whitworth put up a pass-blocking grade better than 61.6. Whitworth took a step back overall, grading at 72.8, his lowest since 2008. He remains as one of the better tackles in the league, and he’s been fantastic since joining the Rams, but he’ll turn 39 years old during the season.
PFF notes that Austin Corbett had a better grade than Joseph Noteboom at left guard, but his mark of 51.8 was only 71st among all guards. Austin Blythe’s grade also dropped from 73.4 to 50.3 in the last two years, putting him among the worst guards in football.
Even Bobby Evans, who many fans were pleased with at the end of last season, posted a grade of 49.4 at right tackle – hardly an inspiring enough number to make him the clear-cut starter over Rob Havenstein.
PFF ranked the Rams offensive line 31st in the league last year, so technically this is an improvement. But it’s clear the unit has a lot to prove before it’s considered even average by the NFL’s standards.
