The Los Angeles Rams started slow and didn’t pick up any steam in Saturday’s 14-3 loss to the Oakland Raiders in Week 1 of the preseason, beginning the four-game stretch in underwhelming fashion.
While the offense struggled and the defense had its own issues at times, there were some strong performances by individuals. On the flip side, there were also poor ones, which we lay out on our list of winners and losers.
Winners
Taylor Rapp
Rapp didn’t get a ton of playing time against Oakland, which is actually a good sign for how the coaches view him. The more snaps a player gets in Week 1 of the preseason, the closer he is to the roster bubble and a reserve role. Rapp made two nice tackles and broke up a pass after carrying a receiver up the seam, completing a solid performance from the rookie.
Kevin Peterson
Aside from a penalty for impeding a punt returner, Peterson had a good night. He picked off Mike Glennon two plays after making a tackle for loss (which was canceled out by offensive holding), playing like the Rams’ best cornerback in the game. He needs to stack good performances in order to make the team, so this was a strong start.
Greg Gaines
Gaines didn’t start and received minimal playing time early on, but he flashed late. It’s worth mentioning that he played against Oakland’s reserves, but he generated the most pressure of anyone on the interior Saturday night. He got good push up front and even drew a holding penalty, showing what he can do as a true nose tackle in the Rams’ 3-4 front.
Landis Durham
Durham made the most of his starting opportunity, stuffing the stat sheet like few other players did. He had six tackles, one sack, a quarterback hit and a tackle for loss, also making a tackle on special teams. He was one of the few bright spots for the Rams in this one as he makes a push to land on the 53-man roster.
Josh Carraway
Carraway did a nice job setting the edge on two runs and also recorded the Rams’ first sack of the night – which came in the fourth quarter. The Rams need someone to emerge from the group of backup pass rushers currently on the roster, and Carraway has a chance to do just that. He has a great opportunity with Justin Lawler out and Ogbonnia Okoronkwo dealing with an injury of his own.
Losers
JoJo Natson
Natson came in with high expectations after impressing during practice against the Chargers and Raiders. He did anything but impress on Saturday, though. He caught one pass for 4 yards and had a drop on a screen pass, which were the only two targets that came his way. He went backwards 1 yard on his only punt return, getting very few opportunities in this one.
Backup offensive linemen
We’ll group all the backup offensive linemen together here because there were a lot of shaky performances. David Edwards was called for penalties twice, Bobby Evans allowed a sack at left tackle and pressure at right tackle, and Jamil Demby had a poor snap from center and two holding penalties of his own. The Rams don’t have much experience on the second-team offensive line, which is somewhat of a concern.
Brandon Allen
Allen may have gotten passed by John Wolford after putting together an uninspiring performance. He completed 6 of 12 passes for a measly 34 yards and struggled with both his accuracy and decision making. Wolford looked decisive and had some zip on his passes, coming in in relief of Allen. None of the Rams’ quarterbacks really stood out, but Allen was the worst of the bunch.
