Los Angeles Rams rookie free safety Jordan Fuller has been designated to return from Injured Reserve following a shoulder injury that has sidelined him since Week 5.
Fuller injured his shoulder in the Rams’ Week 5 win over the Washington Football Team, significantly thinning out the team’s safety core. This was worsened when Terrell Burgess was placed on IR just a few weeks later.
Being activated off IR means a likely return for Fuller in a pivotal Week 10 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks though, which is a great sign for the Rams before their big divisional matchup.
Rams head coach Sean McVay essentially confirmed that will be the case at Monday’s practice, via Stu Jackson of TheRams.com:
Rams HC Sean McVay on S Jordan Fuller: “The hope and the plan is for him to be ready to roll this week.”
— Stu Jackson (@StuJRams) November 9, 2020
During the Rams bye week, the Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals all lost, meaning a Week 10 win over the Seahawks could put them at the top of the division, a place very few expected they would be when the season began.
Fuller’s return is massive for a safety core that was desperately lacking in depth with him and Burgess out. Fuller will join Taylor Rapp and John Johnson III as the team’s primary safeties, and they’ll need all the help they can get against the Seahawks, who boast one of the league’s best receiving duos in Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf.
In order to stop Lockett and Metcalf from doing what they’ve done to so many other teams this season, they’ll need a group effort from the secondary. Having Fuller back will give the team some help in stopping those over the top plays that the Seahawks have run so well all season.
Fuller was selected by the Rams in the sixth round — 199th overall — in the 2020 NFL Draft but has made an immediate impact, leading the team in tackles in the Week 1 win over the Dallas Cowboys.
Sean McVay praises defense through first half of season
Despite missing some key players in the secondary, the Rams defense has exceeded expectations all season long. They’ve been particularly good in the second halves of games, something McVay has taken notice of.
McVay credited the defense for their good play through eight games, saying that he’s been pleased with the effort and the consistency.
