The Los Angeles Rams are dealing with injuries across the entire roster, but no group has been hit harder than the offensive line. Head coach Sean McVay has been forced to employ 11 different starting offensive line combinations in 11 Rams games so far, a truly astonishing statistic.
In fact, that stat is so astonishing that the Rams are the first team in NFL history to achieve it.
The only starter from Week 1 who is still playing the same position today is right tackle Rob Havenstein. The constant shuffling of the line has made it impossible to build any sort of chemistry and has undoubtedly contributed to the poor performance the Rams have experienced.
In fact, Sean McVay believes the Rams might have played more offensive linemen than any team ever has had to.
“Absolutely, that is definitely something you want to be mindful of,” McVay said after the Rams’ loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday. “And really, as a result of just the amount of injuries, it kind of is – it’s got to occur. You don’t really have a choice.”
“Guys are going to get some opportunities like you’ve seen each of the last couple weeks when you’re playing more offensive line than probably anybody ever has in the history of this game, and you’re getting good evaluation, so that’s the only way you can look at it.”
That is certainly one positive way to spin it as McVay and the Rams coaches do get the opportunity to see whether or not a couple of these linemen could be worth keeping around and could be pieces for the team moving forward. But in the present, the line has simply been a disaster.
The Rams’ offensive line has allowed the third most sacks this season, while also ranking 31st in rushing yards and yards per carry. Even if the skill position players were healthy, the offensive line playing at this level would make it nearly impossible for McVay to sustain a good offense.
The injuries to Cooper Kupp, Matthew Stafford and Allen Robinson grab the headlines, but it is the constant issues on of the offensive line that truly has doomed the team this season.
