Aaron Donald’s retirement left a massive hole on the Los Angeles Rams’ defensive line, but the team has received tremendous contributions from rookies Jared Verse and Braden Fiske.
Verse and Fiske were selected by the Rams in the first two rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft out of Florida State, where they wreaked havoc on quarterbacks.
The dynamic duo is now making their presence felt at the NFL level. “We drafted them to bring an element of disruption from the front four or front five, depending on whether you’re in base, nickel, all those things,” Rams general manager Les Snead said.
“To keep it simple, we drafted them to help us disrupt and I think they’re doing their part in helping us disrupt opposing offenses.”
Snead recalled being impressed by Verse’s personality prior to the 2024 NFL Draft. “Boy, I’m getting blinded by watching him play football on Saturdays. There is a combination of that personality that comes to life on the football field and also in his day-to-day,” Snead said.
“What I do know about him is there is this element… I tell people all the time that when you sit and watch football film, it’s in some version of 2D but there are some people who can all of a sudden make that 2D video, you just feel that person in some version of 3D or 4D.
“He was just one of those players that based on combining a passion for football and with this element of urgency, tenacity, physical toughness, it just seemed like he was one of those guys that likes going into that MMA fight and disrupting.”
Verse (31) and Fiske (21) entered Week 9 with the most pressures of any rookie in football. With nine more games on the Rams’ schedule, they will have plenty of other opportunities to continue adding to those totals.
Jared Verse and & Braden Fiske’s stats with Rams
Through eight games, Verse has recorded 3.5 sacks, one pass defensed, one forced fumble and 33 tackles. Given his performance so far, he should be a strong candidate to win NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors.
As for Fiske, he is having a solid season as well with three sacks, one forced fumble and 30 tackles in eight games (three starts).
While it is impossible to replace a future Hall of Famer like Donald, Verse and Fiske have shown that they can be building blocks for years to come.
