The Los Angeles Rams have a solid core returning from last year’s Super Bowl run. Although it is always important to improve through the draft, the team did not need to bring in much additional talent.
Returning players like Jared Goff, Todd Gurley, and Aaron Donald are insurance on both sides of the ball, but the defense was further bolstered by the additions of safety Eric Weddle and linebacker Clay Matthews. With none of those players nor the rest of the starters playing in the preseason, head coach Sean McVay and his staff had plenty of time to evaluate those fighting for roster spots.
Now the preseason is over and the time has come to cut the roster down to size. This is nothing that McVay and the Rams have not been through before. However, McVay has picked out a few areas where he believes the most difficult cuts will be, via Stu Jackson of TheRams.com:
McVay said cornerback and safety "are going to be really tough decisions" for #LARams heading into weekend.
"I know that we've got a lot of really capable football players and there's going to be some guys that unfortunately we will have to let go that are NFL-caliber players."
— Stu Jackson (@StuJRams) August 30, 2019
The main problem has been that players placed in the third or even fourth slots of the Rams depth chart performed very well in the preseason. One such player was safety Steven Parker, who currently sits in the third string of the strong safeties.
Parker had great impact in the preseason, leading the team in solo tackles and also adding one interception. Parker signed with the Rams last season as an undrafted free agent but was cut before the start of the year. With John Johnson III and Weddle the clear starters at safety, it may be difficult for Parker to make the roster.
Another preseason standout was cornerback Kevin Peterson. Like Parker, Peterson is listed in the third spot for cornerbacks and was unlikely to make the team, but had a great preseason. Although he only totaled six combined tackles and zero solo tackles, he had two interceptions. The cornerback position is locked up between Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters, but there could potentially be room for Peterson in a backup role.
However, the Rams seem to have even their backup cornerbacks locked in already. Troy Hill and Nickell Robey-Coleman both have been with the team for a few years and have put up decent stats in backup roles. Hill ended up starting seven games last year due to injuries to Talib.
Although McVay will have difficult decisions, he always seems to be very calculated and will surely do what is best for the team moving forward.
