Film Review: Rams linebackers are becoming a strength on defense

Christian Rozeboom and Omar Speights displayed their growth in Week 13 win over Saints

The Los Angeles Rams had an impressive win in Week 13 against the New Orleans Saints to get back to .500. A big reason for that was the defense, particularly the linebackers. After struggling to defend the run against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Rams did a good job containing Taysom Hill and Alvin Kamara. The linebacker duo of Christian Rozeboom and Omar Speights played a big role in that. Here is this week’s film review.

Rozeboom and Speights developing into good linebacker duo

It doesn’t seem like it was that long ago that the Rams linebackers were seen as a liability on the defense. Whether it was needing to get used to adjustments in Chris Shula’s defense or as simple as Troy Reeder being out of the lineup, the duo of Christian Rozeboom and Omar Speights have played very well over the past six weeks. While they are far from perfect, and an upgrade may still be necessary, they have shown they can hold their own for the rest of the season. Rozeboom’s pursuit in the run game has been particularly impressive. He’s playing fast which was not the case in the early parts of the year.

The big impact player here has been Speights. Given how he’s played, it’s hard not to wonder how he didn’t get on the field earlier. At the same time, expecting an undrafted free agent to start on day one was always going to be lofty expectations. The important part here is that the Rams eventually got there, even if it took an injury, and Speights is now starting.

Since Week 10, Speights has been the third-highest graded linebacker in the NFL according to PFF. At the very least, Speights has shown that he is someone that the Rams can rely on at the linebacker position and be an important contributor on defense.

Jared Verse puts focus on the run game

Last week against the Eagles, Jared Verse had a rough day in the run game. Too often he got caught inside, allowing a big run to break out around him on the perimeter. Verse has mostly been solid defending the run since the early portion of the season, but it was clear how much last week’s performance had an impact on the rookie.

Verse had a few really nice plays in the run game against the Saints. Klint Kubiak tried to just block him with a tight end and the Rams rookie made him pay for that decision. With Verse being a rookie, there are going to be learning curves and some learning moments. The important part here is that Verse is learning from them.

Kyren Williams displays creativity as a runner

Over the past month, the criticism of Kyren Williams has been pretty loud. That was especially the case following the recent fumbles. However, if you’re going to criticize, you also have to be able to praise when he does good things. While Williams may not be the most explosive running back, the things that he is capable of, he does them really well.

Sunday felt more like a soccer team starting a backup winger and subbing in the starter at halftime, rather than a true lineup change. The starter is still in the A team, but got complacent and needed a reminder. Corum may have gotten a majority of the touches early, but McVay still like Kyren Williams and what he can bring to the offense.

The Saints defense may not be anything to write home about, but having a game like this is important to re-instill some confidence in his game when the blocking in front of him is working. Even when it wasn’t working, Williams took a few plays and turned nothing into something. Williams’ work inside the five and then his ability to create was on display against the Saints. As is the case with other parts of the offense as well, Williams needs to keep this going and show consistency.

Honorable Mentions

The last point on Kyren Williams ties into this next one. It’s really no coincidence that Kevin Dotson’s best game in a month happened with Rob Havenstein next to him at right tackle. When Havenstein is next to Dotson, they are a very good pairing on the right side. The confidence that Dotson plays with is extremely noticeable. Dotson excelled in the run game with a few standout plays and delivered a solid performance in pass protection. He specifically had one play in which he seamlessly passed off a defender over to Havenstein. Those are the communication errors that the offensive line has given up frequently.

When it comes to TuTu Atwell, everybody seems to have their own agendas and narratives that they want to push. Much of the disdain for Atwell stems from the Rams taking him over Creed Humphrey. While Atwell’s career started slowly, over the past two and a half years he has shown that when given the opportunity, he is more than capable of making big plays happen. Still, when he makes a mistake, many are very quick to jump on it. That was the case on Sunday when Atwell had an end-around that went nowhere after it looked like it should have gone for a big gain.

The fact of the matter is, the play isn’t as simple as “he should have cut this upfield sooner.” For starters, Kool-Aid McKinstry is in the hole waiting for him anyway. There’s no guarantee it ends up a bigger play even if Atwell cuts it upfield sooner. Even if that is the argument, Atwell does the right thing by following his blockers like any runner should, and the Rams have the numbers advantage. Two offensive linemen against one defensive back should win nine times out of ten.

A big criticism of Atwell is his inability to block because of his size. However, despite his size, Atwell consistently shows the willingness and ability to at least get in the way of the defender. He’s not a player that necessarily avoids contact. Atwell can block. While Atwell shouldn’t be used as a blocker like Puka Nacua, he consistently shows a willingness to engage as demonstrated below.

Simply put, Atwell needs more targets in the Rams offense. The offense is missing that type of speed and explosiveness that he brings. The play below is actually a really nice route as he really sells the ‘go’. You can see how much defenders respect his speed and that’s what gives him the separation along the sideline.

The Rams have four wide receivers that all bring a specific skillset. This isn’t to say that Demarcus Robinson shouldn’t get targets. His threat in the red zone has been important this season. However, Atwell played more than 20 snaps for the first time since Week 8. If the Rams can mix up his usage, they can start targeting him down the field.