After an elite start to his rookie season, has Jared Verse hit the infamous rookie wall?
One of the more impressive rookies of the 2024 season has been Los Angeles Rams edge rusher Jared Verse. Verse leads all rookies this season with 59 pressures and has a pressure rate of 17.5 percent. At -105 odds, FanDuel Sportsbook has Verse as the favorite for Defensive Rookie of the Year.
What’s even more impressive is how Verse stacks up among some of the best pass rushers in the NFL. According to Brandon Thorn of Trench Warfare, 22 of Verse’s pressures are considered high quality which is more than Myles Garrett.
Trench Warfare
However, after putting the NFL on notice during his first 11 games, Verse has slowed down in recent weeks. From Weeks 1-11, Verse had a pressure rate of 19.3 percent and had at least two pressures in every game during that span. However, over the last three weeks, his pressure rate has dropped to 11.5 percent which includes two games in which he only had one pressure according to NFL Pro and NextGen stats.
It is worth noting that Verse tweaked an ankle in practice on the Friday before the game against the Bills. There were some instances in which it was noticeable that the Rams rookie was favoring his ankle to some extent.
Still, over the first 11 games of the season, it didn’t seem to matter who Verse was lined up against. The Rams rookie edge rusher simply overpowered opposing offensive tackles on a consistent basis. As the weeks have gone by, more film has gotten out of Verse and teams are coming up with more of a plan and are more prepared. In fact, Verse is being double-teamed on 25 percent of his snaps according to ESPN Analytics.
Jared Verse has been plowing ovr people all year. Bills RT had at least a plan
1. Verse does his stutter step and
2. tried to get his hands inside an bull blocker
3. But RT struck back absorbed & kept his feet moving while going backI bet that is not easy to do- RT = good rep pic.twitter.com/kaYFMUOzWy
— Jim Youngblood 53 (@53_jim70721) December 10, 2024
At some point, this happens to most rookies during their first season in the NFL. Even last year during Puka Nacua’s historic rookie year, he had a stretch of four games in which he didn’t hit 100 yards. In fact, in three of those four games, he didn’t eclipse the 50-yard mark.
This week, the Rams need a big game out of Verse who has had a positive impact in big games this year. In Week 3 against the 49ers, the Rams rookie had four pressures and right tackle Cole McKivitz had his worst game of the year.
Verse using speed to power bull and byron hesis into one. Ran a TT stunt inside and both contain edges get the pressure by pushing the pocket. Mckivitz sucks vs power. Verse is neat when using power moves. pic.twitter.com/NCsbEIYkm1
— JJ Pegues Cross Chop (@TheCasualNFLFan) September 27, 2024
Another matchup against McKivitz will give Verse an opportunity to bounce back and break through the rookie wall. Verse has been one of the more impressive defensive rookies this season and his latest stretch of games doesn’t change that. There are certainly teams that selected ahead of the Rams at 19 that wish they would have taken Verse. He’s been a player that’s given the Rams some star power and made game-winning plays when needed. The Rams will need him to step up over the final four weeks as they make a push for the NFC West division title.