In terms of the Los Angeles Rams mythos, the Sean McVay era has borne beautiful fruit. He's a 35-year-old NFL coach and offensive savant, with a golden fleece over his shoulder.
There are presidential terms that don't see half the success McVay has in the last four years, where he's 43-21 in the regular season and 3-3 in the playoffs — including a 13-10 loss in 2018 to Tom Brady and the New England Patriots at Super Bowl LIII.
But after finishing 10-6 in 2020 and bounced out of the playoffs by former assistant Matt LaFleur and the Green Bay Packers in the '21 NFC divisional round, changes came — the biggest being a blockbuster trade flipping incumbent Rams starting quarterback Jared Goff for Detroit Lions megastar Matthew Stafford.
A 9% cut to the NFL salary cap also made things extremely difficult for the already-strapped Rams, who still sit more than $14 million above the projected $182.5 million line recently drawn by NFL brass.
So what's next for the Rams? Hold on tight.
1) Rams will maneuver for a starting center
The Rams' offseason needs took an interesting turn on Tuesday afternoon, when multiple reports announced former starting center Austin Blythe was set to sign a one-year deal to join the NFL runner-up Kansas City Chiefs.
Chiefs are signing C Austin Blythe to a one-year deal, per @TomPelissero
Blythe: 70.3 PFF Grade in 2020 (9th) pic.twitter.com/q5G4rCcRWB
— PFF (@PFF) March 30, 2021
It's not an ideal scenario for the Rams, who would probably like to protect their biggest off-season acquisition in Stafford, while keeping an offensive line consistently anchored for running backs like Cam Akers and Darrell Henderson.
According to The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrique, Blythe was supposed to be option No. 1 until the Chiefs thieved him away.
“Their best-case scenario was always re-signing Blythe — or a veteran center on a reasonable deal — and still drafting a center/guard to develop into a long-term solution,” Rodrique writes. “They could still sign a veteran this offseason — but once again, a player unproven in their system is hard to project.”
Do the Rams have time for “unproven”? Stafford is 33 years old and headed to year 13 of his Hall-of-Fame-ish career. Time: it's of the utmost essence. McVay could turn to Brian Allen or Coleman Shelton as immediate options on the roster. Or they could go get a free agent, and immediately bolster the line with more proven vets.
The 2021 NFL Draft presents at least 12 highly-graded centers that could be available at different points, according to WalterFootball.com senior draft analyst Charlie Campbell, and it's almost a necessity at this point for the Rams to take full advantage.
2) Grab a free agent
Who cares about the salary cap and the luxury tax? Don't NFL teams have credit cards?
Among NFL.com's Top 101 free agents, there are still some guys that could be willing to sign a cheap one-year deal to be on a playoff-contending team. And there's a few remaining that should specifically pique the Rams' interest:
- OT Mitchell Schwartz (he's not retiring, is he?)
- OT Eric Fisher (he's injured; get him cheap?)
- LB K.J. Wright (still an edge rusher; two sacks, 11.0 TFL in '20)
- C Austin Reiter (the Chiefs just took your center; why not grab theirs?)
- OT Alejandro Villanueva (there's a theme here)
- RB James Conner (alongside Akers and Henderson? Yes, please.)
3) DeSean Jackson earns punt-returner, kick-returner reps
The Los Angeles Rams got a surprise lift in their return game last year, when second-year pro Nsimba Webster earned the starting job and returned 25 punts for 185 yards — a mark that finished fifth-best in the NFL.
What better way for Webster to get better, though, than to learn from one of the most explosive wideouts in new addition DeSean Jackson?
An injury cut Jackson's season short last season, and limited him to just 14 catches for 236 yards and a score. But that one score? An 81-yarder against the NFC East rival Dallas Cowboys. He only returned one punt last season (for two yards), but he's returned at least one punt in 10 of his 13 campaigns, including a ridiculous 116 returns, 1,226 yards and four scores for the Philadelphia Eagles from 2008-11.
If Jackson is healthy, like he says he is, then McVay should dial up at least one or two looks with both he and Webster on the grid. Maybe he can flash some of his old speed. Maybe he can set up the hook-and-ladder with Webster.
4) Reward Whitworth, protect Stafford by drafting OL help
It's hard to fathom where McVay and the Rams would be without the long-time services of offensive left tackle Andrew Whitworth, who recently restructured his contract to save $3 million in Rams cap space and secure what could be his final professional paycheck.
After all, the 6-foot-7, 330-pounder is 39 years old and heading into his 12th season — where the four-time Pro Bowler and two-time First Team All-Pro has 220 starts, and saw his first significant injury last year (MCL) in Week 9 before rehabbing and returning for the playoffs. In fact, up until last year, Whitworth had started in all but 13 possible regular-season games through 11 seasons. Tough.
So, the best thing the Rams front office can do to reward his service? Draft some reserve offensive linemen — if only to spare him some snaps and give him a chance to mentor a younger core of hogmollies. Elite defensive lineman J.J. Watt will see the Rams twice as part of the Arizona Cardinals defense. The Seattle Seahawks just got better on the defensive line, and the San Francisco 49ers have Dee Ford, Nick Bosa and plans to beef up their edge rush through the 2021 NFL Draft, as well.
Los Angeles must counter, and quickly. Possession of picks in No. 57, 88, 103, 141, 209 and 252 will help the issue, but the Rams must be bolder. CBS Sports has the Rams selecting Alabama's Landon Dickerson at No. 57, but according to Pro Football Focus, he only played 59 snaps at left tackle for Nick Saban, and instead saw most of his snaps at center (1,215) and right guard (216).
His snaps at center could make him a must-grab at No. 57 if he's still on the board, but instead, the Lions could use the pick to try and move up and take Michigan's Jalen Mayfield, who played outside tackle for Jim Harbaugh while in Ann Arbor.
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