A year ago Braden Fiske was one of the NFL’s most impressive rookies. In 2025 he’s failed to make a consistent impact.
Is the Los Angeles Rams interior defensive lineman in the middle of a sophomore slump?
Let’s look at a few potential explanations for his apparent struggles and decide whether they are fact or fiction.
Offenses are giving Fiske more attention
When offensive coordinators are game planning for Chris Shula’s defense, which defender are they worried about accounting for the most? Below is how often each Rams player receives extra attention in terms of chips, double teams, and triple teams through Week 5:
- Braden Fiske – 76.85%
- Chip: 1.85%
- Double: 63.89%
- Triple: 11.11%
- Kobie Turner – 75.16%
- Chip: 0.00%
- Double: 64.97%
- Triple: 10.19%
- Poona Ford – 60.01%
- Chip: 1.18%
- Double: 54.12%
- Triple: 4.71%
- Jared Verse – 48.21%
- Chip: 9.52%
- Double: 35.12%
- Triple: 3.57%
- Byron Young – 37.12%
- Chip: 11.36%
- Double: 25.00%
- Triple: 0.76%
First off, it’s much more common to see interior players receive additional blockers instead of EDGE rushers. It’s simply more difficult to affect players on the outside of the defense and offensive tackles are left on islands far more often than we see with guards and centers.
Even with that in mind, it’s clear that Fiske is getting the most attention from opposing offenses so far this season. He’s also missed time (more on that later), and the games he’s been absent for could be boosting the data for Turner and Ford to an extent.
Fact or Fiction: FACT
Fiske is limited by injuries
Fiske injured his oblique in warmups ahead of the Week 2 matchup at the Tennessee Titans and played only 13 snaps. He was questionable for the following game against the Philadelphia Eagles and was limited to only 25 plays.
We also saw Fiske suffer a knee injury last season in the divisional round game against the Eagles and this required offseason surgery in order to correct.
It’s difficult to say how much of a role these injuries are playing in Fiske’s slower second season. We can only judge his performance when he is on the field.
Fact or Fiction: NOT SURE
Fiske is winning pass rushes less often
These are the Rams’ leaders in pressures through Week 5 according to Pro Football Focus (PFF):
- Jared Verse: 23 on 175 rushes
- Byron Young: 20 on 134
- Kobie Turner: 16 on 158
- Braden Fiske: 9 on 109
- Poona Ford: 9 on 85
- Josaiah Stewart: 7 on 53
Fiske is winning 12.1% of his pass rushing opportunities. As a rookie his win rate was 10.4%. This suggests improvement even if opposing offenses are dedicating extra blockers to mitigate his impact on the game. While Fiske has yet to record a sack in 2025, his moment is likely coming soon assuming he continues to generate pressure at his current rate.
Fact or Fiction: FICTION
Final thoughts
Fiske’s slow start to the season are the result of the following causes: (1) an early injury limited his playing time, (2) opposing offenses are assigning extra blockers to him, and (3) he has not yet recorded a sack despite winning pass rushes more often in his second year.
Sacks are a fickle stat. They seem to come in bunches and are reliant on quarterbacks holding the football too long.
While Fiske has not made splash plays or made an obvious impact in year two, he’s affecting the game in unmeasurable ways and seems due for positive regression. It’s not time to press the panic button or call this a sophomore slump.
