The Los Angeles Rams are down Puka Nacua, Davante Adams, Terrance Ferguson, and Jordan Whittington. Those were their top four receiving options atop the depth chart entering the year.
The NFL trade deadline passed and the Rams decided to stand pat. There are no reinforcements on the way.
They now will be left with Tutu Atwell, Konata Mumpfield, Colby Ferguson, Tyler Higbee, Xavier Smith, Brennen Presley, Davis Allen, and Max Klare.
From April:
CJ Daniels could shake up Rams receiving depth
Max Klare:
Sean McVay gets his Dalton Kincaid years later
LA’s passing game hasn’t worked for most of this year. The offense will now need to right the ship with an unknown cast. A strong running game and an aggressive defense can only take you so far. The Rams have an incredibly thin margin for error for at least the next few games.
That probably gets the job done against the Arizona Cardinals and rookie quarterback Carson Beck. It will be an uphill battle in the games that follow versus the Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs, and San Francisco 49ers.
The main problem is that we’ve seen Atwell, Mumpfield, Parkinson, and Higbee for most of this year. None of them have been good enough. They aren’t the answer moving forward.
It’s time to play the rookies.
Even if it’s different for the sake of change. It’s hard to be worse than Atwell and Mumpfield. If CJ Daniels cannot make an impact, then the Rams are already toast against stiffer competition.
The same goes for tight end Max Klare. LA drafted him in the second round. A redshirt year sounds ideal in a vacuum. The Rams no longer have the luxury of keeping him on the sidelines. He might have the most natural talent of any pass catcher left on the roster.
The Rams’ approach of leading with patience has led to great results for player development. This time is different. LA has loaded its roster with superstars in hopes of winning a Super Bowl. They need to survive for at least the next three weeks.
Asking Daniels and Klare to be the difference may be an impossible task. They might be the only ones even remotely up to the challenge.
