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The Los Angeles Rams ended the preseason finale with a Dan Orlovsky led offense. Without Cooper Kupp out there, the Rams virtually had no shot of posing a real threat (along with like 20 of the starters).
Rams are now 2-0 with Cooper Kupp, 0-2 without.
— Rich Hammond (@Rich_Hammond) September 1, 2017
With massive cuts coming due to the new rules where there is one massive roster reformation instead of multiple “cutdown” days, many young players had to impress in the finale and make a case to be on the 53-man roster.
Snead echoes what McVay said Sunday. Team will first find its 46-man gameday roster, from 47-53 and 54-63 “it’s keeping the best players”
— Joe Curley (@vcsjoecurley) September 1, 2017
Offense
Justin Davis has been involved in the highest of highs and lowest of lows with the Rams. The leading rusher for the Rams preseason, Davis also coughed up two fumbles in his preseason debut but shined most as an explosive runner in the finale.
Justin Davis has basically been the Rams preseason. The highs. The lows. It's been amazing.
— Joe Curley (@vcsjoecurley) August 31, 2017
Up in the trenches, Jake Eldrenkamp seems to be the best of the undrafted rookie bunch, starting with experienced players in the finale.
Rams starting OL at Lambeau is Murphy Wichmann Blythe Eldrenkamp Williams
— Joe Curley (@vcsjoecurley) August 31, 2017
Defense
After battling some injuries, Samson Ebukam finally got a start while Tanzel Smart, Ejuan Price, and John Johnson continued to gain valuable game experience.
Rams are starting Ethan Westbrooks, Mike Purcell, Tanzel Smart up front. Josh Forrest, Bryce Hagar at ILB. Samson Ebukam, Ejuan Price at OLB
— Joe Curley (@vcsjoecurley) August 31, 2017
Of all the defensive rookies, Folarin Orimolade led the way with six total tackles with John Johnson right behind him with five. Tanzel Smart’s impact was felt with a QB hit and TST favorite Aarion Penton finally got some limited action.
Overall
Many of the mentioned above will likely not be in the two-deep. While it was encouraging to see such a great impact from the rookie class, the downside to having one large cut is that it may be harder for a player to get another long look (a game environment).
The Rams, and the rest of the league, will find an undrafted guy they like and it’ll be interesting to see what position the staff feels can benefit from that rookie. Most importantly, let’s hope Kupp can keep his undefeated streak into the regular season.