Pro Football Focus: Offensive line rankings for 2018 put Los Angeles Rams in top 10

A year ago, Pro Football Focus projected the Los Angeles Rams to be about middle of the pack in their rankings of the league’s offensive lines. The veteran leadership of C John Sullivan, LG Rodger Saffold and LT Andrew Whitworth, coupled with the development of RT Rob Havenstein and RG Jamon Brown, propelled the unit to a top ten finish when reviewing the 2017-18 season.

For 2018, PFF’s projections still have them in the top 10:

10. LOS ANGELES RAMS

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP:

Left Tackle: Andrew Whitworth, 79.8 overall grade

Left Guard: Rodger Saffold, 84.6

Center: John Sullivan, 74.6

Right Guard: Jamon Brown, 52.1

Right Tackle: Rob Havenstein, 77.9

2017 season-end rank: 6th (-4)

The Rams offensive line was arguably the most-improved unit in the NFL in 2017 after the additions of left tackle Andrew Whitworth and center Jon Sullivan. How long they’ll remain at that level remains to be seen though as Sullivan turns 33 this year and Whitworth 37. Whitworth already showed signs of slowing down late in the season as his Wild Card performance against the Falcons was the lowest-graded game of his entire career.

Yes, Brown is the “weak link” and is even suspended for the first two games of the season even further weakening the unit to start the season, but the Rams aren’t resting on their laurels given the age of their unit. In the 2018 NFL Draft, the Rams added three offensive linemen who in theory will provide depth for now and offer the potential to develop into starters down the road in Joseph Noteboom, Brian Allen and Jamil Demby.

All in all, the Rams offensive line has made a huge turnaround since Head Coach Sean McVay took over. Let’s hope the success is improved upon entering the season including the offensive line.