Los Angeles Rams place WR JoJo Natson on Injured Reserve, promote TE Kendall Blanton

With KR/PR JoJo Natson suffering a hamstring injury that’ll sideline him for 4-6 weeks, the Los Angeles Rams have elected to place Natson on injured reserve, filling his spot by promoting practice squad TE Kendall Blanton:

Natson struggled with his decision making as a special teamer, though he was excellent at fielding punts cleanly. The main beneficiaries in the return game are RB Darrell Henderson as he’s expected to take over kick return duties, and WR NSimba Webster as he’s expected to take over punt return duties.

The promotion of Blanton is relevant because it could foreshadow the health of TE Gerald Everett. Everett missed the Week 13 contest against the Arizona Cardinals due to a knee injury. The promotion of Blanton could signal more time on the sidelines for Everett, though that isn’t a certainty.

Let’s see if the explosive Henderson and reliable Webster can spark any big plays for a special teams unit that has largely missed any big-play ability since the release of KR/PR Pharoh Cooper.

*UPDATE*:

Here’s the comparison between Natson and Cooper:

Punt returns:
Natson: 45 PR’s, 429 yards, 60 long, 9.5 yards/return
Cooper: 39 PR’s, 416 yards, 53 long, 10.7 yards/return

Kick returns:
Natson: 19 KR’s, 397 yards, 30 long, 20.9 yards/return
Cooper: 61 KR’s, 1,532 yards, 103 long, 1 TD, 25.1 yards/return