Los Angeles Rams vs. New Orleans Saints: Five Rams to watch

A rusty season opener is somewhat expected from Sean McVay’s Los Angeles Rams. Save for Sebastian Joseph-Day (Micah Kiser too, but he’s injured and most likely done for the year), no projected starters stepped onto the field during the exhibition period.

Lets hope and pray they knocked the cobwebs off. A second outing of the same ilk will not, however, be as forgiving.

The LA Rams are at home this week to take on the New Orleans Saints who will without a doubt come out seeking revenge after last year’s NFC Championship game.

So lets not waste any more broadband/bandwidth. Onto the five Rams to watch for Week 2:

S Taylor Rapp

Rapp’s first game as a pro was outstanding. We kinda knew this kid would be good, but we did not know he would be THIS GOOD!

Rapp is key in the sub-packages, filling the Nickel/Dime LB role superbly. Against the Saints — and with weapons like TE Jared Cook and RB Alvin Kamara — Rapp will have to be sound.

Theoretically, Taylor is the right man for the job. He can lay the boom and he can cover TEs. Lets hope it goes our way.

RB Malcolm Brown

Big Malc did his thang in the first game of 2019. He was crucial in the redzone — tacking on two scores. All in all, Brown tallied 53 yards on 11 carries — a 4.8 per carry clip.

If this first game is any indication of the Todd Gurley maintenance plan, then Malcolm will get his fair share of opportunities to EAT. His meals will continue into the home opener.

S Marqui Christian

When S Eric Weddle went down after sustaining that nasty gash on his head (and subsequent inclusion in the concussion protocol), “Q” stepped in and performed adequately.

If Weddle cannot go this week, Christian will be the one to fill in again. And it is a huge assignment, given New Orleans’ potent offensive assault.

EDGE Dante Fowler, Jr.

The storyline has always gone something like this: line up any scrub next to Aaron Donald and they will reap the rewards of all the attention AD demands. Well, reality does not work that way. We have seen it countless times.

In Dante’s case, and to his credit, he reaped the rewards of playing on Donald’s side last Sunday. Fowler first sack (two total) came on a stunt he pulled off with Aaron Donald. Donald ate up both defenders and Dante made his way to the QB unscathed — a thing of beauty, actually.

Fowler should continue racking up sacks on opportunities like this. It will prove he is worth his money ($12M, per Spotrac), and it will line him up for an even richer payday after the season.

CB Marcus Peters/Aqib Talib

The secondary played lights out in Week 1. This week brings forth an entirely whole different breed of monster. WR Michael Thomas is easily the one of the best pass catchers in the game. Playa can do it all. This is where Peters/Talib enter the scene. Whenever one is match up with Thomas, they will have to attempt to limit his windows/limit the damage Michael can cause.