Over the course of Sean McVay’s tenure with the Rams, he and the front office haven’t put much value in the inside linebacker position. They traded away Alec Ogletree in 2018 after extending him five months prior. They started Cory Littleton for two seasons and he played relatively well, but they first acquired him as an undrafted free agent and didn’t sign him to an extension when his contract expired. The first meaningful addition they made was last year by drafting Ernest Jones in the third round.
As a result, the inside linebacker position has been a weakness of the defense for years. But after adding Bobby Wagner in free agency this offseason, that’s no longer the case. The middle of the field went from being a weak spot to a strength.
Whether it was by running the ball at the teeth of the Rams defense or throwing it over the middle, opposing offenses knew exactly how to attack Los Angeles. Throwing it outside against Jalen Ramsey was unwise. Calling long-developing plays that required the quarterback to hold the ball was also not the smart thing to do with Aaron Donald (and Von Miller) bearing down on them.
