Derion Kendrick was thrown into the fray for the Los Angeles Rams in 2022 and he produced mixed results. As Kendrick enters his second year with the Rams in 2023, Raheem Morris wants to see urgency from the Georgia product, which Kendrick has already shown this offseason.
“A little similar when you talk about expectations for a guy. What I want to see from Derion Kendrick is exactly what he’s given me. Urgency, he’s given me complete and absolute hustle. He’s given me some playmaking ability on the ball and off the ball. He provides great energy and juice just with his enthusiasm and his personality,” Morris said. “I’m looking forward to seeing him grow to his highest level, whatever that is. I don’t want to set a ceiling for him. I don’t want to set a bar for him. I think we don’t know yet. I’m looking forward to seeing it. You talk about these rookies and they get these opportunities to play in the National Football League very early. There’s going to be ebbs and flows and he certainly had his fair share, but again, you guys remember very shortly getting that guy in training camp and having the ability to get excited about him when Jalen was out. Seeing what him and Cobie were doing as very young players, getting (DB Robert) Rochell back into the mix is all really exciting.”
When the Rams took Kendrick in the sixth round of the 2022 NFL draft, there weren’t expectations for him to start immediately. With Jalen Ramsey, Troy Hill, and David Long Jr. ahead of him on the depth chart, Kendrick was expected to have time to get adjusted before being deployed in a starting role.
However, due to injuries, Kendrick would make six starts and he was active in 15 games for the Rams in 2022. The first-year cornerback would register 43 tackles and four pass breakups in his rookie campaign.
Following the departures of Ramsey and Hill, Kendrick could be thrust into an expanded role for the Rams in 2023. Despite the naturally heightened expectations, Morris believes Kendrick is giving him exactly what he wants to see from the sophomore cornerback.
