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An Overview of the Los Angeles Rams Defense
The 2024 Rams were below average in most defensive categories, but they were not horrible. The run defense ranked 22nd, yet they were one of ten teams to give up fewer than ten runs of 20+ yards. The pass defense ranked 23rd, with only four teams allowing more completions of 20+ yards. They were down in the sacks column with 38, while the 20 turnovers were tied for 14th. In the most important category, Los Angeles allowed the 17th most points.
Despite having room for statistical improvement in several areas, the organization was fairly content with the defensive personnel. They have a lot of good young talent in place and are counting on the year of experience to help them mature as a unit.
Los Angeles did not spend much money in free agency, adding a linebacker for depth and a run-stopping tackle who should be involved. The draft brought them an edge defender in round three to hopefully replace Michael Hoecht as the third man. They picked up a tackle for depth and a linebacker who could compete for a starting job in the fifth.
This is a unit with no glaring holes, though they have some questions at linebacker. The continuity will be a plus, so all in all, the Rams appear to be a defense heading in the right direction.
Los Angeles Rams Defensive Linemen
There is one very important factor that creates a ton of fantasy value across the Rams' defensive line: they do not involve a bunch of situational players. As a result, they had four linemen who consistently saw nearly 70% of the snaps and three who were well over that mark. Mix in an aggressive, disrupting scheme, and we have a squad that has four fantasy starters up front.
When Aaron Donald retired, everyone agreed that it would be hard to replace him. While Donald awaits his gold jacket, Kobie Turner is doing an outstanding job of filling those big shoes. When the 2023 third-round pick stepped up with 57 tackles and 9 sacks as a rookie, everyone was impressed, but cautious that he might be a mirage. When Turner came back in year two with 62 tackles, 8 sacks, 2 turnovers, and 4 batted passes, it was obvious that the team had hit the lottery.
After checking in at number thirteen as a rookie, Turner was the fantasy game's fifth-ranked tackle last year. He turned 26 in April and is just entering the prime of his career. Considering that we may not yet have seen his best football, it is safe to say that Turner is well on his way to becoming a perennial top-five interior lineman and is a contender for the top spot in the rankings. It would be hard to argue against making him the first tackle off the board.
No one has drafted better than the Rams recently. Landing Turner in the third was a steal. They seem to have hit another home run at the position in 2024, taking Braden Fisk on the second day. Fiske is not a 2-gap anchor that can eat up blockers and force runners to go around. He is a one-gap penetrator whose game is built on quickness and relentless hustle. He was productive at Western Michigan and brought that production to Florida State, where he totaled 43 combined tackles and 6 sacks as a senior. He is an excellent fit in the Rams' attacking, one-gap scheme.
Fiske came out swinging as a rookie. His tackle totals were not great at 20-24, but the 8 sacks and 4 turnovers elevated him to the cusp of the top twelve. There is no reason to believe his production will go anywhere but up, possibly following the trajectory of his linemate. I don't recall a team ever having two interior linemen with double-digit sacks. This duo may well achieve that mark at some point.
With Bobby Brown III and Neville Gallimore taking the free agent train out of town, the Rams signed Poona Ford to handle the nose tackle duties. Ford is a proven commodity on the NFL stage with seven seasons and a lot of starts on his resume. He is a two-down anchor for the run defense, usually coming off the field in passing situations. Ford will do the dirty work to help his team, but most of his contributions show up in the box scores of those around him.
The Rams lack experience behind the starters at tackle, but they have a couple of young guys whom they believe in. Last year's sixth-round pick, Tyler Davis, served as the top backup for the tackle position. He was relatively productive considering the role. Most importantly, the 355 snaps he played provided much-needed experience.
The Rams paid a relatively high price, giving up a sixth-round pick in this year's draft and a fourth-rounder next year, to move up for Ohio State's Ty Hamilton. Though he is not as gifted as Turner or Fiske, Hamilton's scouting report reads much like those of the players he is backing up. He played more than 1500 snaps for the Buckeyes over his college career and started all 16 games in 2024. The team might lose a few sacks if Hamilton has to take over, but they will not have to change anything they do.
The home runs hit by the Rams have not been limited to the interior line positions. They have been just as successful on the edge. In 2023, they picked up Byron Young for the bargain price of a mid-third-round pick. All he has done in two seasons is make 76 tackles, 47 assists, 15 sacks, and 4 turnovers.
Young may never challenge for a sack title, but he is a rock-solid, three-down edge defender who puts up good numbers. Throw out week 18 when the team was resting starters, and Young was on the field for almost 80% of the defensive snaps in 2024. After finishing 24th as a rookie, Young's 62 tackles and 7.5 sacks landed him just outside the top twelve last year.
Young could improve a little on those numbers in 2025, but there is one small concern. The high snap count may have taken a toll. He slumped late in the season, recording more than seven fantasy points just once after week eleven.
The Rams have had just one first-round draft pick since 2016. They made the most of it, selecting Jared Verse last spring. Verse dominated against small school competition while playing at Albany. He transferred to Florida State and continued to dominate against Division One competition. In 25 games with the Seminoles, he posted 89 combined tackles, 18 sacks, and 3 turnovers. The sack production has not yet carried over to the pro game for Verse, but it is coming. When (not if) it gets here, he could enter the elite edge conversation.
Verse only produced four and a half sacks in his first year. With 66 tackles and 4 turnovers, that was enough to slip into the top twelve. Verse has an impressive combination of speed, explosiveness, and power that makes him hard to handle off the edge. He can outrun a blocker on one play and then run through him on the next. It is his ability to switch between speed and power in the middle of a play that could make him special at the NFL level. He sets the edge well and gets off blocks quickly to make tackles. With the speed to chase plays down from the back side, opponents can't run at him, and they can't run away from him. Between Verse and Young, the Rams could have an exceptional duo on the edge for the next several years.
With both starters seeing nearly 80% of the snaps, the third man may not get on the field much. On the other hand, if they can use Josiah Stewart the way they did Michael Hoecht, he could have a fairly significant role. Hoecht played almost 650 snaps last year. Many of them came as a third pass rusher. They would pull the second off-ball backer and have Hoecht overload one side, giving them two edge rushers coming off the same side.
Between his scouting reports and college production, it looks as if Stewart could be a younger, faster, more athletic version of Hoecht. He is a bit undersized for the job but makes up for it with quick decisions, speed, and relentless aggression. Stewart had modest tackle numbers in college but racked up 30 sacks and 6 forced fumbles.
- DT Kobie Turner – DT1 with elite upside
- DT Braden Fiske – Quality DT1
- DT Poona Ford – Marginal impact
- DT Tyler Davis – No impact expected
- DT Ty Hamilton – Injury/dynasty sleeper
- Edge Byron Young – Solid second starter
- Edge Jared Verse – priority second starter with big upside
- Edge Josaiah Stewart – Injury sleeper
- Edge Brennan Jackson – No impact
- Edge Nick Hampton – No impact
- Edge Desjuan Johnson – No impact
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