Hollywood Herald | Player Spotlight
It's been a busy week since our last edition of the Hollywood Herald and the Rams made a few roster moves, we'd like to introduce to you.
In our last player spotlight we wrote about how new RB Lamar Miller will fit in with the team and what he brings to the table. So with our new lead-back secured, the Rams front office used their 2nd FA pick on WR J.J. Nelson, securing an exciting new weapon for the offense. After the FA draft, the Rams immediately put their 2 waiver claims in and were able to get LB Noah Dawkins and K Aldrick Rosas. On top of that, a big trade happened last week in which the Rams aquired CB Chidobe Awuzie from the Cowboys in exchange for SS Johnson, who was on the tradeblock for a while already. So let's dive into it:
Name: J.J. Nelson
Position: WR
Age: 28
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 160 lb
J.J. Nelson is the definition of a speed WR. He's extremely fast and always poses the threat of a big-play TD. Speed is something the Rams offense lacked before the signing of Nelson. He will force defenses to play with 2 high safeties, leaving room to run for newly aquired RB Miller. We expect to see his name called in the motion and sweep game a lot, keeping defenses honest. Right now he's behind WR Reynolds and WR Jefferson on the depth chart, however we expect to see him overtake Jefferson pretty quickly and having an impact from the start of the season similar to what Coach Pulse did with WR Emanuel Hall in his first year with the Broncos.
Name: Noah Dawkins
Position: MLB
Age: 23
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 235 lb
After the Rams were unable to get a trade done for the LBs on their wishlist, they secured the speedy LB Dawkins. He's still very young an can be coached up, but his pure athletic skills are off the charts. He can hang with any TE in the game and probably most WRs too. He'll play alongside LB Kiser as a starting LB for the Rams and could really surprise fans with his impact he'll have on the defense.
Name: Aldrick Rosas
Position: Kicker
Age: 25
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 221 lb
Rosas is an immediate upgrade to the current Rams K Sloman. He has a very powerful leg and can kick the ball as far as anyone in the league. With him, the Rams feel very confident attempting 50+ yard FGs. He was one of the better kickers in the league when playing on the Giants' team before. The Rams are really looking to upgrade their special teams with the aquisition of Rosas and Nelson, who will also serve as the team's punt and kick returner. According to our sources they are not done in that area yet and are still looking for some players to improve that often unheralded part of the team.
Name: Chidobe Awuzie
Position: Cornerback
Age: 25
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 202 lb
Awuzie is a high caliber starting CB in this league who is already familiar with Coach Pulse and his system, as he played under Pulse when he coached the Dallas Cowboys. He's very athletic and can hang with 95% of WRs in the league. At 25 years, his development also isn't finished yet. We expect him to become one of the premier CBs in the league. And he has all the tools to become just that. The Rams were really looking to get another stud CB on their team alongside CB Ramsey to prevent teams just throwing away from Ramsey all game long. With Awuzie, they now have 2 guys who can lock down the WRs of the opponent both in man and zone coverage. The price for him wasn't cheap - the Cowboys asked for SS Johnson in return - but he definitely is worth the price especially since the Rams were already looking to move away from Johnson since he was too slow for their preferences and the Rams are thrilled to have Chidobe here, allowing the entire defense to play very aggressive.
We're very excited to see those guys in blue and yellow for the first time and hope they have a welcoming new start in Los Angeles.