The Rams stand to lose one of their defensive linemen for a chunk of the season. The NFL hit second-year defender Bobby Brown with a six-game suspension Monday for violating its performance-enhancing substance policy, Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com tweets.
A 2021 fourth-round pick, Brown played in 10 games for the Rams as a rookie. The team lost Sebastian Joseph-Day in free agency, pointing to a better opportunity for Brown in 2022. The chance for the Texas A&M product to carve out a bigger role will likely be on hold for a while.
Brown played just 22 defensive snaps last season and was inactive for Super Bowl LVI, but the Rams did not draft any defensive linemen this year and did not make any notable pickups to address the position. A’Shawn Robinson and Greg Gaines are expected to start alongside Aaron Donald up front for the defending Super Bowl champions, but Brown is positioned as depth. The Rams, which were without Joseph-Day for much of last season, will have to adjust again — though, the adjustment will not have to be as significant.
Brown, 22 in August, used a solid 2020 junior season in College Station to improve his draft stock. He registered 5.5 sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss in 2020. Rams took Brown 117th overall last year; his rookie contract runs through the 2024 season.
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