COLUMN: The Rams Defensive Line is Built for War

The overall construction is impressive. They say the best defense is a good offense and the defensive line goes on the attack when they smell blood in the water. With the advantage coming downhill, the Rams' first wave of attack, possesses five of the best defensive linemen in the NFL.

Jared Verse, Kobie Turner, Poona Ford, Braden Fiske, and Byron Young make up an attack that can not be stopped with an equal number of blockers. Their ability to win one on one matchups forces offenses to keep more blockers in the backfield, maintaining air superiority for the secondary.

The difference is that as the game goes on and stamina starts to wane, it's the Rams' second wave that truly impresses with Tyler Davis, Ty Hamilton, Josaiah Stewart, and others playing pivotal roles early.

However, it's the ability to switch in and out players that is the secret to their success.

“It brings a lot of benefit," stated Kobie Turner. "For me, my journey last year, I started off taking basically every snap and once it got to third downs, I didn't have as much juice. But to be able to have guys who can hold it down like Poona, like “T.D” [Tyler Davis], who can really own the run and who really uphold the standard that we have in that D-line room. Now we have guys that are able to take snaps on the early downs, keep us fresh for pass rushing opportunities.

"When you see those guys get to work on pass rush as well, if me or Fiske needed to take some of the early downs as well, you swap it out, it's interchangeable. We really have a great group of guys and you can plug and play whatever position. Another thing that comes to mind with Tyler Davis, but also with all of our guys is position flexibility. We're playing the three, the two, the shade, the five, the four, it doesn't matter. All of our guys take ownership of that. I'm excited to see how that translates on the field, how that keeps us fresh, and ultimately how that ends up with us doing a better job in the run game and obviously get more sacks as well.”

So now we're seeing fresh ranks after fresh ranks attack an offensive line that gets more tired and more sore as the game goes on. The Rams are able to refresh without taking the foot off the gas pedal.

The Rams' defensive line is built to scale the wall, to plant the flag on the mountain. They are the calm force in the storm, and in 2025, they're looking to step foot on top of football's greatest peak.