Rams Still Have Several Underrated Players

While the Rams are a chic Super Bowl choice, they entered their Maui minicamp lacking recognition on Pete Prisco’s annual list of top 100 players, released Tuesday by the longtime NFL analyst.

Only linebacker Jared Verse (No. 54) and wide receivers Puka Nacua (No. 63) and Davante Adams (No. 91) appeared on the list, compiled by the CBS Sports writer for more than 20 years.

“Verse had 4.5 sacks as a rookie,” Prisco wrote, “but the pressure numbers show how dominant he can be as an edger player. He did rack up a lot of them on his way to winning Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. He's also good in the run game. This could be his breakout sack season.”

Prisco believes eight wide receivers are better than Nacua, including second-year players Brian Thomas (44) and Malik Nabers (45).

“He was limited to 12 games because of injury,” Prisco said, “yet Nacua still managed to catch 79 passes with three touchdowns. That number was down from the 105 he had as a rookie, but he did average more catches per game.”

Left off were quarterback Matthew Stafford, running back Kyren Williams and three top players in what many consider the league’s top defensive front, linebacker Byron Young, defensive end Braden Fiske and defensive tackle Kobie Turner.

In Stafford’s case, Prisco left him off despite listing 11 other quarterbacks: Patrick Mahomes (1), Josh Allen (4), Lamar Jackson (6), Joe Burrow (7), Jayden Daniels (33), Justin Herbert (49), Jalen Hurts (52), Baker Mayfield (57), Jared Goff (77), Dak Prescott (90) and Jordan Love (92).

For context, the Rams’ NFC West rival San Francisco not only had more players (five), but each selection was ranked much higher than the top Los Angeles player, Verse. The 49ers on the list were linebacker Fred Warner (19), tight end George Kittle (25), tackle Trent Williams (34), defensive end Nick Bosa (35) and running back Christian McCaffrey (41).

The Rams and 49ers have combined to represent the NFC in four of the past seven Super Bowls.

Seattle had just two players (defensive end Leonard Williams at 64 and cornerback Devon Witherspoon at 84), and Arizona had one (tight end Trey McBride, 42) to round out the division.

One interesting player that cracked the top 100 was cornerback Jalen Ramsey, who ranked 99th. The seven-time Pro Bowler did not report to Dolphins mandatory minicamp last week after general manager Chris Grier this offseason confirmed the team was actively trying to trade him.

While Les Snead and Sean McVay have said they’ve discussed trading for Ramsey a second time – the Rams first traded for him in 2019 -- they might be awaiting his release, at which time he’d be a much cheaper option.

The top source for Rams breaking news is Twitter (X). Be sure to follow @RamsInsideronSI and @BrockVierra for all the latest stories.

And, check out our Facebook page here to connect with Rams fans around the globe, with great interaction.