The position the Rams put so much money into this spring is in question out of the gate because of injuries and left tackle Alaric Jackson’s suspension.
With more help needed on the left side in the interim, coaches moved Steve Avila back to left guard early last week and installed Jonah Jackson at center (where Avila had been working since the spring).
I started asking into this topic with sources in Houston at joint practices, when I spotted rookie center Beaux Limmer also getting a shot with the first-team. There’s no complaint about Avila’s play at center. No, this is all about figuring out how best to help vulnerable positions (left and right tackle) with Alaric Jackson and possibly Rob Havenstein out and which combinations work best in that regard.
Jonah Jackson wasn’t back from a shoulder injury when Limmer repped in, which is why the Rams couldn’t test him at center until last week. But this has been in discussion since the two tackles respectively hurt their ankles (and reiterated when the Rams received news of the suspension).
Jackson told me on Monday that he’s been trying to get back to playing center, which he calls a “natural” position for him, for a little while now and hopes to seize this as an opportunity.
My suspicion, too, is that Avila’s return to left guard is in part motivated by how much of the screen game he activates — he is truly gifted in that phase — combined with the fact that keeping that element in the playbook also helps counter pressure. Is it ideal to be shuffling this much so close to the season opener in Detroit? No. But injuries and absences aren’t, either, and my read of all of this is that the Rams are trying to make the best of an already tough situation.
Havenstein was able to take part in at least some of the individual drills Monday, but head coach Sean McVay wasn’t sure at that time whether he can play Sunday night and said they would use every day they have to determine that.
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What I’m seeing with the Los Angeles Rams: Injured O-line shuffled and other observations
