2020 Los Angeles Rams season
| 2020 Los Angeles Rams season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Stan Kroenke |
| General manager | Les Snead |
| Head coach | Sean McVay |
| Home field | SoFi Stadium |
| Uniform | |
 | |
The 2020 season is the Los Angeles Rams' 83rd season in the National Football League, their 84th overall, their 54th in the Greater Los Angeles Area, and their fourth under head coach Sean McVay. It will also mark the team’s first season playing their home games at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, which the team will share with the Los Angeles Chargers. They will look to improve on their 9–7 season from the previous year and return to the playoffs after missing them last season.
Offseason
Coaching changes
- On January 6, 2020, the Rams parted ways with long time defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, whose contract was not renewed. Special teams coordinator John Fassel, who had been with the franchise since 2012, was also not retained and took the same position with the Dallas Cowboys. Other staff members who did not return were assistant offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch, running backs coach Skip Peete, assistant special teams coach Matt Daniels, and director of strength training and performance Ted Rath.
- Several staff members shifted responsibilities or added to their duties. Run game coordinator Aaron Kromer also became the team's offensive line coach, while pass game coordinator Shane Waldron retained that title but is no longer the quarterbacks coach.[1] Also, assistant wide receivers coach Zac Robinson and assistant quarterbacks coach Liam Coen swapped positions from the previous season.
- Kevin O'Connell was hired as offensive coordinator and Brandon Staley took over as defensive coordinator. John Bonamego was brought on board as special teams coordinator and will be assisted by Tory Woodbury. Justin Lovett became the Rams' new director of strength training and performance.
Uniform changes
- In March 2019, the Rams announced they would debut new uniforms for the 2020 season. The new logos and colors were revealed on March 23.[2] The new primary logo was heavily criticized by fans.[3] The new uniforms were revealed on May 13th- and were also heavily criticized by fans.
Roster changes
Free agency
Unrestricted
| Position | Player | 2020 team | Date signed | Contract |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DE | Michael Brockers | Los Angeles Rams | March 27, 2020 | |
| ILB | Cory Littleton | Las Vegas Raiders | March 25, 2020 | |
| OLB | Dante Fowler | Atlanta Falcons | March 25, 2020 | |
| WR | Mike Thomas | Cincinnati Bengals | March 24, 2020 | |
| C | Austin Blythe | Los Angeles Rams | March 26, 2020 | |
| QB | Blake Bortles | |||
| K | Greg Zuerlein | Dallas Cowboys | March 30, 2020 | |
| CB | Nickell Robey-Coleman | Philadelphia Eagles | March 31, 2020 | |
| FS | Marqui Christian | |||
| LB | Bryce Hager | |||
| T | Andrew Whitworth | Los Angeles Rams | March 18, 2020 |
Signings
Contract extensions
Releases/waivers
Retirements
Trades
Draft
| Round | Selection | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 52 | Cam Akers | RB | Florida State | |
| 57 | Van Jefferson | WR | Florida | from Houston | |
| 3 | 84 | Terrell Lewis | OLB | Alabama | |
| 104 | Terrell Burgess | S | Utah | Compensatory pick | |
| 4 | 136 | Brycen Hopkins | TE | Purdue | from Houston |
| 6 | 199 | Jordan Fuller | S | Ohio State | |
| 7 | 234 | Clay Johnston | LB | Baylor | |
| 248 | Sam Sloman | K | Miami (OH) | from Houston | |
| 250 | Tremayne Anchrum | G | Clemson | from Houston |
Draft trades
- The Rams traded their first-round selection (20th overall), as well as their first-round and fourth-round selections in the 2021 NFL Draft to the Jacksonville Jaguars in exchange for cornerback Jalen Ramsey.[4]
- The Rams traded their fifth-round selection (165th overall), as well as a 2019 third-round selection to the Jacksonville Jaguars in exchange for linebacker Dante Fowler.[5]
- The Rams traded cornerback Marcus Peters to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for linebacker Kenny Young and a fifth-round selection.[6] The Rams later traded this selection as well as cornerback Aqib Talib to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for a seventh-round selection in the 2022 NFL Draft.[7]
- The Rams traded wide receiver Brandin Cooks and their fourth-round selection in 2022 to the Houston Texans in exchange for the Texans' second-round pick (57th overall).[8]
- The Rams traded their fourth round pick (126th overall) to the Houston Texans in exchange for the Texans' fourth round pick (136th overall) and two seventh-round selections (Nos. 248 and 250).[9]
Undrafted free agents
Following the 2020 NFL Draft, the Rams signed 20 undrafted rookie free agents who would compete for roster spots and participate in the team's offseason and training camp programs.[10]
Staff
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Current roster
Preseason cancellation
The Rams' preseason schedule was announced on May 7. However, on July 27, in a letter to fans, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell officially announced the cancellation of the entire preseason due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[11]
Regular season
Schedule
The Rams' 2020 schedule was announced on May 7, and is subject to change, pending developments in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.[11]
| Week | Date | Time (PT) | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | TV | Recap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | September 13 | 5:20 p.m. | Dallas Cowboys | SoFi Stadium | NBC | |||
| 2 | September 20 | 10:00 a.m. | at Philadelphia Eagles | Lincoln Financial Field | Fox | |||
| 3 | September 27 | 10:00 a.m. | at Buffalo Bills | New Era Field | Fox | |||
| 4 | October 4 | 1:05 p.m. | New York Giants | SoFi Stadium | Fox | |||
| 5 | October 11 | 10:00 a.m. | at Washington Football Team | FedExField | Fox | |||
| 6 | October 18 | 5:20 p.m. | at San Francisco 49ers | Levi's Stadium | NBC | |||
| 7 | October 26 | 5:15 p.m. | Chicago Bears | SoFi Stadium | ESPN | |||
| 8 | November 1 | 10:00 a.m. | at Miami Dolphins | Hard Rock Stadium | Fox | |||
| 9 | Bye | |||||||
| 10 | November 15 | 1:25 p.m. | Seattle Seahawks | SoFi Stadium | Fox | |||
| 11 | November 23 | 5:15 p.m. | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Raymond James Stadium | ESPN | |||
| 12 | November 29 | 1:05 p.m. | San Francisco 49ers | SoFi Stadium | Fox | |||
| 13 | December 6 | 1:05 p.m. | at Arizona Cardinals | State Farm Stadium | Fox | |||
| 14 | December 10 | 5:20 p.m. | New England Patriots | SoFi Stadium | Fox/NFLN/ Amazon Prime |
|||
| 15 | December 19 or 20 | TBD | New York Jets | SoFi Stadium | TBD | |||
| 16 | December 27 | 1:05 p.m. | at Seattle Seahawks | CenturyLink Field | CBS | |||
| 17 | January 3 | 1:25 p.m. | Arizona Cardinals | SoFi Stadium | Fox | |||
Notes:
- Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
- Networks and times for Sunday games from Weeks 5–17 are subject to change as a result of flexible scheduling.
- As the result of Saturday flexible scheduling during Week 15, the date, time and network for that week's game vs. the New York Jets will be finalized at a later date—by no later than four weeks prior to game day.[12]
References
- ^ "Sean McVay talks about newly assembled Rams coaching staff". LATimes.com. February 12, 2020.
- ^ "Los Angeles Rams New Look". ramsnewlook.com. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
- ^ https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/25/sports/football/rams-logo-angelo-state.html
- ^ "Jaguars trading Jalen Ramsey to Los Angeles Rams". NFL.com. October 15, 2019. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
- ^ Simmons, Myles (October 30, 2018). "Rams Acquire Edge Rusher Dante Fowler". TheRams.com. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
- ^ Owens, Jason (October 15, 2019). "Reports: Rams trade CB Marcus Peters to Ravens". sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
- ^ Patra, Kevin (October 29, 2019). "Rams ship CB Aqib Talib, fifth-rounder to Dolphins". NFL.com. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
- ^ Jackson, Stu (April 10, 2020). "Rams agree to trade WR Brandin Cooks to Texans". TheRams.com. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
- ^ DaSilva, Cameron (April 25, 2020). "Rams trade 126th overall pick to Texans". theramswire.usatoday.com. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
- ^ "Rams agree to terms with 20 undrafted free agents". TheRams.com. April 25, 2020. Retrieved April 25, 2020.
- ^ a b Shook, Nick (July 27, 2020). "Roger Goodell writes letter to NFL fans as training camps start across U.S." NFL. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ "2020 NFL Schedule Announced" (PDF). NFL Communications. May 7, 2020. Retrieved May 7, 2020.