Young & Promising Rams Secondary Shows Room for Growth in Preseason Loss
The Los Angeles Rams were primed to cruise to a Week 2 preseason win Friday against the Houston Texans at SoFi Stadium.
But in what ended up being a 24-20 loss for the Rams, it's not outlandish to point some blame at the young LA defensive backs.
Getting outplayed on the goal line. Huge downfield penalties. But at the same time, the Rams' inconsistent preseason offense may have not had a chance to win the game in the final minute had it not been for a secondary highlighted by rookie draft picks Cobie Durant, Derion Kendrick, and Russ Yeast II.
It can go both ways. Where there's equal room for growth, there's also equal reason to applaud.
LA coach Sean McVay pointed out Durant, specifically, as a candidate for the latter.
"I liked the way that both our young DBs continue to play," McVay said. "I thought Durant, again, had another strong performance."
The fourth-round rookie out of South Carolina State was the first of four defensive backs selected by the Rams in April's draft. He played like it Friday, totaling two solo tackles, a sack, and a near-interception at the end of the first half against Texans first-team quarterback Davis Mills.
The ball should've been caught, but it's an important learning lesson that is better off occurring in the preseason. Durant still got credited with the pass defense.
Kendrick had a big play of his own in the first half, as his 15-yard fumble recovery set up the Rams for a field goal and a 6-0 lead.
But he also quickly learned what is was like being on the wrong end of the highlight.
The Texans put together a furious drive to end the half, using seven plays to move 75 yards in 39 seconds before taking a 7-6 lead into the locker room. One of those big chucks came as Texans speedster Phillip Dorsett snuck behind Kendrick in the secondary for a 32-yard grab on the right sideline.
Two rookie mistakes occurred on the play, as Yeast went head-first into Dorsett as he was securing the catch, which added on 15 more yards.
But the closing touchdown of the first half come at the expense of Kendrick, who got outplayed on a terrific catch and throw.
He showed tough in-air effort against another Texans first-team, receiver Nico Collins, but the bigger, 6-4, 215-pound wideout was able to wrestle the ball away for the touchdown. Kendrick was left defenseless, as he took a long angle on the throw and was forced to use his arms from behind to pry the catch away instead of getting in front. But to no avail.
It was certainly an impressive effort from Kendrick, but just being slightly off against a true NFL receiver cost him.
A team-wide effort on both sides of the ball forced LA into the eventual loss. But with lessons learned in the first half, along with some positives to gain, the Rams' secondary is moving with positive strides and learning from mistakes at an ideal time.
You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7
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