Breaking Down the Rams’ Week 1 Depth Chart Position by Position

The Los Angeles Rams cut down their roster to 53 players and have now released their Week 1 depth chart ahead of their matchup against the San Francisco 49ers. Heading into 2026, the Rams have Super Bowl expectations and the depth chart reflects that.

"I've been very, very fortunate to work with a ton of special players, and you know as well as anybody that it gets down to how do we come together as a team," said head coach Sean McVay. "But it's hard to say top to bottom that the collection of individuals is not very special...Regardless of what happens in Week 1, Week 2 will come to we want to stack days and hopefully continue to improve throughout this journey as a team."

While there weren’t too many surprises, there are still a handful of notable items worthy of discussion. Let’s break down the depth chart position-by-position to understand the roster going into Week 1.

Quarterback: Matthew Stafford, Stetson Bennett, Ty Simpson

There shouldn’t be too many surprises on the Week 1 depth chart. While Ty Simpson played well during the preseason, the Rams seem to value Stetson Bennett’s experience. With that said, the Rams see this as more of a QB2a and QB2b situation.

“I look at it as the two A, two B, and we'll see how we approach the game,” said McVay. “We’re going to make sure that both of those guys are going to continue to be developed. We feel good about both of those guys. Somebody has to be the backup on game day. Somebody has to be the emergency third…I feel really good about both of them.”

At some point, the Rams will have to make a firm decision on game day, as someone will be the backup and someone will be the emergency third quarterback. Still, it seems like it could be a fluid situation that changes during the season.

Running Back: Kyren Williams, Blake Corum, Ronnie Rivers

The running back position is pretty straightforward, and the only question is how the carries will be divided up. Heading into the season, there seems to be some expectation that Corum could eat into more of Williams’ carries. However, the Rams like Williams and what he brings to the offense. Those are the top two guys in the offense, while Rivers brings value on special teams.

X Wide Receiver: Davante Adams, Konata Mumpfield, CJ Daniels

Throughout training camp, CJ Daniels is a player who continuously stood out. At the same time, he’s still a rookie and will be developing. It’s possible the Rams look to get him more involved as the season progresses, but Mumpfield is also in his second year in the offense.

“I think they all have complementary skill sets. Each of those guys brings some different, unique things to the table,” said McVay on Friday. “But it starts with 'Tae' and Puka, and then I think those other guys around them do an amazing job. I got a lot of confidence in those seven guys.”

Z/Slot Wide Receiver: Puka Nacua, Jordan Whittington, Xavier Smith, Tutu Atwell

Prior to the preseason finale, the Rams traded for wide receiver Tutu Atwell and kept seven wide receivers on the initial 53-man roster. It’s hard to see exactly where Atwell fits in this group, but the Rams see him as experienced depth.

“He's very familiar and comfortable with the settings. We've got some good depth in that room,” said McVay. I think he's just getting familiar there. It's still probably too early, but we know some of the things that he can do.”

Heading into the summer, the Rams had a need for an experienced third wide receiver. While Atwell may not fill the WR3 role, he does provide some experienced and familiar depth. We’ll have to see if he can carve out a role in the offense.

Y Tight End: Tyler Higbee, Davis Allen, Max Klare

At tight end, the Rams listed Higbee and Allen as equals. While Higbee might technically be listed as the starter, the Rams listed it as Higbee OR Allen. That would seem to imply that Higbee and Allen are going to be interchangeable, with the Rams remaining fluid at the tight end position. Max Klare remains in a developmental role as a rookie.

F Tight End: Colby Parkinson, Terrance Ferguson

In the same way that the Rams listed Higbee and Allen together, they did the same with Parkinson and Ferguson. It should be expected for Ferguson to take a big leap in year two.

Offensive Line

Left Tackle: Alaric Jackson, David Quessenberry
Left Guard: Steve Avila, Bill Murray
Center: Coleman Shelton, Dylan McMahon
Right Guard: Kevin Dotson, Beaux Limmer
Right Tackle: Warren McClendon, David Quessenberry

The Rams are currently lacking some depth on the offensive line with Keagen Trost and Justin Dedich starting the season on injured reserve. Without Trost and Dedich, the Rams are particularly thin at tackle and on the interior. David Quessenberry will start the season as the swing tackle, and Bill Murray takes Dedich’s spot inside. However, the starting five will begin the season healthy, which is a positive.

Defensive Line

DE1: Aaron Donald, Braden Fiske
Nose Tackle: Poona Ford, Ty Hamilton
DE2: Kobie Turner, Tyler Davis

Aaron Donald immediately joins the team as a starter on the defensive line as he ends up ahead of Braden Fiske. That shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise, and those two should split reps throughout the season to keep each other fresh. It’s unclear if Donald will play on Thursday against the 49ers, but the Rams are taking it one day at a time.

“He’s so intentional about his rhythm and routine that a lot of these veteran guys, like you've heard me talk about, they’ve earned right where it's truly a collaboration,” said McVay. “This week will be a big week for him in terms of how he feels.”

If there is a surprise on the defensive line, it’s Ty Hamilton being listed as a nose tackle behind Ford. This is typically where Davis has been, but the Rams have a lot of depth with this group. It’s hard to find a better front five in the NFL.

Edge Rusher

EDGE1: Myles Garrett, Desjuan Johnson
EDGE2: Byron Young, Josaiah Stewart, Wesley Bailey

All eyes will be on Myles Garrett as he takes his first official snaps with the Rams. The Rams have been cautious with Garrett over the last few weeks as he’s managed knee swelling. However, Garrett should get more involved as Week 1 approaches.

“I think what you can appreciate, the times that he has practiced, he’s been incredibly impactful, and everything has been geared towards, ‘let's get him as fresh as possible going into the season,’” said McVay.

The Rams should have a strong rotation on the edge with Josaiah Stewart ready to take that next step in his career. Many were excited to see Wesley Bailey make the 53-man roster, and he’s listed behind Stewart.

Linebacker

ILB1: Nate Landman, Shaun Dolac
ILB2: Omar Speights, Grant Stuard

An argument can be made that the Rams should have tried to upgrade the linebacker position this offseason, but instead, they are running it back with Landman and Speights. Landman fell off at the end of last year but showed that he can lead in the middle of the defense.. Speights has exceeded expectations as an undrafted free agent.

“Landman is outstanding. I think he's had a really good camp. He's got great ownership, communication abilities,” said McVay. “And same thing, Omar does an amazing job with that as well. His knockback tackles, his ability to be able to be productive in both phases. Both those guys are studs.”

The Rams did make one addition at linebacker with Grant Stuard. Stuard has experience with special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone. He’ll take the Troy Reeder role as a core special teams player and someone who sets the tone in that phase. The Rams also like what they have in Shaun Dolac.

“I think Shaun Dolac has had an outstanding camp. He can play either inside backer spot. [He's] got good range, good understanding,” said McVay. “And then adding Grant Stuard to the mix has been really powerful. He's obviously a special team stud, but he's also been really productive when he's played that.”

Cornerback

Field Cornerback: Trent McDuffie, Josh Wallace
Boundary Cornerback: Jaylen Watson, Emmanuel Forbes

It’s unlikely that Josh Wallace is McDuffie’s direct backup as he fits better in the slot as the nickel. However, like McDuffie, Wallace does have inside-out versatility. The Rams can move those guys around. The Rams also have Jaylen Watson with Emmanuel Forbes behind him. While Forbes is listed behind Watson, he could play on the outside in packages where McDuffie is in the slot.

Safety

Free Safety: Quentin Lake, Kam Kinchens
Strong Safety: Kam Curl, Jaylen McCollough

Lake showed off his versatility last season, playing primarily at nickel, but moving around in the secondary. Having McDuffie will allow the Rams to do that more. The Rams retained Kam Curl after he played well in 2025, while McCollough operates as the ‘dime linebacker.’

Special Teams

Punter: Ethan Evans
Kicker: Harrison Mevis
Holder: Ethan Evans
Long Snapper: Joe Cardona
Punt Returner: Xavier Smith, Konata Mumpfield
Kick Returner: Jordan Whittington, Ronnie Rivers

Outside of hiring Ventrone, the Rams didn’t make too many special teams changes. The only two personnel changes were Grant Stuard and long snapper Joe Cardona. Cardona should help add some stability to the kicking game. Smith was brought back at punt returner, but might be on a short leash after last season.

Add us as a preferred source on Google