Los Angeles Rams – Dante Fowler Jr.
It is remarkable how much the Los Angeles Rams rely on Aaron Donald to create pressure up front, and Ndamukong Suh’s departure to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers could magnify their reliance on the former Pittsburgh Panthers star. As such, the Rams need someone else to stand out as a quality source of pressure, and there’s nobody better-suited for this than Dante Fowler Jr.
Acquired from the Jacksonville Jaguars in the middle of the season, Fowler recorded just four sacks across both teams last season. As a sophomore, Fowler had eight sacks, showing the potential that made him the No. 3 overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft.
The Rams received 41 QB hits from Donald and 19 from Suh last season, but nobody else had more than six. Fowler will be 25 when the 2019 season gets underway and still has a boatload of untapped potential, but he needs to fulfill it. Los Angeles needs more production off the edge, and they need to pick up the production left behind by Suh. Donald can’t be tasked with carrying this team’s pass rush.
If Fowler can take that next step forward, the Rams will be an even scarier team in 2019. Defending the NFC Championship and going on to actually win the Super Bowl will be difficult, but the Rams can be front-runners with a better edge rush.