THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Rams open the 2022 NFL regular season against the Buffalo Bills on Sept. 8 at SoFi Stadium.
The Rams made it a priority to keep the core of their Super Bowl roster together for the 2022 season and beyond by reworking Aaron Donald's contract and extending quarterback Matthew Stafford and wide receiver Cooper Kupp. The biggest question that remains in building the 53-man roster is whether or not Los Angeles will re-sign wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.. The receiver tore his ACL during the Super Bowl, but the Rams have publicly expressed interest in bringing him back.
On defense, the Rams lost outside linebacker Von Miller to the Bills but brought in another star defensive player: Bobby Wagner. The middle linebacker adds even more depth to a defense that already has headliners in Donald and cornerback Jalen Ramsey.
QUARTERBACK (2): Matthew Stafford, John Wolford
The Rams extended Stafford in March, tying him to the franchise through the 2026 season. Bryce Perkins is also currently on the Rams' roster, but Los Angeles could try to keep him on the practice squad if it doesn't have room to carry three quarterbacks.
RUNNING BACK (4): Cam Akers, Kyren Williams, Darrell Henderson Jr., Jake Funk
Williams, a 2022 fifth-round pick, broke his foot during OTAs. McVay said during minicamp that the rookie had surgery and should be back "at some point in the early parts of training camp."
WIDE RECEIVER (5): Cooper Kupp, Allen Robinson II, Van Jefferson, Ben Skowronek, Tutu Atwell
This projection only has five receivers but would add a pass-catcher if the Rams sign Beckham Jr. Atwell, a second-round pick in 2021, is a player both Stafford and Kupp pointed out during minicamp. Stafford said everything Atwell has done this offseason "seems to be that much more intentional."
TIGHT END (4): Tyler Higbee, Kendall Blanton, Jacob Harris, Brycen Hopkins
Higbee was an important part of the Rams' offense last season but could not play in the Super Bowl due to a knee injury. During OTAs, Higbee said the Rams are "slowly" working him back in, "knowing we have some time before the season."
OFFENSIVE LINE (9): Joe Noteboom, David Edwards, Brian Allen, Logan Bruss, Rob Havenstein, Coleman Shelton, AJ Jackson, Bobby Evans, AJ Arcuri
The Rams have hoped Noteboom would be ready to replace Andrew Whitworth when the left tackle retired, which happened after the Rams' Super Bowl victory. Bruss was the Rams' first draft pick this year but McVay said during minicamp that there will be a competition for the right guard spot, presumably with Evans.
DEFENSIVE LINE (6): Aaron Donald, A'Shawn Robinson, Greg Gaines, Bobby Brown III, Michael Hoecht, Marquise Copeland
After Donald decided not to retire, the Rams reworked his contract to make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL. Donald has 291 quarterback pressures over the past five seasons, the most by any player in the NFL.
LINEBACKER (9): Leonard Floyd, Justin Hollins, Bobby Wagner, Ernest Jones, Travin Howard, Terrell Lewis, Chris Garrett, Christian Rozeboom, Daniel Hardy
Wagner, in his 11th season, joins a solid linebacker group. Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris said Wagner "is certainly a guy that can go out there all three downs and play every single snap of the season," but that the coaching staff is still figuring out exactly how the defense will adjust to Wagner's addition.
CORNERBACK (5): Jalen Ramsey, Troy Hill, Robert Rochell, David Long Jr., Decobie Durant
The Rams reunited Ramsey and Hill by trading for Hill during the draft. Hill played for the Rams from 2015-20 before spending last season with the Cleveland Browns. Adding Hill helped upgrade the position after Darious Williams signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars in free agency.
SAFETY (6): Jordan Fuller, Taylor Rapp, Terrell Burgess, Nick Scott, Quentin Lake, Russ Yeast
Los Angeles added Lake in the sixth round and Yeast in the seventh. It could use the help, as the Rams allowed the highest completion percentage in the NFL on throws inside the numbers (78.8%) last season, according to ESPN Stats & Information, which is also the second-highest rate across the NFL in the past 15 seasons.
SPECIALISTS (3): Riley Dixon (P), Matt Gay (K), Matthew Orzech (LS)
The competition to watch in training camp will be Dixon vs. Cameron Dicker at punter to replace Johnny Hekker, who was a Pro Bowl performer for 10 seasons with the Rams. Dicker signed with Los Angeles as an undrafted free agent and had experience at punter and kicker at Texas.