The dogfight for offseason practice repetitions is real in the NFL, which is why the Rams are hoping to make the best of a bad situation.
Without Tavon Austin (wrist) this spring, two of the team's rookie wideouts -- Cooper Kupp and Josh Reynolds -- are hoping to maximize their time with presumptive starter Jared Goff. New head coach Sean McVay is hoping to bring them along to a point where his razor-thin depth chart at receiver doesn't look so dire.
"I think the idea is that we're expecting some of these guys to contribute," McVay told the Los Angeles Daily News. "And they certainly have to earn it and we know that we're always looking to create competition at all spots. Whoever we think is the best player to give us the best chance to have success, that's who is going to play."
While this looks like an incredible challenge for a 31-year-old head coach, it is also an opportunity. McVay is coming into his tenure with one of the younger teams in the league, and as a former offensive coordinator, the ability to mold a young quarterback and two rookie wide receivers is enticing.
If he's anywhere close to the teacher he's billed to be, the Rams could negate some of the troubles inherited by the Jeff Fisher era by taking advantage of the clearout at wide receiver (the team also lost Kenny Britt and Brian Quick this offseason to other clubs) and handing more reps to the up and comers.
At the moment, an attack of Austin, Robert Woods, Pharoh Cooper, Kupp and Reynolds doesn't seem too intimidating, but is there a way McVay could handle this offseason to make it so?
