Leading up to kickoff of the 2026 NFL season, TeamFB7 is going in-depth on each team from its strengths and weaknesses to breakout players, intriguing rookies and overall predictions. With the Los Angeles Rams opening the season Thursday night vs. the San Francisco 49ers in Australia, we turn the focus to preseason favorites, who are No. 1 in our power rankings.
There’s very few teams in the NFL that can say anything less than a Super Bowl championship this season would be a disappointment.
OK, there’s only two — the defending champion Seattle Seahawks and the Los Angeles Rams.
The Rams’ window to contend is very finite and clear.
For now, they have 38-year-old reigning NFL MVP Matthew Stafford at quarterback. He’s technically under contract through next season, but nothing is guaranteed beyond this year.
For now, they still have star wide receiver Puka Nacua on the final year of his incredible bargain-value rookie contract that pays him a mere $5.767 million this year before he gets very (very, very) expensive. (See Seattle WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s fresh four-year, $168.6-million extension.)
Veteran wideout Davante Adams is also on the final year of his contract. Ditto for standout right guard Kevin Dotson, left guard Steve Avila, center Coleman Shelton and right tackle Warren McClendon Jr. On the defensive side, key defensive tackle Kobie Turner and edge rusher Byron Young are both finishing their rookie deals this year and set to cash in majorly.
Los Angeles will have some very hard decisions to make in the offseason after already committing top market rate for Stafford ($55 million average annual contract value, if he returns), edge rusher Myles Garrett ($41.64 million AAV through 2030) and cornerback Trent McDuffie ($31 million AAV through 2030).
For now, the Rams also have future Hall of Fame defensive tackle Aaron Donald back from retirement on a one-year deal.
You get the point — this is an all-in season for Los Angeles as the roster is currently constructed. It won’t look the same a year from now. And when Stafford retires in the near future, what then?
The Rams felt they squandered an opportunity to win another title last season, losing 31-27 to the Seahawks in the NFC championship game. They are the overwhelming preseason favorites to win it all this year at +500 odds, per DraftKings Sportsbook, with no other team presently listed at less than +1000.
Merely reaching the Super Bowl will be no consolation. Anything short of a championship will be a disappointment.
Those are the stakes.
(All contract values referenced from Spotrac.com.)
Los Angeles Rams Reset
2025 Finish: 12-5, lost 31-27 to Seahawks in NFC championship game
Head Coach: Sean McVay, 10th season (92-57, won Super Bowl LVI, lost Super Bowl LIII)
Hot Seat Meter (0-10): 0
Offensive Coordinator: Nate Scheelhaase, first season (promoted from within to replace Mike LaFleur, now the Cardinals HC)
Defensive Coordinator: Chris Shula, third season
Best Offseason Move: Bolstering the defense with star power and needed upgrades
No team in the NFL had a better offseason overall than the Rams.
They already had the top offense in football (first in the league at 394.6 YPG and 30.5 PPG). The defense wasn’t necessarily bad (17th at 327.5 YPG and 10th at 20.4 PPG), but it was the area in which Los Angeles could most improve.
And did the Rams ever — at least on paper.
Identifying cornerback as their biggest vulnerability, the Rams sent their 2026 first-, fifth- and sixth-round picks and a 2027 third-round pick to the Chiefs for McDuffie and then gave him the monstrous contract extension (briefly making him the highest-paid CB in football before that mark was soon surpassed). They then signed the Chiefs’ other top corner, Jaylen Watson, as a free agent.
Not even because it was a need but simply an opportunity to truly go all-in during this existing championship window, Los Angeles then traded a 2027 first-round pick, 2028 second-rounder, 2029 third-rounder and promising young edge rusher Jared Verse to the Browns for Garrett, the two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year fresh off setting the single-season sacks record with 23.
That in turn got the attention of Donald, the three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year who retired after the 2023 season having made the Pro Bowl in all 10 of his seasons with the Rams while earning first-team All-Pro honors eight times. After a prolonged will-he, won’t-he wait for a final decision, Donald announced his return near the end of the preseason (avoiding training camp like any savvy veteran with leverage would).
Donald won’t play in the season opener Thursday, staying behind in Los Angeles to continue ramping up for his return to action.
But with those moves, it’s at least possible the Rams could finish this season with a top 5 offense and defense.
Worst Offseason Move: Drafting QB Ty Simpson 13th overall
We’re going to keep this brief as we’ve ranted about it enough since the draft.
While their Rams dealt their own first-round pick to the Chiefs for McDuffie, they also had the Falcons’ first-rounder (which turned out to be No. 13 overall) from a draft-day trade last year.
Los Angeles had one pressing need on its entire roster — a third wide receiver, preferably one who could operate out of the slot — as the depth chart behind Nacua and Adams was paper-thin with Jordan Whittington (40 catches for 464 yards and 0 TDs over his first two seasons) and 2025 seventh-round pick Konata Mumpfield (10-92-1 last season). (The Rams since re-acquired Tutu Atwell, who had spent his entire five-year career in Los Angeles before signing with Miami in March, from the Dolphins. Atwell had a career-high 562 receiving yards in 2024 but just a 6-192-1 line in 10 games last year.)
Moreover, the Rams also had no real WR depth behind two stars who shouldn’t be counted on to play 17 games.
Nacua’s relentless, taxing physical approach to the game (he missed six games in 2024 and one in 2025) is one reason for caution, and then there’s the still-lingering potential he gets suspended at some point for his offseason transgressions, which included an accusation of biting a woman’s shoulder on New Year’s Eve and making antisemitic remarks. Though ESPN’s Adam Schefter said this week he thinks there is “a real possibility” Nacua avoids suspension.
Meanwhile, Adams’ health at age 33 is an obvious concern after he missed three games each of the last two seasons.
So not only is the best offense in football one mere weakness away from being an overwhelming mismatch for most any defense (with the potential to be very much like the old “Greatest Show On Turf” Rams) but it also has zero insurance in place if one of its two vulnerable star receivers misses time.
With that glaring need undeniable, the move at No. 13 should have been a no-brainer.
Especially considering the Rams also had a prime opportunity and obvious fit to address that need and check the final box on a complete, elite roster. Reigning Biletnikoff Award winner Makai Lemon, a Los Angeles-area native no less who had starred in town at USC and was near-unanimously considered one of the top three WR prospects in the draft, was still on the board! (He’d instead be drafted 20th by the Eagles.)
How much easier could this decision have been?!
Instead, the Rams took Simpson, the Alabama quarterback who divided scouts and draft analysts as to whether he was worth a first-round pick or a surefire future NFL starter.
(We won’t get into McVay’s viral reaction during the draft that he and Snead have since insisted was not over a disagreement on the Simpson selection.)
The thinking was obvious — any season at this point could be Stafford’s last and the Rams won’t have another early first-round pick anytime soon to draft a top QB prospect, so this was their best chance to plan for the future.
The thinking was also flawed, though.
Look, Rams general manager Les Snead clearly deserves abundant credit and praise for the team he’s built. No question. Phenomenal job overall.
But he’s not above criticism, and he really fumbled this decision.
Every general manager wants to look as smart as the Packers were in drafting Aaron Rodgers when they still had Brett Favre performing at a high level, or then drafting Jordan Love when Rodgers was still winning MVPs in Green Bay, or the Chiefs drafting Patrick Mahomes to back up Alex Smith for a season, etc.
But Snead tried to be too smart for his (and the Rams’) own good here.
Simpson couldn’t even beat out Stetson Bennett for the backup job this year, and heck, there’s nothing definitive to say he’ll even be a better option than Bennett (or an available free agent) when Stafford does retire. It’s at least possible Simpson is never the Rams’ franchise quarterback.
Or maybe he indeed proves Snead right and makes this look like an inspired decision in a couple years. That too is possible, of course. Simpson finished the preseason 47-of-60 passing for 382 yards, 3 TDs and 0 INTs over three games. That’s certainly reason for optimism.
But simply the degree of uncertainty it all carries opens this decision up to fair and deserved scrutiny.
For a team that in every other way approached the offseason in all-in, win-now-at-all-costs mode to veer from that M.O. in a prime opportunity to finish the job simply doesn’t seem worth it.
Especially when considering, as outlined up top, the Rams might be in a vastly different state by the time they need to find Stafford’s successor. They might be rebuilding or at least in a state of transition where having an in-house QB replacement doesn’t necessarily change that reality.
Time will tell — as will the production and state of the Rams’ WR corps this year.
(We said we were going to be brief on that matter, didn’t we? Oops.)
Los Angeles Rams Roster Breakdown
Biggest Strength: Overall roster balance and star power across the field
We’ve pretty much hit on it all already, but there isn’t a more talented roster top to bottom, offensively and defensively, in the league.
Again, bravo to Snead and his staff on the overall job they’ve done putting the Rams in a position to be the clear preseason Super Bowl favorite in a year where the reigning champs haven’t really lost much at all and a handful of other top contenders also got better.
Offensively …
– Stafford remains a top-tier quarterback even at 38 years old, leading the NFL last year with 4,707 passing yards and 46 TDs with only 8 interceptions.
– Nacua is in the conversation and on the very short list of top WRs in the NFL, coming off a career-best season with 129 receptions (most in the league) for 1,715 yards and 10 TDs in 16 games.
– Adams is first among all active wide receivers (and seventh all-time in NFL history) with 117 receiving touchdowns and second with 1,017 receptions (16th all-time, behind only Keenan Allen among active WRs) and 12,633 career receiving yards (26th all-time, behind only Mike Evans among active WRs). Adams may no longer be at his peak, but he remains productive overall and an excellent redzone weapon who caught 60 passes for 789 yards and 14 TDs (3 more than any other player in the league!) in 2025 despite missing three games.
– Running backs Kyren Williams (1,252 rushing yards and 10 TDs on 4.8 yards per carry, 36 catches for 281 yards and 3 TDs) and Blake Corum (746 rushing yards and 6 TDs on 5.1 YPC) are among the very best backfield duos in the league.
– Tight ends Colby Parkinson (43-408-8) and Tyler Higbee (25-281-3 in 10 games) are a solid veteran tandem with a wealth of experience and big games on their resumes.
– PFF slotted the Rams 11th on its preseason offensive line rankings, noting that Los Angeles is the only two with two of the 11 guards it graded out at 75.0 or better last season (Avila and Dotson). Alaric Jackson enters his fourth year as a starter at left tackle and graded out 8th (84.2, by PFF) among all offensive tackles, Shelton is in his fifth year as the team’s starting center (grading out 13th among centers last season by PFF) and McClendon made a career-high 10 starts in 17 games last season while PFF graded him 15th (78.7) among all tackles.
Defensively …
– There simply isn’t a better pair of edge rushers on the same team than Garrett (125.5 career sacks, five first-team All-Pro honors and two NFL DPOY awards in last six seasons) and Young (27.5 sacks in three seasons with a career-high 12 sacks and 82 tackles last year to earn his first Pro Bowl nod).
– It remains to be seen how the 35-year-old Donald performs after being retired the last two seasons, but he’s arguably the greatest defensive tackle in history with 111 career sacks, 176 tackles for loss, 24 forced fumbles, 21 pass deflections, 10 Pro Bowl honors in 10 seasons, 8 first-team All-Pro selections and one of just three players to win NFL DPOY three times (along with Lawrence Taylor and J.J. Watt). And he doesn’t need to play a full snap load either, as returning starters Turner (24 sacks in three seasons), Braden Fiske (11.5 sacks in two seasons) and nose tackle Poona Ford (now in his ninth NFL season) give the Rams unmatched depth on the interior of the defensive line.
– At linebacker, Nate Landman had a career-best season in his first year in Los Angeles with 132 tackles, 8 TFLs, 2.5 sacks, 4 FF, 1 INT and 6 PDs, while Omar Speights is a solid third-year starter (ranked 29th among 88 LBs by PFF last year).
– And in the secondary, McDuffie (one first-team All-Pro, one second-team All-Pro honors in four seasons, considered a lockdown cover CB) and Watson are an upgrade at cornerback from last year, safeties Kam Curl (career-high 122 tackles in 2025, second-highest PFF run defense grade of any safety at 87.9) and Kamren Kinchens (84 tackles in 2025, 6 INTs over his first two NFL seasons) are a plus duo while Quentin Lake returns as the starting nickel.
Biggest Weakness: Depth at wide receiver and offensive line
We said enough about the WR depth situation, but the concern on the offensive line stems from Jackson, the left tackle, also facing an unresolved risk of NFL suspension.
Jackson was arrested in June for domestic violence. Per reports, he believed a woman was recording him on her cell phone and tried to take the phone from her. He was not charged with a felony, with his case assigned for a pre-filing diversion, but the NFL can assign its own discipline.
Most Intriguing Rookie: Offensive lineman Keagen Trost
The Rams snagged Keagen Trost, an offensive tackle out of Missouri, in the third round of the draft.
He’s opening the season on injured reserve due to a preseason hamstring injury, but he generated some real buzz before that and could be a versatile backup (and potential starter in 2027) once he returns.
Breakout Player: EDGE Josaiah Stewart
The 2025 third-round pick out of Michigan had 3 sacks in a limited reserve role last season. Josaiah Stewart be the third edge rusher in the rotation behind Garrett and Young, which should provide plenty of opportunity for a true breakout season as the Rams look to keep those stars fresh through the long season.
MVP Pick: QB Matthew Stafford or EDGE Myles Garrett
Stafford won his first NFL MVP award last year, so he’s the obvious choice here. But if Garrett sustains his top-end production and helps transform the Rams into a top 5 defense then a strong case can be made that he’s the team MVP.
2026 Los Angeles Rams Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Time (ET) |
| Week 1, Sept. 10 (Thursday) In Melbourne, Australia | vs. San Francisco 49ers | 8:35 p.m. |
| Week 2, Sept. 21 (Monday) | vs. New York Giants | 8:15 p.m. |
| Week 3, Sept. 27 | at Denver Broncos | 8:20 p.m. |
| Week 4, Oct. 4 | at Philadelphia Eagles | 1 p.m. |
| Week 5, Oct. 12 (Monday) | vs. Buffalo Bills | 8:15 p.m. |
| Week 6, Oct. 18 | vs. Arizona Cardinals | 4:05 p.m. |
| Week 7, Oct. 25 | at Las Vegas Raiders | 4:25 p.m. |
| Week 8, Nov. 1 | vs. Los Angeles Chargers | 4:05 p.m. |
| Week 9, Nov. 8 | at Washington Commanders | 1 p.m. |
| Week 10, Nov. 15 | at Arizona Cardinals | 4:05 p.m. |
| Week 11 | BYE WEEK | |
| Week 12, Nov. 25 (Wednesday) | vs. Green Bay Packers | 8 p.m. |
| Week 13, Dec. 3 (Thursday) | vs. Kansas City Chiefs | 8:15 p.m. |
| Week 14, Dec. 13 | at San Francisco 49ers | 4:25 p.m. |
| Week 15, Dec. 20 | vs. Dallas Cowboys | 4:25 p.m. |
| Week 16, Dec. 25 (Friday) | at Seattle Seahawks | 8:15 p.m. |
| Week 17, TBD (Flex Game) | at Tampa Bay Buccaneers | TBD |
| Week 18, TBD (Flex Game) | vs. Seattle Seahawks | TBD |
Los Angeles Rams Season Prediction And Parting Thoughts
Season Prediction: 13-4
The best team on paper, plain and simple. And had the Rams beaten the Seahawks in a coin-flip NFC championship game last season — LA got stopped on fourth down from the Seattle 6 on their final full possession of the game — they likely would have beaten the Patriots and won the Super Bowl last year.
The pressure is on to finish the job this season while the roster is at its absolute peak.
