The Los Angeles Rams will have a very different look in the secondary this season after trading away Jalen Ramsey and opting not to re-sign David Long Jr., Troy Hill, Nick Scott or Taylor Rapp. At cornerback, there’s a clear lack of experience, with no one besides Ahkello Witherspoon having more than a half-season as a starter under their belt.
Derion Kendrick is part of the new-look secondary, projecting to be a full-time starter after an up-and-down rookie year in 2022. The Rams hope he can make a second-year leap at cornerback, helping replace the veterans they lost in the offseason.
Kendrick isn’t the most important player in the secondary, but he’s certainly up there.
2022 stats
- 43 tackles
- 4 passes defensed
- 69.6% completion rate allowed (PFF)
- 114.5 passer rating allowed (PFF)
- 5 missed tackles (PFF)
Position group
Cornerback is going to be an incredibly competitive group in training camp and the preseason. Kendrick is likely to be one of the two starters, along with Cobie Durant, but he’ll still need to earn his reps this summer. If he struggles at all, the Rams have Ahkello Witherspoon, Robert Rochell, Shaun Jolly, Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson and others all waiting in the wings.
It’s not a very experienced group of cornerbacks, but given their lack of recognition and star power, they’re all hungry to prove themselves as pros. For Kendrick, his biggest competitor in the cornerback room is Witherspoon, another player who almost exclusively plays outside instead of in the slot.
If Kendrick can hold off the former 49ers and Steelers corner, he’ll play a ton of snaps in Year 2.
2023 outlook
There’s no way around it: Kendrick’s rookie season was full of growing pains. He was thrust into the starting lineup earlier than expected as a sixth-round rookie, and while he held his own at times, he was picked on (successfully) by opposing quarterbacks much too often.
Heading into his second season, Kendrick should be in a better position to succeed. He knows the ropes as an NFL player now and isn’t a wide-eyed rookie just trying to make it as a pro.
In OTAs and minicamp, he got some recognition from Raheem Morris for the job he’s done, and Sean McVay mentioned him as a player who’s made “tremendous strides,” along with Durant. Kendrick’s arrow is pointing up after a rocky rookie year and the Rams need him to be at least an average starter in the secondary if they’re going to have any success on defense.
