Saturday night was the last chance for Los Angeles Rams players to make an impression on the coaching staff and front office. It was the team’s last preseason game before final cuts are made by Tuesday’s deadline, making this a critical game for several players.
Undrafted rookie Keir Thomas saved his best performance for last. He was dominant in the first half, putting together a stat line you hope to see from an edge rusher who plays an entire game.
He had three tackles for a loss, one sack and a QB hit, consistently generating pressure on the quarterback and blowing things up in the running game. He also made another nice tackle to hold the Bengals to a 2-yard gain, but Cincinnati was called for holding so the play was negated.
His sack was helped by the Rams’ coverage on the play, but he did a nice job to keep contain and prevent Brandon Allen from escaping the pocket.
GOT 'EM! @_popcool's sack forces the field goal. 😤
📺 @ABC7 📱 https://t.co/4beUdm3XuI pic.twitter.com/w41Q28vllP
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) August 27, 2022
One of his tackles for a loss was a huge hit on the running back, too, taking a perfect angle to the ball carrier and making a solid tackle.
⚠️ INCOMING ⚠️
😳 @_popcool 📺 @ABC7 pic.twitter.com/pV0EYZdWQf
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) August 27, 2022
The Rams need edge rushers pretty badly, especially with Daniel Hardy going down last week with an ankle injury. Chris Garrett hasn’t done much to stand out, and Thomas is seemingly beating out Benton Whitley and Brayden Thomas – two other undrafted rookies.
Don’t expect Thomas to play meaningful snaps early if he makes the team, but keeping him on the 53-man roster seems like a legitimate possibility now.
He could be a good player to have around, both as a pass rusher and run defender. Saturday’s performance showed that.
