Though they’re only seven games into their NFL careers, it seems safe to say Jared Verse and Braden Fiske have lived up to expectations as early picks by the Los Angeles Rams. They’ve each had a sizable impact on defense, starting every game so far this season.
Verse has been especially great, dominating as an edge rusher opposite Byron Young. He has 2.5 sacks and 29 total tackles, seven of which have gone for a loss. Verse has also landed 12 hits on the quarterback, more than one per game.
Fiske, Verse’s college teammate, has one sack, 22 tackles and two tackles for a loss as an interior defender, playing at a high level next to Kobie Turner – a guy who should’ve won Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2023.
What’s particularly impressive about the play of Verse and Fiske is how frequently they’re generating pressure. According to PFF, Verse leads all rookies with 31 pressures and Fiske is second with 21. The next-closest player is Laiatu Latu, who has just 17 pressures in eight games; the Rams have only played seven games.
Updated rookie pressure totals, according to PFF:
Jared Verse, Rams – 31
Braden Fiske, Rams – 21
Laiatu Latu, Colts – 17 (has played 8 games)
Chop Robinson, Dolphins – 11
Elijah Chatman, Giants – 11 (playing tonight) pic.twitter.com/Ott9WJLWTX— J.B. Long (@JB_Long) October 28, 2024
Chatman played on Monday night for the Giants but he had just one pressure in the game, so he’s currently fourth with 12 pressures – still nowhere close Verse and Fiske.
Verse is the heavy favorite to win Defensive Rookie of the Year at -125, with the next-closest player (Latu) being +600 at BetMGM.
The Rams have to love what they’ve gotten from their top two picks in the 2024 draft and Sean McVay shared a little bit Monday about how impressive Verse has been thus far.
“He has fun. He loves competing. He loves the challenges,” he said. “There’s a certain play style that he has, which is one of the things that we loved about him coming out of Florida State, and being able to have that controlled aggression, as Aaron Donald always used to say. I think he is authentically himself. I think he’s played his two best games as a Ram against the Raiders and against the Vikings. What I mean by that is not necessarily what the stats will show. He had some really good numbers against the Vikings, but in terms of the production, his ability to make plays within the framework of where those play opportunities arise and being able to elevate his teammates. … He’s only going to get better and better. We love what we’ve seen from Jared Verse.”
