Rams acquire a linebacker to try to ease the pain of injuries

Linebackers were a worry when the Rams went to training camp, and they were still a worry for different reasons as the team began the final week of preparation for the regular season.

Late-August knee injuries to inside linebacker Travin Howard and rookie outside linebacker Terrell Lewis have robbed the Rams of depth at positions where they’d already lost star power in free agency.

They acted Sunday to shore things up both inside and outside linebacker with one move, claiming Justin Hollins on waivers a day after he was cut by the Denver Broncos at the roster deadline.

Having played both outside linebacker at Oregon and inside and outside with Denver, Hollins can help at both positions.

Later Sunday, the Rams signed running back and kick returner Raymond Calais off the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ practice squad, according to a report by Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network. Calais was the Bucs’ seventh-round draft pick out of Louisiana-Lafayette in April.

Calais could provide depth at running back if Darrell Henderson’s hamstring injury forces him to miss games. The Rams didn’t immediately confirm the acquisition or any move to free a roster spot.

It’s unclear if Hollins will be ready to play when the Rams open the season next Sunday night against the Dallas Cowboys at SoFi Stadium.

But he’s certainly familiar with new Rams defensive coordinator Brandon Staley and his approach to linebackers. Staley was Hollins’ linebackers coach in Denver.

It was under Staley that Hollins learned to play inside as well as outside linebacker after the Broncos drafted him out of Oregon in the fifth round in 2019.

As a rookie, he played 15 games as a backup, recording 21 tackles and one sack.

Hollins, 24, 6-foot-5 and 248 pounds, went on the Rams’ 53-man active roster, taking the spot vacated by defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson going on the reserve/non-football-injury list with a medical issue.

It’s Howard’s and Lewis’ knee issues that are the immediate concern. Howard is out for the season with a meniscus tear after battling Micah Kiser, Kenny Young and Troy Reeder for the starting roles at inside linebacker. Lewis won’t play against Dallas, and his longer-term status might be resolved this week, after he was hurt while getting ready to back up Leonard Floyd on the edge.

Both were hoping to help replace Cory Littleton and Dante Fowler, 2019 defensive leaders who left as free agents.

By claiming Howard, the Rams completed their initial active roster for 2020.

Also Sunday, they signed 15 players to their practice squad, all among the 26 they waived Friday and Saturday in time for the NFL’s roster deadline.

Notably not among the players kept for the practice team was inside linebacker Clay Johnston, the seventh-round draft choice who struggled in training camp while coming back from the knee injury that ended his senior year at Baylor. Johnston signed with the Carolina Panthers, where he’ll join the practice squad. His father, Kent, is the Panthers’ strength coach, and his college coach, Matt Ruhle, is the Panthers’ new coach.

The Rams’ practice-squad list includes quarterback Bryce Perkins and four players who saw action for the team in 2019, defensive back Dont’e Deayon, linebacker Natrez Patrick, guard Jamil Demby and tight end Kendall Blanton.

The others are: wide receiver J.J. Koski, center Cohl Cabral, defensive tackle Marquise Copeland, defensive end Jonah Williams, defensive tackle Michael Hoecht, linebackers Derrick Moncrief, Daniel Bituli and Christian Rozeboom, defensive backs JuJu Hughes and Tyrique McGhee.

There’s room for one more. Practice squads were expanded from 10 to 16 and teams’ freedom to activate those players was loosened for this season, among other rules making it easier to replace active-roster players who contract the coronavirus.

Perkins, an undrafted rookie from Virginia, will the Rams’ No. 3 quarterback. He could step in if Jared Goff or John Wolford got injured or sick. Rams coaches and teammates have been impressed with Perkins’ ability to run with the ball and how quickly he learned the offense.