The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue said RB Xavier Jones "may quietly be one of the Rams’ better assets this fall," depending on Darrell Henderson's health.
Barring a splashy free agent signing -- a distinct possibility after the Rams lost Cam Akers to an Achilles injury -- Jones could be the next guy up after Henderson, the default No. 1 back following the Akers injury. Henderson has struggled through injuries in his two NFL seasons, missing four games and parts of others with a variety of minor injuries. Jones, 24 in August, is an undrafted free agent out of Southern Methodist University (SMU) who recorded nearly 1,300 rushing yards and 23 rushing scores in his final collegiate season. Rodrigue said Akers' season-ending injury almost guarantees seventh-round rookie RB Jake Funk -- an analytics darling -- will make the Rams' final roster. Funk, 23, suffered two ACL injuries and a broken hand in college, limiting his opportunity at Maryland, where he gained 7.2 yards per carry on 135 attempts. Henderson missing time in 2021 could open up opportunities for Jones and Funk, both of whom will be highly coveted by Zero RB drafters this summer.
RELATED:
Cam Akers
, Darrell Henderson
, Jake Funk
SOURCE: The Athletic
Jul 21, 2021, 9:00 AM ET