Michael Sam not expected to make St. Louis Rams roster?

The St. Louis Rams have the league’s most dominant defensive line, and the defensive end duo of Robert Quinn and Chris Long is absolutely unreal, with Quinn already one of the most dominant pass rushers in recent memory. Beyond those guys, the Rams have plenty of competition at other spots, with Ethan Westbrooks looking especially impressive at times.

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Well-connected NFL insider Mike Silver of the NFL Network tweets that he does not expect Rams rookie defensive end Michael Sam to make the team’s 53-man roster, but he “absolutely” believes that the seventh-round pick can latch on elsewhere. Sam is optimistic of his chances of making the 53-man after surviving the Rams initial cuts on the deep defensive line, but ESPN NFL Nation’s Nick Wagoner also has Sam on the outside looking in with the likes of Westbrooks ahead of him on his projected roster.

Sam definitely does deserve a spot on someone’s roster, because he’s looked like a capable rotational pass rusher in the preseason. He isn’t a dominant player and has a “tweener” build, but he’s capable of exploding off the snap and finishing plays. The Missouri product does a nice job of getting sacks and brings intensity in “bursts”, so he should be able to find sub-package work somewhere. It’s just that the Rams depth chart up front is too deep for him.

That said, I think he has a 50-50 chance of sticking around in St. Louis, because he did show up well this year. All eyes will be on where he ends up next, and I’m honestly conflicted when it comes to wanting him to be cut. I don’t want him to have to go through the process of getting released, but I also want him to end up somewhere where he can get more playing time.