No team has repeated since the 2003 and 2004 New England Patriots. With the LA Rams facing the Bills in Thursday Night Football’s season opener, is it realistic to expect the Rams to repeat their 2022 Super Bowl success this season?
When Aaron Donald and the LA Rams beat Joe Burrow and the Cincinatti Bengals in the Super Bowl, that team not only ended a twenty-year drought by winning the elusive second Super Bowl for the Rams franchise, but also created huge. new expectations for the future.
Namely, can the Rams repeat their success in 2022/23?
Obviously, the simple answer is to say, “Yes, of course they can. They are the reigning NFC and Super Bowl champions. They brought back Aaron Donald, signed future Hall-Of-Famer LB Bobby Wagner, and singed All-Pro WR Allen Robinson. They’ve only gotten stronger in the offseason, not weaker like most Super Bowl champions.”
And I would be hard-pressed to argue with that logic. The Rams had the 9th best overall defense coming (according to PFF) out of the 2021 regular season, they have the greatest defensive player in NFL history (this Super Bowl win proves it), Aaron Donald, on their team, and they have the best cornerback, Jalen Ramsay, in the league too.
And, as mentioned, Seattle Seahawks legend, Bobby Wagner, was signed to a 5-year, $50M contract back in April.
Plus, the Rams offense wasn’t so bad either, with QB Matthew Stafford throwing for 4,886 yards and 41 TDs and WR Cooper Kupp winning the NFL Triple Crown as he led the league in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns.
Yet, the Rams did lose some very valuable pieces this offseason, such as LB Von Miller, P Johnny Hekker, WR Odell Beckham Jr., G Austin Corbert, and CB Darious Williams that may hamper their potency.
Nevertheless, what Rams fans should fear more than the valuable pieces they lost this season is their much-improved NFC rivals. In particular, the San Francisco 49ers, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Philadelphia Eagles, and the Green Bay Packers.
The 49ers and Eagles have dramatically improved their rosters, with the 49ers benching Jimmy Garoppolo for Trey Lance and the eagles acquiring WR AJ Brown for Jalen Hurts, while Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers return to the Buccaneers and Packers, respectively, instantly turned both of these teams back into contenders.
Moreover, with the Rams only defeating the Buccaneers by a last-second field goal in the Divisional Round, and the 49ers by a touchdown in the NFC Conference Championship, both these teams clearly showed they were more than capable of not only competing with the Rams, but also beat them.
Personally, I think the “Super Bowl” hangover will affect the Rams this season, causing them to have a drop off in play and their record. It wouldn’t shock me if the Rams finished behind either the 49ers or Cardinals in the NFC West Division, thus consigning them as a road team throughout the playoffs. And that is a whole other challenge on in its own right.
However, I could be completely wrong, and the Rams could excel with their new pieces and additions on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball. We’ll see this Thursday night against Buffalo Bills, who will also be coming to end their Super Bowl reign too.
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