Rams WR Demarcus Robinson proving to be a reliable option
THOUSAND OAKS — The ball sailed high, where only the receiver could get it. But even that felt like a stretch given its placement. But Demarcus Robinson extended and somehow got his hands up to make the completion on third-and-two.
They were the kind of plays that Robinson made routinely in training camp, a little over four months ago. But he hadn’t gotten much of an opportunity during the Rams’ first nine games of the season to showcase that ability for the public at large, with a single catch for 15 yards.
Since the Rams’ bye, however, Robinson has become a larger part of the offense. In four games, he has 11 catches for 138 yards and two touchdowns, including one last weekend in a game against his old team, the Baltimore Ravens.
“You never know when the opportunity is going to come, so I just be staying ready for it,” Robinson said. “I think that’s who I am. Just my ability comes out whenever that opportunity comes, whenever the pass or a ball is like that, it just comes out of me.”
Quarterback Matthew Stafford said it’s been Robinson’s ability to create separation that has led to him becoming a more frequent target of the veteran quarterback these past four weeks.
“He’s doing a nice job at the top of routes winning, made some contested catches,” Stafford said. “Obviously that third-down catch was a huge one early in the game down the sideline, big play in the two-minute drive. Obviously, the touchdown was a great kind of scramble mode, secondary adjustment. He’s done a really nice job of separating, making plays, and just being himself, which is great.”
New operation
With long snapper Alex Ward heading onto injured reserve with a neck injury this week, the Rams have spent this week onboarding veteran Carson Tinker into their punt and field goal operations.
Tinker has some familiarity with the Rams, having spent the end of the 2021 season on their practice squad and receiving a Super Bowl ring following the team’s championship. But the Rams have a rookie punter in Ethan Evans who also serves as the holder for place kicking, so Tinker has to learn a new teammate.
“[Wednesday] was a big day just to get acclimated to the operation procedures for field goals, for punts, the cadences, block protections, all that stuff he did really well,” special teams coordinator Chase Blackburn said. “Not a huge change for him, not a big deal. He’s been in these moments before. He has played a long time and played some meaningful football late in seasons, so feel really confident about where he’s at.”
Injury report
Rams right tackle Rob Havenstein (groin) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game against the Washington Commanders. Havenstein did not participate in any of the Rams’ three practices this week, and head coach Sean McVay said he was genuinely uncertain whether the veteran offensive lineman would be able to play.
“You’re taking it a day at a time with those soft tissues with the groin,” McVay said. “Because he’s such a veteran, you’re definitely going to run the risk of further exposing him to maybe any sort of setback. But we’re going to use all the time necessary to see if he’s a go for us.”
Veteran Joe Noteboom would be the starter at right tackle if Havenstein is not able to play. Rookie Warren McClendon is a likely candidate to be active Sunday as the Rams’ eighth lineman.
Meanwhile, receiver Tutu Atwell (concussion) is also questionable for Sunday. He took part in individual drills Thursday and Friday after not participating in Wednesday’s practice.
“He has not cleared the full protocol quite yet,” McVay said. “There are still some steps that he needs to be able to go through and then we’ll see where we’re at if that’s taken care of.”