The Los Angeles Rams have slowly built their defense over Chris Shula’s two years as defensive coordinator, shaping this new era in their own way following Aaron Donald’s retirement in 2024. While the unit has had its ups and downs, they have quickly formed one of the more formidable forces in the league, especially after adding Myles Garrett, Trent McDuffie, and Jaylen Watson this offseason.
However, Shula’s scheme has had a massive hole. That is their ability to defend against the underneath passing attack, made popular by coaches like Kyle Shanahan.
The 49ers head coach has torched the Rams’ defense when given an equal playing field. A big reason for this is his use of speedy receivers on underneath routes, with the effectiveness of the attack poking holes in the rest of Shula’s defense.
Jauan Jennings and Kendrick Bourne had career days in 2024 and 2025, for example.
The Rams’ roster moves should have fixed that hole in theory, but for the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, they have the code to crack the Rams’ defense once again.
Rashid Shaheed leads the way
Seahawks speedster Rashid Shaheed turned the tide of the NFL last season when his punt return for a touchdown against the Rams sparked a 16-point comeback victory in Week 16, which would lead to the Seahawks taking the division and No. 1 seed from Los Angeles. The Rams would lose the NFC Championship Game in Seattle as a result.
The Seahawks also replaced outgoing offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak with former 49ers assistant Brian Fleury, and early reports indicate Fleury is setting Shaheed up to be a weapon that attacks the Rams’ biggest weakness.
“Rashid Shaheed, we know he’s fast, he had a major spring, I was told,” reports ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. “He and Sam Darnold are hitting it off. They’re going to give more – some of those routes you saw that Jaxon Smith-Njigba was running so well last year. He’ll still do those, but they’re going to give more short-to-intermediate stuff to Rashid Shaheed. He’s going to be a big-time player for them.”
Fowler also stated that Seattle will have more motions and shifts within their offense and that Darnold is comfortable with the addition. Fleury and Darnold worked together in San Francisco during the 2023 season.
It’s also important to note that Shaheed will not become a big-time player. That’s because he’s already one of the NFL’s best. He is a more versatile Tyreek Hill and he has only been limited by opportunities. He was on an awful Saints team for years, and by the time he got to Seattle, Smith-Njigba was already the established threat in that scheme.
With a new system and a preseason to implement it, Shaheed will shine next season, and the Rams need to pray that their roster was the issue in 2025. If it was due to the scheme, the Rams will be in trouble.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Seahawks WR Rashid Shaheed could expose crack in Rams’ new-look defense
Reporting by Brock Vierra, Rams Wire / Rams Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Brock Vierra, Rams Wire | USA TODAY Network
