Why Rams' Kobie Turner is On the Rise

Kobie Turner is entering his third season with the Los Angeles Rams, after the Rams drafted him in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft. He increased his total tackles from one season to the next, while appearing in every Rams game during that time.

He has started 20 games, including 16 last season.

As he enters the critical third year of his rookie contract, Turner noted a few of the lessons he has learned since entering the league during the team's pre-draft press conference. As his production has increased, so has the attention and respect opposing teams have given him.

"I started to learn it a little bit in the middle of last year as well. There are certain teams that give you a certain level of respect and certain teams that don't. There were times when I'd go into a game expecting the attention that I got in the game before, but then boom, I'm getting one-on ones. It's always staying ready for those one-on-one opportunities," Turner said.

Turner plays with other, more notable, defensive linemen, yet he is regularly double teamed by opponents. He elaborated on his growth as an interior defensive lineman in his first two seasons in the NFL. The up-and-coming lineman knows he will only continue to see more double-teams.

"The reason why I'm here is to be able to go and win my one-on-one matchups and also to be able to make the most out of my double-team opportunities. It comes down to knowing my role, knowing in every position what role I have to play to be able to help the team thrive, and then there are a lot of situations  where I have an opportunity," Turner said.

"Just by knowing the defense, each guy gets written up a certain amount of opportunities. There are times where maybe [OLB Jared] Verse has a 'two-way go'. There are times when I'm set as a penetrator and that's my 'op' [opportunity]."

The Rams are trying to assemble a championship roster. In what is the ultimate team game, every team needs players like Turner who are not overly concerned with accolades and attention but are still willing to contribute in ways that do and do not show up on a stat sheet.

"You get the opportunity to be able to make plays by knowing your role. When those double teams do come, being able to know based off the look that we present, what types of blocks I can get and if I'm going to get double-teamed, who does that free up and what leverage do I have to play with to be able to allow that person to fully thrive," Turner asked.

"A lot of times when I have that knowledge and when we as a defensive front have that knowledge and are able to play to our leverage, win to our leverage, or even at times if you're losing, lose to your leverage, that allows other people to be able to make plays."

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