Kevin Dotson has re-signed with the Los Angeles Rams. The starting right guard, who was picked by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2020 NFL Draft and traded to the Rams in 2023, agreed to a three-year, $48 million contract. Dotson is 27 years old. He stands 6’4″ and weighs 321 pounds.
Adam Schefter, ESPN’s NFL Insider, tweeted the huge news.
According to Yahoo Sports News, at $16 million per year, Dotson will be the eighth-highest paid guard in the NFL, tied with Joel Bitonio and Joe Thuney. Chris Lindstrom leads the market with $20.5 million.
Dotson’s Breakout Season in 2023.
Dotson, who played college football for the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns, started 14 games for the Rams in 2023. He received the second-best PFF rating among the 79 eligible guards in the NFL. (The PFF ratings are described below.)
According to NBC Los Angeles, Dotson “became one of the NFL’s top-rated guards and a pillar of the Rams’ offence last season after they acquired him from Pittsburgh during training camp.” During the 2023 season, Dotson succeeded as a run-blocker with only two penalties. He allowed only four sacks this season.
As a result, Dotson’s reputation is improving. He is receiving increasing recognition, in addition to the contract he recently signed with the Rams.
Dotson is not alone on his rising trajectory. His teammates on the Rams’ offensive line are joining him in displaying impressive abilities.
The Los Angeles Rams offensive line
Here’s an overview of the Rams’ starting offensive line:
Left tackle: Alaric Jackson.
Left Guard: Steve Avila
Coleman Shelton in the centre
Right Guard: Kevin Dotson.
Right tackle: Rob Havenstein.
In a recent essay, offensive line analyst Dan Fornek (a former offensive lineman for the University of Dayton) examined the strength of the Rams’ offensive line.
Despite lacking NFL experience, the Rams offensive line proved to be one of the strongest in the league during the 2023 season. This led to a renaissance for Matthew Stafford and established Kyren Williams as a standout backfield player. The right side of the offensive line has been especially impressive, with Kevin Dotson and Rob Havenstein allowing only five sacks and 42 pressures in 465 pass-blocking snaps. Dotson, in particular, has been a revelation since his arrival from the Steelers. He is PFF’s No. 2 overall guard in 2023.
Pro Football Focus (PFF) is a sports analytics organization that has developed an authorized technique for ranking and comparing NFL players and teams.
Elite: 90–100.
Pro Bowler: 1985-1989
Starter: 70–84
Backup: 60–69.
Replaceable: 0–59
The PFF ratings and scores are calculated based on “[e]very player’s and team’s performance, on every play, of every game, [which are] tracked throughout the entire NFL season.”
Dotson’s overall PFF rating for 2023 is 85.2, which puts him in the Pro Bowler group.
Overall, PFF graded the 2023 Rams offensive line as “great” but not elite. Only the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles had their offensive lines rated as elite. The Eagles’ offensive line is set to lose that designation with Jason Kelce’s departure.
On March 7, 2024, the Washington Post published the following regarding the Rams’ re-signing of Dotson:
Dotson and rookie left guard Steve Avila significantly improved the Rams’ offence [in 2023], moving them from 25th to 11th in the NFL in rushing yards while allowing only 2.0 sacks per game to Matthew Stafford, who was sacked 3.2 times a game in 2022.
Prior to his rookie season with the Rams, Avila was a consensus All-American at TCU.
With Dotson and Avila under contract for the next few years, the Rams have two veterans on the offensive line. They both excel in run blocking. “Whether the Rams want to run inside or out, they’re both big and athletic enough to move defenders and create big holes.”
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