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Lindsey ThiryESPN
THOUSAND OAKS, California. – The Los Angeles Rams have acquired Sony Michel from the New England Patriots to add much-needed depth to the back-runner position.
New England received two conditional draft picks – one in the fifth round and another in the sixth – in the deal, which the Rams announced Wednesday morning.
Michel meets the Rams ’immediate need, who will play the season without rising star Cam Akers after breaking his right Achilles tendon while working out before training camp.
In the absence of Akers, Darrell Henderson Jr. has taken over as a starter, but the Rams have no depth behind the third-year professional.
Second-year professional Xavier Jones, an unrecruited free agent in 2020, and seventh-round debutant Jake Funk, have competed throughout the preseason in hopes of proving they could take the place.
At the start of the training camp, coach Sean McVay said the Rams would give their backs a wide chance to compete for the job, but left open the possibility that the team could seek outside help as it approaches. the start of the season.
Asked this week if Jones and Funk had shown during two preseason games that they could be ready for Week 1 against the Chicago Bears on Sept. 12, McVay said the Rams were in the process of finding out.
“We have some time,” McVay said. “Darrell is a guy who’s been established and he’s done some good things. But I liked both of them.”
Henderson suffered a slight thumb sprain in practice on Monday, but returned to practice on Tuesday with a cast or protection that protected his left hand.
A fourth-year professional, Michel has run for 2,292 yards and 14 touchdowns in 28 starts for the Patriots, who incorporated him into the first round with the 31st pick in 2018.
In a 13-3 victory over the Rams in Super Bowl LIII, Michel rushed for 94 yards and a touchdown over 18 runs.
Michel will have to earn a base salary of $ 1.79 million in the final year of his contract in 2021 after the Patriots previously chose not to exercise his fifth-year option for 2022. This preseason had received rave reviews from the Patriots executive coach Ivan Fears. , with Fears saying he had “increased his overall game”.
“I’ve always liked him as a runner, but now he’s shown us that he can also play in the passing game and be very effective,” Fears said. “He’s had a good camp.”
Last season, Michel missed six games when he was left on the injured reserve after week 3 due to a quadriceps injury. In nine games, he ran for 449 yards and a touchdown over 79 runs. In a 24-3 loss to the Rams, Michel rushed for 22 yards in seven runs.
The Patriots have gone through training camp with a six-run surplus, including third-year professional Damien Harris, who took over from Michel last season, and veteran James White.
The Patriots ’surplus when it comes to running has been a hot topic at camp: Harris, Michel, White, fourth-round coach Rhamondre Stevenson, lie JJ Taylor and veteran special teams player Brandon Bolden at the depth table, and the probability that the team would keep a maximum of five players in position.
Last week, coach Bill Belichick said, “Everyone has had opportunities and they have been positive. The competition brings out the best in all of us. It’s a fantastic situation.”
ESPN’s Mike Reiss contributed to this report.