Curl, who the Rams recently re-signed to a three-year deal, could be one of the main beneficiaries of those additions.
"I think it really unlocks Curl to really be that Joker or that enforcer that he really was at the back half of the year when they really just started blitzing him a lot more," Alexander said. "Because anytime you are going to drop a safety into the box... you are going to put stress on your corners."
McDuffie and Watson can handle that stress, which also frees up inside linebacker Nate Landman and safety/star Quentin Lake to be more versatile. It opens to door for more blitzes as well as simulated pressures (where a lineman drops back and a linebacker or defensive back rushes). Both former Chiefs blitz often and are fierce rushers out of the secondary.
Among cornerbacks with 20-plus tackle attempts last season, McDuffie registered the fourth-lowest missed tackle rate in the league (4.5%) and Watson had the 10th-lowest (7.2%), according to Next Gen Stats. The Rams' only cornerback with a sub-10% missed tackle rate was Darious Williams at 7.4%, who recently retired. Watson said in his introductory press conference that tackling, specifically in the run game, is all about having the right mindset, and it's one he and McDuffie both share.
"You either want to or you don't," Watson said. "You tell yourself you can't (tackle), you're right. You tell yourself you can, and you're right. So I just go out there, put my head down. This is football, it's a physical sport, and just be physical. Put violence on tape."
In the pass game, that violence is accentuated when corners can put hands on receivers early in the route, specifically within five yards of the line of scrimmage to avoid a penalty.
The Chiefs ran the highest rate of outside press coverage in the league last season at 45.8% so Watson and McDuffie could do just that. The Rams ran it just 22.9% of the time, ranking 17th, according to Next Gen Stats. This is not necessarily an indication that the Rams will suddenly become the one of the most press-heavy secondaries in the league, but it likely warrants an increase in that smothering style on the outside.
While neither player explicitly said how their previous usage might dictate their roles with L.A., they both indicated that Rams coaches are excited to implement skills they've prized in the past.
"They love what I have to offer for the team and I'm ready to put it on tape and get to work," Watson said.
"I told them when they're like, 'Where do you want to play?' I'm like, 'Put me in a position where we succeed and I'm ready to go,'" McDuffie added. "I'm definitely excited to do some unique things."
Then there's the question of whether McDuffie will play in the slot or outside. He's done both at a high level in the NFL, and he's ready to do both, either or more with the Rams.
"It doesn't matter where you put me. I'll play safety, I'll put my hand in the dirt if I have to," McDuffie said. "I hope I don't have to, but truly I'm out here wanting to play ball. No matter where you put me, I'm going to work day in and day out to make sure that I do my job at a very high level."
Alexander's thought process was that McDuffie could be used as a chess piece of sorts. The Rams played the highest rate of dime in the league last year (six defensive backs) at 32.4%. In those packages, McDuffie and Lake could both play inside, giving the Rams two versatile defensive backs on the interior who can rush the passer and defend the run as well as the pass.
The versatile All-Pro could also help the Rams match up against 21, 12 and 13 personnel sets out of smaller defensive packages like nickel, which was a calling card of the 2025 Super Bowl-champion Seahawks.
However the Rams choose to deploy Watson and McDuffie, they will bring a different skill set that can complement and even elevate the rest of this defense.