WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. – The Conductor is now a captain.
Rams second-year nose tackle Kobie Turner earned the latter title via a vote from his teammates earlier this week, support that head coach Sean McVay was near-unanimous.
"It sounds really good to me," a smiling Turner said of his newest title following Thursday's practice. "That's always been one of the biggest honors, to be able to have the people who are in there seeing the work that you put in on a day-to-day basis, and have them make the decision that I'm somebody who's worthy of leading this team. So it's really one of the greatest honors I could ever have. And I'm just so grateful for this team to allow me to build into this role, and I'm excited to take it and lead this defense, lead this team to a really good year."
Having a "C" on his uniform now won't change Turner's responsibilities too much, in that it will just require to continue leading in the way he always has, whether that be play-to-play communication, building relationships with teammates in order to be the bridge between coach and player so they can get the job done, and so on.
"And that's something that's already been building up throughout this offseason, being able to talk with coach McVay, with (defensive line coach/run game coordinator) coach Giff (Smith), with (defensive coordinator) coach (Chris) Shula, and to really just be a voice of our guys, and to really lead them and kind of mold the type of energy, the type of team that we want to be. So it's a really huge responsibility, and I'm super excited to carry that."
Like other young Rams players over the last several years, Turner had one of the franchise's greatest leadership examples to learn from in Aaron Donald.
Though Donald led by example, he also knew when to his use his voice, an approach that further amplified the impact of that trait – best displayed the way he carried himself throughout Los Angeles' playoff run during its 2021 Super Bowl LVI-winning season.
Still, Donald's actions were powerful because of the standard they set for the rest of the team.
"He's really vocal when he needs to be, but he was always one of those guys that was just, 'follow me, and if my example is worth following, then other people will,'" Turner said. "And so that's kind of what I've taken from him is, 'okay, make sure that my example is worth following. Not only is it gonna bring me success, but if I'm doing something that other guys want to follow along, then I can encourage them and bring them into my process, and have them gain success as well.'"
Defensive back and fellow captain Quentin Lakepointed to Turner being able to be around Donald when asked what makes Turner's leadership special.
"Being around that elite caliber (of a player and leader), I mean, all you can do is elevate, all you can do is become a great player," Lake said. "And I think that's exactly what he did. The same reason why I got voted captain, obviously, is the same reason why he got voted captain, too – a young pro, a professional. We have a lot of professionals, he's a young professional. Obviously he's a grown man, but when you come into this building, we have so many professionals that carry themselves the right way, are respected by not only the coaches, but the players and the staff."
The best compliment given to Turner – that has continued to be repeated – is how secure he is in being himself. That authenticity and engaging personality has helped him seamlessly connect with teammates since he arrived in Los Angeles, and no doubt contributed to the honor bestowed upon him going into Year 2.
"There was a lot of support, almost unanimously for him, and I wasn't surprised," McVay said. "But he's got a nice natural way about himself [and is] incredibly secure in himself. I also think when you are knighted by your teammates, that almost empowers you a little bit more where you get that affirmation."
