Written By Ken Hulsey
I've been glued to the NFL Draft for the last three days and I can now talk briefly about the Rams picks. First off, anyone who thinks that they can predict what Les Snead, Sean McVay and company are going to do on draft day is a fool. History has proven that they are as unpredictable as any Vegas slot machine. Everything and anything is on the table. You can bet on a couple of things: they will draft a Running Back and a Wide Receiver at some point during any given draft. When and where is anybody's guess. Beyond that, it's a fun ride for sure.
What did the Rams really need out of the 2025 NFL Draft? A Cornerback, Middle Linebacker and some Offensive Line depth. So, naturally, the Rams trade out of the first round, then select Oregon Tight End Terrance Ferguson with the 46th pick in the second round. No one saw that coming, but to be fair, the Rams have been hunting for a playmaking Tight End for a couple of years now. I didn't know much about Ferguson until I reviewed the tape. Watching the collection of his work at Oregon, all I could see was Travis Kelce. He does everything that Kelce does; he gets open underneath and turns it up field for a first down. This is the blueprint for what every successful modern Tight End does. With Adams and Nacua drawing tons of attention, I can see Ferguson gobbling up a lot of catches and yards in this offense. This was a great pick.
After drafting Jared Verse and Byron Young in consecutive years, you would think that the Rams were set on the outside, but you would be wrong. In the third round, the Rams selected Michigan Edge Rusher Josiah Stewart. This again seemed like a bizarre pick until you look at the tape. Stewart has a relentless motor and is a player who attacks on defense. With the recent departure of Michael Hoecht in free agency (Buffalo), Stewart is primed to fill in as the hybrid Edge Rusher/Blitzing Middle Linebacker role that defensive coordinator Chris Shula utilized on numerous occasions in 2024. Again, a surprise pick, but an understandable one.
Now, in the fourth round comes my favorite pick of the entire 2025 draft for the Rams: Auburn Running Back Jarquez Hunter. This, too, seems like a strange pick that looks to be an unnecessary selection. The Rams already have a crowded room of rushers led by Kyren Williams and last year's third-round pick Blake Corum. For the last few years, I have been pounding the table urging the Rams to acquire a rusher who has some big-play ability. If anyone has watched the Rams since Sean McVay took over as coach, it is blatantly obvious that his offense was its most effective when it had Todd Gurley breaking off big plays both on the ground and through the air. It's a dimension that this offense hasn't had since Gurley left the team.
In the post-Gurley years, the Rams have featured a bunch of ground pounders who can get you chunks of yardage, four or five yards at a time, but no one who could rip off any sort of long touchdown run. Williams is no exception. He's good at getting chunk plays and has a nose for finding the endzone, which is fine, but he's not going to scare many defensive coordinators. It should also be noted that Williams has a horrible habit of losing the ball at the worst possible time. Hunter has all the traits that Gurley once brought to this offense. If you look at his highlights at Auburn, you can see it. He sees the hole, bursts through it, and steps on the gas. He's fast, really fast, and he is a threat to break off a touchdown run on any given play. This is what Gurley did, and now the Rams have added that element again. Williams is in a contract year, and if Hunter performs like he did at Auburn, then he may take over as RB1 in this offense. To be honest, Hunter has a skillset that Williams simply doesn't have.
To round things out, the Rams went on to select Ohio State defensive tackle Ty Hamilton (again a surprise because of the players the team already has), Old Miss linebacker Chris Paul Jr., which looks like a steal at this point in the draft, and finally, in round seven, Pitt receiver Konata Mumpfield, who from the tape looks like a poor man's Cooper Kupp (don't get me wrong, there will never be another Cooper Kupp). The dude just gets open and catches everything thrown at him. He's not fast, he's not big, he just gets open and makes plays. Not a bad gamble for a seventh-round pick. Let's see if he pans out or not. Overall, I think that this was a great draft for the Rams.
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