5 forgotten about players who could earn larger roles in 2025

We've talked at length about the usual suspects who always seem to command attention from the national sports media when discussing the Los Angeles Rams and the players on the team. We all know that the team intends to trade veteran wide receiver Cooper Kupp immediately. If no team expresses interest, the Rams are almost certain to release Kupp before his $7.5 million roster bonus comes due in mid-March.

Of course, there are the rapidly igniting NFL rumors burning around Matthew Stafford, and whether or not that will translate into the offense having a minor makeover, or a complete overhaul this offseason. I would love for Matthew Stafford to come back for one more run at the Lombardi Trophy, but the data points are not exactly trending in that direction. That led me to sit down, list out the pros and cons, and come up with my 10 boldest predictions for the LA Rams ever.

Even now, I hope that I'm wrong on more than one of those predictions.

But an NFL Championship takes more than a handful of headline names to make a season work. It takes a huge helping of luck, durability, strategy, and roster depth. And that applies to any team hoping to hoist a Lombardi Trophy at the end of their season. What I appreciate about the Rams roster, and the way that GM Les Snead approaches reconstructing the team each season, is that he works the roster from top to bottom to ensure that the team has the best players who make the most sense and are the best fits for what the team wants to do.

To that end, here are five forgotten players who will not be mentioned in the offseason, but who prove to play huge rules for the Rams in 2025. They are:

(5) - IOL Justin Dedich

When the LA Rams signed undrafted USC rookie interior offensive lineman Justin Dedich, my first thought was his signing added competition to the team's backup center role. But after the team faced injuries to both Steve Avila and Jonah Jackson, and a third failed attempt by IOL Logan Bruss to compete at the NFL level, Dedich became far more valuable to the team.

In 205 offensive snaps for the Rams in 2024, Dedich committed one penalty and allowed no quarterback sacks. He has a ways to go to compete for a starting role in 2025, but his performance was promising. And with his promotion to an NFL starter for multiple games, the Rams second-year offensive lineman has a solid foundation of experience to guide his second training camp. At least, he will be a solid backup. At best, he could compete for a starting role.

(4) - DB Jaylen McCollough

The Rams were not exactly driven to draft defensive backs in the 2024 NFL Draft, but signing Tennessee strong safety Jaylen McCollough after the draft ended more than made up for it. The Rams were very eager to add McCollough, even to the point of giving him a rare $15,000 signing bonus to sign with the team. And based on his first season in this defense, that was still a bargain.

McCollough appeared in all 17 games, starting once. He was a rotational player, getting action for 335 defensive snaps. But he made those snaps count. Despite his limited defensive role, McCollough led the team with four interceptions, tying rookie Kamren Kinchens in that department. In many ways, McCollough is a prime example of how the Rams remain so competitive, as his performance exceeded even the most optimistic projections in 2024.

The team has a glut of solid safeties right now, including Kamren Curl, Quentin Lake, Kamren Kinchens, and soon-to-be free agent veteran John Johnson III. But to be honest, Jaylen McCollough plays and looks the part of an NFL starting defensive back. And after his surprisingly effective rookie season, I expect he will earn an even larger role in 2025.

(3) - CB Emmanuel Forbes

When the LA Rams claimed cornerback Emmanuel Forbes off the Washington Commanders waiver wire, the sense among many fans who expressed an opinion on the move seemed to gravitate towards 'Why not?'. A former Round 1 selection of the Commanders, Forbes never seemed to quite work out. The intriguing part was not that he struggled to compete for playing time on the Commanders' defense, but that they would release him just 1.5 years into his NFL career.

Because the Rams had struggled to swell the ranks at the cornerback position with healthy players, Forbes was worth claiming to see if he might offer the Rams defense some support. Forbes was very limited to his participation in the secondary because he arrived mid-season. He did start for the Rams in Week 18. In that game, he made five tackles and did manage to break up one pass. He allowed three of five passes to find their mark, resulting in a 60 percent completion rate. Perhaps it was the rust of not playing until that final game of the season, but he missed two tackles, which was a missed tackle rate of 28.6 percent.

Forbes has NFL height, standing 6-foot-0. But his listed weight of 180 pounds is alarming, and it shows when he steps onto the football field. He simply does not have the appearance of a defender who can match the required physicality and durability necessary for a starter. Is it simply a matter of hitting the gym and putting on more muscle mass? I don't know. You'd have to think that the Rams and the Commanders had pointed out the need to bulk up.

If he shows up a bit bigger in 2025, I can see him competing for a larger role in the secondary. The Rams have limited players on the roster currently at the cornerback position.

(2) - IOL Jonah Jackson

When the LA Rams signed veteran interior offensive lineman Jonah Jackson in 2024, the plan did not seem to be thought through. While Jackson brought a formidable NFL resume to the Rams last season, he was the starting left guard for the Detroit Lions. To accomodate Jackson's projected arrival, the team cross-trained Steve Avila to play center. When that didn't pan out,t he team reversed course and restored Avila to left guard, and began to cross-train Jackson at center.

When the season began, both Avila and Jackson were injured, forcing the Rams to promote rookie center Beaux Limmer to the starting center. With the exception of one game., Limmer locked down the starting center role for the entirety of the 2024 NFL season. But throughout the 2024 training camp for the Rams, Jonah Jackson was hampered by injuries, a new team, a new offense, and a host of other variable that he fought to overcome.

In 2025, Jackson has a new season, a better focus of where the Rams need him to play, and the understanding that he has an opportunity to unseat Beaux Limmer as the starting center. While even I am unwilling to anoint Jonah Jackson as a 2025 starter, I would recommend that fans prepare for fierce competition in training camp.

(1) - OT K.T. Leveston

When the LA Rams selected Kansas State offensive tackle KT Leveston in Round 7 of the 2024 NFL Draft with the 254th overall pick, the value of Leveston on this roster was never quite established. You see, Leveston was injured and entered the season on the team's Injured Reserve/Designated to Return list. The thing is, the team never activated him from IR. But in the 2024 NFL Draft, Leveston falling to the Rams in Round 7 was a pretty big deal. Some draft profiles projected him to hear his name as early as Round 4.

The truth is that most of Leveston's work and information comes from the weeks leading up to the 2024 NFL Draft., At the time, he was a solid prospect in a very talented and deep offensive tackle position. As is often the case, some draft analysts cited Leveston standing at a height of 6-foot-4 and projected him as an NFL offensive guard.

The Rams view him as an offensive tackle.

The Rams struggled in 2024 to mix and match offensive linemen throughout the season, and Leveston missed out on a golden opportunity to gain valuable experience with the team. Despite losing all of 2024 on IR, Leveston did get to experience mini-camp, OTAs, training camp, and preseason with the team.

When the Rams selected him in Round 7, we noted that Leveston was a solid get for the team that had suffered the loss of three offensive linemen in the offseason. The question is, what does Leveston bring to the table in Year 2 after sitting out all of 2024? That remains to be seen.

The hardest part of competing for a role on the offensive line as a rookie is the sheer lack of unfamiliarity. For the most part, all of that is behind Leveston. This season, he simply has to show up and go to work. With a better focus, a solid action plan, and a mindset that loves the grind, Leveston is someone to not only keep on your radar but also look for positive reports about when the team regroups for 2025.

As always, thanks for reading.

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