5 Rams UDFAs are forcing their names into conversations ahead of training camp

IOL Willie Lampkin - #62

The Rams front office tries to address all positions possible in the NFL draft, but sometimes the shopping list exhausts the team's draft picks before all of the roster additions are checked off the list. And that can work out in the Rams' favor, as this team has a sneaky good track record of signing guys to the roster after the draft that other teams simply have no interest in. And North Carolina rookie interior offensive lineman prospect Willie Lampkin is a perfect example.

Listed as standing 5-foot-11 and weighing 290 pounds, you are almost certainly wondering how he can sustain the physicality required to block much larger defensive linemen consistently enough to warrant a chance to compete with the team in training camp. But once you check out his video footage from blocking in college, it becomes obvious.

Willie Lampkin can play some serious football.

Willie Lampkin is the type of player that GM Les Snead describes as someone who can play the video game Frogger at a faster pace. Lampkin played three seasons for Coastal Carolina before transferring to play two seasons for North Carolina. Despite getting dinged for his vertical limitations, Lampkin continued to be projected as a Day 3 rookie prospect who fell out of the draft. Now, he has a chance to compete as a backup for a Rams offensive line that will certainly afford him every chance to impress.

Lampkin may not tower over his teammates, but he has been blessed with three things that give him a distinct advantage as training camp nears. His first advantage is his naturally low center of gravity. Like a fireplug, Lampkin can dig in his heels and seemingly be powered by the very earth itself. That makes him extremely difficult to shove aside.

His second advantage is his long wingspan. He measures 78.5 inches from fingertip to fingertip. While not as long as many offensive linemen, and less than NT Poona Ford, it affords Lampkin enough leverage to maintain blocks with defenders that are both sustainable and effective.

While he may seem a bit unorthodox, Lampkin brings a great deal of versatility and experience with him. As cited by Pats Pulpit author Bernd Buchmasser:

"Between his (Willie Lampkin) time at Coastal Carolina and UNC, Lampkin played 1,712 snaps at left guard, 1,473 at right guard, and 937 at center. Besides being able to line up everywhere along the interior O-line, he also might be a candidate to see snaps at fullback at the next level: he has the size and moving skills to make it work. "

Bernd Buchmasser

Now, about that third advantage. Willie Lampkin has an indomitable spirit, a passion-fueled destiny to take his football career as far as he can, even as so many naysayers continue to tell him that it's an impossible dream.

Rams GM Les Snead may not live in a lamp, and he may not be a genie. But he does have enough magic to perhaps grant Willie Lampkin his wish of competing in the NFL.

LB Shaun Dolac - #56

The pre-draft buzz that surrounded Buffalo University inside linebacker Shaun Dolac may have happened thousands of miles away, but as soon as the Rams signed the collegiate free agent to a contract after the draft concluded, social media was quick to share the euphoria over Dolac's football career upgrading to the next level.

Standing 6-foot-1 and weighing 225 pounds, Dolac checks in comparatively with teammates Tony Fields II (6-foot-0, 222 pounds), Omar Speights (6-foot-1, 228 pounds), and Pooh Paul Jr. (6-foot-0, 222 pounds. So pay no heed to the mention in draft profiles that Dolac is undersized. Not by the Rams' standards for the position.

Much like the collegiate career of former Georgia QB Stetson Bennett, Shaun Dolac wowed the Buffalo Bulls fans by ascending from a walk-on to become the star of the defense. In 2024, Dolac recorded 168 tackles, 6.5 quarterback sacks, five pass deflections, five interceptions with one as a pick-six, and 19 tackles for a loss.

That was just one season of work.

Of course, many NFL teams viewed Dolac's production as simply a better-than-average player feasting on below-average competition, and they may have a point.

But it was not as though Dolac was simply a tackling machine. With five interceptions and 6.5 quarterback sacks to go with it, Dolac arrives with an expansive versatility that is limited only by a defensive coordinator's imagination. And DC Chris Shula has proven repeatedly to think outside of the box.

Of course, the Rams have a very talented roster, and it could turn out that the numbers game simply does not work out for anyone listed here. But you may be shocked at how well these overlooked rookies turn out.

As always, thanks for reading.

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