Round 6 - Iowa LB Jay Higgins
The LA Rams defense needs a top-notch linebacker to pair with former LSU ILB Omar Speights. Iowa insider linebacker Jay Higgins has all of the tough-as-nails qualities needed to offer a solid balance to the team's young and chaos-creating defense. Standing 6-foot-2 and weighing 232 pounds, Higgins is a fireplug of muscle, sinew, and bone, and is charged with twitchiness that is primed to unload on any ball carrier in his vicinity.
In the past two season with Iowa, Jay Higgins has recorded 295 tackles, eight tackles for a loss, five interceptions, 3.0 quarterback sacks, nine pass breakups, three forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. His range is sideline to sideline, and he is a textbook tackler. He is a defensive coordinators eyes, ears, and enforcer on the football field, a natural leader of the defense. He even excels at special teams, a role that will undoubtedly be key to his playing time in 2025.
Higgins is a throw-back type of player to all of the great Rams linebackers of yesteryear, a young man whose respect and passion for the game trigger visions of Rams legendary MLB London Fletcher. With the Rams facing Baltimore Ravens RB Derrick Henry and Philadelphia Eagles RB Saquon Barkley in 2025, Higgins is the logical selection here.
Round 6 - Michigan running back Kalel Mullings
The Rams have shied away from any running backs that stand taller than 5-foot-9, but Michigan running back Kalel Mullings offers enough of what the offense needs to lure the roster out of its comfort zone. Standing 6-foot-2 and weighing 233 pounds, Mullings is a fine complement to the team's elusive runners Kyren Williams and Blake Corum. Better yet, he was Corum's teammate in Michigan in 2022
A former linebacker, Mullings brings an acute awareness of what defenses want to do.
Mullings is a huge running back, and that is a huge difference as to what and who the team has entrusted in their backfield to this point. Curiously, for a huge running back, he touts a 4.62-second 40-yard dash time, just .09 seconds slower than his former teammate, RB Blake Corum. But while he may not have breakaway speed, he is a strong and durable as a Budweiser Clydesdale quarter horse, and has the ability to pound the rock for short yardage and goal line scenarios.
Mullings has only played at the running back position for two seasons, which is why a very productive power back falls to the Rams in Round 6. But with the team adding Michigan TE Colston Loveland and already boasting RB Blake Corum. Kalel Mullings is a logical addition to an offense that needs variety in the offense. And Mullings delivers that.
Round 6 - California CB Nohl Williams
Standing 6-foot-1 and weighing 200 pounds, California rookie prospect Nohl Williams is a solid Day 3 defensive back to select. His size and strength make him ideally suited to cut his teeth in special teams. But his ability to roam the football field and stick to receivers like Velcro will give him a real shot of playing time despite his rookie status.
While he has not attracted much pre-draft hype just yet, you have to love a guy who put up 52 tackles, one tackle for a loss, and seven interceptions, one as a pick-six, in 2024. He even broke up nine passes in his final season with California. And he did all of that within sight of the Rams scouting team.
So how did he stack up at the Shrine Bowl? He was one of the heralded standouts, using his superb size to make solid plays throughout the week:
🚨Shrine Bowl Standout🚨
— SIS Football (@football_sis) January 31, 2025
Nohl Williams continued his excellent play from this year at the Shrine Bowl💪
Williams ranked 2nd among all FBS cornerbacks with 49 Pass Defense Total Points🔒#GoBears pic.twitter.com/PaJX9Qqy4U
The LA Rams are projected to lose veteran CB Ahkello Witherspoon in 2025. But even if the team re-signs him, the Rams could always use more big physical defensive backs in the secondary this season.
Summary
While the actual picks may change with the official awarding of 2025 NFL Draft compensatory picks, we have a pretty good idea of when the Rams will be making selections in the draft in terms of which rounds and how often in each round. So to sum up this Rams mock draft, we have:
- Round 1 - Michigan TE Colston Lovelan
- Round 3 - Texas QB Quinn Ewers
- Round 3 - Oregon OT Ajani Cornelius
- Round 4 - Maryland WR Tai Felton
- Round 6 - Iowa LB Jay Higgins
- Round 6 - Michigan RB Kalel Mullings
- Round 6 - California CB Nowl Williams
Of course, there will be free agency signings before and after the 2025 NFL Draft to round out the Rams roster. With this rookie class, the team addresses both immediate needs plus secures future positional depth. And with the focus on offense, the Rams infuse energy and value into a group that is is desperate need of both.
While an early draft without any trades, I love the haul. This is an early view of how the draft may fall for the Rams, but it's a great haul that leaves plenty of hope on the table.
As always, thanks for reading.