LA Rams post Week 8 mock draft sets team up to win for years to come

2025 NFL Draft - Day 1

Round 1: TRADE

The LA Rams want to pick up a Round 2 pick, and in the process avoid paying top dollar to a Top 10 pick in the draft. A trade offer by the Chicago Bears lands the Rams picks 23, 33, and 87 in the 2025 NFL Draft, plus a Round 2 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, for the LA Rams Round 1 pick. The Rams take it, counting on the fact that more picks are inherently better than one pick in the draft.

Of course, any trades are highly speculative. And what the team may settle for in compensation value to move back on draft day is subject to who the team intends to target and how much that prospect is coveted. We know that the front office wanted desperately to trade up for former Georgia TE Brock Bowers in the 2024 NFL Draft.

By trading back, the Rams stay in Round 1, pick up additional picks in Rounds 2 and 3, and ensure that the 2025 NFL Draft will have as many quality prospects as possible.

Round 1 Pick 23:

The LA Rams need to fortify the quarterback position, particularly with evidence that QB Matthew Stafford's elite production seemingly waning in 2024. While there is no indication that the team is ready to move on from Stafford in 2025, the only other quarterback on the roster is second-year QB Stetson Bennett. That is not the optimal situation for this team to open in a new season.

Texas rookie prospect QB Quinn Ewers possesses plenty of intriguing characteristics that the LA Rams front office and coaching staff seek in a Stafford successor. Standing 6-foot-2 and tipping the scales at 210 pounds, Ewers exudes toughness and proficiency in the pocket. He is a traditional pocket passer and compensates for his lack of mobility by delivering his passes from any angle of his throwing arm, much like Stafford.

Much like Stafford, or any successful NFL quarterback in the pocket, he boasts a quick delivery that can frustrate even the fasted pass rushers. He flourishes when facing stingy defenses, and his poise in the pocket is amplified by his ability to side-step and evade the rush with surprising evasiveness

He delivers a beautiful deep pass, putting the arc just where he leads his receivers in stride. In many ways, he is an ideal understudy to Stafford, as both have quite similar skill sets and philosophies towards the passing game, as well as how to command an offense.

Perhaps one of the undervalued reasons for the team to add Quinn Ewers is his familiarity with Rams WR Jordan Whittington. That type of connection should not be overlooked, as it instantly connects a rookie quarterback with a former teammate. And it's that type of connection that enables a rapid transition for a quarterback to show up and compete quickly for playing time.