LA Rams Future Draft Picks for the 2025 NFL Draft and beyond

The LA Rams are not filling their draft pick coffers in 2025 as has been the custom in previous years. Like it or not, the front office adopted a new strategy that, at least for the moment, is a brand new direction for the team. Historically, the team was content to exchange future draft picks for present-day talent. That was the method used to fill the roster with the likes of DB Jalen Ramsey, QB Matthew Stafford, RB Sony Michel, and even IOL Kevin Dotson.

But that method burns through the team's annual allotment of draft picks very quickly. So the team tapped the compensatory draft picks award process to make up the difference. In essence, the Rams were a net provider of free agent talent to the annual NFL Free Agency market in the days before the NFL Draft.

Teams that lose more players than they add via that time frame can trigger the algorithm by which the NFL will award them up to four compensatory draft picks in the next year's draft, with the rounds of those comp picks determined by the value of the contract signed by the former player.

Post-2022 purge derailed 2025 comp picks

After the Rams struggled to finish the 2022 NFL season with a record of 5-12, the front office had to make a difficult decision. Would the team carry on 'as is,' and try to reshape the team despite significant limits to their ability to spend available salary cap dollars? Or would the team bite the bullet, wipe the slate clean by releasing and trading highly compensated veterans, and start over in 2023 with a rookie-centric roster?

The Rams opted to wipe the slate clean.

The immediate impact of that decision resulted in the team facing 2023 with extremely limited funds to use to sign veterans. Still, the team had ample draft picks and used them to add 14 rookies to the roster in 2023. But what many fans and analysts did not realize is the crippling impact that 2023 Rams roster purge would have on the team's ability to generate projected compensatory draft picks for 2025.

Per Over the Cap.com, the LA Rams are projected to be awarded just one compensatory draft pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and that is due to the hiring of former DC Raheem Morris to become the new head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. In recent years, the team has come to rely upon up to four awarded compensatory picks. So how will this deviation from recent history impact the team's future drafts? Let's take a look at the team's future draft picks to find the answer:

Los Angeles Rams Draft Picks in 2025

The good news is that the Rams will have a pick in Round 1 of the 2025 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, as it now stands, the team does not have picks in Rounds 2, 5, or 7.

• Round 1
• Traded away Round 2 pick to Panthers
• Round 3
• Round 3 (Projected 2nd of 2 comp picks for Raheem Morris hiring)
• Round 4
• Traded away Round 5 pick to Steelers
• Round 6
• Round 6 (via Steelers)
• Round 6 (via Falcons)
• Traded away Round 7 pick to Falcons

Round 2 pick traded to Carolina Panthers

Round 5 pick traded to Pittsburgh Steelers for Round 6 pick

Round 7 pick traded to Atlanta Falcons

As of this writing, the Rams have seven draft picks for 2025. They traded their fifth-round pick to the Steelers for Kevin Dotson and received a sixth-round pick in return. They also received an additional sixth-round pick for the Van Jefferson trade with the Falcons where they sent Jefferson and a seventh-rounder to Atlanta in exchange for the sixth-rounder.

Finally, the team traded their 2025 second-round pick as part of the package to trade up in the 2024 NFL Draft from the 52nd overall pick to the 39th overall. Summing up the seven Rams draft picks in 2025:

• Round 1
• Round 3
• Round 3 (comp pick)
• Round 4
• Round 6
• Round 6 (via Falcons)
• Round 6 (via Steelers)

Rams draft picks in 2026

The team's complement of draft picks in the 2026 NFL Draft are a bit more straight-foward. As of right now, the only modification to the original allotment of seven draft picks (one per round) is the pick swap that will occur due to the Rams trade of WR Ben Skowronek to the Houston Texans. As a result of that trade, the team will be able to exchange a seventh-round pick and acquire a sixth-round pick in return. That looks like this.

• Round 1
• Round 2
• Round 3
• Round 4
• Round 5
• Round 5 (via Tennessee Titans)
• Round 6 (conditionally traded to Titans)
• Round 6 (via Houston Texans)
• Traded away Round 7 pick to Texans
• Round 7 (via Baltimore Ravens)

The trade of Skowronek was a bit muddled, as original reports suggested that the team wouid be releasing Ben Skowronek outright. But the Houston Texans swooped in at the last possible moment to reach an agreement to acquire Skowronek directly:

The result of that trade leaves the Rams with two picks in Round 6 at the expense of no picks in Round 7.

But a trade of former starting ILB Ernest Jones to the Tennessee Titans upgrades a Round 6 pick to a Round 5 pick:

The Rams get the Baltimore Ravens Round 7 pick in 2026 for DB Tre'Davious White and a Rams Round 7 pick in 2027.

To sum it up, the Rams traded away WR Ben Skowronek and ILB Ernest Jones IV for the opportunity move convert a Round 7 pick to a Round 5 pick. That is both humbling and embarrassing in terms of disappointing returns for two players who had meaning roles on this team.

Rams draft picks in 2027

The LA Rams 2027 NFL Draft picks have not been altered. That is, the team is currently projected to possess their original allotment of picks in that draft.

• Round 1
• Round 2
• Round 3
• Round 4
• Round 5
• Round 6
• Traded to the Baltimore Ravens

While the team has benefitted from two NFL Drafts with 10+ draft picks recently, the future state of the team's drafts appears to settle back to seven draft picks per draft as the new norm. As long as the team is winning and selecting wisely with the draft picks that the team possesses, everything should continue to roll along smoothly.

But if the team stumbles along the way, or fails to make wise draft selections, success can be difficult to maintain.

As always, thanks for reading.