Rams finally fix biggest offensive hole in NFL mock draft roundup

With the 2024 NFL regular season in the books, Los Angeles Rams fans can now officially turn their attention to the 2025 NFL Draft and what the Rams might do with their first-round pick. LA is currently slated to pick 26th in the first round and have plenty of directions they could go in with that selection.

When looking at a few different mock drafts floating around, offensive tackle is a position that draft analysts think the Rams could address in round one due to the potential departure of Alaric Jackson in free agency. Two of the three mock drafts that I've included for this write-up have LA finding a potential Jackson replacement at left tackle.

Having a good offensive line can easily be the difference between making a deep playoff run and watching the playoffs from home so no one would fault the Rams for taking that route. Who might they take if that's the route they go in?

PFF: Josh Conerly Jr., OT (Oregon)

Jordan Plocher of PFF had the Rams going with Josh Conerly Jr. late in the first round. This would likely be looked at as a safe pick, as Conerly looks to be a late first-round prospect and would fill a need for the Rams whether Jackson is retained or not (it's always good to have depth on the o-line).

"Conerly allowed only one sack, two quarterback hits and six hurries on his 521 pass-blocking snaps in 2024 on his way to an 83.5 PFF pass-blocking grade," Plocher wrote. "As a run blocker, Conerly graded well on man and outside-zone plays — the Rams' two most preferred run concepts."

Grade: A-

CBS Sports: Josh Simmons, OT (Ohio State)

There's some risk with this pick, as Josh Simmons, as good as he was during the 2024 season, suffered a season-ending knee injury in October. Josh Edwards of CBS Sports said that Simmons' tape at left tackle was the best in this draft class at the position before the injury but obviously any draft prospect who suffered a recent injury is a risk.

Edwards also noted that Simmons was with San Diego State before he transferred to Ohio State meaning that the majority of his reps have come against non-Power 4 opponents. Making that leap to the pros is going to be a massive one but Edwards seems to think it's worth the risk.

Considering that the Rams already have issues with their offensive line not staying healthy, fans might not be too jazzed about picking up an offensive lineman with a recent knee injury.

Grade: B

NFL.com: Darius Alexander, DT (Toledo)

The one draft analyst going in a different direction than everyone else is Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com who has Los Angeles adding help on defense. He has them spending the 26th pick on Toledo's Darius Alexander, noting that he's generating "first-round buzz".

The Rams used their first-round pick on Jared Verse a year ago and that ended up being a great selection, so why not keep adding young playmakers on that side of the ball? Alexander might have played at a smaller Division I school but he could very much fit in with this defense.

Grade: B+