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Will Rams break streak of avoiding cornerbacks in the draft?
The Los Angeles Rams rarely target cornerbacks early in the draft, will 2025 be the best opportunity for a change of pace?
Sam Teets, who posts scouting reports of draft prospects every single day on his Sports Talk newsletter, has a new 3-round mock draft out on Monday. Here are his three picks for the Los Angeles Rams.
26. Los Angeles Rams: Azareye’h Thomas, CB Florida State
Unless I’m forgetting someone, the Rams haven’t used a top 100 selection on a true outside cornerback since taking Janoris Jenkins in 2012. The Eagles broke a similar streak when they took Quinyon Mitchell last year, and that worked out pretty well. There are some nice free agent corners this year, so the Rams have options.
Thomas is listed at 6’1, 191 on the NFL.com website and we should get better measurements, athletic times at the combine this week. Here’s what Lance Zierlein had to say about him:
Press-man cornerback with average speed but excellent length to disrupt game flow for opponents. Thomas deters early looks his way from quarterbacks by jabbing, crowding and smothering the release from press. He lacks route recognition and lateral twitch to stay tight to breaks from off-man. He also needs to develop his instincts and trust his eyes from zone coverage. He has average top-end speed but competes to shrink the receiver’s downfield catch odds using his length and ball skills. He’s more likely to spoil a catch than make a play on the football that results in a turnover, but that could change with more experience. He’s below average in run support, although he improved in that area in 2024. Thomas needs more seasoning, but he could become a good starter within two or three years.
It’s been a while since the Rams have drafted any solid corners as they still have to find upgrades to Derion Kendrick and Cobie Durant. Starter Ahkello Witherspoon is a free agent and Darious Williams is a cap casualty candidate.
In the third round, Teets has the Rams choosing linebacker Chris Paul Jr. at 90, then going to the other side of the ball and picking WR Troy Horton at pick 100.
6’1, 235 lbs
Here’s what The Draft Network has to say:
While Paul looks the part of a linebacker, he’s relatively undersized and looks smaller than his listed weight. He has room to add mass onto his athletic frame and not lose much of his quick twitch and athletic ability. He’s growing as a diagnoser against the run, but when he hits his gap and locates the running back, he’s rewarded with tackles for loss. When he’s slow to process what’s happening, he tends to guess and can overlap himself in a teammate’s gap, giving a rushing lane to an opposing running back. He uses good body positioning to mitigate his shorter arms when he can, but too...
