Go beyond the scoreboard
Get the latest on L.A.'s teams in the daily Sports Report newsletter.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
- Share via
1
As a presumed Super Bowl contender, the Rams entered the NFL draft without any obvious frontline needs to fill.
And with two 2026 first-round picks already in hand, general manager Les Snead and coach Sean McVay spent the second day of the draft patiently adding depth.
The Rams on Friday selected Oregon tight end Terrance Ferguson in the second round and Michigan outside linebacker Josaiah Stewart in the third.
“Successful Day 2 for us,” Snead said.
The Rams made their first picks less than 24 hours after trading the 26th overall pick and a third-round pick to the Atlanta Falcons for a second-round pick, a seventh-round pick and a 2026 first-round pick.
The Rams sent the 26th pick and a third-round pick in this year’s NFL draft to the Atlanta Falcons for three draft picks.
Snead used the second-round pick, No. 46 overall, to select Ferguson, who played four seasons at Oregon and finished his career with the most receptions and touchdowns by a tight end in school history.
With veteran tight end Tyler Higbee entering what is essentially the final year of his contract, McVay added another versatile weapon in a position group that includes Colby Parkinson and Davis Allen.
McVay’s first NFL job as a position coach was Washington’s tight ends coach in 2011. McVay said Ferguson reminded him of Chris Cooley, whom he coached, and Travis Kelce, whom he evaluated as a draft prospect.
“Certainly not saying that he’s those guys yet,” McVay said, “but there’s a lot of instincts. You see he plays with a change of pace when the ball gets in his hands. ... It allows us to be able to explore maybe doing some different things.”
During the run-up to the draft, Ferguson trained with former NFL tight end Logan Paulsen, whom McVay described as “one of my all-time favorite players” that he coached.
“For [Ferguson] to have spent the last four months with him working on some different things that allowed Logan to be such a successful player... physically, mentally, emotionally, all those things, he’s been in good hands,” McVay said.
(Ryan Sun / Associated Press)
The Rams’ next pick did not come until No. 90, leading to speculation that Snead might trade up. But he waited 44 picks to select Stewart, the latest in a growing line of Rams players on the defensive front who started their college careers at small schools before developing into NFL prospects at Power 5 programs.
Stewart played at Coastal Carolina and then transferred to Michigan for his final two seasons. His road to the NFL was not unlike that traveled by Kobie Turner, Byron Young, Jared Verse and Braden Fiske.
Coach Sean McVay and GM Les Snead talked Tuesday about the possibility of the star cornerback’s acquisition from the Dolphins.
“It worked the last few times,” Snead quipped.
Stewart praised his experience at Coastal Carolina and said his move to Michigan “was one of the greatest decisions” he made.
“Michigan taught me everything to be a pro,” said Stewart, who will join former teammates Blake Corum and Josh Wallace with the Rams.
The draft concludes Saturday with rounds four through seven. The Rams have a pick in the fourth round, three in the sixth and one in the seventh.
2
Sean McVay gives pep talk to first responders
(Gary Klein / Los Angeles Times)
Rams coach Sean McVay is accustomed to inspiring players on the field and in the team’s meeting rooms and locker rooms.
On Friday, as the Rams prepared for the second night of the draft, McVay used his oratory skills before another assemblage of pros.
About 150 first responders who were involved in operations during the Palisades and Eaton fires in January were on hand at the Los Angeles Fire Department Air Operations headquarters in Van Nuys, where the Rams are conducting the draft.
Team president Kevin Demoff and McVay addressed the group that was made up of attendees from fire and law enforcement agencies in Los Angeles and Ventura counties.
A group of Rams that included quarterback Matthew Stafford, receiver Puka Nacua, Verse, Turner and Fiske, Higbee and running backs Kyren Williams and Blake Corum mingled and posed for photos.
Corum echoed McVay, describing the first responders as true heroes.
“Coach McVay is a very inspirational person,” Corum said. “Hearing him talk about how inspirational the first responders are… was wonderful. But being here was even better.”
LAFD Capt. Erik Scott, the department’s public information officer, praised the Rams for their community outreach and relief efforts.
“We strive to be leaders in our own professions and sections,” Scott said, “and to see true leaders of other arenas inspire a group of people like that was really impressive.”
The L.A. Fire Dept. Air Operations command center in Van Nuys will serve as the Rams’ NFL draft headquarters as the team looks to honor first responders.
