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znModeratorWill Harris secondary coach at Washington when Mcduffie was there.
w
vThanks.
znModeratorThe Rams aren't playing around on special teams. Contract details show they made Joe Cardona the highest-paid long snapper in the NFL, giving him a fully guaranteed two-year deal. https://t.co/hzzt3xmdlK
— Cameron DaSilva (@camdasilva) March 16, 2026
znModeratorMcDuffie’s college coach:
“ultra-competitive, relentless, naturally-sticky…”
Was that his position coach from college, the defensive coordinator, or head coach?
Because his head coach from college is now the Rams secondary coach.
znModeratorATKINS: After bringing in three big-name defensive backs, perhaps the only need that stands out on offense or defense now is wide receiver.
from Daniel Jeremiah’s top 50: 2026 NFL Draft prospect rankings — https://www.nfl.com/news/daniel-jeremiah-s-top-50-2026-nfl-draft-prospect-rankings-3-0
Rank 6: Carnell Tate
Ohio State · WR · Junior
Tate is a tall, long wideout with better play speed than timed speed and outstanding production. He has excellent suddenness to defeat press coverage, and he covers ground quickly with his long stride. He attacks the defender’s leverage when they play him in off coverage. He has strong/reliable hands in traffic and tracks the ball beautifully over his shoulder down the field. He can access an extra gear when the ball is in the air. He is a loose athlete and that shows up when he adjusts to balls thrown on his back shoulder. He is efficient with his footwork when working back to the quarterback. He’s not exceptionally dynamic with the ball in his hands. Overall, Tate should provide an immediate impact in the vertical passing game.Rank 11: Makai Lemon
USC · WR · Junior
Lemon is one of my favorite players in this draft. He is a wideout with a running back’s body and a linebacker’s temperament. He is at his best working in the slot. He wins with quickness off the line, understands how to tempo routes and consistently wins in traffic. He doesn’t waste steps and he can explode in and out of the break point. He plays bigger than his size, displaying several 50/50-ball wins on elevated throws. To see his entire repertoire, just throw on the Iowa tape. He was a craftsman in that game and couldn’t be covered (10 catches for 153 yards and a touchdown). He is ultra-competitive after the catch, breaking tackles and fighting for yards. Overall, Lemon is going to draw a lot of comparisons to Amon-Ra St. Brown, and they are warranted.Rank 18: Omar Cooper Jr.
Indiana · WR · Junior (RS)
Cooper is one of my favorite players to study in this year’s draft. He’s strong, reliable and explosive. He uses his lower-body strength to run through press coverage and he’s a loose/fluid route runner. He plays without fear in the middle of the field, making combat catches look easy. He can really pluck the ball and stays grounded through the catch on crossers. Also, he can elevate and play above the rim (SEE: game-winner against Penn State) when necessary. After the catch, he has the power to break tackles and enough speed to pull away. Sources at the school rave about his makeup and competitiveness. Overall, Cooper fits the exact model of wideouts finding immediate success in the NFL.Rank 21: Jordyn Tyson
Arizona State · WR · Junior (RS)
Tyson is an explosive receiver with a lot of “wow” plays littered throughout his tape. He is a very fluid mover, and he incorporates a variety of releases and general creativity into his route-running. He has suddenness off the line and out of breaks down the field. He will weave and get cornerbacks off balance before exploding away from them. He makes some incredible catches on deep balls; he tracks the ball with ease over the shoulder and can almost hover in the air waiting for it to come down. After the catch, he has some wiggle to make defenders miss and excellent speed to pull away. Durability was an issue throughout his college career — that’s the only factor keeping him from a higher grade/projection.Rank 25: Denzel Boston
Washington · WR · Junior (RS)
Boston is a big-framed wideout with exceptional ball skills and production. He lines up both outside and in the slot. He uses his upper-body strength to power through press coverage. He is a long strider and understands how to use his big body to wall off defenders at all three levels. He is an outstanding ball winner. He has a huge catch radius and can play above the rim in the red zone. He makes some outstanding catches (SEE: the Colorado State and Michigan games). After the catch, he relies more on physicality than finesse to create extra yardage. Overall, Boston’s skill set is very similar to Courtland Sutton’s when the two-time Pro Bowler was coming out of SMU.Rank 33: KC Concepcion
Texas A&M · WR · Junior
Concepcion is an undersized receiver with elite burst and inconsistent hands. His speed jumps off the screen. You can see it right off the snap: He uses a quick jab step and then explodes down the field. He creates massive separation against quality competition. He hauls in a lot of quick-hitters (bubbles, slants and shallow crossers). His hands have been the biggest issue; he has too many concentration drops. When he does finish the catch, he is dynamic with the ball in his hands. His transition from catch to run is immediate and explosive. Overall, Concepcion is an intriguing player who needs to decrease his drop rate.Rank 48: Antonio Williams
Clemson · WR · Junior (RS)
Williams is a slightly undersized slot receiver. He has outstanding short-area quickness, ball skills and run-after-catch ability. He explodes off the ball with quick, choppy steps, setting up defenders and creating separation out of the break point. He’s very twitchy and excels on pivot routes because of his stop/start skills. He has a good feel for settling in zones and presents a good target to his quarterback. He plays much bigger than his size when the ball is in the air. He can elevate and play above the rim. He’s very competitive in all areas of his game. Overall, Williams is an ideal slot receiver with the upside to be a high-volume pass catcher at the next level.Rank 50: Germie Bernard
Alabama · WR · Senior
Bernard is a strong, sturdy wideout. He was utilized in a variety of alignments in the Crimson Tide offense, taking snaps out wide, in the slot, at running back and as a Wildcat quarterback. His quickness is a weapon off the line and at the top of routes. He can separate underneath and has strong hands to attack the ball. He tracks the ball well down the field, too. Bernard is at his best with the ball in his hands. He’s quick, elusive and strong to generate yards after the catch. His speed is good but not elite, and he lacks a home run gear to pull away from pursuit. I love his toughness and competitiveness as a blocker. Bernard should earn a spot as a quality starting slot receiver early in his NFL career.znModeratorfrom the Athletic: After first wave of 2026 free agency, what are the top needs for every NFL team? — https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7114161/2026/03/14/2026-free-agency-team-needs-players/?source=emp_shared_article&unlocked_article_code=1.TlA.HkEs.lWTncISWlNj7&smid=ta-ios-share
Los Angeles Rams
After bringing in three big-name defensive backs, perhaps the only need that stands out on offense or defense now is wide receiver. Los Angeles has two stars in Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, but both players missed three games each last season, and the depth became shaky after Tutu Atwell fell out of the mix with their style of offense. The Rams will mitigate that role by running lots of three-tight-end sets, but they still need versatility in 11-personnel, and they also need to look for a future replacement for Adams, who will turn 34 late next season. Given the need to bring this position along slowly while also seeking a talent who can adequately replace Adams in a year, the No. 13 overall pick feels like a prime spot to answer the team’s biggest remaining need. — Nate Atkins
March 15, 2026 at 6:44 pm in reply to: the “healthcare” industry (thread includes entire film “Sicko” for free) #162875znModeratorFelix Prehn@felixprehn
Private equity firms bought 500 hospitals. Death rates in their emergency rooms went up 13%. They fired 12% of the staff. Then they paid themselves billions in dividends.A Harvard study just confirmed what doctors already knew: people are dying so investors can hit quarterly targets.
Exactly what happens. A PE firm buys a hospital using debt. The debt gets placed on the hospital’s balance sheet, not the firm’s. Now the hospital owes hundreds of millions it never borrowed. To service that debt, the hospital cuts costs. Costs mean nurses.
The numbers from the Harvard/University of Chicago study are horrifying. After PE acquisition, emergency department salary spending dropped 18.2%. ICU salary spending dropped 15.9%. Hospital-wide employees were cut 11.6%. Emergency department deaths rose 13%, seven additional deaths per 10,000 visits.
A separate study found patients undergoing surgery at PE-acquired hospitals had 17% higher odds of dying within 90 days.
Steward Health Care, owned by Cerberus Capital, filed bankruptcy with $9 billion in debt after closing hospitals across Massachusetts. The CEO lived on a $40 million yacht while emergency rooms went dark. Eight hospitals serving 2 million people nearly disappeared because a PE fund extracted more cash than the system could survive.
The private equity industry has poured over $1 trillion into healthcare. They operate a quarter of ERs nationwide. This isn’t going away.
The investing angle nobody talks about.
Non-PE hospital operators like HCA Healthcare (HCA) and Tenet (THC) are the direct beneficiaries. Every time a PE hospital closes or deteriorates, patients flow to the nearest competitor. HCA has returned 1,200% since 2011. Patient volume from PE closures is a structural tailwind nobody’s pricing in.
Medical staffing firms (AMN Healthcare, Cross Country) charge premium rates specifically because PE hospitals cut staff. The staffing shortage IS the business model for these companies.
The disruption play: outpatient surgical centers (SCA Health, now part of UnitedHealth) are pulling profitable procedures out of hospitals entirely. PE-owned hospitals lose their highest-margin surgeries to outpatient, and the death spiral accelerates.
Pull up tradevision and monitor healthcare M&A alerts, hospital closure filings, and patient volume migration data. When a PE-owned hospital announces “restructuring,” the patient volume shift to competitors like HCA starts within 30 days. That 30-day window is when the competitor’s earnings revisions haven’t updated yet. Free to try.
(a private equity firm bought your local hospital. borrowed $500 million in the hospital’s name. fired 12% of the nurses. emergency room deaths rose 13%. then they paid themselves dividends. nobody went to prison. they’re currently buying another hospital.)
znModeratorI was thinking earlier that Deacon and Bob Brown had the same mentality. Just blood-thirsty.
w
vI can remember the story but I can’t find it.
When Brown first showed up at the Rams, he would do things like cut in line for medical care, and so on. He would say to protestors, do you know who I am? He acted like he had special privileges. He had already been called the best lineman in the league and it had gone to his head. Deacon saw that and decided to make Brown’s life hell in practice when they went up against each other. He basically tore Brown a new one all practice. At the end of the day Deacon said, look you wait in line just like everyone else. Brown never caused any more problems that way.
znModeratorfrom quora, by Franklin Veaux
Q: Is Quora currently under assault by Russian propagandists?
Kind of. I mean, yes, Russian propagandists are trying to assault Quora, but rather surprisingly, it’s been a lot less effective on Quora than on other social media.
As I write this, in March 2026, the narrative Russian trolls are pushing online is “as a Democrat, I stand behind President Trump and the war on Iran, do you?” I’m seeing this everywhere: Facebook, the social media hate site formerly known as Twitter, Threads, indie political forums, Quora, you name it.
Basically everywhere I go online, I see people saying “I’m a liberal Democrat but I think Trump’s war on Iran is wonderful, don’t you?”, often with word for word identical posts across different profiles on different sites.
It’s obvious why:
The attacks on Iran have caused oil prices to skyrocket, which has given Russia an enormous, unexpected influx of cash.
The US is depleting its supply of missiles, cruise missiles, and defensive weapons at a prodigious rate.
It’s costing the US staggering amounts of money.
It’s fracturing US society.
It’s damaging US allies in the Middle East.
It’s distracting people from the war in Ukraine.
It’s depleting stores of weapons that might otherwise be bought from the US by Europe and sent to Ukraine.
It’s providing Russia and China with an absolute treasure trove of information about American capabilities, performance, tactics, and strategies. Russia and China are getting vast quantities of high-quality, real-world data on how our stealth technology works in real-life combat, how we use it, how we deploy it, how well it performs, and how we support it logistically. That information is incredibly valuable to them. Combat tactics and strategies that were highly classified are being broadcast live to the entire world.
Our attacks on Iran are the best thing that could ever happen to China and Russia right now. We are pouring money into Russia, harming our own economy, giving away reams of data about our most modern weapons and combat capabilities, distracting attention from Ukraine, depriving Ukraine of arms, and shooting ourselves in the foot, with no clear objective.So yeah, Russian trolls are all over the internetverse cheering it on.
It’s not as effective on Quora as it is on sites like Facebook and Xitter, and that honestly kinda surprises me.
znModeratorThere’s a story about Deacon Jones humbling Brown in practice.
I’ll see if I can find it.
znModeratorznModeratorJordyn Tyson on NFL receivers he admires and studies:
“J-Jettas, Devontae, Puka Nacua’s hands are unbelievable. Michael Wilson from the Cardinals is playing real well. He plays good with speed…I enjoy watching everybody. I’m a big receiver fan.”@FOX10Phoenix pic.twitter.com/LKUX29QAj2
— Blake Niemann (@Blakes_Take2) December 31, 2025
znModeratorznModeratorznModeratorRams Wire@TheRamsWire
Trent McDuffie told Puka Nacua ‘he better be ready’ for battles in practiceznModeratorLAFB Network@LAFBNetwork
With Roger McCreary not returning, Emmanuel Forbes is expected to be the #3 CB for the Los Angeles Rams.Last season he led the team in Passes Defended (18 — tied for 2nd most in the NFL) and INTs (3) 👀
znModeratorTurns out that the Rams tendered Smith on March 2.
Smith is the perfect player to use in the “fake fumbled punt” play they are working on. I mean, unless he fumbles.
znModeratorJeremy Fowler@JFowlerESPN
Free agent corner Roger McCreary has agreed to terms with the Detroit Lions on a one-year deal, per source.McCreary started 38 games for Tennessee before traded to the Rams last season.
znModeratorSteve and Sam explain why the Rams are in a GREAT spot heading into the draft 👀
“They have no real weakness on the roster right now, plus the 13th overall pick and a history of trying to trade up. So the question we’re asking now is: who do you want in this draft?” pic.twitter.com/mr0UIo5lrS
— Check the Mic with Steve Palazzolo & Sam Monson (@CTM_Show) March 13, 2026
znModeratorAJ Brown for the 13th pick would be fine with me. But if the Eagles want more than that, I’d pass on him.
Wonder what Davante and Puka think of this.
w
vBest bet? Ain’t gonna happen.
znModeratorDianna Russini@DMRussini
After serious conversations with both the Rams and Patriots, the Eagles will not trade A.J. Brown at this time, according to multiple league sources.Both teams remain interested, but no move is imminent. If a trade were to happen, it would likely heat up closer to June 1.
Nate Atkins@NateAtkins_
No AJ Brown craze coming right now. The cap hit on the Eagles was quite big to move him before June 1.It’s possible this is something the Rams could circle back on later.
But they also need to find a WR3 by the draft.
Otto@hawkeyeram4life
A #Rams/#Eagles and AJ Brown connection..In 2023 AJ Brown caught 106 passes for 1,456 yards and 7 TDs.. ever since then his stats have dropped off.
Who was his OC in Philadelphia in 2023? Brian Johnson and then they fired him after that season.. Sean McVay just brought Brian Johnson onto the staff and would have a very good idea of what AJ Brown would bring.
znModeratorRams at 1:57 mark, or so. (vid should start there)
They talk about rams trading upI found a tweet with the 2-3 minute clip in it that comes from your 2 hour vid. So I put that tweet here: https://theramshuddle.com/topic/march-draft-thread/
That means I had to delete your vid. I was quick, it didn’t suffer.
znModeratorznModeratorWith Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson, Rams’ secondary is now built to thrive
Nate Atkins
WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. — When the blockbuster trade hit social media and the realization of returning home to Los Angeles to become a Ram hit the bloodstream of Trent McDuffie, his phone started buzzing.
It was Puka Nacua on FaceTime. And all McDuffie heard from there were screams from his former Washington Huskies teammate.
Just days later, the Rams needed a second cornerback to play opposite the two-time All-Pro in McDuffie. And when they agreed to sign former Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Jaylen Watson on Monday morning, McDuffie was the one placing a call to his former teammate.
“I called him again like Puka screaming at the top of my lungs, like, ‘Look at this! Can you believe it?’ ” McDuffie said. “He’s one of those guys that I love to tell his story. He is a seventh-round pick. Not a lot of people believed in him. He worked hard day in, day out. Again, he’s one of those guys that was able to live out his dreams as a Kansas City Chief.
“The relationship and the respect I have for ‘J-Wat’ knowing what he’s going to bring to this team, the hard work, the grit, the attitude and the overall swag of being a football player. I think it would be really helpful having both of us in here, adding to the culture.”
This duo of former Chiefs cornerbacks and two-time champions is the latest aggressive bet the Rams are placing in pursuit of another Super Bowl.
They arrive to a defense that is no longer the lowest-paid in the NFL, as it was last season, when it finished in the top 10 in scoring defense but regressed in the playoffs, culminating in a 31-27 defeat to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship Game.
The defensive makeup has transformed already through three secondary deals: McDuffie on a four-year extension for $124 million at $31 million per season, making him the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history; Watson on a three-year, $51 million deal; and strong safety Kam Curl returning on a three-year, $36 million contract.
Combine those three signings with star safety Quentin Lake’s three-year, $38.3 extension from last season, and all of a sudden, the Rams have taken their pass defense from a unit constructed to survive to one built to thrive. It’s a vision that coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead laid out after the season to maximize the window for reigning MVP Matthew Stafford in his 18th NFL season.
“I saw the tenacity. I saw the hunger,” McDuffie said of watching the Rams in the NFC Championship Game. “I saw guys doing well. I saw when guys messed up and how they came back and made it right. I saw all these caveats that, as a football player, I love to see. Like I said, when the Rams were on the board, I knew what team I was walking into.”
Snead said he was after an All-Pro in the secondary if he could find one. Ultimately, he saw just one available in McDuffie — on the trade market. The price tag would be massive in a bidding war for a 25-year-old two-time Super Bowl champion and two-time All-Pro, especially when he was on a fifth-year option salary of just $13.6 million for 2026.
The Rams sent out first-, fifth- and sixth-round picks this year and a third-round pick next year to land McDuffie, whom they then made the highest-paid cornerback in league history.
It’s a swing reminiscent of the one they made for Jalen Ramsey in 2019, which helped set the stage for a Super Bowl run two years later.
This iteration of the Rams doesn’t have a first-ballot Hall of Famer wrecking the front lines as Aaron Donald did. However, it does have a trio of pass rushers in Pro Bowlers Jared Verse and Byron Young, as well as Kobie Turner, that can collectively take over a game.
That was the model the Rams banked on the past two seasons to overcome a lack of investments in the secondary. It allowed them to win playoff games each season, but it was not enough in a passing league to break through to the Super Bowl.
So, Los Angeles began its path toward experience and impact in the secondary by extending Lake last season. He’s the captain of the defense and versatile enough to play nickel cornerback, strong safety or free safety in the dime looks the Rams deploy more often than any team in the league.
However, his return for the postseason felt muted when opponents targeted the outside cornerbacks on either side, who were often playing in predictable shells and zone coverage out of a fear of allowing explosive plays.
The secondary had some flashes, including the game-saving overtime interception that Curl made in a divisional-round playoff win over the Chicago Bears. That play, in addition to a breakout season in which he was second among defensive backs with 122 tackles while playing 99 percent of the Rams’ defensive snaps, set Curl up to cash in his first major contract.
By signing Lake and Curl first, the Rams were able to pinpoint outside cornerbacks with specific traits and expertise that could allow the playmaking and impact out of those safeties to shine. They identified two from the Chiefs, who have won two Super Bowls in the past four seasons.
McDuffie is expected to primarily play on the outside with Los Angeles, given Lake’s strong presence in the slot and with Curl at strong safety.
However, McDuffie expressed to his new coaches a desire and willingness to play both inside and outside, which could create scenarios where he bumps inside in a dime set or plays nickel, with Lake subbing in for either Curl at strong safety or Kam Kinchens at free safety. The Rams can do this at times with Emmanuel Forbes Jr. offering 22 career starts at outside cornerback.
With physical cornerbacks like McDuffie and Watson on the outside, the Rams can live in more press-man coverage. Watson has been a force in the red zone, as he has not allowed a touchdown catch on 85 targets over the past two seasons, according to Sports Info Solutions.
The way the vision all came together had McVay calling Watson and taking his turn to shout into the phone.
“He was like, ‘I hope you’re excited to come.’ I was like, ‘Yes, sir, I’m excited.’ He was like, ‘Well, you’re not as excited as I am,’ ” Watson said. “He’s just full of energy. I love him.”
McDuffie and Watson have grown closer through their championship pushes the past four seasons, as they’ve also contrasted each other’s journey — McDuffie from a first-round pick into an All-Pro and Watson from a seventh-round pick into a key player at a premium position.
McDuffie can serve as an introduction to Watson on the scheme and approach of new Rams defensive backs coach Jimmy Lake, who recruited and coached McDuffie at the University of Washington.
“He’s one of those guys that I always say is a perfectionist, but also just a great human being,” McDuffie said of Jimmy Lake. “He’s going to coach you very hard. He’s going to want you to be at your best. He’s going to want you to play perfect technique, and he’s going to coach you exactly that way, really hard, every single day, consistently, which I love because that just shows you how much he cares.”
McDuffie also has a natural lane to become one of the faces of the Rams, even as a new player on a team already full of stars and ready to contend. In addition to becoming the highest-paid cornerback in league history, McDuffie is embracing the chance to be a face for his hometown after playing at St. John Bosco High School in Bellflower, less than 20 miles from SoFi Stadium.
After walking the halls of the Rams’ facility in Woodland Hills for the first time with friends and family, McDuffie was taking himself back to his junior year at St. John Bosco, when the Rams were the new NFL team in his hometown, and his family was learning about them through HBO’s “Hard Knocks.”
“We listened to Sean McVay,” McDuffie said. “I remember just being like, ‘Dang, I would love to play for that guy.’ From that show, there’s just something about him. One day, I would love to play for him.
“Fast forward all these years, and now I’m here. It’s just like a full-circle moment.”
McDuffie planted the seed for this marriage in August at a fan event in Kansas City, where he answered a question from the crowd about which team he’d like to play for that isn’t the Chiefs. He responded with his hometown Rams.
That’s why the reaction can involve some screaming.
“Even given the opportunity to play here and then on top of it, you give me a contract like this, for me that holds a lot of weight,” McDuffie said.
“I definitely have a responsibility to stand up here and face you guys when things are wrong. When things are going good, sing my praises and just being one of those guys that when teams think of the Rams, they can look at me and be like, ‘OK, that’s what it means to be a Ram. That’s what this team is about.’ ”
znModeratorLAFB Network@LAFBNetwork
Cobie Durant is headed to Dallas.After four seasons in LA, the Rams defensive back signs with the Cowboys. Thank you for the memories Cobie.
znModeratorRams are investing in special teams for first time in a long while https://t.co/mpOjD0raml
— TurfShowTimes (@TurfShowTimes) March 13, 2026
znModeratorfrom PFF: Highest-graded players from the 2025 NFL season at every position — https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-players-2025-nfl-season
1. Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams (91.9)
Winner of both the NFL and PFF MVP awards, Stafford orchestrated one of the most productive seasons from a quarterback in decades. The Rams’ signal caller is still reaching new heights, as his 91.7 PFF passing grade marked a new career-best for Stafford, while his 4.48 wins above replacement led the NFL by a full win.
Even at 37 years old, the 17-year veteran still possesses one of the best arms in the league, as his 58 big-time throws ranked as the third most in the PFF era (since 2006) and outpaced the next quarterback on this list this past season by more than 20.
from PFF: Highest-graded players from the 2025 NFL season at every position — https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-players-2025-nfl-season
WIDE RECEIVER
1. Puka Nacua, Los Angeles Rams (96.1)
Nacua embodied “offensive weapon” in 2025, leading all receivers in several PFF categories. He caught 153 passes for 2,047 yards — the second-most receiving yards in a season (including playoffs) in the PFF era. He led all receivers in yards per route run (3.57), first downs (97) and catches of 20-plus yards (32).
Defenses had no answer for the PFF Offensive Player of the Year. Nacua ranked first in PFF receiving grade at every level of the field, including perfect marks at the intermediate and deep levels (99.9). He also placed first in slot PFF receiving grade (96.7), screen PFF receiving grade (96.6) and play-action PFF receiving grade (94.1).
Nacua also ranked in the top two in PFF receiving grade against both primary coverage schemes, with a 91.9 figure against man and a 95.6 figure against zone.
Since entering the league in 2023, Nacua owns a league-best 95.5 PFF receiving grade
from PFF, Highest-graded RBs from the 2025 NFL season: https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-rbs-from-the-2025-nfl-season-kenneth-walker-iii-comes-in-at-no-1
7. Kyren Williams, Los Angeles Rams: 85.2
Williams never really had a dominant rushing performance on the season, as he never rushed for more than 110 yards in a game and only finished with one other 100-yard performance. However, he rushed for 1,485 yards on 312 carries thanks to his remarkable consistency, as he only rushed for under 50 yards in a game twice while posting a rushing grade sub-60.0 just once (Week 5 against the San Francisco 49ers, which was also the only game where he didn’t force a missed tackle).
from PFF: Highest-graded guards from the 2025 NFL season:n — https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-players-2025-nfl-season
3. Kevin Dotson, Los Angeles Rams (87.3)
Since arriving in Los Angeles in 2023, Dotson has quietly rounded into one of the premier guards in football. He turned in his best season to date in 2025 with a career-best 87.3 overall PFF grade and a 90.3 PFF run-blocking mark. Moreover, Dotson’s 3.8% pressure rate was the 12th-best at the position.
9. Steve Avila, Los Angeles Rams – 75.0
Avila also developed immensely during his third pro season, compiling a career-high 75.0 overall PFF grade. His 3.3% pressure rate given up was the fifth-highest among guards, and his 72.3 PFF run-blocking grade placed 12th. The Rams have a very bright future between him and Dotson.
from PFF: Highest-graded centers from the 2025 NFL season: https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-centers-2025-nfl-season
10. Coleman Shelton, Los Angeles Rams (70.9)
After one season in Chicago (2024), Shelton returned to the Rams in 2025, where he played from 2019 to 2023. It was an up-and-down season for the eighth-year veteran, who recorded a career-high 77.2 PFF run-blocking grade (seventh) and also the fifth-worst PFF pass-blocking grade (53.1) among centers.
Since 2023, Shelton ranks 11th in PFF run-blocking grade (78.2) among centers. He excels in the Rams’ zone-blocking scheme, where he earned a sixth-ranked 82.1 PFF run-blocking grade in 2025.
Shelton is sometimes a liability in pass protection, having allowed the fourth-most pressures in the same span (86). Although he ranks near the bottom in pass protection (56.4 PFF pass-blocking grade since 2023, ninth worst), his pressure rate has gradually gone down in each of the past three seasons.
from PFF, Highest-graded tackles from the 2025 NFL season: https://www.pff.com/news/highest-graded-tackles-from-the-2025-nfl-season-penei-sewell-leads-the-pack
8. Alaric Jackson, Los Angeles Rams – 84.2
The Rams re-signed Jackson to a lucrative three-year deal last spring, and he was yet again strong in protecting Matthew Stafford’s blindside. Jackson’s 84.2 overall PFF grade was a new watermark for him, and he also improved his run-blocking with a career-best 86.1 grade. Further, Jackson was sound again in pass protection with a 75.8 PFF pass-blocking grade and a 96.7 pass-blocking efficiency score.
from PFF: Highest-graded edge defenders from the 2025 NFL season — https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-edge-defenders-from-the-2025-nfl-season-will-anderson-jr-comes-in-at-no-1
10. Byron Young, Los Angeles Rams (83.6)
Young broke out in a big way in 2025 after two subpar seasons with the Rams to start his career, joining Will Anderson Jr. and Myles Garrett as the only three edge defenders ranking among the top 15 in pass-rush (81.2) and run-defense grade (77.8). His 52 defensive stops were the most for any edge defender this season as well.
from PFF, Highest-graded interior defenders from the 2025 NFL season: https://www.pff.com/news/highest-graded-dls-from-the-2025-nfl-season-cameron-heyward-leads-the-list
4. Poona Ford, Los Angeles Rams (86.0)
The Rams signed veteran Poona Ford last offseason in the hopes that the big nose tackle could add some punch on the interior of their defensive line. He succeeded in his first season with the team. Ford had the best campaign of his career in 2025, setting career highs in pressures (34) and stops (33).
His 10.7% run-stop rate was seventh among defensive tackles, and his 78.6 PFF run-defense grade was fifth at the position. Ford was a quiet game-changer for the Rams in 2025.
from PFF: Highest-graded safeties from the 2025 NFL season — https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-players-2025-nfl-season
10. Kamren Kinchens, Los Angeles Rams (78.0)
The Rams’ defense was an elite unit in 2025, and though the Los Angeles secondary felt beatable at times, the group was generally a sound piece of the defense. In his second season in the NFL, Kamren Kinchens’ role in the Rams’ secondary grew, and his 78.0 PFF grade was in the top 10 among safeties.
Kinchens’ 8.2 yards per reception allowed in coverage was the ninth-lowest at the position, and his 81.9 PFF coverage grade was sixth. His 24 stops were in the top 20 as well. Kinchens is going to be a good player for a long time.
znModeratorfrom PFF: Highest-graded edge defenders from the 2025 NFL season — https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-edge-defenders-from-the-2025-nfl-season-will-anderson-jr-comes-in-at-no-1
10. Byron Young, Los Angeles Rams (83.6)
Young broke out in a big way in 2025 after two subpar seasons with the Rams to start his career, joining Will Anderson Jr. and Myles Garrett as the only three edge defenders ranking among the top 15 in pass-rush (81.2) and run-defense grade (77.8). His 52 defensive stops were the most for any edge defender this season as well.
from Highest-graded interior defenders from the 2025 NFL season: https://www.pff.com/news/highest-graded-dls-from-the-2025-nfl-season-cameron-heyward-leads-the-list
4. Poona Ford, Los Angeles Rams (86.0)
The Rams signed veteran Poona Ford last offseason in the hopes that the big nose tackle could add some punch on the interior of their defensive line. He succeeded in his first season with the team. Ford had the best campaign of his career in 2025, setting career highs in pressures (34) and stops (33).
His 10.7% run-stop rate was seventh among defensive tackles, and his 78.6 PFF run-defense grade was fifth at the position. Ford was a quiet game-changer for the Rams in 2025.
from PFF, Highest-graded RBs from the 2025 NFL season: https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-rbs-from-the-2025-nfl-season-kenneth-walker-iii-comes-in-at-no-1
7. Kyren Williams, Los Angeles Rams: 85.2
Williams never really had a dominant rushing performance on the season, as he never rushed for more than 110 yards in a game and only finished with one other 100-yard performance. However, he rushed for 1,485 yards on 312 carries thanks to his remarkable consistency, as he only rushed for under 50 yards in a game twice while posting a rushing grade sub-60.0 just once (Week 5 against the San Francisco 49ers, which was also the only game where he didn’t force a missed tackle).
znModeratorfrom PFF: Highest-graded safeties from the 2025 NFL season — https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-players-2025-nfl-season
10. Kamren Kinchens, Los Angeles Rams (78.0)
The Rams’ defense was an elite unit in 2025, and though the Los Angeles secondary felt beatable at times, the group was generally a sound piece of the defense. In his second season in the NFL, Kamren Kinchens’ role in the Rams’ secondary grew, and his 78.0 PFF grade was in the top 10 among safeties.
Kinchens’ 8.2 yards per reception allowed in coverage was the ninth-lowest at the position, and his 81.9 PFF coverage grade was sixth. His 24 stops were in the top 20 as well. Kinchens is going to be a good player for a long time.
znModeratorfrom PFF: Highest-graded guards from the 2025 NFL season:n — https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-players-2025-nfl-season
3. Kevin Dotson, Los Angeles Rams (87.3)
Since arriving in Los Angeles in 2023, Dotson has quietly rounded into one of the premier guards in football. He turned in his best season to date in 2025 with a career-best 87.3 overall PFF grade and a 90.3 PFF run-blocking mark. Moreover, Dotson’s 3.8% pressure rate was the 12th-best at the position.9. Steve Avila, Los Angeles Rams – 75.0
Avila also developed immensely during his third pro season, compiling a career-high 75.0 overall PFF grade. His 3.3% pressure rate given up was the fifth-highest among guards, and his 72.3 PFF run-blocking grade placed 12th. The Rams have a very bright future between him and Dotson.
from PFF: Highest-graded centers from the 2025 NFL season: https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-centers-2025-nfl-season
10. Coleman Shelton, Los Angeles Rams (70.9)
After one season in Chicago (2024), Shelton returned to the Rams in 2025, where he played from 2019 to 2023. It was an up-and-down season for the eighth-year veteran, who recorded a career-high 77.2 PFF run-blocking grade (seventh) and also the fifth-worst PFF pass-blocking grade (53.1) among centers.
Since 2023, Shelton ranks 11th in PFF run-blocking grade (78.2) among centers. He excels in the Rams’ zone-blocking scheme, where he earned a sixth-ranked 82.1 PFF run-blocking grade in 2025.
Shelton is sometimes a liability in pass protection, having allowed the fourth-most pressures in the same span (86). Although he ranks near the bottom in pass protection (56.4 PFF pass-blocking grade since 2023, ninth worst), his pressure rate has gradually gone down in each of the past three seasons.
from PFF, Highest-graded tackles from the 2025 NFL season: https://www.pff.com/news/highest-graded-tackles-from-the-2025-nfl-season-penei-sewell-leads-the-pack
8. Alaric Jackson, Los Angeles Rams – 84.2
The Rams re-signed Jackson to a lucrative three-year deal last spring, and he was yet again strong in protecting Matthew Stafford’s blindside. Jackson’s 84.2 overall PFF grade was a new watermark for him, and he also improved his run-blocking with a career-best 86.1 grade. Further, Jackson was sound again in pass protection with a 75.8 PFF pass-blocking grade and a 96.7 pass-blocking efficiency score.
znModeratorfrom PFF: Highest-graded players from the 2025 NFL season at every position — https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-highest-graded-players-2025-nfl-season
WIDE RECEIVER
1. Puka Nacua, Los Angeles Rams (96.1)
Nacua embodied “offensive weapon” in 2025, leading all receivers in several PFF categories. He caught 153 passes for 2,047 yards — the second-most receiving yards in a season (including playoffs) in the PFF era. He led all receivers in yards per route run (3.57), first downs (97) and catches of 20-plus yards (32).
Defenses had no answer for the PFF Offensive Player of the Year. Nacua ranked first in PFF receiving grade at every level of the field, including perfect marks at the intermediate and deep levels (99.9). He also placed first in slot PFF receiving grade (96.7), screen PFF receiving grade (96.6) and play-action PFF receiving grade (94.1).
Nacua also ranked in the top two in PFF receiving grade against both primary coverage schemes, with a 91.9 figure against man and a 95.6 figure against zone.
Since entering the league in 2023, Nacua owns a league-best 95.5 PFF receiving grade
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