ESPN Analysts say Rams should draft Jaxson Dart in first round

Should the Rams consider Jaxson Dart in the first round?

It’s another year and another draft season in which many analysts are forcing a Los Angeles Rams heir apparent at the quarterback position. Throughout the draft process last year, Bo Nix was a player that was commonly mocked to the Rams in the first round. This year, that player is Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart.

Of course, quarterbacks went early and the Rams ended up taking edge rusher Jared Verse with the 19th overall pick. Verse went on to win the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.

While the Rams brought back Jimmy Garoppolo for a second season, they should still look to replace Stetson Bennett with a younger quarterback. The question becomes when would the Rams draft a quarterback if they did. It’s also not a position that they need to force. ESPN’s Matt Miller released his most recent mock draft and with the 26th overall pick he had the Rams taking Dart.

“After waiting to see whether Matthew Stafford would return for another season, it’s time for the Rams to prepare for their post-Stafford future at quarterback. Dart could go as high as the top 10 depending on how the QB board settles early in the draft. He’s an accurate thrower on intermediate routes with underrated ability to layer the deep ball downfield. He’s also experienced, starting the past three seasons at Ole Miss after transferring from USC Dart got better every season under Lane Kiffin and has the eyes and arm to make plays on time and to every area of the field. Dart will need time to acclimate to the NFL, as Kiffin’s RPO-heavy scheme limited his reads and progressions, but he can sit and learn behind Stafford in 2025. The Rams don’t have a second-round pick, so this would be the time to aggressively pursue their QB of the future.”

Dart is getting a lot of first round buzz, but it’s hard to argue that he is a true first round talent. The Ole Miss quarterback only has average arm strength, is a slow processor, and doesn’t anticipate throws. It is also fair to wonder how Dart will transition to the NFL coming from an Ole Miss offense that doesn’t translate.

Taking Dart with the 26th overall pick, in a year when the Rams are looking to compete, would be a significant reach. If a player like Shedeur Sanders falls, that’s one thing. However, Dart isn’t the next Jordan Love with the physical tools and potential to be a top-level quarterback. Dart isn’t the next Jordan Love, let alone the next Patrick Mahomes. Letting a quarterback sit and develop has proven to work, but those quarterbacks have tended to have high upside. ESPN’s Mike Tannenbaum added to the discussion saying,

“I’m not comparing Jaxson Dart to Patrick Mahomes, but if you go back a couple of year with Kansas City, they made the playoffs with Alex Smith and opportunistically they traded for Patrick Mahomes. The rest is history. If I am the Rams, they have done a great job with that great, young talent on defense. We have to assume that Matthew Stafford is a year-to-year proposition. If you can get Jaxson Dart who led the NCAA in yards per pass attempt, which tells me he gets the ball down the field, he has great upside. If you can pair Jaxson Dart on a rookie contract with Sean McVay, sign me up.”

At some point, the Rams will need to think about the quarterback position and life after Matthew Stafford. However, it’s also not something that they need to force. Taking a quarterback late in the first round in this class would be forcing the issue. If the Rams wanted to take a Kyle McCord or Tyler Shough who could develop into a high-end backup, that would make more sense in this class than trying to find their heir apparent.

Still, this is a roster looking to compete for a Super Bowl title during their small window. While the Green Bay Packers took the right player when they selected Jordan Love, whether or not they made the right decision is another story. The Packers could have stayed at 30th overall and taken Tee Higgins or another player to help them get over the hump. Instead, they selected a backup quarterback during a championship window in the first round. That’s the mistake that the Rams can’t afford to make.

It’s hard to see the Rams taking a quarterback with the 26th overall pick in this year’s draft. While Jaxson Dart is an intriguing player, he likely won’t be the best option available when the Rams are on the clock in April.