Should Rams prioritize offense tackle early in the draft?

With Rob Havenstein aging and rehabbing, the Rams may need his successor sooner than expected

One position that the Los Angeles Rams could target in the 2025 NFL draft is offensive tackle. Right tackle Rob Havenstein isn’t getting any younger and will be on the final year of his contract in 2025.

While it wouldn’t be a surprise for the Rams to take an offensive tackle, the big question is where they would take one. They don’t necessarily need that player to start right away even if they could see the field at some point due to injury. At the same time, they need a player with starting upside who can grow into a long-term solution once Havenstein moves on.

Waiting until day two of the draft could certainly be a possibility. However, finding a starting tackle in that area of this draft may be less likely than others. This isn’t a deep class at tackle and is much stronger at the top.

What makes the possibility of a tackle in the first round even more intriguing is Havenstein’s offseason shoulder procedure. Havenstein downplayed it, but mentioned that he got both shoulders cleaned out. At this stage of his career, any procedure for Havenstein is noteworthy.

It’s also worth noting that NFL Draft IQ which is powered by AWS has the Rams with a 20 percent chance of taking an offensive tackle with their first pick. The only position above that is cornerback at 24 percent and the next closest is defensive line at 13 percent.

The Rams certainly have other needs that they could address at the top of the draft and with their first pick. After re-signing Alaric Jackson in free agency, the need for an offensive tackle became less apparent. Still, the Rams will eventually need to identify his successor and the best place to find a starting caliber player could be in the first round.

That player may not start right away, but they would still have a role as a rookie. It’s a much different scenario than if the Rams took a quarterback at 26. That player would essentially be the third quarterback on the depth chart behind Jimmy Garoppolo and would never see playing time. Given the injuries that the Rams have suffered on the offensive line in recent years, it is very likely that a first-round offensive tackle would see playing time at some point during the season.

During his postseason press conference, Rams head coach Sean McVay noted that he didn’t want injuries to inhibit the team in the way that they did in 2024. Said McVay,

“The easy answer is to complain about the injuries that we had that threw off the continuity and while that might be true, you can’t allow that to inhibit us the way that it did.”

Havenstein missed three games last year and the Rams went 1-2 during that stretch. Warren McClendon and Joe Noteboom split time in those games. Among tackles with at least 70 snaps in those three weeks, Noteboom and McClendon ranked inside the bottom 15 via PFF. McClendon was one of 14 tackles to give up multiple sacks. As much as it would be nice for the next guy up to be McClendon, the reality is, that may not be the case.

Having the ability to insert a premier talent could step into that spot is something that could end up beneficial. At the end of the day, teams can never have too much good depth on the offensive line.

It will be interesting to see what the tackle market is like at the end of the first round. As Albert Breer of the MMQB reported,

“We’ve mentioned the dynamics the offensive line class should benefit from Thursday night—it’s a good-not-great group, with players likely to be pushed up because there isn’t a ton of Day 2–quality depth either at tackle or on the interior.”

Due to the lack of quality, this may result in the tackles being drafted earlier, dwindling the options for the Rams. For example, according to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, “Multiple sources have indicated Simmons’ knee looks great on medical rechecks, so he passes there.” If Simmons’ health does check out, it’s possible that he is a top-15 pick. Kelvin Banks Jr. is another player that could go earlier than some expect. That could still leave someone like Josh Conerly or potentially reaching on tackles such as Aireontae Ersery.

At the end of the day, the Rams may opt to trust their coaching staff and ability to develop a day two tackle over prioritizing the position at 26. Whether or not that is the right decision will be determined. However, it’s not something that’s worked out in past years with players such as Logan Bruss or Joe Noteboom who were both third-round picks.

With Havenstein entering the final year of his deal and coming off shoulder surgery, the Rams face a pivotal decision at right tackle. Whether they find a future starter in the first round or trust their development process on Day 2, the outcome will carry weight. In recent years, relying on mid-round picks hasn’t solidified the position. This draft presents a real opportunity to stabilize a critical spot on the offensive line.