After trading their first-round pick the previous night, the Rams on Friday selected Oregon tight end Terrance Ferguson in the second round with the 46th overall pick.
The Rams drafted Ferguson to bolster a position group that includes veteran Tyler Higbee, Colby Parkinson and Davis Allen.
The Rams went into the draft without a second-round pick. They acquired the 46th pick, a seventh-round pick and a 2026 first-round pick in a trade with the Atlanta Falcons.
The Rams still have picks in the third and fourth rounds, three in the sixth and one in the seventh.
“I think I bring a lot of things, versatility being the biggest,” Ferguson told reporters during a videoconference from his family’s home in Denver. “Being able to stretch the field and create mismatches with linebackers or safeties but also being able to put my nose on somebody. … Ability to line up anywhere and make an impact however I need to.”
Ferguson said his younger brother was a “diehard” fan of the Detroit Lions, for whom Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford played for 12 seasons before the Rams acquired him in 2021.
“He loves Matt Stafford and has loved him his whole life,” Ferguson said, “so just being able to play with a guy like that who has a lot of experience, won a Super Bowl and is super obviously detailed and has super talent, I can’t wait to be able to catch passes from him.”
His brother is similarly excited.
“That’s the first thing he said to me, he said I get to play with the GOAT.”
Sean McVay gives pep talk to first responders
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 multiple fire and law enforcement agencies in Los Angeles and Ventura counties.
A group of Rams players that included quarterback Matthew Stafford, receiver Puka Nacua, edge rusher Jared Verse, defensive linemen Kobie Turner and Braden Fiske, Higbee and running backs Kyren Williams and Blake Corum mingled and posed for photos with the crowd.
Corum echoed McVay, describing the first responders as true heroes.
“Coach McVay is a very inspirational person,” Corum said. “Hearing him talk [Friday] 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.”
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