Would Rams have drafted Mason Taylor if they could have?
If the Rams did not get the chance to draft Terrance Ferguson in the second round after trading down with the Atlanta Falcons, they would have been just as happy with a different tight end, that being LSU’s Mason Taylor. This according to some post-draft rumors that were posted on ESPN this week, suggesting that not only would Les Snead have taken Taylor if Ferguson was off the board, but that L.A. was once again toying with trading into the top-10.
The Rams traded out of the first round with two tight ends in mind — Oregon’s Terrance Ferguson and LSU’s Mason Taylor. They would have been happy with either player, but one team source insists Ferguson was top in that order, so he would have been the pick if Taylor had been there. (Taylor went four spots earlier to the Jets.)
Los Angeles had trade talks with teams in the top 10, but in the end the price of that jump would have been too steep.
The Rams reportedly would have still picked Ferguson over Taylor if both were available (although, what else would “the leaker” say after the draft has already happened?) but what would Snead have done if both tight ends were gone by pick 46?
The next tight end drafted was Miami’s Elijah Arroyo, who went 50th overall to the Seattle Seahawks. Arroyo was the last tight end of the second round, until the Browns picked Bowling Green’s Harold Fannin at the top of the third round.
But were the Rams interested in trading up for one of the top tight ends in the first round?
Just a year ago, rumors persisted of L.A. trying to move up to get Brock Bowers (a player who happened to also break Puka Nacua’s rookie receptions record) and now ESPN is reporting that they had talks with teams in the top-10. The Bears picked Colston Loveland 10th overall, while Penn State’s Tyler Warren fell to the Colts at 14.
It is probably better than Snead hesitated to trade up because now instead of sacrificing a first round pick for a tight end, he has two first round picks in 2026 and still got a tight end to develop with his first pick.
Ferguson and Taylor had almost identical yardage totals in 2024 (591 for Ferguson compared to 546 for Taylor, both in 12 games) and Ferguson is one year older than Taylor. They are also roughly the same size.
Sean McVay, a former tight ends coach, now gets a player to develop in the hopes of replacing Tyler Higbee by 2026. The Rams were rumored to be equally interested if either of them fell to 46, now they just have to hope that their evaluations of the prospects were accurate.