Will Rams Be a Sneaky Team Interested in Jaxson Dart?

ESPN's Mel Kiper implies Los Angeles Rams could have interest in Ole Miss quarterback as potential first-round selection.

Mississippi Rebels quarterback Jaxson Dart (2) calls a play during the first quarter of the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla. [Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union] | Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The New Orleans Saints haven’t taken a quarterback in the first round since Archie Manning in 1971. Could the Los Angeles Rams, who took Jared Goff first overall as recently as 2016, be the team that continues that Saints' streak?

Longtime draft expert Mel Kiper raised the possibility on Tuesday afternoon. He also raised eyebrows Tuesday morning by predicting in his latest mock draft that the Saints will take Mississippi quarterback Jaxson Dart with the ninth overall selection in the first round. Then, Kiper connected Dart to the Rams on ESPN’s NFL Live.

“You go back to Ole Miss with Jaxson Dart. So, connect the dots there. Two Ole Miss quarterbacks, Archie Manning and Jaxson Dart, end up with the Saints,” Kiper said Tuesday. “So, I think if Kellen Moore loves Jaxson Dart, you got to take him.

“I don't feel the need to trade down. I'm not going to lose my quarterback. Maybe a couple spots, but be careful because there's the Rams sitting out there who I thought about Jaxson Dart for in the 20s, but I have him at 9 to the New Orleans Saints.”

Whoa. The Rams are sitting out there at 26. Did Kiper imply the Rams would consider trading up for Dart, or even taking him at 26 if he’s still on the board? Taking Matthew Stafford’s potential replacement in the 2025 draft isn’t unreasonable. The only other quarterbacks on the Los Angeles roster are 33-year-old Jimmy Garoppolo and fourth-round draft pick Stetson Bennett.

The Rams also have Puka Nacua and Davante Adams likely together for at least two years while other NFC West teams are making bold moves at quarterback.

But Stafford wasn’t looking much past 2025 when he said last week that after a whirlwind February he was grateful that he and the Rams came to a contract agreement.

"I think in the end, I know that they wanted me back,” he told Jason and Travis Kelce on the New Heights podcast last week. “I wanted to be back. We just had to figure that out and get to that point. We and I'm sure as hell happy that I'm going to be here for at least another year and hopefully some after that."

Hopefully for the Rams, there will be some after that. But if not, they might turn to Dart. Kiper believes in the quarterback’s future. He said Dart’s first-round grade gets lost in the gravitational pull of Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders.

“Jaxson Dart is, I think, a little underrated, undervalued in this process because people are thinking it's just two guys and Dart’s with the other guys,” Kiper said. “I think there's a second tier with just Dart standing alone as QB3.” 

Ensure you follow on X (Twitter) @RamsInsideronSI and @MNSToday and never miss another breaking news story again.

Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.