2 Rams Were Slam Dunks on 25 Under 25 Team

Five-time Pro Bowl tackle Terron Armstead could’ve picked anyone among a group of hundreds of edge rushers he faced over his 12-year NFL career. Asked which player he’s most relieved he no longer has to face in retirement, Armstead chose Jared Verse.

Pro Football Focus could’ve graded anyone among a dozen elite receivers as best in the NFL last season. The scouting organization graded Puka Nacua with both the highest receiving grade (92.6), threat percentage (35.6) and most yards per route run (3.23), nearly half a yard ahead of the next-closest qualifier.

Those are primary reasons that analysts Steve Palazzolo and Sam Monson on Monday included each player high on their respective lists of the NFL’s 25 best players under 25.

“Verse, I think he's the best power player we've seen enter the league since, I don't know, Khalil Mack,” Monson said on Monday’s edition of the Check the Mic podcast.

Like Mack, Verse was a first-round selection – the only first-rounder the Rams have had since taking Jared Goff No. 1 overall in 2016. But unlike Mack, Verse won the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Year. Mack finished third in 2014, when Aaron Donald captured the award.

“First off, the fact that the Rams have reloaded like that over the last two years with Verse,” Palazzolo said, “who could be that force multiplier type on the defensive line, right after losing Aaron Donald -- who was the force multiplier on that defensive line. Now, you're actually asking, ‘What if they're both on the same line at the same time?’”

They missed being on the same line by one year. But had Donald not retired before the 2024 draft, the Rams might not have selected Verse. And had they not selected Verse, they might not have selected his Florida State teammate, Braden Fiske, who led the Rams with 8½ sacks in 2024.

Nacua’s situation was much different. He entered the league as a fifth-round selection, part of the profound success Les Snead has enjoyed in uncovering gems on Days 2 and 3 of the draft. But the young wide receiver, who turned 24 in May, is clearly one of the league’s best wide receivers at any age.

“Amazing receiver,” Monson said. “I think he's always going to be more productive than it looks like he should be. Like, there's something deceptive about the way he moves. It just doesn't look as explosive and dynamic, but he's so strong. He's a great route runner, he understands what he's doing and he's just a phenomenally good football player.”

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