Rams Draft Review: Terrance Ferguson is a Future Star

The emergence of young playmakers on both sides of the ball is nothing new for these Los Angeles Rams. Over the last three selection processes, general manager Les Snead has assembled a team built through the NFL Draft, with several key cornerstone pieces emerging as some of the best young players at their respective positions.

On the Rams' offense, three critical positions have yet to find their emerging young player to move the franchise forward: quarterback, right tackle, and tight end. However, that may change starting this season after Los Angeles selected Oregon Ducks tight end Terrance Ferguson with their first pick of the draft, following a trade back into the second round with the Atlanta Falcons.

Ferguson is a former four-star recruit who was an all-conference tight end for the last two seasons in the PAC-12 and Big Ten, respectively. He holds school records for career receptions and touchdowns by a tight end, showcasing the type of playmaker he was for the Ducks over the past few seasons.

With 16 career touchdowns to his name, Ferguson was a productive red-zone target with quality size at 6-foot-4, 245 pounds. The Ducks aligned him all over the formation, whether it was as the No. 3 receiver in trips formations, in-line, motion player, on the perimeter, and more. Because of his combination of size and athleticism, Ferguson was able to be a multi-purpose threat in Oregon's offense.

I was impressed with the diversity of Ferguson's route tree, where he ran option routes, nine routes, deep and shallow crossers, quick hitches, and intermediate to deep outs. For a team that likes to run RPOs, the Rams will likely utilize him as a F-move tight end and allow for more creativity in this aspect of the offense.

Ferguson is also a smart player. He knows where to hit his landmarks as a route runner, such as leaning into the leverage, then cutting at the stem to create separation. He knows how to find voids against zone coverages and sit, making himself available to the quarterback.

Ferguson's ball skills are equally impressive. He has a good catch radius to snag passes away from his frame and quality hand-eye coordination to track passes in the middle of the field and come away with impressive grabs due to sufficient body control at the catch point.