What should Rams do at left tackle to protect Matthew Stafford?

Is Alaric Jackson the long-term answer for the Rams at left tackle?

The top priority for the Los Angeles Rams over the next few years is going to be doing whatever it takes to protect Matthew Stafford. That starts with the left tackle position. The Rams struggled to protect Stafford in 2022 and it resulted in their star quarterback missing half of the season. For the Rams to compete at the level that want to be at over the next two years, keeping Stafford on the field and healthy has to be priority number one.

One of the questions that the Rams needed to answer this season was whether or not Alaric Jackson could be the long-term answer at left tackle. While Jackson did hold his own at times throughout the season, it’s hard to say that question was fully answered.

Perspective is everything. Again, it’s no secret that the Rams were historically bad at left tackle in 2022. Moving on from Andrew Whitworth to Joe Noteboom didn’t work out as planned and L.A. had five different players take snaps at left tackle. Due to how bad the Rams were at left tackle in 2022, it almost made Jackson’s performance and relative stability seem better than it actually was.

The fact of the matter is, Jackson struggled at times in the first-half of the season and missed games against the Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants. In Weeks 1-9, Jackson was the eighth-worst tackle in the NFL as he ranked outside the top-40 in pressures allowed with 24 and had the 12th-worst pass-blocking grade. His pass-blocking efficiency also ranked 46th out of 62 tackles.

Of course, improvement can happen and it did with Jackson. From Weeks 11-18, he was the sixth-highest graded tackle via PFF and he allowed just 15 pressures. Over the final eight weeks of the season, Jackson ranked 12th in pass-blocking and 19th in pass-blocking efficiency. It is worth noting that the Rams did provide Jackson with chip help over the second-half of the season, especially against elite level pass-rushers. That’s not to say that Jackson didn’t play well, but it is worth adding that context.

This night and day level of performance makes Jackson’s evaluation extremely difficult. How much value should be placed on the second-half of the season? Was that enough for the Rams to go into this offseason with the mindset that left tackle is no longer a need?

It’s still important here to look at the season as a whole. At the end of the day, Jackson was an average to below average left tackle when you take in the whole sample.

Timo Riske

Is that good enough for the Rams moving forward? If the priority is to priority is to keep Matthew Stafford upright, it’s certainly debatable. Players like Michael Hoecht and Christian Rozeboom improved over the second half of the season. That doesn’t mean that the Rams don’t need an edge rusher or linebacker. Two things can be true here and those are that these players improved and have a role on roster going forward. At the same time, they shouldn’t be relied on as full-time starters.

Again, perspective is everything. While Jackson was better than the left tackle play of 2022, that doesn’t necessarily mean that it met or should be the standard. With Jackson’s versatility, he is a great sixth-man on the offensive line. He is someone that can be relied on in a spot-start situation at four of the five positions. The Rams have a lot on the line over the next two years. Can it confidently be said that Jackson is and should be the left tackle that is relied on as the Rams push for a second Super Bowl title? The answer there is probably no.

That’s especially the case when you look at the draft and talent at the tackle position. Olu Fashanu is consistently falling to the 9-13 range in mock drafts. If quarterbacks dominate the first 10 picks, that’s a scenario that is very realistic. In the cast the Fashanu does fall, trading up to acquire a left tackle with Fashanu’s ceiling should absolutely be on the table as an option. Even if just a rookie, Fashanu is an immediate upgrade to Jackson on the left side.

Of course, if the Rams don’t trade up, players like Amarius Mims could be available at the end of round one or Patrick Paul, Tyler Guyton, or Jordan Morgan may still be on the board in round two. There is value and depth at the tackle position depending on what a team is looking for in this draft.

Drafting a tackle doesn’t necessarily push Jackson out of a role on the roster. Again, he’s a great sixth-man to have as depth or could potentially get moved inside to guard where he’s shown success in the past. He may also be better inside where his skillset is a better fit. As an undrafted free agent, Jackson has given the Rams a lot of return on that value. Just because he’s not starting left tackle doesn’t mean he’s a bust or failed. It simply means that the Rams did what they needed to do to upgrade a priority position on the roster.

It’s easy to look at what Jackson did over the second-half of the season and sharpie him into that spot for 2024. In fact, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Rams do feel that way and they wouldn’t necessarily be wrong in that line of thinking. However, it’s also important not to overreact to a relatively small sample.

Last season was a re-tool year and the Rams accomplished what they set out to do. They found young players that they can build around moving forward. With that said, the needs are still the needs and that includes left tackle.