Draft season is in full swing, especially with the NFL combine taking place this week. With that comes a slew of mock drafts from analysts, doing their best to project who will land where in April.
The Los Angeles Rams are always a fascinating team with their two first-round picks, giving them the ammo to move around the board if they want to. In Bucky Brooks’ latest mock draft for NFL.com, he has the Rams staying put at No. 13 and 29 overall, doubling down on defensive backs in Round 1.
At No. 13, he projects the Rams to take Tennessee cornerback Jermod McCoy, who missed all of 2025 while rehabbing a knee injury.
If McCoy shows evaluators that he is fully recovered from the ACL tear suffered in January of 2025, the Tennessee standout could be a steal for the Rams as a CB1 with ballhawk potential.
McCoy would immediately upgrade the Rams secondary, which was the weakest part of their otherwise solid defense in 2025. He’s a blue-chip talent whose stock might be even higher than it already is if not for his ACL tear.
At No. 29, Brooks has the Rams taking Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman, who’s widely viewed as the one of the three best safety prospects in what’s a very strong class at the position.
The Rams' struggles in coverage could prompt general manager Les Snead to commit multiple top picks to the defensive backfield. Thieneman is a natural center fielder with the range, instincts and awareness to thrive as a playmaker in Chris Shula's umbrella scheme.
Getting Thieneman at No. 29 would feel like a steal, even with how deep this class is at safety. Of course, if the Rams re-sign Kamren Curl, they’re highly unlikely to spend a first-round pick on a safety, so this projection is contingent on them letting Curl walk.
It might be hard for the Rams to pass on a wide receiver in the first round, but given the struggles of their secondary last season, that might be the highest priority for them in the draft – depending on what they do in free agency.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: NFL mock draft: Rams draft 2 DBs in 1st round of Bucky Brooks' mock