Tag: Alaric Jackson

Alaric Jackson signs RFA tender, locking him in for 2024 season

Alaric Jackson officially signed his RFA tender, which will keep him with the Rams for the 2024 season

The Los Angeles Rams gave Alaric Jackson a second-round tender as a restricted free agent this offseason, which almost assured that he’d remain with the team for one more year. They could’ve used a lower tender for less money, but they were willing to pay him more in order to make it almost certain he’d return to Los Angeles.

On Monday, the first day of the Rams’ offseason workout program, Jackson officially signed his tender, which will lock him in at $4.89 million for the 2024 season. That’s the ninth-largest cap hit of any team on the roster. He started 15 games for the Rams last season, his first full year as a left tackle.

Jackson could’ve fielded offers from other teams in an attempt to earn more money than the tender was worth, but now that he’s signed it, he’ll remain with the Rams for another season.

Additionally, the Rams announced Ronnie Rivers signed his exclusive rights free agent tender, as well, so he’s officially returning, as well.

By tendering Alaric Jackson, Rams are letting the market set his price

The Rams will tender Alaric Jackson as a restricted free agent, allowing other teams to set his price

Though it’s not official yet, the Los Angeles Rams plan to use a restricted free agent tender on Alaric Jackson, their young left tackle who started 15 games last season. The Rams are deciding whether to use the second-round tender for $4.89 million, or the original-round tender at $3.116 million for one season.

Either way, the Rams are wise to tender Jackson rather than letting him become an unrestricted free agent. By tendering Jackson at either level, they’re going to let the market set his price for them.

Teams are allowed to sign restricted free agents to offer sheets, which the player’s original team will then have a chance to match. Essentially, the Rams are allowing other teams to tell the Rams how much Jackson is worth. If no one signs him to an offer sheet worth more than his tender, they’ll keep him at that price – either $4.89 million or $3.116 million.

If the Rams go with the original-round tender, they won’t receive any draft pick compensation for losing Jackson in the event that they don’t want to match an offer. That’s because he was an undrafted free agent when he came into the NFL. At the second-round level, the Rams would receive a second-rounder for letting Jackson go.

The question is whether the extra $1.78 million is worth paying in order to better protect Jackson from leaving. Either way, the Rams are going to let the rest of the NFL determine exactly how much the young left tackle is worth.

The original-round tender is a bit riskier, but the Rams might feel confident no one will sign him to an offer so high that they won’t be willing to match.

Rams plan to use RFA tender on LT Alaric Jackson

The Rams plan to use a restricted free agent tender on Alaric Jackson in hopes of retaining him for 2024

The Los Angeles Rams got some steady play out of former undrafted free agent Alaric Jackson last season, his first year as a starter on the offensive line. After seeing growth from the young left tackle, they hope to retain him for another year.

According to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the Rams plan to use a restricted free agent tender on Jackson. Though they’re undecided on which level tender to use on Jackson, they’re leaning toward the original-round tender, which will pay him $3.116 million for one year.

With the tender, teams can sign him to offer sheets, which the Rams can then choose to match or let him walk. Because Jackson is a former UDFA, the Rams would not get any draft pick compensation for losing Jackson like they would with the first- or second-round tender.

Here’s how much it’ll cost the Rams to tender RFAs such as Alaric Jackson, Michael Hoecht

Here’s how much it’ll cost the Rams to tender their restricted free agents, including Alaric Jackson and Michael Hoecht

In addition to a large group of unrestricted free agents, the Los Angeles Rams will also have several decisions to make on restricted free agents this offseason. A restricted free agent is a player with an expiring contract who’s only accrued three seasons, which applies to the likes of Alaric Jackson and Michael Hoecht, among others.

There are different levels of a restricted free agent tender, depending on how difficult the team wants to make it for another team to sign the player. For instance, a team can use a first-round tender on a player so that if he signs an offer sheet elsewhere, the team will receive a first-round pick as compensation.

On Friday, the NFL announced the tender amounts for restricted free agents, giving fans an idea of how much it’ll cost the Rams to keep their RFAs this offseason.

  • First-round tender: $6.822 million
  • Second-round tender: $4.89 million
  • Right of first refusal tender: $2.985 million

Below is a list of the Rams’ restricted free agents in 2024.

  • Alaric Jackson
  • Michael Hoecht
  • Christian Rozeboom
  • Jonah Williams
  • Tyler Johnson

It’s possible the Rams will not use a tender on any of the above players, but Jackson and Hoecht are two strong candidates to be tendered. If the Rams use the right of first refusal option, they will receive no compensation if the player leaves to sign with another team.

For that reason, the Rams might consider using the second-round tender on Jackson, knowing a team is unlikely to give up a second-round pick to sign him. With Hoecht, the best option is a right of first refusal tender of $2.985 million, though even that might be a bit too rich for Los Angeles’ taste.

Rams starting LT Alaric Jackson out vs. Giants for personal reasons

The Rams announced Alaric Jackson has been ruled out today against the Giants for personal reasons

Rams starting left tackle Alaric Jackson popped up on the injury report Friday with a thigh injury, causing him to be listed as questionable to play against the Giants. The Rams announced on Sunday that Jackson won’t play, but it’s not because of his injury.

According to the team, Jackson is out today against the Giants due to personal reasons. No further information has been disclosed, but Los Angeles will now be without its starting left tackle in New York.

His backup, Joe Noteboom, is also questionable to play, though he was active last week against the Saints despite dealing with a foot injury.

Jackson has started 14 of the Rams’ 15 games this season, helping the offensive line play at a high level for much of the year. He’s a former undrafted free agent out of Iowa who has exceeded all expectations in his three years with the Rams.

Matthew Stafford credits offensive line for performance vs. Browns

Matthew Stafford wasn’t sacked in the Rams’ 36-19 victory over the Browns in Week 13.

Matthew Stafford has strung together back-to-back productive outings for the Los Angeles Rams after throwing for 279 yards and three touchdowns versus the Cleveland Browns in Week 13. Stafford dealt with a clean pocket for the majority of the game, which led to the veteran quarterback making it a priority to credit his offensive line for their performance in Sunday’s win.

“Thank you. I was going to say something if nobody asked me,” Stafford said of the O-line. “My guys were balling today so I was so fired up. That’s a hell of a rush. They were bringing pressures, they were rushing four, they were doing all sorts of stuff to us and our guys to step up there and protect the way they did today was amazing. And then be able to really lean on them in the fourth quarter too and run the rock when we needed to. A couple times, Kyren (Williams) got downhill and we were able to ice the game that way. So proud of those guys. It shows up the way they work, the way they go about their business every single day. I thought we had a great plan but shoot, we threw the rock. We weren’t sitting there just protecting those guys up front. We were just saying let’s go play our game and have a lot of confidence in those guys and proud of the way they played.”

The Browns entered Week 13 as one of the best defenses in the NFL, with Jim Schwartz dialing up exotic blitzes to generate pressure on quarterbacks. While Myles Garrett wasn’t fully healthy on Sunday, the Rams didn’t allow Stafford to be sacked and the Browns totaled 14 pressures.

Those numbers are mighty impressive considering the Browns have four players who have tallied 24 or more pressures this season. The five starting offensive linemen for the Rams were credited with only nine pressures allowed as rookie Steve Avila didn’t surrender a single pressure in pass protection.

The current starting group of Alaric Jackson, Avila, Coleman Shelton, Kevin Dotson, and Rob Havenstein has become a cohesive unit in the last month or so. Following two straight dominant performances in the trenches, the offensive line will look to carry their success into Week 14 versus the Baltimore Ravens.

Watch: Sean McVay hands out 4 game balls, Puka Nacua goes crazy after getting his

Puka Nacua got a game ball after going over 1,000 yards on the year and he was fired up over it

When you win three games in a row, players get fired up. That’s exactly what the Rams have shown in the last three weeks, beating the Seahawks, Cardinals and Browns in their last three games.

After their victory on over Cleveland on Sunday, the Rams’ locker room was full of energy. Sean McVay handed out four game balls to players who had a big impact on the game and their teammates showed a ton of excitement for each guy.

First up was Alaric Jackson, who helped shut down Myles Garrett and the Browns’ pass rushers. Matthew Stafford also got a game ball for his 279-yard performance, tossing three more touchdown passes. John Johnson, whose interception helped set up a crucial touchdown to go up eight points, got a game ball, too.

Puka Nacua was the final player to get one after his 139-yard performance, putting him over 1,000 yards on the season. He went crazy after getting his game ball, spiking it into the ground and breaking down the huddle.

Rams-Eagles injury report: Final statuses for Week 5

The Rams and Eagles released their final injury reports of the week and Los Angeles listed Alaric Jackson as questionable to play

Before the Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles square off on Sunday afternoon, each team released its final injury report of the week on Friday. Sean McVay said the Rams will activate Cooper Kupp and Ochaun Mathis from injured reserve, putting them in line to play against the Eagles after being full participants the last two days. However, Alaric Jackson’s status is still to be determined.

While McVay said the Rams have been pleased with his progress this week as he recovers from a hamstring injury, he was only limited Friday after missing the first two days of practice. McVay still expects him to start but he’s listed as questionable.

Joe Noteboom has already been ruled out and Desjuan Johnson is doubtful after having surgery on his thumb. If Jackson is unable to play, McVay said Warren McClendon Jr. would start in his place.

The Eagles ruled out Fletcher Cox and three others, but Justin Evans and Quez Watkins are both good to go. Britain Covey is also questionable to play.

What will the Rams’ offensive line look like when Alaric Jackson returns?

When Alaric Jackson returns from his injury, what will the Rams’ offensive line look like?

Ahead of Sunday’s overtime win over the Indianapolis Colts, the Los Angeles Rams ruled out Alaric Jackson, prompting the team to shake up the offensive line again. Jackson suffered a hamstring injury in Week 3 against the Cincinnati Bengals and it remains to be seen if he’ll be available in Week 5 versus the Philadelphia Eagles.

When Jackson returns to the field, what could the offensive line look like?

Upon Jackson’s exit from the game against the Bengals in Week 3, Zach Thomas replaced him at left tackle. Thomas would struggle in relief of Jackson and the Rams elected to make him a healthy scratch on Sunday against the Colts.

Instead of starting Thomas, the Rams moved Joe Noteboom back to left tackle and activated Kevin Dotson for the first time this season. Dotson would make the start at right guard and he performed well in his first game since being acquired via trade from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

According to PFF, Dotson finished with an impressive 86.0 overall grade (89.3 run-blocking, 60.8 pass-blocking), which led all offensive linemen on the Rams in the overtime victory over the Colts. Comparatively, Noteboom concluded Sunday’s game with a below-average 44.5 overall grade and he now has a 42.1 overall grade on the season (51.0 pass-blocking grade, 24.7 run-blocking grade).

While PFF grades aren’t the end-all, be-all when dissecting players’ performances, Noteboom hasn’t been a bright spot on the offensive line. Whether it has been at left tackle or right guard, Noteboom hasn’t shown anything that suggests he should be a definitive starter.

Whenever Jackson returns, it’s clear that he’ll be the starting left tackle again with how good he looked before sustaining his injury. The other starters moving forward should be Steve Avila, Coleman Shelton, Dotson, and Rob Havenstein, leaving Noteboom on the bench as a backup tackle and guard.

Rams injury report: Alaric Jackson a game-time decision, 2 others questionable

Alaric Jackson, Tyler Higbee and Ben Skowronek will all be questionable for Sunday’s game against the Colts

The Los Angeles Rams haven’t had many injury questions through three games this season, but they have a few heading into Sunday’s game against the Indianapolis Colts. Sean McVay said Friday that three players will be questionable to play: Alaric Jackson, Tyler Higbee and Ben Skowronek.

Jackson is dealing with a hamstring injury suffered Monday night against the Bengals, while Higbee and Skowronek have Achilles injuries that could affect their statuses for Sunday’s matchup with the Colts.

McVay said Jackson will likely be a game-time decision, which is concerning for the Rams. After Jackson went down in Monday’s loss, the offensive line took a major step back. If Jackson misses the game, it’s unlikely the Rams would plug Zach Thomas in at left tackle again.

John Johnson III, who has only played four defensive snaps, is questionable with a face injury after being added to the report Friday.

On the Colts’ side, Anthony Richardson has cleared the concussion protocol and is expected to play against the Rams. The statuses for Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner are unknown for Sunday, as both of them are listed as questionable.

Starting center Ryan Kelly has also been ruled out, as has tackle Bernhard Raimann.