NFL Draft Mock 5.0: Two-round mock, post-free agency
By Ian Cummings
The Rams canceled out the loss of Lamarcus Joyner in free agency by signing Eric Weddle, who’s older and better than his predecessor. Weddle should be able to hold down the starting job in Los Angeles for at least one more year, but Sean McVay and Wade Phillips need to be conscious of potential replacements in the NFL Draft.
One player who jumps off the screen as a good match for the Rams, at this point, is Florida’s Chauncey Gardner-Johnson. Gardner-Johnson has a case to be the best safety in the 2019 NFL Draft class. While Nasir Adderley has him beat in terms of athletic potential, Gardner-Johnson is just as explosive and versatile, and he brings perhaps more polish with him to the NFL.
With Weddle and John Johnson already manning the Rams’ starting slots, Gardner-Johnson could enter the lineup as a slot cover man on certain downs, and he could filter in if the Rams use any big nickel sets, with Weddle, Johnson, and Gardner-Johnson all out on the field.
The addition of Gardner-Johnson would allow the Rams to be very creative right away, and when Weddle inevitably leaves in the near future, Gardner-Johnson could seamlessly transition into a full-time starting role.