Jared Verse makes his NFL Top 100 debut after breakout rookie season: See where he ranks
After a standout rookie season, Los Angeles Rams outside linebacker Jared Verse can add another accolade to what has already been an impressive start to his young NFL career.
Verse was recently named to the NFL's Top 100 players of 2025, which is voted on by the players themselves. The Rams' star defender was ranked 53rd by his peers. Los Angeles, following the retirement of future Hall of Famer Aaron Donald after the 2023 season, selected Verse 19th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, needing a new force to help lead upfront.
The Rams struck gold in the draft once again with Verse, adding to their rapidly growing young defensive core with an edge who terrorizes opposing quarterbacks at an obscene rate. Verse took home Defensive Rookie of the Year honors, the second year in a row an L.A. rookie was a finalist, but the first winner for the Rams since Aaron Donald in 2014. Finishing fourth in the league in total pressures and adding 12 more in the postseason, per Pro Football Focus, Verse's performance as a rookie put him among some of the best at the position last year, even if the sacks didn't follow. Verse even received a rousing endorsement of his uncanny talent from the recently retired Terron Armstead, a top offensive lineman over the last decade. After just one game lining up opposite Verse, Armstead decreed he never wanted to do so again and predicted a Defensive Player of the Year nod in the pass rusher's future. Not a bad start to an NFL career.
In 17 games, the former Florida State All-American recorded 66 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and, per Next Gen Stats, finished with 76 pressures, the second-most by a rookie since San Francisco 49ers DE Nick Bosa, who had 81 in 2019. As a result, Verse was selected for the Pro Bowl and was named the 2024 NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year.
"One of the things that makes Jared [Verse] great is that edge that he plays with," Rams HC Sean McVay said last week during training camp. "I can remember it's the same things that [former Defensive Tackle] Aaron [Donald] and I used to talk about when he was playing. You're always right on that line of using the aggressiveness, that edge."
As Year 2 begins, Verse aims to take the next step by not only being a physical leader but also becoming a vocal leader for a Rams' defense that will look to improve upon its 26th overall ranking from last season.
Follow Rams Wire on X and Facebook for more coverage!
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Rams QB Matthew Stafford sees back specialist again as injury timetable remains murky
Matthew Stafford is still waiting to get started at Los Angeles Rams training camp, and his timetable to do so remains as hazy as ever. The Rams starting quarterback visited back specialist Dr. Steven Watkins again on Saturday, head coach Sean McVay told reporters via the Los Angeles Times. He confirmed the 37-year-old Stafford remains week-to-week and will not participate in a joint practice with the Dallas Cowboys on Tuesday. [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] Stafford's availability for the next joint practice with the Los Angeles Chargers the following week reportedly remains undetermined. From the Times: 'What I don't want to do is set a timeline,' McVay said. 'I know he's making good progress. He saw Dr. Watkins again. ... Everything is in good shape.' Stafford has been held out of training camp after encountering back soreness during the offseason. In Stafford's absence, Jimmy Garoppolo has taken first-team reps in his place while former fourth-round pick Stetson Bennett has worked with the second team. The Rams are scheduled to open their season on Sept. 7 against the Houston Texans. There were talks about Stafford exiting Los Angeles over the offseason, but he ended up agreeing to a contract restructure to remain on the team. He's entering his fifth season with the Rams, who won a Super Bowl in his first season but have failed to advance past the divisional round since.
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
ESPN, NFL Media deal raises real revenue questions for NFLPA
The massive deal between the NFL and ESPN regarding various NFL Media assets raises a wide range of questions. For NFL players, it raises one very important one. What's in it for us? The league reportedly will get equity in the deal, receiving up to 10 percent of ESPN. How will that translate into payment for players? Long-time agent Peter Schaffer flagged the issue, in a Saturday text message to PFT. "Agents and players see major revenue potential in the ESPN–NFL deal, but there's real concern the league structured it to conceal money from the player pool," as it relates to, for example, the "value of game packages." Among other things, ESPN will get access to the seven regular-season games that the NFL had retained and televised via NFL Network. With the league reportedly getting ESPN ownership in lieu of cash, what does that mean for the broader revenue split? The players currently receive roughly half of the cash that flows through the overall cash register. With the league getting paper ownership and not paper money from the ESPN deal, what will the players receive via a potential bump to their collective pay? "This could artificially depress the salary cap, directly cutting into player contracts and earnings," Schaffer said. "The NFLPA needs to stay on top of this and demand full transparency." Because the deal has yet to be finalized, it's premature for the union to do anything. When the deal is done, the union will have the right to fully explore the details of the arrangement and, if necessary, to challenge it. Of course, the first order of business for the NFLPA is to appoint a new leader. And the new leader will have plenty of work to do. The ESPN-NFL deal adds another important item to the list: Figuring out how the players will get their fair share of whatever tangible benefits the NFL will receive through its unprecedented partnership with a media conglomerate.
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Look: Chargers legend Antonio Gates dons the gold jacket, reveals Hall of Fame bust
Antonio Gates was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday afternoon. From a former college basketball player to one of the greatest tight ends in NFL history, Gates spent his entire pro career with the Chargers from 2003 to 2018. Gates holds the most career receiving touchdowns (116) by a tight end. He has franchise records for career receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. Here's what the Hall of Fame weekend looked like for one of the best at the position. This article originally appeared on Chargers Wire: Chargers legend Antonio Gates reveals his Hall of Fame bust
