At this point in the offseason, all we can do is speculate as to how good or bad a team will be during the regular season. The draft is over, free agency has pretty much dried up and the biggest trades have (more than likely) already happened.
So, The Athletic’s Austin Mock used a projection model based on every team’s current post-draft roster to rank the 32 franchises. The model projected each team’s expected margin of victory (xMOV) against an average NFL roster and ranked them. Here is Mock’s methodology:
To do this, the model uses various metrics and assigns a projection to each player to show their impact on a single game. Of course, positional value is quite important, which means, for example, that quarterback Josh Allen is worth a lot more to his team than running back Bijan Robinson, even though both sit atop their respective positions.
The Rams finished atop the list with a plus-6.3 xMOV — a full point ahead of the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks. Here is Mock’s assessment of this projection:
Although I didn’t love their draft (and they couldn’t overtake the Seahawks last year), I think the Rams have the best roster in football. It starts with the quarterback, of course, and Matthew Stafford is still playing at an elite level despite nearing retirement. The Rams also have the NFL’s best receivers room, led by Puka Nacua, plus a top-five interior offensive line, defensive line and cornerbacks room.
That’s quality up and down the roster, both young players and veterans. There are some concerns at offensive tackle, but the rest of the roster is top-notch.
This is, generally speaking, on par with how a lot of experts and betting markets think about the Rams. Stafford is the reigning MVP who will start the year with arguably the same collection of skill position players and offensive linemen that helped him lead the league in passing yards and passing touchdowns in 2025. The defense is improved as well with two top-flight secondary pieces and the return of safety Kamren Curl.
The big uncertainty is special teams, which doomed the Rams at times throughout this past season. L.A. hired two new special teams coaches in an attempt to correct this, but it remains to be seen how they will fair relative to previous units with the Rams.
At the very least, the Rams are locked and loaded as one of the top teams in the NFL. And, by some estimations, will start out as the best team in the league this year.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams ranked best roster in the NFL by projection model
Reporting by Oliver G., Rams Wire / Rams Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
