As the NFL’s legal tampering period began Monday, guard Jonah Jackson sat at home with his wife. He had expected his phone to ring within seconds, but there was only silence for the first 45 minutes of free agency.
Then, the former Detroit Lion’s agent called and asked, “What do you think of Los Angeles?”
“I was like, ‘That doesn’t sound too shabby,’” Jackson told reporters Thursday after officially signing his three-year, $51 million contract with the Rams. “This sounded like the right move. Good weather, good place to be, good winning culture, great staff. Everything overall was just a plus, so we couldn’t deny that.”
A little more than two hours into free agency, Jackson and the Rams had agreed to terms. He admitted Thursday it was a little odd to make such a life-altering decision, especially given he grew up in Pennsylvania, played college ball at Rutgers and Ohio State and started his pro career in Detroit.
But he played his rookie year with the Lions blocking for Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, whom he used to call “the Wizard” for his football savvy. Lions GM Brad Holmes used to work in the Rams’ front office, and Jackson felt like he had a familiarity with the team.
Other teams were interested and could have slowed the process for Jackson, but there was an appeal for the Rams.
“I’ve been on the outside looking in at this place for a while, so I kind of had a general idea of what’s going on,” Jackson said. “Once I heard the Rams were willing to do what they did and be able to go somewhere and potentially win it all, there was no denying it.”
And then there was the football fit.
Last year, head coach Sean McVay revamped the Rams’ run game. The team moved from outside zone blocking to gap scheme and duo, blocking players down with leverage and double-teaming to create holes for running backs.
The results were immediate, with Kyren Williams ranking third in the NFL with 1,144 rushing yards despite…
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