National Football League

Jalen Ramsey recruiting Tyrann Mathieu as Rams revamp secondary

Updated May. 1, 2022 5:15 p.m. ET

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The Los Angeles Rams won the Super Bowl less than three months ago despite fielding a secondary that didn’t appear to be nearly as good as the previous season’s group.

Now the front office is making some big upgrades, and they might be getting an assist from star cornerback Jalen Ramsey in the recruiting department.

While they took their usual assortment of late-draft flyers on unsung or flawed prospects Saturday, the Rams’ biggest addition of Day 3 of the 2022 NFL Draft could turn out to be the return of defensive back Troy Hill. Los Angeles traded a fifth-round pick in 2023 to Cleveland for the dependable slot defender who played a key role on the Rams’ defense from 2016-20.

The Rams struggled to replace Hill last season with a combination of David Long, rookie Robert Rochell and Donte Deayon. L.A.’s needs in the secondary are even more pronounced now after the free-agent departure of starting cornerback Darious Williams for Jacksonville.

But Ramsey is on top of it: The All-Pro cornerback hailed Hill’s return on Twitter — and then he instructed Rams fans to blow up Tyrann Mathieu’s mentions in a bid to recruit the three-time All-Pro safety.

After several fruitful seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, the team opted to let Mathieu walk as a free agent. Whether the Rams' front office will join Ramsey's pursuit of the "Honey Badger" remains to be seen. Mathieu is reportedly being pursued by the Saints, who were unable to draft a safety.

The Rams also selected four defensive backs during Day 3, on top of reacquiring Hill as a key pass defender from that 2020 juggernaut that led the league in total defense.

"[Defensive back] was definitely something we were going to strategically target," general manager Les Snead said.

"[Hill's] a guy that played really good football for us, especially the first year we were running a version of this system [in 2020]," Rams coach Sean McVay said. "The overall production, the position flexibility, the ability to play the (slot) and be able to play outside — as they say, distance makes the heart grow fonder."

Reporting by the Associated Press.

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