The Los Angeles Rams received some scary news earlier this month when they learned that left tackle Alaric Jackson is dealing with blood clots in his leg.
The 26-year-old previously dealt with the condition in 2022 and was forced to miss the final nine games of that season.
Jackson felt something off with his lower leg during offseason workouts and underwent testing, which revealed the blood clots.
Rams head coach Sean McVay expressed hope that Jackson will be able to make a full recovery, via Stu Jackson of TheRams.com:
“You pray for him to be able to have a healthy, safe recovery,” McVay said. “And we’re really just taking it a day at a time with him. There’s a lot of examples of people that have had situations like this, but they’re all still so uniquely independent in their own right. And so we’re gathering information.”
McVay said the Rams are primarily focused on getting Jackson back to full health before they even think about his potential return to the field:
“There needs to be a lot of discussion and dialogue with (Jackson) and with the doctors about, most importantly, what’s best for him as a human being,” McVay said. “And then you talk about football after that. But what we are grateful for is that we were able to identify this based on his communication and get him on the appropriate medicine to make sure that he’s as healthy as possible.”
Jackson has carved out a nice career for himself since signing with the Rams as an undrafted free agent in 2021. He has appeared in 41 games over the last four seasons while developing into one of the best left tackles in the NFL.
While the latest setback is unfortunate, it sounds like the Rams have a good plan in place to ensure that the left tackle not only makes a speedy recovery, but can resume playing football as soon as possible.
Rams’ potential replacement for Alaric Jackson
While the Rams have not ruled out Alaric Jackson from being available for Week 1, they recently added some insurance in the form of veteran offensive lineman D.J. Humphries.
L.A. previously signed another veteran in David Quessenberry, so they have some options in the event that their starters miss time.
Jackson remains a big part of the Rams’ plans as they signed him to a three-year, $57 million contract extension during the offseason.
