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Get to know new Rams OLB Josaiah Stewart

The Rams selected Michigan outside linebacker Josaiah Stewart with the 90th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Here's what you should know about him:

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Had elite standard and advanced stats last season

Two Michigan interior defensive linemen were selected in the first 13 picks of this year's NFL Draft – Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant – but Stewart was the team's most productive defensive lineman last season. He led the Wolverines with 13 tackles for loss (totaling 77 yards) and 8.5 sacks (for a total 67 yards lost) in 11 games.

Stewart's 27.7% pass rush win rate was the best in the nation last season among edge rushers with at least 90 such snaps played, according to Pro Football Focus.

Another small school transfer who excelled at a Power Four program

The Rams' defensive line is filled with players who began their college careers at small schools before excelling at Power Four programs. Stewart is yet another example of this, as he started his collegiate career at Coastal Carolina before spending two seasons at Michigan. Kobie Turner, Byron Young, Jared Verse and Braden Fiske all followed the same path.

Stewart's 12.5 sacks in 2021 led the Sun Belt, ranked fifth nationally, were the most by a true freshman in the FBS and were one shy of the Sun Belt single-season record.

Didn't start playing football until high school

Stewart didn't start playing football until he joined Everett (Massachusetts) High School's freshman team. That inexperience was part of the reason he wasn't recruited to a top NCAA program, despite being ranked the No. 4 prospect in Massachusetts by 247Sports. Five years later, he won a national championship with Michigan and collected two tackles for loss and one sack in the Rose Bowl against Alabama.

Grew up with 18 siblings

Stewart honed his athletic skills playing basketball and tag with his many siblings, but didn't join organized sports until later in life. He then relocated to Massachusetts from the Bronx, N.Y., when he was 10 years old.

Became a captain for Michigan midway through the 2024 college football season

An underwhelming start in 2024 following the Wolverines' 2023 national championship run galvanized Stewart's leadership qualities, as he stepped into a more prominent role in the locker room. The coaching staff rewarded him for that by naming him a team captain mid-season.

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