Tag: rams draft

The mock drafts are done, the boards are set and teams are ready to begin their trek through the madness that is the NFL draft. The Los Angeles Rams have six total picks this year, including three in the top 103, though they don’t have a first-rounder.

But with the way their roster is constructed and the capital that they do have, they should be able to come out of the draft with a handful of players who will contribute in their rookie year.

Now that the pre-draft process has come to an end, this hub will give you everything you need to know about the draft for the Rams – from their pick order to the top 101 prospects to players they could target at each position of need.

The Rams have drafted prospects from a large number of programs in recent years, showing no real preference to any school in particular. They do favor FBS programs like every other NFL team, but they’re not afraid to take a chance on small-school prospects, either.

In their draft release, the Rams broke down which schools the team drafts prospects from the most, and the programs at the top of the list aren’t all that surprising. But even with how often they’ve taken former UCLA, Washington and USC players since 1937, the Rams have branched out more since 2000.

Here are the 10 schools they’ve drafted the most players from in the franchise’s history.

The Los Angeles Rams don’t like to draft for need, which is true of most teams in the NFL today. Free agency is used for filling holes so that a team can draft the best player available when they go on the clock without being pressured to address a certain position of need.

But with the Rams making few additions in free agency, they have several positions that should be addressed. We’ve ranked the 10 biggest needs heading into the draft, not all of which will be targeted, giving fans an idea of which direction Les Snead and Sean McVay could go this weekend.

Even though they were able to re-sign Leonard Floyd, the Los Angeles Rams could still use some pass-rush help on the edge. Samson Ebukam left in free agency, Terrell Lewis was unable to stay healthy as a rookie and Ogbonnia Okoronkwo has yet to break out.

The Rams may not prioritize this position early on in the draft, but there are good depth options to be found in the middle rounds. Whether it’s a bigger edge rusher who can also play defensive end or an undersized outside linebacker who can contribute in sub-packages, there are plenty of prospects for the Rams to consider this weekend.

Here is the best outside linebacker prospect in each round of the draft.

If you think you know which direction Les Snead and the Los Angeles Rams will go with their first pick in the 2021 NFL draft next week, you can try to profit from it. With the draft less than a week away, you can now bet on which position the first player drafted by the Rams will play.

Will they go with an offensive lineman? Will Snead address the inside linebacker spot with a top-60 pick? Or will the team add a cornerback early to replace Troy Hill?

At DraftKings Sportsbook, there are odds for each position the Rams could draft with their first pick. And unsurprisingly, the odds suggest an offensive lineman will be the team’s first pick next week.

• Offensive lineman: +200
• Linebacker: +450
• Cornerback: +500
• Defensive lineman: +600
• Wide receiver: +600
• Tight end: +900
• Safety: +1100
• Running back: +1600
• Quarterback: +3300
• Kicker/punter/long snapper: +5000

Save your money and don’t bother betting on the Rams to take a quarterback or special teams player first. They’re also unlikely to use another early pick on a running back after drafting Cam Akers and Darrell Henderson in the last two years.

Safety is a possibility, especially if Elijah Molden is officially listed at that spot, while Jevon Holland could also be an option. As for the outside linebacker/defensive lineman discrepancy, it’s unclear what an edge rusher would be considered because in the Rams’ scheme, it would make him an outside linebacker, not a defensive lineman.

Cornerback is a good value at +500, which means a $100 bet would return a profit of $500 if the Rams use their first pick on a corner. Based on their pre-draft meetings, wide receiver also provides good value for a small wager.

In one week, the Los Angeles Rams will be on the clock in the 2021 NFL draft, holding the 57th overall pick in the second round. With plenty of holes to plug and playmakers to add, it’s anyone’s guess what direction Les Snead will go to kick off Los Angeles’ draft.

This is our third seven-round mock draft of the year and rather than trying to project what the Rams will do, we opted to go with picks that we would make if in charge of the front office.

By trading back from No. 57, we were able to add an extra fourth- and fifth-round pick, giving us another crack at filling one of the team’s holes. And instead of starting with a center, we brought a new name to the mix at cornerback.

We used Pro Football Focus’ mock draft simulator to make these picks, keeping it as realistic as we could.

One could argue the Rams’ biggest need in the draft is at center, where they currently don’t have a proven starter. They need help at other positions, too, but center might be their biggest hole on the roster.

There are two ways the Rams could address that spot: They could draft a center or they can add a guard and move Austin Corbett to center. Pro Football Focus opted for the second route in its three-round mock draft.

PFF has the Rams taking the following players at No. 57, 88 and 103.

• 57. Ohio State G Wyatt Davis
• 88. Ohio State LB Justin Hilliard
• 103. BYU DL Khyiris Tonga

Here’s what Seth Galina wrote about the selection of Davis, mentioning his success in pass protection and on outside-zone running plays.

The Ohio State offensive line had massive communication issues last season on the inside. You don’t like seeing that, especially with the veteran Wyatt Davis there, but that shouldn’t affect how teams view him. He has the potential to be a new wave of guard with his athleticism, balance and toughness. He’s a technical player who rarely loses and would be a great fit in L.A. He allowed just three sacks and one hit across 691 pass-blocking snaps over the last two seasons while earning an 84.1 PFF grade on outside-zone running plays.

Hilliard feels like a reach at No. 88, and even though the Rams need help at linebacker, they don’t seem desperate to add depth based on their pre-draft meetings. Galina points out that Hilliard had a grade above 80.0 last season in both coverage and against the run, so he’s a well-rounded linebacker.

Tonga is a massive 6-foot-4, 322-pound defensive lineman who doesn’t necessarily fit the Rams’ need for a 5-technique in Michael Brockers’ spot. He’s more of a nose tackle, where the Rams already have Sebastian Joseph-Day, Greg Gaines and even A’Shawn Robinson – though Robinson or Joseph-Day could play defensive end.

This haul would likely leave fans somewhat disappointed, especially with no true help coming at center, edge rusher or cornerback.

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The shrinking salary cap greatly limited the Los Angeles Rams’ ability to make any truly impactful additions in free agency. Their most notable moves were retaining Leonard Floyd and signing DeSean Jackson, but outside of those, Los Angeles was quiet on the free-agent front.

As a result, they have some roster holes to fill in the draft that they weren’t able to fill in free agency. Among their biggest needs are cornerback, center, defensive line and linebacker, all of which could be addressed at No. 57 overall when the Rams go on the clock for the first time.

In Dane Brugler’s new seven-round mock draft for The Athletic, he has Los Angeles filling its need at cornerback first and then addressing the offensive line in the third round.

Here’s the haul he has the Rams coming away with in the seven-round mock.

• 57. Elijah Molden, CB, Washington
• 88. Wyatt Davis, OG, Ohio State
• 103. James Hudson, OT, Cincinnati
• 141. Cameron Sample, edge, Tulane
• 209. Frank Darby, WR, Arizona State
• 252. K.J. Britt, LB, Auburn

Molden is a versatile defender who can play either the slot or safety, bringing outstanding instincts, tackling and coverage skills to whichever defense he lands in. The Rams need a new slot corner after Troy Hill left and Molden should be one of their top targets in the draft.

Davis isn’t the center the Rams need, but he could allow Austin Corbett to move from guard to center. He can be a Day 1 starter in the NFL at right guard as a powerful run blocker who still needs to improve in pass protection.

Hudson has been linked to the Rams often in mock drafts, typically in the second round, though. The Rams obviously wouldn’t need him to start right away with Andrew Whitworth and Rob Havenstein penciled in at tackle, but he could have a future as Whitworth’s heir.

With the last three picks, Brugler addresses the Rams remaining needs. Sample is an intriguing prospect who doesn’t have great athleticism or speed, but he plays with a high motor and good power on the edge. Darby isn’t a burner (4.59 in the 40) but he plays bigger than his size (6-foot) and averaged 19.7 yards per catch with 13 touchdowns in 39 games. And finally, Britt brings some much-needed linebacker help, but he fits the mold of what the Rams already have at the position: a physical run-defender who loves to hit but struggles in coverage.

This draft hits on all of the Rams’ primary needs, but finding a true starting center and a wide receiver with either better size or speed would be ideal.

The 2021 NFL draft is right around the corner with just over two weeks until the first round kicks off on Thursday, April 29. The Los Angeles Rams won’t be participating in Round 1 for the fifth straight year, and they won’t make a first-round selection until 2024 – barring a trade up in the next three years.

In this year’s draft, they have six total selections. They don’t have any picks in the first round or fifth round, but they do have two third-rounders. It’s highly unlikely the Rams will trade up from No. 57 into the first round, but if there is a player they covet who slips into the 40s or early 50s, they could move up.

Or, in a more likely scenario, they could trade back from No. 57 to add more picks in the later rounds, giving them more chances to land rookie contributors. Let’s not forget, Jordan Fuller was an immediate starter as a sixth-round pick, and Sebastian Joseph-Day became a starter in Year 2 after also being a sixth-rounder.

Jimmy Johnson developed a trade value chart while he was with the Cowboys, which is used by many today to determine potential trades in the draft. Below is a look at the trade value chart, which shows how much each of the Rams’ picks are worth.