Outside of the last three seasons, it was a rough decade for the Rams. There were certainly some highs, like reaching the Super Bowl, hiring Sean McVay, and drafting Jared Goff and Aaron Donald, but there were far more lows. From 2010-2016, the Rams never finished better than 7-8-1, didn’t make the playoffs once and were last in the division three times.
Fortunately, things have turned around since then, but most of the 2010s were a time for fans to forget. Compared to their division rivals, the Rams had very little success – which makes it no surprise that they weren’t well-represented on ESPN’s NFC West all-decade team.
The network’s NFC West reporters voted on players at every position and only four Rams were selected: Todd Gurley, Rodger Saffold, Aaron Donald and Johnny Hekker. It’s hard to argue against any of those players, but it’s also difficult to find any other deserving candidates from the Rams.
By comparison, the Seahawks had 12 players selected. The 49ers had seven and the Cardinals had five. Some teams overlapped because players suited up for both squads, such as Richard Sherman (Seahawks and 49ers) and Mike Iupati (49ers, Cardinals and Seahawks).
The Rams had one of the most talented rosters in all of football the last three years, but that’s too short a stretch for many of their players to land on this list.
ESPN also selected each team’s best player of the last decade, and Donald was predictably the pick. No Rams player has come close to his production and sheer dominance, making six Pro Bowls and winning Defensive Player of the Year twice.
Gurley was an honorable mention after a decorated career with the Rams, but no one in their right mind would pick him over Donald at this spot.
