The Los Angeles Rams haven’t made a first-round pick since taking Jared Goff first overall in 2016. The trade they made to draft Goff cost them their first-rounder in 2017, and in 2018, they sent the 23rd overall pick to the Patriots for Brandin Cooks.
Barring a last-minute trade, the Rams will head into the draft with the 31st selection in the first round. In such a deep draft class, that’s not necessarily a bad thing, considering how many talented players are likely to be available late in Round 1.
It’s a long time to wait and it’s difficult to project who the Rams might take at No. 31, but past trades have taught them patience. They’re used to lengthy waits on Thursday and Friday night.
“There’s thorns to not having a first-round (pick) the last two years. I was joking with Wade (Phillips), the benefit of not having one the last couple years is we’re used to, let’s call it, really focusing on this area of the draft,” Les Snead said on Tuesday. “There’s not a lot of difference between 31 and where we (drafted) when Sean (McVay) came in – that early second round. We’ve been swimming in these waters. That’s the benefit of the last two years.”
As a result of picking so late in the first round, the Rams know there’s a handful of players who have no chance of making it to them at No. 31. They don’t have to waste time studying players like Nick Bosa, Ed Oliver, Quinnen Williams or Josh Allen, all of whom they’d love to draft.
Sure, there’s a large pool of other players they could select late in the first round or in Round 2 if they trade back, but it eliminates the need to study 30 potential first-round prospects as they might’ve done in years past when they picked in the top 15.
“One thing that changes is you’ve lived through the building and the breakthrough, which in that process, you’re picking a little bit earlier in the rounds. It definitely changes your strategy. You have to really be realistic based on as much data as you can gather of the realistic pool of players that we are dealing with,” Snead added. “That goes back to the coaching staff and getting them involved and not spending a lot of energy, I call it fantasy football, if we’re never going to see those players, really spending the energy on the realistic players.”
