Rams rely on successful late-round strategy
No first-round picks, no problem. Inside a luxurious mansion in the Hollywood Hills, the Los Angeles Rams will relax in a calm atmosphere through the first two rounds of the NFL draft, which begins Thursday at 8 p.m. ET.
Barring trades, the defending Super Bowl champions won’t be on the clock until pick No. 104.
The Rams are accustomed to the process. The franchise hasn’t had a first-round pick since 2016 due in part to general manager Les Snead’s team construction focused on players who fit a framework rather than filling specific positional needs.
“If a player is a little lower on your board but at a position of need, you really need to work through those before the draft to really know when there is a line and not let the desperation of a need blur that vision,” Snead said.
So far, it’s worked.
During the last few seasons, the Rams traded draft capital for players such as cornerback Jalen Ramsey and quarterback Matthew Stafford, who were key to their Super Bowl 56 victory.
But just because Snead wore a shirt that read “F them picks” during their championship parade, it doesn’t mean the team completely disregards the annual event.
“We will probably have four to five positions we’d like to pick from and – if we’ve done the correct work previously – when we get to 104, we will be able to look up at the board and, hopefully, at one of those four or five positions there’ll be a favorite of ours and we’ll go from there,” Snead said. “You are attempting to eliminate reaching at a position.”
The Rams have a specialized ability to draft well with late-round selections.
Ever since Snead and his staff lost out on middle linebacker Bobby Wagner in the 2012 draft, the Rams have incorporated a rule in his honor: if they really like a prospect, they draft him regardless of his draft projection.
The Rams have developed late-round players into big contributors.
They drafted NFL Offensive Player of the Year Cooper Kupp in the third round of the 2017 draft, tight end Tyler Higbee in the fourth round of 2016 and safety Jordan Fuller in the sixth round of 2020. They drafted starting inside linebacker Ernest Jones in the third round of the 2021 draft, the same round the team is slated to make its initial pick this week.
“Usually, in a lot of those situations you’re betting on the human being and kind of looking at the history and the way they are wired and their background and some of the things that they bring to the table,” Rams head coach Sean McVay said.
To make it work, McVay said the organization must have a vision, consistent buy-in and a willingness to help those selections reach their highest potential.
The Rams won’t own another firstround pick until 2024, making them the third team since the AFL-NFL merger to skip selecting a first-round player seven consecutive years.
“Everyone is focused on those firstround picks, but they’ve drafted and developed players really well middle and late. It kind of gets glossed over,” Los Angeles Chargers general manager Tom Telesco said of the Rams.
“I guess it’s not as sexy, but they’ve done a great job with that.”
Snead and McVay are aligned on what the club needs to be an annual Super Bowl contender. Snead is entering his 11th draft guiding the Rams, while McVay is going into his sixth as Rams head coach.
They strive to strike a balance between selecting the best player available and drafting a position of need.
“During the season, I may be the frontal lobe and you’re the amygdala,” Snead said to McVay. “But during this time of the season, you’re the frontal lobe and I’m the amygdala.”
McVay quickly clarified: “That’s the nice way of saying Les is the basket case now and I’m the basket case during the season.”
There will be a lot of fanfare when the 2022 draft kicks off Thursday. And the Rams will sit back in their extravagant draft house with their sparkly new Lombardi Trophy nearby.
But when they are finally on the clock, they’ll continue a philosophy that is clearly working.