I decided 2 years I was going to change the way I operated as far as my half assed scouting. I would still do 3 mocks, but it would be post senior bowl, post combine, and pre-draft. Im not a website, so I don't need hits so I don't need to change my rankings or my mocks week to week for ad revenue. And to be honest, anyone that gets the draft process knows that players don't "rise" and "fall" week to week. Personal stuff might come up though team investigations of a player that make them slide (watch carefully on Arden Key this season ) or medical stuff. The senior bowl answers some questions, like can a D2 player compete with the big guys. How do they handle a pro style offense? How do they interview? The combine can confirm some stuff you think you see or don't see, but the combine is more for the interviews, drug tests and weigh ins.
As with any mock some assumptions have to be made. Here are mine: (these were from Mock 1.0 written on 2/11/19)
1. Suh does not resign.
Correct2. Joyner does not resign.
Correct3. Barron is cut.
Correct4. Peters and Talib are safe for another year.
Correct5. Fowler does not resign
Incorrect, he is on a 1 year deal that looks alot like a rental like Suh was last year.6. Saffold and Littleton are resigned.
1/2 correct. Littleton is signed, Saffold is gone.7. I will include the supplemental picks, for now. 2-3rds, 1-7th
Yes, those are the correct rounds8.FA acquisitions - Shaq Barrett-edge-Has experience with Wade and is blocked behind Chubb and Miller., Tyler Eifert-TE-Rams tried to get him last year. At some point he has to stay healthy right?
Eric Weddle is the only FA signed at this stage, maybe a guy like Matthews will be added.Just an FYI, 2 years ago Snead/McVay drafted 6 senior Bowl kids, last year they drafted 3 Senior Bowl kids (Noteboom, Obo and Demby) and 1 East West Shrine kid (Lawler) so again I would pay close attn to those rosters.
Round 1 (31) Garrett Bradbury - OG/C - NCST - 6'-3" 306 Lbs. - The top ZBS Interior Lineman in the draft IMO. He is agile, smooth, has a good football IQ and good strength. he could play OG or OC, but I think he is a plug and play OC and you can forget that position for 10 years. i know its not a sexy pick, but I truly think all the top edge rushers are gone and you are getting very good value here. I would love to trade down and get an extra pick in the middle of the draft. Senior Bowl participant
Bradbury destroying a DTOriginal Pick - Mack Wilson - ILB - Alabama - I still really like him, but he might be a reach here, and TBH OL help is desperately needed.
Other prospects that make sense:
Brian Burns - Edge - FSU - He had a great combine, but after giving him a long look, he could be there at 31. He isn't strong against the run, and that might cause him to slide into the back end of the 1st.
Jachai Polite - Edge - Florida - He has top 15 talent, but was a sideshow attraction at the combine. i am not one to go all crazy over combine workouts, but he was out of shape, quit after a few of the events and then interviewed poorly. He is actually off some teams draft boards already...
Devin Bush - LB - Michigan - I had his as a 1st rounder before the combine, but after the combine, he might be a top 25 pick now and out of reach. I also prefer my ILBers a tad bigger.
Andre Dillard - OT - Washington State - he is all over the place, but I really like him and like the fit. He will need 1 year behind Whitworth to get stronger, but that isn't a problem.
Jerry Tillery - IDL - Notre Dame - Had a good year at ND, but has a reputation as a partier and not a very good teammate. I think the Rams like him more then I do, I just don't trust him.
Dexter Lawrence - IDL - Clemson - He makes a ton of sense if the Rams want to bolster their DL, and they should. A run stuffer with a little pass rush juice at 340 lbs...
Erik McCoy - OC - Texas A&M - Another very good ZBS OC and frankly I would be happy with either McCoy or Bradbury.
Round 3a (94) Khalen Saunders - IDL - Western Illinois - 6'-0" 324 Lbs. - a tad over 6', he is a perfect fit for a 1 gap 34, strong and surprisingly athletic, he can hold his own against the run and his first step can cause some issues against the pass. Another Senior Bowl participant.
previous pick - Eric McCoy - C - Texas A&M - I think he is firmly in the 2nd round at the latest.
Round 3b (99) Dax Raymond - TE - Utah State - 6'-5" 255 - A smooth moving seam threat that can block some and cause matchup issues in the middle of the field. Senior Bowl participant
Dax Down the seamprevious pick - Khalen Saunders - IDL West. Illinois - yeah I like him
Round 4 (133) Cam Smith - ILB - USC - 6'-2" 238 Lbs. - Smart and instinctual, he ran a 4.69 at the combine, which doesn't bother me at all.Vander Esch ran a 4.66, Darius Leonard ran a 4.7 and Kiser ran a 4.66 and jewell ran a 4.85. He played around 250 this year still recovering from a knee injury. If you can get him back to his old form physically at around 235, he could be a steal. Another Senior Bowler
previous pick - Justin Hollins - Edge - Oregon - he still makes a ton of sense at Edge in the 4th round.
Round 5 (169) Will Harris - S - Boston College - 6'-1" 207 Lbs. - I'm not sure he is a 5th rounder at this point, he could go in round 4, but there was a lot of FA S this year, so I'm leaving him here. he gives good depth to the safety unit, and eventually replace Weddle. Another Senior Bowl prospect the Rams interviewed.
previous pick - CJ Conrad - TE - Kentucky - i like him, but the Rams need someone more dynamic like Raymond.
Round 6 (203) Mike Jackson - CB - Miami - 6'-1" 210 Lbs. - a pure man press corner, his tape was up and down, i am aware he had a good combine, but tape doesn't lie and he is depth and could learn a ton from Talib.
previous pick - Will Harris - S - BC - I moved Harris up a round.
Round 7 - Porter Gustin - Edge - USC - 6'-4" 255 Lbs. - His lack of athleticism and extensive injury history puts him in the 7th round for me. But he could get healthy and round into shape and be a nice rotational edge that could play outside against the run or move inside and rush the passer on 3rd down.
previous pick - Alijah Holder - CB - Stanford - If the Rams pass on CBs until this point, he still makes a ton of sense.
I know what alot of you are thinking: You NEED to get a edge rusher in this draft before round 7. I tried, but I just don't know where to do it. The Rams are stuck in no mans land in the 1st for an edge, too low to get one of the top 5, too high to go get Polite, Winovich and Walker.
That leaves maybe Christian Miller and Oshane Ximines in the 3rd. MAYBE, and its a huge maybe I'm afraid. After that, it gets thin. Real thin. Hollins in the 4th and Banogu somewhere between the 4th and the 5th are about it. Maybe Brailford, but he is raw and I have no doubt couldn't beat out Obo or Ebukam to get into the rotation.
I really want to trade down into the 2nd, go after either whatever IL the Rams want or maybe even Winovich. Maybe even add Mack Wilson into the mix. Maybe even a CB.
The last thing to think about is that the Rams will have 1 CB under contract for 2020 when they get to the draft this year, and that guy is NRC. Not a real comforting thought. Problem is you either need to trade down or hope Byron Murphy is there at 31.
Don't waste your time looking back, you're not going that way. - Ragnar Lothbrok
