COVID years are actually making the GM's job arguably easier.
Before COVID, you are drafting 20/21 year olds.
There were more high school kids that would skip a grade to get through the NFL's 3 year college rule policy "faster" for their age, where they reclassify in high school so they are a "young" college freshman.
What that led to was years and years of physically and mentally underdeveloped draft picks.
You end up wasting years developing them in the NFL, waiting for their frame to mature. By the time they are ready, they are on their last year of their rookie contract and you end up losing them.
A strategy now is... it's a waste to get a young kid, waiting for their frame to be an "Adult". Get the 23-24 year olds. Maximize their outputs during their rookie contracts so you get more mileage out of them when they are cheap vs dead money on the bench.
Re-sign the superstars, cut loose those that aren't, because you have another stable of developed rookies to take their place.
High school has also changed where parents are now holding back their kids a grade or so vs accelerating them. This is the classic "fighting heavier than your weight class" response. COVID factor will go away, holding back kids probably will stay. I'd expect Rams to continue drafting the 22 year olds and above for the same reasons.
