Quote
AlbaNY_Ram
And finally we know that the Rams' coaching staff have been evaluating these guys for 15 months (and longer if you count all the evaluations that lead up to the 2018 draft). They did not sign a single OL FA this year, nor did the draft an OL capable of challenging either 'Boom or Allen. In fact, they went the exact opposite direction by not resigning Saffold (which I imagine they could have done if they wanted) and by not picking up Sully's option.
The direction taken by the Rams regarding the OL speaks volumes about their opinion about 'Boom and Allen ... and even if what we as fans know about these guys is limited I am confident that the team has a ton of data to draw on. Their confidence in these guys makes it easy for me to have confidence in them as well.
There's also this. I've said it before but some things bear repeating.
Kromer has a first-rate record drafting OL. Now true he does not pull the trigger on drafts, but no good team ignores an OL coach's input when drafting linemen, and beyond that, we know very well that the Rams draft process is collaborative and that Snead works closely with the coordinators and position coaches identifying the kinds of players they like.
To provide the details on Kromer's record, overall, since he has been an OL coach, he has had a 75% hit rate drafting linemen. (If Hanifan had a hit rate like that it's possible the GSOT would never have collapsed.) But more than that, in his last 2 stops before the Rams--Chicago and Buffalo--his hit rate was 100%. In those places, he found linemen high in the draft and low in the draft. Chicago's left OT is a 7th round pick they made with Kromer there.
Now maybe that record will not hold but my feeling is that yes it will hold.
So if Kromer identified linemen he likes, and coached them up with the intent of starting them, and shows confidence in them, I am inclined to trust that. He has the record.
Rams have had top OL coaches in their history (Houk, Hanifan, Boudreau) and Kromer is certainly one of them. More than that, of all those guys I named, Kromer is by far the best at finding draft picks. Boudreau was mediocre at it and Hanifan flat out bad. Kromer has been great at it.
....
