Rams complete small NFL draft by picking just 6 players, tied for fewest in franchise history
LOS ANGELES AP The Los Angeles Rams are hoping they got quality in the NFL draft because they sure didn t get quantity The Rams made only six selections in the three-day draft their fewest since and tied for the fewest in franchise history They traded up three times Saturday giving up all four of their sixth-round selections and a fourth-round pick in to make sure they could get three players they sought in the fourth and fifth rounds General manager Les Snead reported he got aggressive because he saw his pool of preferred players drying up fast It was starting to get thin so we explained You know what Instead of waiting and let the draft happen to you let s go attack the draft Snead revealed When you do that you have to give up a few picks but we thought that was the more appropriate thing to do as this thing evolved Los Angeles also made only six picks in when Snead traded his first four selections as part of the massive package to get Jared Goff with the No overall selection The Rams also drafted just six players in when they traded up to get future Hall of Famer Orlando Pace with the No pick The Rams strategy this year was rooted in the front office s belief in the current roster which still contains preponderance of the players who finished last season on a - run to win the NFC West before beating Minnesota and pushing the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles to the limit in the postseason Los Angeles located multiple starters in each of the past two drafts and undrafted free-agent classes Nearly all of those players are still on the band When you have a roster where there s players coming back with starting experience it s less wide-open spots Snead mentioned If we had brought in draftees it s seemingly a hard roster to make The Rams four picks Saturday were Auburn running back Jarquez Hunter Ohio State defensive tackle Ty Hamilton Mississippi linebacker Chris Paul Jr and Pittsburgh receiver Konata Mumpfield Los Angeles traded out of the first round Thursday skipping that round for the eighth time in nine years before adding Oregon tight end Terrance Ferguson and Michigan edge rusher Josaiah Stewart on day It s six players that we have a lot of appreciation for coach Sean McVay revealed You re not reaching That was part of the reason we were able to do a few of the things we did No DBs The Rams improbably didn t pick a defensive back which was widely perceived to be their position of greatest need They even passed on Michigan s Will Johnson widely perceived as the top cornerback in the draft when he was still available in the second round due to concerns about his knee Snead and McVay acknowledged the Rams interest in a promising reunion with Jalen Ramsey who seems likely to be traded by the Miami Dolphins That acquisition is still miles away from being likely and it isn t the reason the Rams didn t pick a defensive back There still is a lot of layers contract compensation different things like that but there is a tremendous amount of appreciation that we have for Jalen the time that we spent McVay revealed He and I have really stayed in touch More beef The Rams gave up a fourth-round selection in to move up spots into the fifth round where they selected Ohio State defensive tackle Ty Hamilton It s a steep price for a fifth-round choice particularly at a position where the Rams appear to be well-stocked but they apparently loved Hamilton s strength Hamilton was a -game starter in the middle of the Buckeyes national championship defense His older brother DaVon is heading into his sixth season with Jacksonville Hamilton will vie for playing time as a backup behind Braden Fiske nose tackle Kobie Turner and free-agent signee Poona Ford They love RBs Snead again demonstrated he doesn t subscribe to the conventional wisdom that running backs have low draft value The Rams have chosen a running back in eight consecutive drafts including four in the first four rounds Snead sacrificed a sixth-round pick to move up spots in the fourth round Saturday to get Hunter an All-Southeastern Conference first-team selection for Snead s alma mater last season while rushing for yards and eight TDs CP LB Paul is a versatile linebacker who could fill an immediate need on the interior for defensive coordinator Chris Shula s group He spent three seasons at Arkansas before moving last year to Ole Miss where he broke out with tackles including for loss and sacks Paul who was already wearing a Rams hat moments after being drafted should have a chance to win a job in training camp with a squad that rarely assigns high value to linebackers AP NFL https apnews com NFL Source
