LA Rams NFL Draft Recap
- Updated: April 28, 2020
After weeks of no sports, the National Football League lifted the spirits of many with the 2020 Draft. While some teams nailed their drafts, others made some questionable decisions with their picks. For the Los Angeles Rams, they did well for themselves. With no first round pick this year due to the trade with the Jaguars for Jalen Ramsey, the Rams first pick came in the second round. The first selection from Los Angeles was Cam Akers, a running back from Florida State University. It is not hard to see why the Rams went this route given the departure of Todd Gurley in the off season. With this selection, Los Angeles can implement the running game again, something they did not use as much as they could have last season.
Also in the second round of the draft, five picks later to be exact, the Rams selected Van Jefferson, a wide receiver from Florida. Once again this pick filled a need on offense since Brandin Cooks also departed in the off season via a trade with the Texans. As a result of Los Angeles picking offensive players with their first two selections, the Rams should expect to see an improvement on offense for the upcoming season. The only reason for any concern on offense is the O-Line, however, the O-Line produced better numbers down the stretch last season.
Following two picks close together, the next selection from Los Angeles came in the third round. Although this time, the Rams chose to upgrade their defense by taking Terrell Lewis, a linebacker out of Alabama. While the offense only lost a couple of key pieces, the defense lost far more. Multiple players on Los Angeles’ defense were lost to free agency, so the decision here was obvious to start replenishing the defense. Make no mistake, the third round picks for the Rams are going to see quite a bit of time on the field this year.
After taking Lewis in the third round, the Rams would continue to draft on defense. With their second pick in the third round, Los Angeles selected Terrell Burgess, a safety out of Utah. Burgess is a California native, born in San Diego. It is always nice to see a player get the chance to play for a team close to home. Expect Burgess to see a fair amount of minutes through out the games this year. He could quietly become one of the best selections for the Rams in this year’s draft
Once the Rams entered the fourth round, they looked towards the offense once again. This time, the Rams selected Brycen Hopkins, a tight end out of Purdue. This selection concluded the offensive players for the Rams until their final pick in the draft. With as much experience as the Rams have on offense, they only needed to fill certain holes. Going forward, it will be interesting to see how the offense performs given the coaching changes made earlier this year. The offense will be more dynamic with the pieces the Rams gained this weekend.
After not having a pick in the fifth round, the Rams next selection came in the sixth round. With their first pick in the sixth round, the Rams circled back to defense. As a result, the Rams would go on to take Jordan Fuller, a safety from Ohio State. Again with all the pieces the Rams lost on defense, this one should not come as a surprise. Anytime a team gets to add depth they are going take it, and they did with this pick. This selection may not be as glamorous as previous picks, but a smart one nonetheless.
Moving on to the last round of the draft, the Rams made three different selections. Once more, these selections were designed to improve all aspects for Los Angeles. First off, the Rams went with Clay Johnston, a linebacker from Baylor. This is another player who will get a chance to compete for a starting job on Los Angeles’ defense. Competition for any team is always healthy, especially when it breeds excellence. Whenever preseason kicks off for the NFL, expect this to be one of the position battles going forward.
The next pick in the seventh round benefited the special teams for the Los Angeles. They took Sam Sloman, a kicker out of Miami. With the Rams previous kicker Greg Zuerlein now with the Cowboys via free agency, a hole opened up on special teams. While no kicker can replace what Zuerlein accomplished with the Rams, his last season in Los Angeles did feel off at times. Sloman is another player who will get a chance to win a starting job when camp opens up later this year.
Finally, with their last pick in the draft, the Rams turned to offense. Los Angeles selected Tremayne Anchrum, a guard out of Clemson. Having experience in competing for a championship is always welcomed for any team regardless of where they are picking from. This is no exception. If the O-Line struggles early similar to last season, then anyone can win the job going forward. Anchrum would be the last of nine selections from a solid draft for the Rams at this year’s draft.
At the end of the day, only time will tell how well the Rams did. However given what transpired at the draft this year, and seeing footage of these players, there should be a level of optimism going into the season. The Rams play in one of the toughest divisions in football in the NFC West. For these players, the season may be challenging at times, but if they can succeed against this division, they can succeed against anyone. As, for now Rams fans will have to look forward to the unveiling of new uniforms later this year. There will also be the opening of SoFi Stadium, the new home of the Rams. 2020 will be a calendar year for the Rams, no matter what.
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