Random Ramsdom: Already looking at the Rams 2024 draft spots

Los Angeles Rams News and Links for 5/8/23

Resetting the Board: How Many Draft Picks Will Rams Have in 2024? (fannation/ramsdigest)

“Now that the 2023 NFL Draft is in the books, where do the Rams stand in regard to next year’s draft? Here’s an early look at all the picks they currently own for the 2024 NFL Draft.

Round 1: The Rams currently hold their own first-round pick in 2024. Assuming they keep the pick, this would mark the first time the Rams have made a first-round pick since they took Jared Goff at No. 1 overall in 2016.

Round 2: The Rams currently hold their own second-round pick in 2024. They selected offensive guard Steve Avila in the second round in 2023.

Round 3: The Rams currently hold their own third-round pick in 2024. They made two third-round picks in 2023, selecting linebacker Byron Young at No. 77 and defensive lineman Kobie Turner at No. 89.

Round 4: The Rams currently hold their own fourth-round pick in 2024. They selected quarterback Stetson Bennett in the fourth round in 2023.

Round 5: The Rams currently hold their own fifth-round pick in 2024. They made four fifth-round picks in 2023, selecting linebacker Nick Hampton at No. 161, offensive lineman Warren McLendon at No. 174, tight end Davis Allen at No. 175, and receiver Puka Nacua at No. 177.

Round 6: The Rams don’t have their own sixth-round pick in 2024, as they traded it to the Buffalo Bills to move up in the 2023 draft. However, they do have the Denver Broncos’ sixth-round pick thanks to a trade involving linebacker Kenny Young in October 2021. Additionally, L.A. is projected to receive two compensatory picks in the sixth round due to losing Matt Gay and Baker Mayfield in free agency.

Round 7: The Rams also don’t have their own seventh-round pick due to the aforementioned trade with the Broncos. Compensatory selections come in again, though, as L.A. is projected to receive two more in the seventh round due to losing Nick Scott and A’Shawn Robinson this offseason.”

Rams WR Van Jefferson feels he’s ‘getting back to myself’ after injury-shortened 2022 season (nfl.com)

“Injuries at key positions resulted in the Rams finishing the 2022 season with one of the worst records in the league, just one year removed from when Los Angeles took home a Lombardi trophy.

But players are getting healthy and looking ahead to 2023, including wideout Van Jefferson, who said this week that he’s excited to be getting back to normal workouts after being hindered over the last year.

“It’s been great being back and working with … those guys, getting back to myself and I’m feeling pretty good,” he said, via the team website.

Jefferson, a 2020 second-round pick, got an opportunity for more playing time during the Rams’ 2021 Super Bowl season due to other players’ injuries, and took advantage of the chance. The 26-year-old finished his second NFL season with 802 yards and six touchdowns, second on the team only to Cooper Kupp.

But instead of being able to build on his breakout season in 2022, Jefferson was one of the many Rams players whose snaps were limited by injuries. Due to a pair of offseason knee surgeries, the latter happening in August, the wide receiver didn’t make his season debut until Week 8. And even upon his return he wasn’t at full form immediately, making his first catch in Week 11.

Though the targets and receptions ramped up, it was never at the level of the previous year, and Jefferson finished with 24 catches for 369 yards.

“It was tough, it was a tough process to go through,” Jefferson said. “But from the games I got back, got to experience a lot of things, got to do a lot of things. I think this offseason was just about me getting healthy. Obviously the knee injury, having two surgeries is tough, but like I said, I persevered through that, and now it’s just about me getting my balance back together, getting the strength in both legs, and being able to do the things I know I’m able to do.”

The return of a healthy Jefferson would definitely spell good things for a Los Angeles squad looking to rebound. Now the second-most experienced pass-catcher on the roster and the likely No. 2 WR after Allen Robinson’s departure, Jefferson’s leadership and talent will be essential if the Rams want to return to their previous success.”

49ers GM John Lynch on drafting K Jake Moody in third round: Teams tried to ‘get in front of us’ (nfl.com)

“49ers general manager John Lynch has a thorough explanation for fans still moody over San Francisco’s selection of a third-round kicker.

By selecting Michigan’s Jake Moody at No. 99 overall, the Niners made him the earliest kicker selected since Robert Aguayo in 2016 and just the sixth kicker since the turn of the century to go in the top 100 of a draft. According to the GM, the club wouldn’t have had a chance if he waited any longer.

“I can tell you, since then, that a lot of teams have called and said, you know, shortly thereafter they were going there,” Lynch said Thursday on KNBR’s Murph & Mac show. “And in fact, teams tried to trade up to get in front of us. So, something we feel really good about. Time will tell, as it will with all these guys. But we think he has the makings of a really cornerstone, foundational-type player for years to come for us, and we’re proud to have him a part of us.”

Moody was considered a top kicking prospect in a class that ultimately saw three players drafted at the position. He won the Lou Groza Award as the nation’s best kicker in 2021 and led the FBS with 29 field goals made in 2022, graduating with an 82.1 field goal percentage and a school-record 355 points.

Beyond the threat of other teams jumping in front of them for the two-time Big Ten Conference Kicker of the Year, the 49ers also took into consideration their triple stack of picks in the round.

“We call it a third-round pick,” Lynch said. “Really a (compensatory) three, which we kind of see as fourth-round picks. And we felt like that was a really good value,” Lynch noted. “We had three of them there. I think that gave us a little luxury to come away with two players that we coveted at positions, offense and defense, and then to be able to add a kicker. It was a luxury we had that maybe everybody else didn’t have.”

2023 NFL schedule release: Predicting top matchups, including season opener, Thanksgiving games, Black Friday (cbssports)

“The NFL’s big waves of offseason player movement have come and gone, and now the league is set to officially turn the page to the 2023 season, with expectations of releasing the full regular-season schedule on Thursday, May 11.

In total, the schedule release will account for 272 different matchups. Here, in anticipation of the unveiling, we decided to predict the games that will be featured on some of the NFL’s most anticipated calendar dates:”