What is the best case scenario for the Rams in first round of NFL Draft

The Los Angeles Rams will have a plethora of options when they’re on the clock with the 19th overall pick during the NFL Draft. However, depending on how the picks before them go, the draft could very easily swing a certain way in which Rams brass in the draft room are elated or significantly disappointed. Today, we’re going to go through some of those best case scenarios.

Best Case in a Trade Back Scenario

• Quarterbacks go early and often
• One of Joe Alt or Rome Odunze falls into back half of top-10

While the Rams may hold the 19th overall pick, it would not be surprising to see them make their selection at a different spot. Les Snead is no stranger to moving up in the first round. As the director of player personnel with the Atlanta Falcons, Snead was a part of a team that moved up into the top-10 to take Julio Jones. In 2013, the Rams moved up into the top-10 to take Tavon Austin. Finally, in 2016, Snead orchestrated a trade that had the Rams moving up to the number one overall pick to take Jared Goff.

If the right player is there, Snead absolutely could make some phone calls to move up in the first round. The best case scenario here is that quarterbacks go 1-2-3 with Caleb Williams going to the Chicago Bears, Drake Maye to the Washington Commanders, and Jayden Daniels goes third to the New England Patriots. At that point, another quarterback needy team could begin to panic and try to move up for a JJ McCarthy. If four quarterbacks go within the first five or six picks, that’s a very good thing for the Rams as it means other, more talented players are falling down the draft board.

The Rams will likely have a list of players that they would consider moving up for in the first round. That list could include names like Joe Alt and Rome Odunze. In the case that one of those two players is there around pick eight, the Rams would probably starting making some calls. This goes beyond the top-10 as well. If Olu Fashanu is available in the 12-14 range, the Rams may consider a trade up there as well.

Best Case Scenario Staying at 19

• Have a good talent pool to choose from

If the Rams stay at 19, the best case scenario is simply that they have a good talent pool to choose from and that likely will be the case. If the Rams have options at EDGE with Chop Robinson and Laiatu Latu as well as a Byron Murphy, it would be hard to complain. Any three of those players would be upgrades to the defense. It’s possible that two or even three edge rushers go in the top-15. However, the Rams will be hoping at least two of them fall to 19. The hope here is that a team like the Atlanta Falcons prioritize needs in the secondary over an edge player and the same can be said about the Bears. The Cincinnati Bengals are in need of defensive line help, but could they opt to go wide receiver instead and trade Tee Higgins on day two?

Looking at the offensive side of the ball, if players like Amarius Mims, Troy Fautanu, or Brian Thomas Jr. were available, Sean McVay would be very pleased. However, an absolute best case scenario is that Olu Fashanu continues to get looked over and somehow falls to 19 or even potentially Brock Bowers. If the New Orleans Saints were to go with JC Latham at 14 and Fuaga also goes earlier, Fashanu could finish his slide and end up in the Rams’ lap. It’s not often that tight ends end up as top-15 picks. Teams may overlook Bowers and he could fall as well.

Best Case in a Trade Back Scenario

• Rams have their pick at EDGE
• Plenty of options available on offense

This will be a scenario that many will have interest in when it comes to what the Rams do with the 19th overall pick. In an ideal world, the Rams are able to still get a quality player that they would have targeted at 19 and instead get that player at 25 along with an extra third-round pick. The key here will be for the Rams to have a list of players in a “tier” and be confident that they can still select one of those players in the trade back. If they aren’t confident in that, trading back doesn’t make sense.

For the Rams to trade back, ideally, Jared Verse, Laiatu Latu, Chop Robinson, and Byron Murphy are all available on defense. If Los Angeles moved back from 19 to 23, they would almost be guaranteed one of those four players. Again, the Rams have to hope quarterbacks dominate the early portion of the first round. The more quarterbacks that go in the top-15, the more options they will have at 19. Looking at players on offense, that talent pool could include players such as Amarius Mims, Thomas, Fautanu, and even the Texas wide receiver Adonai Mitchell and Xavier Worthy.

If the Rams have a list of seven players in a “tier”, it makes a lot of sense to trade back and pick up an extra third or fourth-round round pick. However, they’ll want to make sure that they don’t trade out of talent which is why it will be important to have a strong list of players who could still be available five or six picks later. The worst thing that they can do is trade back and miss out on players they were targeting.