Is it bad drafting or just a poor draft class?

[FRO]

I know I'm not the only one who has felt underwhelmed by our second and third round selections. We made a great trade, but it feels like we reached with our draft picks. That's not to say that our picks won't turn out, it just feels we could have had them all a round later. I'm just wondering if Fisher and Snead are having a bad weekend, or is the talent so bad in this draft that it's inevitable that we were going to feel like that either way?

I'm trying to remind myself that the Cowboys got killed for taking Fredricks in the first round and that turned out great. Hope Havenstein and Brown are similar. They both are scheme fits.

 

[Ramhusker]

Give me Max Garcia or Rashard Greene in the 4th and I'll feel better about it.

 

[V3]

I think it's both. That doesn't mean these players won't work but I do believe they all could have been had later. The Rams just knew they had to get OL because they didn't get them in FA. The QB pick was forced because they messed up last year. It was purely based on needs as opposed to BPA which drives me crazy.

 

[LazyWinker]

I heard they were trying to move back once more. I'm going with poor class. They may not have had a second round grade on anyone.

 

[Limey]

I might be in the minority, but I really like this draft. The OL guys were rated lower by the draft "experts" but their grades cover guys whose main job is to protect a pocket QB as well as guys who can smash holes in DLs. Peat may be technically the best OT, but to me he would have been a poor fit for the sort of smashmouth style I see Fisher wanting to play. You may well be right that Havenstein and Brown could have been there a round later, but there are other teams (e.g. Seattle) with OL holes who like to run right over teams. I have seen a bit of Havenstein and virtually nothing of Brown, but what little I saw and what I have read makes me think they are good fits for Fisher's system.

As for Mannion, maybe last year's draft taught them that waiting too long to take your QB gets you burned.

 

[FRO]

I heard they were trying to move back once more. I'm going with poor class. They may not have had a second round grade on anyone.

I felt similarly. They attacked the second and third round like they normally attack rounds 4-7. In the first three rounds you draft BPA, or are supposed to. In rounds 4-7 you fill needs. With the Gurley pick I was happy because they stayed true to the board, even when it wasn't a need. I like that. Day two felt like they were filling needs. I feel like they weren't really high on any prospect and decided to fill needs. Maybe they had high second round grade on Havenstein, who knows.

 

[kurtfaulk]

.

I don't get how you guys know they could have been had a round later. Do you guys have access to every teams board?

.

 

[Memphis Ram]

@FRO

The Titans really liked Havenstein and selected an OT at the top of round 3. And Brown was a good get in round 3, IMO.

Both are very good football players and great fits for what the Rams are trying to do. Don't let any negative draftnik media fool you.

In the end, no one really knows where these kids would have been selected.

 

[FRO]

@FRO

The Titans really liked Havenstein and selected an OT at the top of round 3. And Brown was a good get in round 3, IMO.

In the end, no one really knows where these kids would have been selected.

I understand that, but to me Havenstein doesn't seem like a second round talent to me. Maybe in this draft he is. That's my overall point. Maybe it's just due to a very weak draft class and not necessarily our drafting. I wanted Clemmings, but there must be a lot wrong with him when he is still there in the 4th.

 

[Dr C. Hill]

Like Limey, I am also in the minority in liking what the Rams did yesterday. They knew who they wanted, i.e. They had a plan. The guys that their scouts had pegged may not have been the same guys that Walter football liked, but they fit the system Fisher wants to run. I think run blockers are under rated in this "passing league" anyway.

I even like Mannion as a potential starter down the road. He has some tools and is smart and coachable. At the very worst, I think he can be a solid backup.

 

[Memphis Ram]

I understand that, but to me Havenstein doesn't seem like a second round talent to me. Maybe in this draft he is. That's my overall point. Maybe it's just due to a very weak draft class and not necessarily our drafting. I wanted Clemmings, but there must be a lot wrong with him when he is still there in the 4th.

Well. I had him going in round 3 or round 4 myself given my view that he was a RT only prospect, IMO. I figured that would lower his stock some. But, I still felt that he was a very good player nonetheless.

In the end, I don't get too caught up with rounds too much. I focus more on the # selected. He was the 57th overall selection in this draft class which is pretty close to the 3rd round.

 

[FRO]

Well. I had him going in round 3 or round 4 myself given my view that he was a RT only prospect, IMO. I figured that would lower his stock some. But, I still felt that he was a very good player nonetheless.

In the end, I don't get too caught up with rounds too much. I focus more on the # selected. He was the 57th overall selection in this draft class which is pretty close to the 3rd round.

I worry about his limited athleticism on the edge. I think skill wise he is better inside, he is just too tall to play inside though.

 

[Memphis Ram]

I worry about his limited athleticism on the edge. I think skill wise he is better inside, he is just too tall to play inside though.

Not me. The team plans to run the football and get the ball out quicker this year. This kid is a perfect fit. He's Tyson Clabo who the Falcons had under Bourdeau when they were running the ball down peoples throats with Michael "The Burner" Turner a few years back.

 

[bandre10]

I think people need to relax. We can't judge this draft until they play.

 

[Mister Sin]

I'm of the crowed that says, "let just wait it out" we got a lot of terrific size. It seems brown is athletic enough to play guard or tackle. Havenstein, from what I read is a team leader and they are both supposedly great run blockers. That sounds good to me. I've been underwhelmed with the results of high profile guys like Jason Smith and Alex Barron. If we knew half of what we though we knew, we wouldn't be on a fan site, we would be sitting in an office giving Fisher and Snead our advise. Let's trust the system. These two haven't really steered us wrong yet. As far as Manion...I was a bit thrown off, I thought it would have been Hundley. But again, in Snisher I trust.

 

[FRO]

Not me. The team plans to run the football and get the ball out quicker this year. This kid is a perfect fit. He's Tyson Clabo who the Falcons had under Bourdeau when they were running the ball down peoples throats with Michael "The Burner" Turner a few years back.

I'm just used to presnap penalties and being stuffed on first and second down leaving third and long situations.

 

[Athos]

Both.

We all knew this draft was top heavy. After the first half of the 1st round, there was a steep decline in talent. Most of those guys aren't 1st round talents.

Last year was the definition of a STRONG draft.

This is the definition of a WEAK draft. Mediocrity galore in QBs. And with how the OGs fell, I guess overrated mediocrity there too.

Kinda like 2011, like you said @FRO

And not in a good way. We got out elite player in Gurley like we did with Quinn. I'm not convinced we got much of anything else after that pick. Harp on Mannion all you Mannion fans want. I hate the pick and will never like it, just like I never liked the Pead pick. Dawson was there......and we effed up the easy LB choice.

Again.

And I still believe we could have had both Havenstein AND Cann if they'd just been patient.

Ah well. It's baseball season. Time to shift focus fully again.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

I understand that, but to me Havenstein doesn't seem like a second round talent to me. Maybe in this draft he is. That's my overall point. Maybe it's just due to a very weak draft class and not necessarily our drafting. I wanted Clemmings, but there must be a lot wrong with him when he is still there in the 4th.

I never liked Clemmings after seeing how'robotic he is I felt that he was a major project. Maybe the GMs agreed and the media just had that completely wrong.

 

[RaminExile]

I'm just used to presnap penalties and being stuffed on first and second down leaving third and long situations.

I couldn't believe the stat that Havenstein only gave up 1 holding penalty or something stupid like that (and 1 false start??) his entire career. He's like the anti-Alex Barron judging by that.

For me it was weird watching it because these aren't two guys I knew a whole lot about pre-draft. I watched Havenstein a few times watching Wisconsin games but never paid close attention to me - when your looking at o-linemen you really have to focus in on them to see if they're playing well don't you - so yeah I was a little underwhelmed at the selections initially. That's because I'm a fan - not a scout or a NFL exec. I think trading back so far in the 2nd showed the weakness of the draft class and that Snead and Fisher were staying true to their board. They just didn't like anyone enough at that point early in the 2nd for it to be worth a pick. They've seemingly got a plan to smash the football down teams throats, and as a fan I absolutely love that. So lets get it on! Cant wait for camp to start to see the reports of how these guys are doing.

 

[Noregar]

I like the linemen they have drafted, they are some of the bigger better run maulers in the draft. I also love the Gurley pick. I have always had an affinity for running backs since my early days as a Rams fan in the mid 70's following the likes of McCutcheon, Tyler, and Dickerson. Fisher must be Channeling his inner John Robinson, going big with a power a power speed back and the big mauling run blockers he drafted. My initial reaction was that these two linemen came of the board a little early too but if that is who our Rams were targeting then it is better to maybe get them a round early than to loose out. Other linemen rated as "later round" guys also came off earlier than expected too. Mitch Morse, Poutasi, and Shaq Thompson were all slotted for later rounds by the experts too. With Clemmings and Collins falling that may also have moved other guys up the positional board too. I am Ok with what the Rams have done. Many have been clamoring for offensive line help, myself included, so I am not going to be a hypocrite and criticize them when they take some. The Rams know what they need and their personnel guys are the professionals. Just like I do no want them designing highway storm drainage systems (what I do), they do not need me making personnel decisions.

 

[DCH]

Players ranked between 15 and 130 were all very close in talent this year, per some things I've read. The difference between a 2nd-round projection and a 5th-round projection isn't what it has been in recent years; the "tiers" are a tiny "elite" tier (at the top of which sat Gurley, which is nice), a massive "middling" tier, and then everyone else.