From the peanut gallery: Fans grade the Rams 2010 draft

And I have a story coming tomorrow with individual grades, so I’ll withhold shit-talking until then.

And he’s clearly acting with a plan and sticking to it. This deserves an ‘A’

My off the cuff analysis based on no actual scouting but just who we picked. I am not giving these actual players these grades but more the position and type of player we took where we took him.

My draft analysis:
1) Bradford (A) – Definite need and the more I hear about him I like him. I was leaning towards Suh but there is no arguing that the Rams needed a franchise QB more than a DT. I am officially a die-hard Bradford fan.

2) Saffold (B) – I am not giving this pick a B because I think Saffold is bad at all. I think he makes sense and does help the Rams. He was also a decent value where we grabbed him. However, I feel we had more pressing needs than a OT/OG with this pick. He will contribute and will help a lot especially long term, but I feel a starting OLB, DT, or WR would have been a better use of a pick here. For example I would have much rather picked the WR Benn here (even if it was a bit of a reach) and drafted a OT/OG in round 4 instead of Gilyard.

3) Jerome Murphy © – Again I would argue that a OLB, DT, WR, or backup RB would be better picks here. I think we need help at CB especially with depth, but with Bartell and Fletcher (assuming he recovers form the injury) we already have 2 starters that are viable. The same can’t be said for OLB.

4) Gilyard (A) – I really liked this pick. I would have much rather addressed the need at WR earlier but I like Gilyard a lot for where we got him. Great KR and really productive. He will be great at yards after the catch.

5) Hoomanawanui (D) – I am not a big fan of this pick at all. Yes we need TE help, but we have so many other big needs that this seems like a waste. He isn’t a receiving threat from what I read so at best he is out #2 blocking TE. The only way I would really condone this is if they feel he is a beast at run blocking and will give our running game a huge boost. Even then, I would have rather had a OLB, DE, DT, RB with this pick.

6) Davis (B) – DE is a major need and we picked one! He sounds pretty good and hopefully he can contribute in the rotation. I was just glad we drafted a position of need here.

7) Onobon (F) – A second TE and a guy who is totally raw and has not played much football? A good team that is drafting for depth can afford this kind of pick in Round 6 but that Rams can’t. We have so many positions of need that a TE (and the 2nd one in this draft) just doesn’t make sense. Similar to Null, he probably would have gone undrafted and we could have picked him up post draft. I hope he turns into the next Gates, but right now he is just a raw talent that can’t contribute for a while. Bad pick in my opinion.

8) Sims © – It appears we will try him at OLB and that is why I’m giving it a C. At least we tried to address one of our biggest positions of need. It isn’t uncommon to try to convert a DE to OLB and I hope our coaches can do it. I really like this guy’s size and I hope we can get something out of him sooner rather than later. I would have preferred to take someone who had actually played the position before, but I guess they thought he was better than the other OLBs left.

9) Johnson (F) – A second corner and a guy who was only good enough to play 3rd corner in college? Doesn’t sound that promising. I would have much rather picked up RB or DT help with this pick. I hope he is great, but nothing I am reading about him gets me too excited.

10) Selvie (A) – Really good value, serves a need on our team, and can help replace some of Little’s productivity. I liked the pick and even though it was our second DE, he was a good value where we got him.

11) Hill (B) – A LB!! I know he isn’t really an OLB, but I was just happy they drafted some LB help. I will take any linebacker from Penn State is I can get him. I would have much rather the Rams addressed this position earlier, but at least we got some help here.

Grand Total:
I gave them 3 A’s, 3 B’s, 2 C’s, 1 D, and 2 F’s. Again, I am not really passing judgment on any of these guys at players, but more on our coaches and GM and where they picked what position. I am a die hard Rams fan and I will root for all of these guys as hard as I can as long as they are in our uniform.

It seems to me that Devany and company make the right picks at the right positions in early rounds, but are too quick to use later rounds for pet projects or guys they think are interesting. I think there is a place for this, but guys are dropping into these later rounds and you need to look for value here as well.

I thought I was the ultimate optimists, however I keep seeing people saying: How can you be pissed about guys that haven’t played a down yet?
You have to make your judgement based on the passed 4 years (more realistically 2 years) of a players production. I am a firm believer if we give our coaching staff the most talent possible, that they will be able to have a better chance of success. I don’t think we did that this draft.

i’m gonna give them a B. but think about it, Billy is getting paid soooooooooo much more than me to do his job, so just cause we’re fans it don’t mean we know what’s exactly going on

Just kidding. I did want Suh, but I’ve come to terms with our pick and truly hope he succeeds. There was lots of value to be had after round 2 that we left out there. I get the feeling that we drafted players for their motor and desire to succeed which is always a good thing to do, but I still feel like we should have taken Griffen in the 4th. That would have made the draft that much deeper for us and allowed us to not take 2 DE’s later.

Spags likes his character guys though, and I really like the Selvie pick in the 7th. Reminds me of a few years ago when the Broncos took Elvis Dumervil in the 4th(?) round I think. Big producer in college but his pro status was discounted because he didn’t fit the typical DE mold. It looks like Dumervil has now switched to OLB, but still. I think the undervalued comparison holds.

I don’t understand the TEs or the CBs really. Seems like one TE would have been enough. I go the the University of Illinois and got to see Uh-oh-manawanui play. Seemed to me he was a viable pass catcher and wasn’t relied on near enough especially with the poor quarterback play we received. He could also block pretty well so there’s that. A high-floor low ceiling pick if there ever was one.

I gave us a C for this draft. Bradford will be fine and I liked the Saffold pick. Our O-line should be above average to great for the forseeable future. Questions in the later rounds definitely drag down the score.

I think the Rams draft picks just got a little weird after the Gilyard pick. I was hopeful up until that point. I also think the FO made an huge error not moving up for Hernandez. But hey, they get paid to see things we don’t and ultimately their jobs will rest on the choices they made. Draft Grade: C-

You want to see how to run a team? All you have to do is look at the Sea Chickens, Patriots, Lions ect…. Good draft picks and picked up a decent RB (Lendale White) for a hamburger or something. The Rams front office didn’t know anything about Leon Washington, L.White or S. Holmes. Nah we will pick up a 40yr old RB with massive injury issues. Awesome! The draft sucked and reaffirmed what I have been saying all along. If you play the lottery you get nothing more times than not. Hope you guys like changing coaches every 3 years.

would devaney pick suh and go with clausen or mcoy?

So “D”

I keep hearing from people here “we left a lot of talent on the board”, think about that statement for a second, were we the only team that passed on that “talent” through the 2nd and 3rd rounds? NO!!! There were 30 other NFL franchises that past on that so called “talent”. Do you as fans really honestly believe that you are a better talent evaluater than the FO from 30 NFL teams I would like to think there were good reasons why that “talent” continued to fall and get passed by teams round by round.

Lot of negative arm-chair fans here….. lol. It takes 3 years for a draft to pan out.Take a breath and relax.

R1- Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma (link)-B- I would only give an “A” to a sure thing. Bradford is talented and has the tools to succeed but I didn’t have him in my top 10 players available and he is going to cost a fortune.

R2 Roger Saffold, OT, Indiana (link)-A- I love everything about this pick excluding that they did not trade it….

R3 – Jerome Murphy, CB, South Florida (link)-C- Didn’t we draft this guy last year when he went by “Fletcher”?

R4 – Mardy Gilyard, WR, Cincinnati (link)-B- I expect him to be a serviceable WR and, perhaps, a dynamic ST player. The problem is that we need a No.1 and Gilyard is destined for the slot. Nearly every receiver we already have is more of a slot-type.

R5 – Michael Hoomanawanui, TE, Illinois (link)-F- Couldn’t we have found a blocking TE somewhere other than the fifth round?

R5 – Hall Davis, DE, Louisiana- Lafayette (link)-C- Maybe Spags knows what he is doing with the d-line: I don’t.

R6 – Fendi Onobon, TE, Houston (link)-C- This would be an “A” a round later. There was too much talent available here. That being said, I am really excited about Fendi. He has HUGE upside despite his limited experience. A perfect seventh round choice…that we took in the 6th.

R6 – Eugene Sims, DE, West Texas A&M (link)-D- Would he have been drafted at all? What position will he play? I want to trust Spags so I won’t give an “F” here.

R7 – Marquis Johnson, CB, Alabama (link)-A- A winner from a winning program. I heard an interview with him on the radio today and came away impressed. A seventh round pick that could make the team.

R7 – George Selvie, DE, South Florida (link)-A-It is the seventh round. We drafted a player that could be difference maker.

R7 – Josh Hill, LB, Penn State-A- I could see him making the team.

Clearly, I grade easier as the intrinsic value of the picks decrease. The 7th rounders all got "A"s because I think they are potential starters in the NFL. They might even be good enough to make teams that aren’t as woeful as the Rams. They may get cut, too.

I am not terribly disappointed that we did not draft a top RB(to be a backup) or OLB as I think that they are two of the easiest positions to fill.

I would take a stud OLB or DE anyday over a stud RB. Most teams in the NFL have stud RB’s some teams have two. Any coach or scout will tell you that RB and WR are the two easiest positons to find in the draft. Although there is a massive market for premier back up running backs (Chester Taylor, Michael Turner, LT). The market is much smaller for great LB/DE/DT’s due to the fact that there are much less of them in the league. So if you have or can get a premier OLB/DE/DT, that is more valuable than a RB of any stature. Just draft a RB or trade one of the runningback rich teams for one. RB’s are a dime a dozen, great defenders are not.

If you want info on how a “great” running back has helped us over the years, just look at our record since 1990 and then look at the 1,000 yards rushers. We have had some of the worst years in Rams history with a 1,000 yard back running for us. Passing is what wins you games. We needed a great TE and a #1 WR, plain and simple.

Well passing and a decent defense.

        Some of these choices made me physically sick to my stomach.

so I’ll give this Rams draft an “incomplete”.

Because the Rams drank too much this semester, and forgot to turn in a few key assignments.

OLB whauhhaha?

        that weren’t on anyone elses board, and so few names on our board that were.

C at best, like others have said after the Bradford pick the rest of the draft went downhill fast, typical of the Rams to blow the only positive from last year and that was to have the first pick of every round, they WASTED IT…I can not believe that the freaking Lions have to me done an A + draft for their needs and we still can’t pull our heads out of our asses,.

PS- Glad to see EDJPR back!!!