I've spent way too much time lately combing the six million different NFL mock draft sites around the internet looking for more and more information about just who's out there that can help bolster the Rams in 2007 and beyond.
Of course that means I missed some important news items, such as Steven Jackson being named the Harry Glickman Professional Athlete of the Year at the Oregon Sports Awards Banquet this week.
Anyway, someone pointed out a really interesting mock draft site that uses a more data-driven approach to hash out draft picking madness. Drafttek.com uses a computer model to pick the first seven rounds of the 2007 NFL draft. Their analysis assigns values to team needs and talent rankings and then processes the data in their computer model to generate a mock draft. It's far from a perfect system, but as they collect more data their rankings start to reflect reality more and more. Another interesting note, they use sites like this one and other fan forums to gather their data around team needs.
Like I said, it's far from a perfect system, but it does give us another perspective on the upcoming draft. Take a look at their first three picks for the Rams.
Round 1 - LaRon Landry, FS, LSU
Round 2 - Qeuntin Moses, DE, Georgia
Round 3 - Manny Ramirez (!), G. Texas Tech
Now, I don't see the Rams drafting a D-back in the first round, given their needs on the D line and a secondary need for a young WR to replace Kevin Curtis - who will eventually replace Bruce. Taking an offensive lineman in the third round doesn't seem realistic either, with some young talent already in house to man the O line.