Here's a name that could be of particular interest to the Rams for you to keep in the back of your mind as the NFL Combine starts this week.
Sam Baker, OT, USC
If the Rams opt for one of the elite DEs or DTs with their first round pick, I think we'd all like them to find someone for the o-line in the second round. Could Baker be that guy? Baker might not earn elite marks on some of the tests at the Combine. Many feel that while he has the potential (and played in a pretty elite program) he lacks, heading into the draft, the size (he's 6'5", 305 lbs) and power teams want from a first round pick expected to immediately contribute at a high level. Bulking up should be relatively simple given his frame, and he'd have a season without much pressure to learn the pro game backing up Pace and Barron. A recent piece in the Sporting News says he could be a third round pick even. His highlight reel at Rivals.com doesn't square with the charge against him at the Sporting News, that his Senior Bowl performance showed a guy going upright with stiff legs. I'd be more than happy if this guy has just an ok showing at the NFL Combine and puts himself in place for the Rams to grab with their second round pick.
Even with an injury-marred season, Baker was still named a second team All American.
Consider how fickle the winds of fate really are. Peep this from an ESPN profile of Michigan OT Jake Long that appeared on Feb. 14.