For years and years, leadership at Rams Park didn't get the memo that the draft was a great way to renew the talent on your roster, keep a competitive product on the field and move forward. Fortunately, the ship has started to right itself in recent years, and the new St. Louis Rams administration has been able to start using the draft in their favor, rather than an April Groundhog Day where it's always 2006.
Mid-decade poor drafting still haunts this team, jumping out to say "boo" whenever you look at the Rams' records of the last few years. Not so long ago, there was a quote from head coach Steve Spagnuolo (sorry, I can't find the link) expressing his exasperation at just how many players on the roster where late round picks and undrafted guys. So, here, presented for your information is the Rams roster from 2009 broken down by draft pick.
Starting with the defense...position listed with the number of players from the round in which they were drafted, if they were drafted at all.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | U | |
| CB | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | ||||
| DE | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||
| DT | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |||
| LB | 1 | 3 | 3 | |||||
| S | 1 | 5 |
When you think about the Rams defense last year, the fact that six of seven linebackers on the roster were seventh round pick or undrafted says much about the team's problems, especially against the run. The origin points for the defensive linemen is equally as telling.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | U | |
| OL | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | |||
| QB | 1 | 2 | ||||||
| RB/FB | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||||
| TE | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||
| WR | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
There are many first round picks on the Rams offensive roster from last season as there are first and second rounders on the defense. Think about that for a minute. Not that either unit was a glowing success, but the struggles on offense were epic. The Rams got a much better bang for their buck on defense. The first round QB on the list: Kyle Boller.
Thirty players on the roster last year were undrafted or seventh round picks.