2014 NFL mock draft: More trading a possibility?

Every Washington loss gets the St. Louis Rams closer to another top-five pick, and finally one they didn't earn with another awful two-win season. The Rams also have their own pick, which is currently 15th in the first round, by virtue of their own schedule. So what could they do with those picks?

(Note: there are some calculations that have the Rams picking second, right now, which would be AWESOME. Since this is a mock draft with a month left in the season, we're not going to get too worked up about the difference between 2/3 ... for now).

Let's look at the most recent mock from Dan over at Mocking the Draft.

WIth the third pick the Rams take ...

Jake Matthews, OT, Texas A&M: This is the first pick where things get challenging. Would the Rams consider moving on from Sam Bradford while he still has two years left on his contract? Until there are indications otherwise, lets assume they stick with Bradford. That gives St. Louis a lot options. It would be funny if they managed to flip the final pick from the Robert Griffin III trade into more picks. But to keep things simple, lets go with Matthews, the unquestioned top offensive tackle in next year's draft. Matthews can play either side if the Rams choose to continue going with Jake Long at left tackle. Another option could be a true No. 1 wide receiver like Sammy Watkins.

This is a tough call that we've talked about before. Matthews gives the Rams an eventual replacement for Jake Long, who hasn't looked to be in need of a replacement this season. And Joe Barksdale's come into his own on the right side. And then there's the QB question ...

Another option might be TRADE. In this scenario, Oregon's Marcus Mariota is still on the board (personally, he'd be my pick here). Personal preferences aside, trading the high pick could be a real option for Les Snead given the potential for so many quarterbacks in this class.

With the 15th pick, the Rams take ...

Jace Amaro, TE, Texas Tech: The Jared Cook experiment is not working. Amaro has emerged as the top tight end in next year's draft thanks to his stellar hands and play after the catch. There are some questions about his ability as a blocker, but Tech's scheme doesn't often ask him to play inline.

This would be a great pick, but the Rams don't have an easy way out of Jared Cook's contract, not this year anyway. The problem with Cook isn't really his blocking. The Rams don't necessarily need him to be blocker; they need him to catch passes. Cook's problem is his tendency to disappear upon contact, sometimes without contact too. Lance Kendricks is only under contract through next season, so there is a need for another receiving tight end.

A better pick might be Jason Verrett, the TCU cornerback and widely seen as the top CB in the draft. With Finnegan's future in doubt and the lack of depth exposed, the Rams need blue chip help in the secondary. Another great pick would be Alabama safety HaHa Clinton-Dix.

So there you have it, one potential scenario for the Rams in the draft. What direction would you go?