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Well, we've got one Sunday left.
All 32 NFL teams will be in action on Sunday to wrap up the 2014 NFL regular season to send 12 teams into the postseason and 20 teams home. For those 20 teams, the path toward 2015 begins immediately. Black Monday will follow shuffling coaches around the NFL (and perhaps to Ann Arbor...), and the turn toward the 2015 NFL Draft will begin in earnest.
With that in mind, here's the first-round draft order as it stands*:
# | Team | Record | Strength of Schedule | |
1 | TB | 2 - 13 | 114 - 122 - 3 | 0.4833 |
2 | TEN | 2 - 13 | 118 - 120 - 1 | 0.4958 |
3 | JAX | 3 - 12 | 122 - 116 - 1 | 0.5126 |
4 | NYJ | 3 - 12 | 132 - 107 | 0.5523 |
5 | OAK | 3 - 12 | 137 - 101 | 0.5756 |
6 | WAS | 4 - 11 | 118 - 122 | 0.4917 |
7 | CHI | 5 - 10 | 125 - 114 - 1 | 0.5229 |
8 | ATL | 6 - 9 | 113 - 123 - 3 | 0.4791 |
9 | MIN | 6 - 9 | 115 - 124 - 1 | 0.4812 |
10 | NO | 6 - 9 | 114 - 122 - 3 | 0.4833 |
11 | NYG | 6 - 9 | 123 - 117 | 0.5125 |
12 | STL | 6 - 9 | 127 - 112 | 0.5314 |
13 | CLE | 7 - 8 | 110 - 125 - 3 | 0.4685 |
14 | SF | 7 - 8 | 128 - 111 | 0.5356 |
15 | HOU | 8 - 7 | 106 - 132 - 1 | 0.4456 |
16 | MIA | 8 - 7 | 122 - 117 | 0.5105 |
17 | KC | 8 - 7 | 124 - 114 | 0.521 |
18 | CLE (via BUF) | 8 - 7 | 125 - 114 | 0.523 |
19 | BAL | 9 - 6 | 112 - 123 - 3 | 0.4769 |
20 | PHI | 9 - 6 | 117 - 122 - 1 | 0.4896 |
21 | SD | 9 - 6 | 122 - 116 | 0.5126 |
22 | GB | 11 - 4 | 115 - 124 - 1 | 0.4812 |
23 | PIT | 10 - 5 | 104 - 131 - 3 | 0.4433 |
24 | ARI | 11 - 4 | 126 - 113 | 0.5272 |
25 | CAR | 6 - 8 - 1 | 116 - 122 - 1 | 0.4874 |
26 | IND | 10 - 5 | 114 - 123 - 1 | 0.4811 |
27 | CIN | 9 - 4 - 1 | 118 - 120 - 1 | 0.4958 |
28 | DAL | 11 - 4 | 107 - 133 | 0.4458 |
29 | DET | 11 - 4 | 112 - 127 - 1 | 0.4688 |
30 | DEN | 11 - 3 | 125 - 113 - 1 | 0.5251 |
31 | SEA | 11 - 4 | 126 - 112 - 1 | 0.5293 |
32 | NE | 12 - 3 | 121 - 116 - 1 | 0.5105 |
* - This was prior to last night's Denver-Cincinnati game. h/t to Bucs Nation for the table.
As it stands, the Rams would be outside the top 10 on strength of schedule alone. That aspect won't change; the Rams are all but assured to sit at the back of whatever teams they tie in record save for San Francisco. That being the case, the Rams' only shot of creeping in the top 10 would require a season-ending loss in Seattle coupled with at least two of the other 6-9 teams picking up a week 17 win. That may hinge on the NFC South with three 6-win teams in Carolina, Atlanta and New Orleans, the first two of which play each other. Minnesota is at home to take on the Bears and the Giants are bringing in a Philadelphia team that has lost its last three games sending them out of the playoffs.
So it doesn't look like fortune is on the Rams' side here. In fact, should the Rams (somewhat miraculously, given how well Seattle is playing right now) steal one in Seattle, they could slide to 13th with the Browns taking on a Ravens team trying to snatch the final open AFC playoff spot to finish the year.
In any case, we know the Rams won't be in the top 7 picks, and they don't have to worry about being among the back half of the round. For a Rams team that has learned to love mediocrity, they're bringing that consistency into the draft...