ESPN’s Todd McShay offers “grade A” 2019 NFL Draft class for Los Angeles Rams that’s all offense

We’re getting close, folks. The 2019 NFL Draft begins two weeks from Thursday and with it will come a new crop of Los Angeles Rams.

Today, ESPN’s Todd McShay offered his “grade A” mock drafts for every team through three rounds (ESPN+ subscription required).

For the Rams, his trio isn’t surprising as individual prospects. As a collective though, it’s shocking for an obvious reason:

Round 1 (31): Chris Lindstrom, G, Boston College Eagles
Round 3 (94): Bryce Love, RB, Stanford Cardinal
Round 3 (99): David Edwards, OT, Wisconsin Badgers

Let’s fill the void left by Rodger Saffold with a real grinder in Lindstrom. Edwards would further shore up the offensive line with his heavy hands and strong lateral mobility. I’d look for a center in the later rounds as well. L.A. also will be looking for some running back depth behind Todd Gurley, and Love would be an excellent fit. The Rams can afford to take a chance on a player such as this here, and with Love’s effectiveness in space, it could pay off handsomely if the Stanford product stays healthy.

Individually, they all make sense. The Rams’ 2020 offensive line is far from being established, so adding two more components who should factor is obviously justifiable. And while I’m behind the idea of adding Love as evidenced by his inclusion in my seven-round Rams-only mock from yesterday, spending a third-round pick on a running back when you have the NFL’s highest-paid running back already on your roster would be a pretty notable piece of bad business.

What’s striking here though is the notion of an offense-only crop from the first two days of the draft. I’d be interested to see how upset fans would get at this given the modest displeasure many fans expressed at the Rams taking two offensive linemen to begin their 2018 NFL Draft class with severe roster gaps at linebacker both inside and out at the time.

The Rams lost DL Ndamukong Suh, LB Mark Barron and S Lamarcus Joyner in the opening wave of free agency. DL Michael Brockers, EDGE Dante Fowler, Jr., ILB Cory Littleton, CB Aqib Talib, CB Marcus Peters, CB Troy Hill and S Blake Countess are all scheduled to become unrestricted free agents next offseason.

Would you have a problem if the Rams headed into Day 3 of the draft without having taken a single defensive prospect?