Random Ramsdom: Has LA done enough to help Raheem Morris and Aaron Donald?

The LA Rams simply did not draft enough DBs (ramblinfan)

“A huge glaring need for the Rams is the secondary. Just for quick review, the LA Rams traded away starting defensive back Jalen Ramsey. The team did not counter the offers that lured starting safety Taylor Rapp to sign with the Buffalo Bills, nor did the team counter the offer that lured safety Nick Scott to sign with the Cincinnati Bengals. Even cornerback David Long was left to freely sign with the Las Vegas Raiders without an attempt by the Rams to keep him.

That’s emptied the Rams secondary of three starters and four players. But there’s more.

Two additional former Rams cornerbacks, former starting defensive back Troy Hill and backup defensive back Grant Haley remain unsigned.

I hate to sound the alarm, but . . .

So the Rams plan to enter the 2023 NFL season with a completely new group of defensive backs? And to make matters worse, the Rams have added only two defensive backs via the draft: Cornerback Tre Tomlinson and safety Jason Taylor II. While I believe that both rookie prospects are quite talented and bring plenty to the table, the truth is that the Rams have parted ways with six defensive backs and placed out the welcome mat for the arrival of two new defensive backs.

That’s a new loss of four defensive backs, and four starting defensive backs to boot.

I am typically an optimistic type of person. But even I have my realistic limits. The LA Rams have left room for plenty of doubt and concern with the performance of the team’s secondary throughout the 2023 NFL season. Might a player or two step up? Sure. But the secondary, much like the offensive line, relies upon cohesion, communication, cooperation, and collaboration as much as the talent of the individual players.

Not only will the Rams’ secondary rely heavily upon young and inexperienced players, but the team is attempting to give them all a crash course in trusting one another. That’s fraught with dangers. And with so few replacement onboarding via the 2023 NFL Draft, the Rams will likely depend heavily upon competition among undrafted rookies to meet even their basic roster depth needs. And to confirm that matter, the LA Rams have signed seven defensive backs out of 16 undrafted rookies so far. The Rams have 16 more open roster spots to go.”

Rams Sign Tulsa CB Tyon Davis - 2023 UDFA Tracker (fannation/ramsdigest)

“The first 259 picks were just the beginning.

More freshmen are on their way to Inglewood as the Los Angeles Rams will be active alongside the rest of their NFL brethren in rookie free agency. Negotiations are already underway with players whose professional dreams remain active despite not hearing their names called at Union Station in Kansas City.

Keep track of the Rams’ rookie signings below...

CB, Tyon Davis, Tulsa - Davis played four seasons at Tulsa and recorded 146 tackles, 23 pass breakups, two interceptions, and forced four fumbles.

RB, Tiyon Evans, Louisville - Evans rushed for 525 yards and six touchdowns on 83 attempts this past season for the Cardinals, which matched his 2021 tally, where as a member of the Tennessee Volunteers, he rushed for 525 yards and six touchdowns on 81 carries.

CB, Jordan Jones, Rhode Island - Jones signs with the Rams after an accomplished collegiate career where he set a program record for passes defended with 33. In addition, Jones was named a member of the CAA All-Conference team in 2022 as he led the conference with 15 passes defended and pass breakups with 12.”

Experts hand out grades for Rams’ 2023 draft class (ramswire)

“The Ringer – Grade: C+

Danny Kelly noted how large the Rams’ draft class is, consisting of 14 total players. The quantity is there, but he doesn’t believe they found a star in this class. And while Byron Young is an older prospect, Kelly sees him as “an athletic marvel.”

I’m also a fan of day-three role players Clemson tight end Davis Allen, BYU pass-catcher Puka Nakua, and Ole Miss running back Zach Evans, the latter of whom could push Cam Akers for carries early on. This wasn’t the flashiest group of players for the Rams, and I’m not sure I see a star. But L.A.’s got to rebuild the depth of their roster—and this was a solid start.

Full analysis: Click here”

Why LA Rams Round 2 was the most vital round of the 2023 NFL Draft (ramblinfan)

“The Rams talked about the 2023 NFL Draft as though it had become some sort of safe harbor for the Rams fans that were getting nervous over the state of the team. As other teams grew, and as LA Rams jumped ship and swam to the higher ground of signing contacts with other teams, the Rams fans were stuck on the ship.

That is why the announcement of “With the 36th pick of the 2023 NFL Draft, the Los Angeles Rams select Steve Avila, offensive lineman, from TCU . . .” was announced, there was a collective sigh of relief from all of the LA Rams fans who had tuned in to witness the Rams make their earliest pick since hiring on Rams head coach Sean McVay.

A huge step in the right direction

Avila was an offensive lineman, which of itself is a bit of a rarity to say when discussing the LA Rams recent drafts. But in a way he was more than that. He was a fulfillment of a promise made by the LA Rams organization that ensured the fans to be patient, don’t panic. Help is on the way.

Indeed it is. I never expected the LA Rams to have their pick from the entire offensive guard draft class at the 36th overall pick, yet that is how this draft board fell to the Rams. And it was a pleasant surprise to find the Rams making good on their word, and avoiding the temptation to add an offensive weapon when the true challenge was giving veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford enough time to throw.”

LA Rams finally end the Matthew Stafford trade (ramblinfan)

“When the LA Rams traded a package of picks as well as starting quarterback Jared Goff, the Rams took quite a risk. Perhaps nobody within the LA Rams organization that the Rams would suffer so many significant and repetitive injuries throughout the course of their 2022 NFL season, a season that followed winning Super Bowl LVI. But the result of that 5-12 record earned in 2022 led to the Detroit Lions owning the LA Rams 2023 first round pick, a pick that was the sixth overall pick in this draft.”