The rebuilding Los Angeles Rams are facing pressure to have a productive draft because they lack a No. 1 pick in 2017, but the Rams draft history of late says that may not happen.
A big part of the reason the Rams are in rebuilding mode under new head coach Sean McVay is due to their lack of productivity with the draft during the past seven years.
Since 2010, three current members of the team that the Rams drafted have earned Pro Bowl selections, according to Pro Football Reference: defensive end Robert Quinn in 2013-14, Todd Gurley in 2015 and Aaron Donald in 2014-16.
That’s three picks out of 61 players who have turned in Pro Bowl years. And only one player—Donald—who played at a Pro Bowl caliber last season.
Perhaps, that was part of the reason the franchise gave away several picks to select quarterback Jared Goff at No. 1 overall in 2016: It simply has not had a lot of success building through the draft.
Thirteen of the 15 Rams draft choices in the last two years are still on the roster. But the only starters in 2016 were Gurley, right tackle Rob Havenstein (who is moving to guard this season), right guard Cody Wichmann and Goff—even though he only started seven of the 16 games.
Los Angeles has 12 players currently on the roster from the 2010-2014 drafts out of the 46 players it selected during that five-year span.
That makes sense, with the lack of success the Rams have had during that span.
So while Los Angeles has to decide whether to bolster its secondary, offensive line or pass-catching skill positions (wide receiver or tight end), the bigger need will be to find players that not only will hang around but also blossom into potential postseason-award type players.
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