Draft Notebook 2012

Jeff Fisher put his stamp on the Rams 2012 draft class by drafting a defensive tackle in the first round. The Rams wheeled and dealed their way to 10 total picks in this years draft, as opposed to the 6 they had before Jeff Fisher took over. The Rams turned the number 2 overall pick into a treasure chest of draft picks (4 of which were used this year). The Redskins traded for that pick which became Robert Griffin III, and the Rams turned their compensation into  Micheal Brockers, Brian Quick, Janoris Jenkins, Isiah Pead,  Rock Watkins, and two future first round picks. That’s a pretty good hall. Regardless of how you feel about the players picked, the value the Rams have squeezed out of their unfortunate 2011 campaign is pretty astounding.

It’s impossible to put a real grade on anyone’s draft, everyone knows that. Some fans may like the player’s the Rams brought in, some may hate them, that’s always the fans prerogative. One thing we can all agree on is that the Rams needed a lot of young talent to build this team. Jeff Fisher went out and brought in 10 young players that they felt confident in. 10 guys that will likely stick on this roster for the entire year (for better or for worse), and develop under a veteran coaching staff.  Fans should welcome the idea of drafting so many young players with the ability to develop under such an accomplished coaching staff. You may not like the players, but it’s hard to argue with the strategy. This will be a young and hungry team in 2012.

Notes on the Rams picks:

• Micheal Brockers certainly looks the part, and has more physical ability than any DT to come out in the past two years, but can he parlay one year of college success into a full NFL career? We all certainly hope so. LSU has had their fair share of DT busts in the past, but Fisher is known for developing this type of talent, and the upside of this pick is tremendous. We will know about Brockers sooner rather than latter. I expect this coaching staff to put him to work early and start day1.
• I watched film on Quick back in January and thought for sure he would be a late first round pick. He is being compared to Terrell Owens, but I find him in more of the mold of Randy Moss. He may not have the same speed as Moss, but he plays the same way, and is deceptively fast on the field. Quick may end up being the best WR in the draft. The scary part is that he has a stronger chance than most of flaming out, due to his small school background and lack of polish.
• The cornerbacks we picked up, Jenkins and Johnson, are bad boys off the field and on. Which is a catch-22, if they can both stay clean off the field it looks as though both have NFL starting capability. Jenkins was drafted to start this year, so hopefully he is ready to work, and put his past behind him.
• Pead was called by several pundits this morning as a guy who could replace Steven Jackson. I don’t know if that is true, or if Pead truly has the skills to be a #1 back in this league; however, he can do it all and that certainly bodes well for him. That versatility as a back-up and change-of-pace back will serve this team well. Even just the thought that some may feel Pead could eventually replace Jackson should give Rams fans a smile.
• The other late round picks filled definite needs. The kicker will replace Brown who had a bad year in 2011. The others will fight to provide solid depth at positions that are very weak for the 2012 Rams.

Other Draft Notes:

• Seattle had a very puzzling draft, hopefully it will turn out to be puzzling in bad way, not an evil-genius way.
• The Bengals made out with a bevy of strong talent. I thought they had the best draft in 2012.
• It didn’t surprise me at all to the Jaguars jumped in front of the Rams at #5 overall to take Justin Blackmon. Tampa had been quiet throughout the draft process which led me to believe they didn’t love Claiborne and would likely move up for Richardson or back for someone else. Blackmon will be a very good receiver, it’s a shame the Rams missed him, but it’s not their fault they couldn’t pick him up. The Rams needed the picks and couldn’t afford to give multiple players away for one.

Thanks for reading

@tylerbishop