The St. Louis Rams positions for improvement: Looking to the 2016 NFL Draft

The St. Louis Rams have opened the 2015 regular season with a 2-3 record, playing against some of the toughest teams in the league. Throughout these games, the Rams have proven their defensive prowess, making strong statements to championship teams. However, these games have also represented the poor offensive production from the team, as they struggle to move the ball up the field. This offensive struggle is due to two significant positional factors:

1. Offensive Line
2. Lack of aerial weapons

These two positions stand out as the core reasons for the problems that Frank Cignetti Jr and this offensive roster have faced. Rams fans have been reading over the past six weeks about which players have failed to meet expectations, and what these problems mean for the team. However, if these problems have existed for numerous seasons, why have they not been resolved?

Rams fans will no doubt have their own reasons regarding what needs to be fixed first, or what players must stay or go, and so with this, what can we expect in the 2016 NFL Draft? It is still early on in the season, but is it safe to say that we can already identify the Rams’ major needs for 2016.

Looking to the 2016 NFL Draft, St. Louis must focus their selections on these two positions:

1. Offensive Line
2. Wide Receiver

These two positions lack the most consistency and this is evident week in and week out. On one hand the Rams have a young developing offensive line, who for the most part have struggled to create safe lanes for the running backs and proved pass protection for quarterbacks.

Sep 20, 2015; Landover, MD, USA; St. Louis Rams offensive guard Jamon Brown (68) and Rams tackle Greg Robinson (73) line up against the Washington Redskins at FedEx Field. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

On the other hand, the group of wide receivers and tight ends who have been less than ideal in the air, as they continue to drop simple catches. In the 2013 NFL Draft, wide receiver Tavon Austin was selected as the 8^th overall pick, and in the 2014 NFL Draft, offensive tackle Greg Robinson was selected as the 2^nd overall pick. Both players have failed to live up to expectations in their show time in St. Louis. Unfortunately, time is not always awarded such players.

“Both first round picks in 2013 and 2014 were selected to address the offensive struggles this team faces, yet the players have failed to yield the goods from this high price”

In the 2015 NFL Draft, GM Les Snead and head coach Jeff Fisher selected offensive tackle Rob Havenstein in the second round, and offensive guard Jamon Brown in the third round, who are both developing into strong offensive linemen and may prove to become key players for the team in the future, but have faltered in the early parts of 2015. It’s too soon to give up on these players, but the high draft status isn’t not equating to production on the field through six weeks of play.

These recent draft picks have shown fans that Snead and Fisher are aware of what needs to be fixed, but then why are these two areas still lacking? In saying this, note that the Rams roster is, once again, one of the youngest in the NFL, and some of these players will take time to develop, but the fact remains that these areas of the ball game is what’s lacking the most in St Louis, and has been for some time.

First round picks don’t always live up to their price tag, with late round draft picks coming into the league with a lot to prove. Whatever the case, the Rams must continue to try and find the right group of players in the offensive line, and at the wide out position in the upcoming 2016 NFL Draft.