Los Angeles Rams Boast Top Wide Receivers If Mel Kiper Jr. Was Always Right
As we delve into NFL Mock Draft season, two names that will continuously come up are ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. and Todd McShay. However, while we call these two experts, hardly ever does the draft go as they perceive them to. Before mock draft season gets crazy, here’s what would have happened if Kiper had been right in his initial mock drafts every year since 2010.
2010 – DT Ndamukong Suh
2011 – WR Julio Jones
2012 – Justin Blackmon
2013 – S Kenny Vaccaro and OT DJ Fluker
2014 – OT Jake Matthews and WR Mike Evans
2015 – OG TJ Clemmings
By first glance this doesn’t look too bad. The Los Angeles Rams are set at wide receiver with Jones and Evans. That right there is a significantly better receiving corps than what the Rams have had since Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce left.
The Rams also beef up the offensive line with DJ Fluker and Jake Matthews playing tackle as well as Clemmings playing inside. Thats much better than what the Rams have currently with Greg Robinson who has been a bust.
Lastly on defense the Rams get Suh and Vacarro. Suh was an elite player with the Detroit Lions and Vacarro has had up and down moments at safety with the New Orleans Saints. Also to note, Blackmon, who was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars, is no longer in the NFL.
While all looks good from a glance, you have to wonder who the Rams have throwing the football. The Rams passed on Bradford for Suh. They have weapons, but they need their quarterback. Bradford was that franchise guy in that draft and was the right pick. The former Rams quarterback ended up going to the Washington Redskins in Kiper’s mock.
Also, the Rams got very unlucky when the Atlanta Falcons leapfrogged from the bottom end of the first round to go up and get Jones. They also drafted Tavon Austin over Mike Evans. That might be something they wish they would have done differently now. Same goes for the offensive line where they took Robinson over Matthews.
More from Ramblin' Fan
- NFL Trade Rumors: Would Rams trade for Jonathon Taylor?
- Look for 49ers players to follow DeMeco Ryans to Texans
- Ryans to the Texans, will Rams Raheem Morris be next?
- Broncos mimic LA Rams, go All-In pairing Payton with Russell
- Need a new Los Angeles Rams hat for less than $10?
Notable players that the Rams do not have in Kiper’s mocks are Alec Ogletree, Aaron Donald, and Todd Gurley. All three players have been difference makers and have turned out to be the right picks. Instead, Kiper didnt have Donald or Gurley going in the first round, and Ogletree is on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
If anything, this experiment shows how pointless mock drafts are at this point. In reality, nobody knows what’s going to happen or what direction a team is leaning towards. Kiper does a good job on ESPN as a draft analyst, but at the end of the day, he isn’t usually right at this point in the process.