Los Angeles Rams: 30 greatest players in franchise history

Back in 1997, the Rams made a bold move when they decided to trade up with the New York Jet to acquire the top overall pick. They would use to draft former Ohio State standout offensive tackle Orlando Pace.

It had been a long time since an offensive lineman was selected with the No. 1 pick, but St. Louis clearly knew what they were getting in Pace. He was a one of a kind player that would eventually earn a spot in Canton. This happened only two years ago in 2016.

Despite St. Louis struggling for the most part during Pace’s first two NFL seasons, 1999 is when everything started to go well for the Rams. The team would emerge as one of the biggest surprises, and go on to win the Super Bowl.

The Greatest Show on Turf will always be considered one of the top offensive units of all time. Even though his impact didn’t show up in the stats sheet, Pace definitely played a key role in the Rams going on to hoist the Lombardi Trophy.

From protecting Kurt Warner to opening up areas for Marshall Faulk to burst through, Pace was the perfect example that season of just how important it is to have a reliable offensive lineman anchoring the unit.

Between winning a Super Bowl and earning seven trips to the Pro Bowl, Pace had quite the stellar career in 12 seasons with the Rams. As mentioned before, thank goodness the team was willing to take that risk of trading up in 1997 before the draft with the Jets.