Rams continue to maximize draft picks by trading down again

The Los Angeles Rams continue to trade down in the 2019 NFL Draft and gain more picks. What does that tell us about their draft board and their strategy?

On Thursday night, the Los Angeles Rams traded their first round pick to the Atlanta Falcons to gain another Day 2 pick by moving down 14 spots.

Coincidentally, the Rams pulled off another move on Friday faster than the logo flashing “on the clock” when it was announced that Los Angeles made another trade, this time with the New England Patriots.

This time, the Rams traded their No. 45 pick in exchange for No. 56 and No. 101, increasing their Day 2 pick count to five (one second rounder and four third rounders).

With this in mind, the end of the third round looks to be exciting for Rams fans, as they currently hold the No. 94, No. 99, and No. 101 picks.

These moves seem to suggest two things. First, the team must have as humber of players in this Day 2 range they they are excited about.

Remember that they have added players like wide receiver Cooper Kupp, safety John Johnson, and tackle Joe Noteboom in the last couple years during the third round.

In other words, when looking at the previous success by the Rams in the third round, maybe this will be an early sign of what’s to come towards the end of Friday.

Second, Los Angeles seems to be going by the strategy that quantity is better than quality this year.

Some hold to the belief that since somewhere close to 50 percent of NFL draft picks don’t pan out, increasing the number of selections is how good teams “win” at the draft.

Obtaining more picks is exciting, but sooner or later, they have to use one.

Does this mean the Rams will take an offensive lineman? How about an edge rusher or even a running back?

Since Sean McVay came on board, the Rams have found plenty of success in the middle rounds as mentioned before, and if all goes well, this should be the case once again this weekend.

Just because Los Angeles is the defending NFC champions doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t have needs to fill, so here’s to hoping the extra draft picks pays off while putting the team in better position for 2019.