Trey Adams leads 7 LA Rams PAC-12 2020 NFL Draft targets

Data-driven draft decisions

Still, NFL teams have a great deal of work to accomplish in a very short time. Over 300 prospects will be measured, weighed, given thorough medical examinations, interviewed, and tested at a series of track-style events to measure speed, strength, dexterity, agility, and football intelligence. All information will be shared equally (except for interviews) among all 32 NFL teams to create a common database on all potential players.

This year will be slightly different for the LA Rams and Dever Broncos coaching staff.  For those two teams, their head coaches have decided that only the head coach and scouting department representatives will attend the event. Wait… what?  How can coaches weigh in on who they prefer if they are not there to see the players compete?  In the end, most NFL teams have implemented a data analytics team, and the LA Rams are no different.

The NFL Scouting Combine is a treasure trove of data points, each of which feeds various NFL algorithms and calculations.  While the science behind data analytics is lagging, the math behind the process is sound.  A similar input should equal a similar output.

For the LA Rams with three new coordinators, the idea makes some sense, since the Rams employ data analytics extensively in the NFL draft decision making process. But deciding about who?  For starters, let’s examine the top seven prospects for the LA Rams from the PAC-12 conference?