The LA Rams can be creative in the 2020 NFL Draft

The LA Rams enter the 2020 NFL Draft with seven picks, which gives them enough versatility to be very creative in the 2020 NFL Draft

The LA Rams now possess seven picks in the 2020 NFL Draft. They are picks 52 (2nd), 57 (2nd), 84 (3rd), 104 (3rd rd comp pick), 126 (4th), 200 (6th), and 235 (7th). In terms of the NFL Draft Value Chart, that equates to a combined value of 1023.6, or somewhere between pick 15 and 16 in round one. While that still ranks the LA Rams at only the 27th-ranked team in terms of NFL draft value, it does give the Rams much more flexibility.

If the Rams want to get into the bottom of round one, they could package the 57th, 84th, and 104th pick to offer a competitive package for the Kansas City Chiefs’ first-round pick at 32 and keep their 52nd pick. Or the Rams could bundle picks 52 and 57 to move up to the Miami Dolphins first-round pick at 26.

Of course, if the Rams wish to trade back from 52, they could trade back to 56 from the same Miami Dolphins, and pick up an added fourth-round pick at 141 as well as add a fifth-round pick at 173.  That would give the LA Rams back to back picks in round two, which would ensure the team gets two solid prospects in round two, and increases the Rams total 2020 NFL Draft picks from seven to nine.

We know that the LA Rams general manager loves to trade picks on draft day. And the LA Rams have had discussions with one of this draft’s top wide receivers, Baylor’s Denzel Mims

6-foot-3 207-pound Mims is a speedster. His 40-yard dash time was 4.38 seconds, just .05 seconds slower than that of Brandin Cooks.  But he is far taller, making him a much better target for quarterback Jared Goff. And his arms seem to have a Stretch Armstrong quality about them, snagging almost anything that comes near him.

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In a draft with plenty of talent at wide receiver, he is the cream of a very deep and talented crop. And he’s the type of receiver you know Rams head coach Sean McVay covets desperately. He is tall, very fast, runs good routes, and seems to catch anything thrown in his general direction. The only concern is whether he will fall to the Rams at 52 or even 57?

A practical approach for the LA Rams right now is to let the draft come to them. With picks at 52, 57, 84 and 104, the Rams could wisely select four 2020 NFL Starters, any of whom could develop into NFL stars of the future.  But that is the practical approach.

Drat picks, like salary cap dollars, seem to burn a hole in the pockets of LA Rams general manager Les Snead. With that in mind, and despite every logical reason screaming reasons why the LA Rams should NOT trade up, I believe that is exactly what the team plans to do. The LA Rams see Mims as a generational talent at the wide receiver, one who is so special that the team was willing to swallow millions of dead cap dollars to open a roster hole for him.

The Miami Dolphins own 14 picks in the 2020 NFL Draft,  three in round one and just two in round two. They will be more than happy to get more second-round picks from the LA Rams.  So how will this trade look?

The Rams will jump ahead of the Baltimore Ravens at 28 and the Tenessee Titans at 29, both of whom would love to add Mims to their roster. In doing so, the Rams grab the wide receiver made to play for head coach Sean McVay and improve their sixth-round pick to a fifth-rounder in the process.

I’m not a fan of trading up in this draft, but my gut instincts tell me if Mims is on the board at 26, the Rams will be ringing the Dolphins’ phone off the hook to make this trade.  So don’t be surprised, angry, or even disappointed if it happens.

This is just one of the multiple scenarios made available by the sudden increase of the LA Rams draft picks in the 2020 NFL Draft.  Should the Rams make a trade like the one above, the team will still emerge with a first-round, two third-rounds, one fourth-round, one fifth-round, and a seventh-round player.  Before compensatory picks were handed out, the LA Rams had one second, one third, one fourth, one sixth, and one seventh-round pick in this draft.

If Mims truly is the player many expect him to be, landing him in the 2020 NFL Draft will be huge for the Rams’ future.