Are LA Rams ahead of or behind the curve with virtual Pro days?

The LA Rams seem to be one of the most future-thinking teams in the NFL. After all, it was the Rams that embraced the virtual presence of the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine, which placed the organization ahead of the curve when the entire NFL operations moved to that platform. It was the Rams that exited the loss at Super Bowl LIII and immediately extended the contracts of the offensive skill players. Well, maybe that wasn’t such a good example on second thought.

But the Rams have made it a point to take much of the analog scouting efforts of subjective assessment and distilled it down to the digital programming of analytics. It’s certainly had some impressive results in the 2020 NFL Draft. While the dust is still settling, we know that the Rams have two starters from that draft class: RB Cam Akers and S Jordan Fuller. We also know that the Rams have many players in the running for starting roles in 2021, including WR Van Jefferson, TE Brycen Hopkins, S Terrell Burgess.

And while he may not have a starting role in 2021, offensive tackle Tremayne Anchrum will certainly be one of the offensive linemen that the Rams count on.  While LB Clay Johnston signed one with his father on the Carolina Panthers, even K Sam Sloman had a shot at the starting placekicker role in 2020 before inaccuracy forced a change.

Virtual changes

Not bad for a year whose Pro Days were derailed by the NFL Travel ban. The Rams were simply prepared to conduct business remotely, by virtual meetings and programmed analytics. Now, it’s 2021, and the Rams are going all-in on virtual scouting once more. As 31 other teams attended Texas’ Pro Day, the LA Rams are the only team not represented.

So the question becomes, is that an advantage or disadvantage? Well if you ask Rams GM Les Snead, he sees it as an advantage. After all, the absence of the Rams at Pro Days does not mean that the Rams are not interested.  In fact, all it does is disguise the interest of the Rams in any specific player.

While it does not give the Rams key decision-makers first-hand exposure to the player, it does force everyone in the organization to make decisions for the best of the team. As long as the team’s database has the same access to measurables, responses, medical information, and profiles as other teams, the Rams are not likely to be handicapped whatsoever.

The NFL is changing how it does things. Some organizations will take their time migrating to this new way of conducting business. But it’s obvious that the LA Rams are at the cutting edge of the NFL when it comes to virtual and analytical technology. If the Rams have many more drafts like the 2020 NFL Draft, it won’t be long before other teams stay home for Pro Days as well.