LA Rams meet with versatile Cavaliers LB Charles Snowden

The LA Rams need production from the edge position in 2021. That’s not a concern, it’s just the way it is. So to get there, as with many needs for the team, the Rams must find a player with enough concerns from other teams that allows a player to fall to the Rams picking later in the draft, but with enough talent and upside that the Rams can develop that prospect into an NFL starter in pretty quick order.

Virginia Cavaliers’ edge rusher, outside linebacker Charles Snowden appears to check all of the boxes. He is an athletic freak, standing 6-foot-6 and weighing 243-pounds. He has tremendous upside, as he has amassed 15 quarterback sacks in 44 games. And he even has the concerns of NFL teams that could propel him all the way down to the LA Rams with a day three selection.

The bottom line is that this young man plays a very physically demanding position, but currently has the body of a basketball player. It’s that very tall and rather lean frame that many NFL Team general managers are shying away from.  In a nutshell, the concern is that he is injury-prone. So why would the Rams be interested?

Well, the Rams love players of good character, and Charles Snowden was a team captain. His size is undeniably attractive for the position, as he can use that long reach to pull a quarterback down to the ground, as well as defend even the tallest tight ends running routes.

Even as he has shown flashes of tremendous potential, he also shows that he has much more to offer with good coaching and strong strength and conditioning program. Adding some lower body muscle, filling up to a 270-pound powerhouse crashing in off the outside? Now that is something for offenses to fear in the future.

Yes, he has a medical flag on a broken ankle that required surgery. But ankles are not one of the injury sites that can plague an NFL player’s career.  This guy’s tackle radius is immense, and if he gets his hands on the ball carrier, he doesn’t let go.

The potential of having both Terrell Lewis and Charles Snowden in the Rams pass rush rotation brings a lot of optimism with it.  Snowden has a ton of upside, and the Rams are a good team to help the young man realize that potential. Sure, it will all depend on how the board falls for the Rams. But selecting Snowden would be a solid move to returning as the number one defense in 2021.