LA Rams get Fox replacement at 174 with DE Earnest Brown IV

Okay, now the LA Rams are screwing with me. They added LB Ernest Jones at pick 103, DT Bobby Brown III, and now DE Earnest Brown IV. Yeah, I’m going to mess up these names at some point. Let’s hope it doesn’t happen in this article.  The LA Rams were almost compelled to draft a defensive end in this draft. After losing defensive end Morgan Fox to the NFL Free Agency market, the LA Rams trade veteran defensive lineman Michael Brockers to the Detroit Lions.

Now, who is he? Well, the Rams needed a defensive end who can get after the quarterback, and with this pick, there is a good chance that they have found exactly that.

He played 29 games in his collegiate career, but he improved each year. He chalked up 71 tackles, but nearly half of those in just 9 games in his final year.  He had 18.5 tackles for losses and seven quarterback sacks. He was also versatile enough to break up nine passes.

The reason this young man fell to the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft is the consensus (tough to find those this year) that he needs to bulk up and add both muscle and power. Currently, at 6-foot-5 and 270-pounds, he is likely about 25 pounds shy of a good NFL playing weight. While that is fairly easy to put on with a solid carbs intake and weight-room discipline.

He won’t be on the bench for long.  Assuming that the Northwestern defensive end can hold off the competition, he will be an early introduction into the Rams defensive line. The Rams are now set at defensive line and the team should now turn the focus to the outside linebacker, cornerback, and inside linebacker positions.

He does mention in his interview that some teams talked about playing at the outside linebacker spot. That will need to be a topic for another day.