LA Rams NFL Draft 2021: A deep-dive dissection of all selections

Round 7, pick 252

While many expect that one of the last ten picks in any draft is merely a glorified undrafted free agent, the fact is that the LA Rams used their last pick and 252nd pick of the draft on 6-foot-3 243-pound outside linebacker Chris Garrett out of Concordia University-St. Paul. He had a 5.60 grade per NFL.com

Think: A self-injected shot of B-12. An instant, water-soluble, easily absorbed dose of edge/ pash rusher/ quarterback eater mainlined into the vastus lateralis (thigh muscle) of the Rams.
Think: 36.5 college sacks
Think: 15 forced fumbles
Think: Disruptor. A specialist. Hyper-carnivorous.

Feed me, Seymour. Feed me, quarterbacks. TheRams rationale for the pick: Almost under the radar, the Rams quietly lost both Derek Rivers and Samsun Ebukam from their pass rush rotation.

They didn’t have the developmental talent from last year’s practice squad to absorb that drop-off in production with the existing players. They took an inventory of the pass-rush cupboard and saw that it was (almost) bare. Re-stock on Aisle 7. We’re almost outta’ pass rush.

Not to insinuate that the Rams do not have the capacity to bring QB heat, mind you.

After all, re-signing outside linebacker Leonard Floyd set the stage for the entire 2021 roster rebuild. And that cascaded and permeated many of the team’s draft strategies. In prioritizing Floyd, the Rams clearly sent a message that many failed to grasp. The roster this year is about fit, about round peg in a round hole.

It’s less about Pro Football Focus grades, or any other measure of an individual, for that matter.

Garrett turned 28 college games into 36.5 quarterback sacks, 166 tackles, nine passes defended, 15 forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, and one blocked kick/punt.  He is just a fun player to watch.

Of course, he’ll need to power up to do anything similar in the NFL. But he’s a-ripping and a-twitching to get after the QB like a racehorse at the starting gate. He gets off the line incredibly fast.

There’s a slang term in drag racing known as a holeshot, or a holeshot win. That’s when a racer with an e.t. slower than that of his opponent wins an ­eliminations round because he had a ­better reaction time, or left the starting line first.

Garrett is that future hole-shot win specialist for the Rams. He just flat out beats his man. I just can’t quite get this statistic out of my mind, because it’s worth repeating: 36.5 sacks in 28 games. Yes, it came against Division 2 opponents. But he looked like a man-beast out there playing against boys. He destroyed. He pounces like a gazelle about to feed at the only watering hole to be found for miles.

Pressuring the other team’s QB matters.  It just does. I’m of the opinion you can never have too much pass rush.  (WRs?  Perhaps.)

Draft Grade: A-

Summary

No, the sky is not falling. After some heavy lifting investigation, and some follow-up about the Rams’ heavy use of analytics to infuse tremendous athleticism into the roster, I feel much better about the team and their chances.

But now it’s up to you. We’ve put a lot of information at your fingertips. It’s time for you to decided. How did the Rams do?  Go ahead and vote how you feel. But come back in a month and see if you feel the same way. Two months. Then three months.  If you haven’t changed your mind, that is on you, not the team.

Final Overall Grade:  You decide