LA Rams draft picks: 2022 NFL Draft and into the future

2022 NFL Draft

Each year that the LA Rams enter a new NFL Draft, the stakes feel like they’ve increased. No matter how well the team seems to do during the season, nor how well they’d drafted the previous year, the team seems to have a more urgent need to get the very next draft right. How did the Rams do in the 2021 NFL Draft? Well, the team converted six draft picks into nine rookie players. And only one player, defensive end Earnest Brown IV, did not earn a spot on the team’s initial 53-man roster. He did, however, earn a spot on the team’s practice squad.

Well, we know that the LA Rams will benefit by the second of two third-round compensatory draft picks in 2022 due to the hiring of Brad Holmes as the GM of the Detroit Lions. Per the Over the Cap tracker, the Rams lost safety John Johnson, outside linebacker Samson Ebukam, tight end Gerald Everett, cornerback Troy Hill, and defensive end Morgan Fox.  Other free agents lost, such as wide receiver Josh Reynolds or running back Malcolm Brown, were simply below the cutoff for compensatory pick calculations.

Draft picks

Round 1 – TRADED. The LA Rams have tentatively traded their 2022 first-round pick to the Detroit Lions for quarterback Matthew Stafford.

Round 2– TRADED. The Rams hold their second-round pick.

Round 3 – TRADED. The Rams hold their third-round pick.

Round 4 – Traded to Houston Texans with WR Brandin Cooks as compensation for a 2020 second-round pick

Round 5 – The Rams hold their fifth-round pick.
Round 6 – TRADED: The Rams traded their sixth-round pick as part of the compensation package for New England Patriots running back Sony Michel.

Round 7 – The Rams hold their seventh-round pick.
Round 7 – The LA Rams will receive the Miami Dolphins 2022 seventh-round draft picks as part of the exchange which sent Aqib Talib to the Dolphins.

COMPENSATORY PICKS:
Round 3 – The Rams will likely be awarded a 2022 third-round compensatory pick for the loss of Director of College Scouting Brad Holmes to the Detroit Lions as their new General Manager.
Round 4 – The Rams currently project to be awarded a fourth-round compensatory pick for the loss of safety John Johnson.

Round 6 – The Rams currently project to be awarded a sixth-round compensatory pick for the loss of cornerback Troy Hill.

Round 6 – The Rams currently project to be awarded a sixth-round compensatory pick for the loss of outside linebacker Samson Ebukam

Round 6 *(Updated, Rams can receive four FA Comp picks in one year, so they will likely be awarded their third sixth-round pick) – The Rams currently project to be awarded a sixth-round compensatory pick for the loss of tight end Gerald Everett

That will bring the Rams 2022 NFL Draft picks to a total of ten picks. Of course, these are projections only and are not some guaranteed number of picks. But two reputable NFL websites independently confirm the number, so it’s as good of a projection as possible right now.

The final estimated tally is as follows: second round – 0 (none), third round – 1 (one), fourth-round – 1 (one), fifth round – 1 (one), sixth round – 3 (three), seventh round – 2 (two). Total – 10 (ten)
As per September 6, 2021, Tankathon.com projects the LA Rams to have the following 2022 NFL Draft picks:  61, 93, 100, 141, 171, 212, 213, 214, 242, 250