Closing notes and reflections of LA Rams’ 2022 NFL Draft

Cole Strange and the NFL Draft of Madness

As the LA Rams held their last press conference before the draft, the LA Rams were interrupted by a reaction to the events transpiring in Round 1 of the draft. McVay interrupted Les Snead and commented on the fact that Cole Strange, a prospect they had scouted for their pick at 104, had just been selected at 29.

Head Coach Sean McVay addressed the Cole Strange situation, clarifying what I suspected all along.  McVay explained that the Rams were never really after him. After a video of him laughing at the pick went viral, many took Mcvay at his word when he said ‘and to think we wasted time looking at him for 104!’.  But there is the rub. What else could he say? If Strange was a target, he was gone two rounds too soon and the Rams cannot wish him onto their roster.

The Rams, whether or not they really scouted Strange, were likely never truly in the hunt for Strange, intent all along on grabbing Logan Bruss, as they successfully managed to do. Mcvay and Snead, in a post-draft press conference, confirmed they expect Bruss to ‘immediately’ compete for the job at right guard. Not something that would have been the case had he been their second choice, behind Strange.

It did, however, point out the camouflaged intentions of the Rams after all. Strange was an interior offensive lineman, and whether or not he was expected to fall to the Rams at 104 by the Rams front office, he was certainly one of the more highly regarded interior offensive linemen. It was a clue, one of the subtle Les Snead and Sean McVay easter eggs that the Rams leave like bread crumbs on a forest trail.