3 draft picks the LA Rams gave up on far too soon

Even as we prepare for another NFL Draft to restock the LA Rams roster once more, have you ever paused to wonder about what might have been? After all, the team's front office has done an admirable job of finding and selecting their rookie prospects overall. Of course, the qualities for those selections changes as the team must hire new positional coaches and coordinators to replenish the coaching staff.

But are the players who no longer fit the new scheme necessarily misses?

The LA Rams have embraced a rather unique roster-building process that has served them well. To acquire, pay for, and sustain ongoing relationships with elite NFL players, the team needed to cut corners elsewhere. What I mean is that to afford elite play at the quarterback and offensive weapons area, the team found it necessary to be stingy with offensive linemen and the backup quarterback position.

This season, the Rams have invested in offensive linemen and the backup quarterback role, forcing the team to spend less on defense.

Tetrising the salary cap and players signed to the roster is something that all teams must do. But this team has found one way to squeeze the roster for salary cap savings is to invest heavily in player development, select a large rookie class during and after the annual NFL Draft, optimize players on rookie contracts whenever and as often as possible, then let those young players sign larger contracts to play for other NFL teams, and hopefully benefit further by being awarded compensatory draft picks to replenish the talent pipeline.

Unfortunately, sometimes those young players go on to develop into even better players elsewhere. Or the needs of the Rams roster change, and those players could be vital to rounding out this year's roster. In either scenario, did the Rams allow their habits to cloud judgment, and allow promising players to escape too soon?

Here are three players who were drafted by the team that the LA Rams gave up on too soon.