3 Round 1 draft prospects that Rams should pass on to avoid annoying fans

II: An elite tight end prospect

Another prospect who seemed to be ideally suited for the LA Rams was Georgia's elite tight end prospect, Brock Bowers. At the end of the 2023 NFL season, Bowers was the ideal prospect who could check all of the boxes at the tight end position. The team faced starting the 2024 NFL season with starting TE Tyler Higbee on IR/PUP. They also face the durability issues of TE Hunter Long, who appeared in just four games in 2023.

The team's only remaining healthy option is second-year tight end Davis Allen, who saw limited action last season, but certainly made the most of it.

Brock Bowers is a 6-foot-3 243-pound tight end prospect who has draft analysts already prepared to anoint him as a future NFL All-Pro. Many analysts have created mock drafts that have Bowers coming off the board among the Top-10 selections in this draft. If that happens, it will be a major shift in an NFL team's valuation of the tight end postiion. Kansas City Chiefs' tight end Travis Kelce was selected with the 63rd overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft. San Francisco 49ers' tight end George Kittle was selected with the 146th overall pick of the 2017 NFL Draft.

The LA Rams have pre-empted their need for immediate help at tight end by signing veteran tight end Colby Parkinson from the 2024 NFL Free agency market. Parkinson is an under-the-radar tight end who is superb at making blocks and has adequate chops at catching passes that the team expects solid production out of him this season.

Investing a valuable Round 1 pick in a tight end is a poor investment. The Rams invested their 52nd overall pick into speedy wide receiver Tutu Atwell in the 2021 NFL Draft. But after three seasons, the team has only targeted him 103 times (including postseason). He has caught 58 passes for 809 yards and four touchdowns. While that is not 'nothing,' it seems to be light production from a second round wide receiver.

The Rams may add a tight end to develop for 2025, but i believe that the door to adding a 2024 starter has closed.