LA Rams updated 2023 draft picks (Updated)

The LA Rams 2023 NFL Draft just added another valuable pick to their arsenal, a third round pick that is hard to discount as one that will not net this team a potential starter. In fact, while there is no such thing as a 'sure thing,' in any NFL Draft, the LA Rams roster is so depleted right now, and the funds to pay players are so tight, that the Rams Day 2 selections will default as starters for the 2023 NFL season.

That's not even knowing who they might be or at which position they will line up. The LA Rams roster is swiss cheese. That is particularly true of the Rams secondary, a unit that is suddenly completely up for grabs in terms of playing time this season. The Rams senior defensive back on the roster right now is seldom used Robert Rochelle, a still rehabbing Jordan Fuller, and a host of rookies who are still in the heart of their learning curve at NFL play. It's not the type of setup that typically leads to a playoff season.

Let's revisit the LA Rams 2023 NFL Draft pick

If there is a silver lining to all of this, it's the fact that the LA Rams just added a third pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, a pick that is among the Top 100 picks of this draft. So what do the Rams draft picks look like in 2023? Well, a convenient Tweet by Seattle Rams is on top of the matter:

So let's run down all 11 picks and see how the LA Rams draft is shaping up:

• Round Pick

• Round 2 36th overall
• Round 3 69th overall
• Round 3 77th overall (via Dolphins)
• Round 5 167th overall (comp pick)
• Round 5 171st overall (comp pick)
• Round 5 177th overall (comp pick)
• Round 6 182nd overall
• Round 6 189th overall (via Titans)
• Round 6 191st overall (via Packer)
• Round 7 223rd overall
• Round 7 234th overall
• Round 7 Traded 251st overall (comp pick) to Pittsburgh Steelers

EDITOR'S NOTE: We have amended the Rams 2023 NFL Draft picks with results of the Allen Robinson trade to the Pittsburgh Steelers

That's a lot of firepower compared to other draft picks for the LA Rams. I will be very focused on that 36th pick, because I am convinced that multiple first-round projected rookies will fall to the LA Rams at that spot. And that will create a huge decision point for the team. Stand pat and grab a lauded rookie? Or gamble by trading back, confident in the chance to land multiple prospects with the value gained by doing so?

Can we really trust the LA Rams to draft well?

Okay, I'm going to ask the million-dollar question: Knowing that it was past draft whiffs that contributed to the woes that occured in the 2022 NFL season, can the team be entrusted to suddenly draft well?

Five of the nine players chosen in the 2020 NFL draft are still on the team. Seven of nine players chosen in the 2021 NFL Draft remain on the LA Rams roster. All eight rookies chosen in 2022 will return. You may think that's a pretty good track record. Well, it's a bit alarming because everyone from the past three draft classes are still playing on their dirt-cheap rookie contracts. Six of 26 players chosen, or more than 23 percent of the selected players, have not lasted through 3 or fewer NFL seasons.

I'm not trying to say that the LA Rams are any worse than any NFL team when it comes to an NFL Draft. It's a shot in the dark, a bit of lottery luck is needed to select the right guy for the Rams roster, and then its close your eyes and hope that player is afforded ample opportunity to play.

I love the depth of talent in the 2023 draft class, as it aligns very well with the LA Rams needs. But this is no longer a team that can select the Best Player Available. The LA Rams have serious depth issues across the defense, and at some offensive positions. This is a team that needs an entirely new group of special team specialists. Can the LA Rams compete for a playoff berth in 2023? Certainly, just look at the how quickly the Seattle Seahawks turned the corner in 2022?

But this was not a Rams team that brought in players to step up in 2023. This was a team that tried to go for broke in both 2021 and 2022. In 2021, the Rams hit the jackpot. In 2022, the Rams busted. Like Goldilocks and the Three Bears, the Rams were too hot and too cold. Hopefully, in 2023, the Rams end up at a spot that is just right.