Post OTAs analysis of LA Rams 2024 NFL Draft strategy with Les Snead

Seminoles start off draft the right way

Whether or not the strategy to land the top Seminoles rookie prospects was the primary strategy of the team entering the 2024 NFL Draft, that is exactly how this draft played out. Of course, the brilliance of the team adding two of the top players from one of college football's top defenses is so outside-of-the-box-thinking that the initial reactions of almost NFL draft analysts focused on the cost to the team to deploy that strategy.

But we caught the moves, and the reason for the moves, almost instantly. And as a result, we immediately argued that failure to trade up to select DT Braden Fiske would have been disastrous. After all, two players from the same defense are seldom lined up on draft boards like that of the Seminoles. And the need to create a huge positive impact on the pass rush in one draft is not very common either.

But the team faced the setback of losing All-Pro DT Aaron Donald by doubling down on the Seminoles' defense with the 19th and 39th overall picks. While neither OLB Jared Verse nor DT Braden Fiske can be counted on to compensate for the loss of Donald on this defense, there is a pretty good chance that the combination of two rookies from a top-echelon NCAA defense working together in 2024 in the NFL could be a positive element to a pass-rush-needy defense.

While it's impossible to say with any conviction exactly how well the rookie duo will do this season, is it a pipedream to hope that the tandem of Verse/Fiske can generate similar numbers in 2024 to that of the tandem of Byron Young/Kobie Turner in 2023? If the Rams get similar numbers, Verse/Fiske will end the year on or around 17.0 quarterback sacks, 118 tackles, and 16 tackles for a loss.

Those are outstanding numbers for two rookies. The best part is that the Rams know that two rookies with great chemistry can accomplish that elite level of production. While you cannot dictate the production of the upcoming season, a front office can have a huge impact on a team's chances of success. With the first two selections in the 2024 NFL Draft, the team has an outstanding chance to raise some eyebrows with rookie play this season.