Rams catch a falling star makes sense for 3 prospects, not for 3 others

How do you have your 2024 NFL Draft big board set up? Or do you allow the draft to fall as it will, but perk up as the picks near to that of the LA Rams? How do you feel about prospects falling on draft night? Do you find the excitement building to the point of euphoria? Or do you wonder about the reasons why a prospect is falling, and want to learn more about why a player in the green room does not hear his name called out early on draft night?

The LA Rams are one of the teams that will make a selection on Day 1, and will influence the way this draft flows through to the end. But the decision-making process that must occur during the 10 minutes allowed between the 18th overall pick selection and the 19th overall selection.

Right on schedule, the LA Rams rumors are heating up that HC Sean McVay loves a specific player in this draft, and the front office is trying to accommodate him by trading up into the Top-10 picks. Is that a strategy that will pay off this year? Perhaps. But like all pre-negotiated trades on draft day, they are only executed under very specific circumstances. In the end, if the player who the Rams want is on the board, and no prospect of great interest is on the board for the trade partner, the trade could take place. But even in those cases, it's still an auction. Other teams can offer better compensation.

That is why the team will have over two hours before they step up to the podium to announce their pick at 19.

That seems like a lot of time if everything goes according to plan. And it's that need to be prepared for anything that demands so much prep time to be ready for what may happen. But the unforeseen does happen, and prospects viewed as certain Top-10 prospects have been known to fall on draft night. So even those players who are not expected to be on the board with the 19th overall pick have to be given a yay or nay beforehand.

So who is regarded as a "Top 20" prospect in the 2024 NFL Draft? To ensure that the list is objectively determined, I have pulled the 2024 NFL Draft Tracker prospect rankings to set the stage for who should be among the top prospects selected. From that list, I then applied how that single prospect might fit on this roster for the 2024 NFL season, compared to others who may or may not be on the board at that time.

While the concept of 'Best Player Available,' is a commonly used term, there is inherent positional value that makes a blindside offensive tackle more valuable to a team than an offensive center. An excellent wide receiver typically has more inherent value to a team than a tight end. An elite outside linebacker has more inherent value to a team than an inside linebacker, and so on.

Let this star fall

The reason that the name of Graham Barton, center, out of Duke University, appears on this list is that on the NFL.com 2024 NFL Draft Tracker, he shows up among the Top-20 NFL prospects of this rookie draft class. Had the Rams not already invested heavily into their interior offensive line this offseason, then Barton may have had a slim chance of hearing his name called by the team.

The intrinsic value of a very good center is typically no greater than Round 2. In the 2023 NFL Draft, the LA Rams were the first team to call out the name of any interior offensive lineman when they selected TCU's IOL Steve Avila with the 36th overall pick. So it's a pretty safe bet that a center in the 2024 NFL Draft will fall to the Rams at 19.

But the Rams have to let him pass them by.

After investing in three starters over the next three seasons, the interior offensive line is secured for all contingencies except injury and depth, and those needs are not found in Round 1 of the draft. We haven't talked about Graham Barton before because he is too good of a player at the wrong position for the Rams front office to call out his name. He stands 6-foot-5, weighs 313 pounds, and has incredible versatility to compete at all five offensive line positions. He is Mr. Consistency, showing incredible poise and form whether facing a young defender or one of the best in college football. He plays at the wrong position at the wrong time to matter to the LA Rams in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Catch this falling star

The outside linebacker positions is believed to get some attention in Round 1 of the 2024 NFL Draft, and Laiatu Latu, an outside linebacker from UCLA has been mocked as coming off the draft board as early as the 9th overall pick, to falling as late as the 26th overall pick. But there are a lot of LA Rams fans who hopes that he falls to their spot at the 19th overall pick.

And yes, I am one of them.

While upgrading the overall team is advantageous to the chance of success, there is also a different force at work here. How much more can a wide receiver who gets targeted 80 times in 2024 upgrade the roster, over a guy who can play over 1000 defensive snaps and get after opposing quarterbacks on every pass play?

Even as NFL GMs make their final 'tweaks' to their 2024 NFL Draft big boards, each and every one knows that offense sells tickets, but defenses win championships. UCLA's Laiatu Latu could fall to the Rams based on medical concerns, but the team is satisfied that he can play and even start for them this season. Putting one more pass rusher in the trenches will do a great deal of good for a defense that needs to redefine itself after the retirement of DT Aaron Donald. Latu will help them write this new chapter.

Let this star fall

While there is the undercurrent of debate over the need for the Rams to draft one of the many talented hurlers from this rookie class, Drake Maye, the quarterback out of North Carolina, has been the one who is getting the most mixed reviews of anyone from this rookie class. Some believe that he has all of the makings of the second overall pick from this draft. Others have him falling out of the Top 10, a free fall that may not stop for some time.

But if he falls to the Rams at 19, I hope that the team is in no rush to pull the trigger on him.

I am not suggesting that QB Drake Maye does not have what it takes in the NFL to succeed. He does. I am not suggesting that the LA Rams would not benefit from claiming Drake Maye on this roster. They would. But I am saying that Drake Maye is the type of young quarterback who needs to perform to improve. I do not see drafting him and then sitting him for one of two seasons to have the type of benefit that might occur with a raw talent like Tennessee Volunteers' QB Joe Milton III. Maye is a guy who needs to perform to grow, at least in some form in 2024.

That opportunity simply does not exist with this team this year.

Catch this falling star

One of the clear 'Boom or Bust' prospects in the 2024 NFL Draft is Chop Robinson, an enigmatic outside linebacker out of Penn State University. But while his lack of elite production in college may have some NFL teams balking at adding him in Round 1, I believe that he is an ideal player to add to the Rams roster. After all, the front office demonstrated that college players with an elite passion for the game of football that can translate that love of the game into elite NFL production, and Chop Robinson has a true passion for the game.

Standing 6-foot-3 and weighing 254 pounds, Robinson exudes devastation on the line of scrimmage. But unlike pure chason, Robinson possesses the strategy of a Grand Master chess player as he outflanks, outhustles, and outpowers offensive linemen on his way to bring the quarterback to the ground. So why didn't he put up lofty sack totals?

For much of the same reasons that former Rams DB Jalen Ramsey did not put up lofty numbers of interceptions. Opposing offenses were so fearful of what Chop Robinson might do, they ran plays away from him or just threw the football away to avoid taking a sack. You may disagree, but that is the type of pass rusher that I would openly welcome on this defense.

Let this star fall

There are many NFL fans, and Rams fans among them, who view Brock Bowers, the tight end out of Georgia, as a huge upgrade to any player currently on the roster. I remain unconvinced. Looking back over the Rams' offense under HC Sean McVay, this team has had its share of promising tight ends. But the only page of tight end prominence was December 2019, when the Rams leaned heavily into TE Tyler Higbee to give the offense some 'oomph.' That month, Higbee was a phenomenal offensive weapon for the Rams, putting up 522 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

But he never came close to that level of success ever again.

I am not denying that Brock Bowers may elevate his game to All-Pro status in his NFL career. But unless the Rams entire offensive formulary changes dramatically in 2024, that level of success for rookie TE Brock Bowers will not come in this offense. And even as we ooh and ahh over the potential of Bowers and his future NFL career, keep in mind that the LA Rams have invested heavily into the tight end position already.

The Rams roster currently boasts Tyler Higbee, Hunter Long, Colby Parkinson, Davis Allen, Miller Forristall, and Nikola Kalinic. Does the investment to get Brock Bowers make sense knowing that three or more of these players are likely to be outright released as a result? Bowers does add potential to the roster, but not without a fair share of headaches as well.

Catch this falling star

Perhaps one of the best fits in terms of talent level and team needs is Byron Murphy II, the defensive tackle out of Texas. In terms of need, the Rams certainly are seeking players to line up on defense and compete for a starting job on this team. In terms of talent level, Byron Murphy is a true plug-and-play option for the team in this draft. The thing is, can the team exhibit enough discipline and patience to allow Murphy to fall to them at 19? Or will the team rush ahead and trade up to ensure that they get their guy?

Murphy is compact at 6-foot-1 and 297 pounds, but he is a powerhouse of nearly pure muscle. Even with muscles bursting everywhere, he has the speed and agility to counter almost any offensive lineman tactic to keep him at bay. Because he is so powerful with a low center or gravity, he can project as an NFL nose tackle or defensive tackle. But because he is so swift and agile, he can also factor into rotating at defensive end as well.

Does he fit the team culture? He is incredibly passionate, confident and productive. He is a solid locker room presence and he continues to compete until the whistle blows the play dead. If he is there at 19, the Rams need to call out his name. He won't fall much further is this draft.

Did we miss any players who may fall in Round 1 of the 2024 NFL Draft?

Stay tuned, because the LA Rams are loading up for some fireworks in Round 1 of the 2024 NFL Draft. And as always, thank you for reading.