Rams get shocking boost over NFC West rivals from this unexpected source

The NFC West Division has a reputation for being one of the most competitive divisions in the NFL, and for good reason. If you scan back over recent Super Bowls, the NFC West has represented the NFC in four of the last six Super Bowls. And the LA Rams have been 1-1 in Super Bowls in the past four seasons. That's pretty impressive for a head coach who was only hired in 2017.

But each new season is a both a challenge and a test. The challenge is to raise the bar of talent and competition even higher than the previous year's team. The test comes in the form of the results of the efforts of the practices, training camp, preseason, and ultimately, the performance of the team in subsequent games from the upcoming season.

Still, some may not be convinced that the 2023 version of the LA Rams, a team that improved from 5-12 to finish the season at 10-7, has enough momentum and composure to achieve an even more impressive record this season. The Rams have improved, but what of other teams? Certainly, they have improved as well. But how well have other teams done in comparison to the Rams roster?

Pro Football Focus claims the Rams graded the best in the West

Pro Football Focus is often a source of controversial takes at this time of the NFL year, whether popular or unpopular. In fact, PFF is the same source that outright snubbed two key Rams veteran players in a recent article featuring Top 10 NFL comeback players. The snubbing of Rams players may handicap their efforts to be honored with NFL Comeback Player Of The Year honors. Such is the fortunes of Rams players.

But the Rams were given an A- grade by Pro Football Football author Trevor Sikkema, their lead NFL Draft Analyst. You can see his top grades below:

Something to note, the A- grade is the top grade for any team from the NFL West Division. Why is that newsworthy? After all, this is a point-blank range assessment of rookies who have yet to take a single snap in any NFL games. Well, it does hold some water in the argument that the Rams have gained ground over their NFC West Division rivals, if only from one person's perspective.

Grades that are delivered this early in a rookie's career come in two forms. The first are grades that align players selected with the prospects that draft analyst thought the team should select. So the grade is more about the draft analyst than the team's draft class. The other form is an objective assessment of how well the team addressed perceived roster needs. In this version, the subjectivity is how the outsider views the team's overall roster, and where that analyst sees the draft in terms of solutions to talent and depth depravity.

In the eyes of Pro Football Focus, the Rams did more to improve their roster than any other team in the NFC West. For now, that will have to do.

Thank you so much for reading.