3 sleeper prospects for Rams to target in 2023 NFL Draft - Your Sleepers?

[ROD-BOT]

3 Sleeper Prospects For Rams To Target In 2023 NFL Draft

The Rams draft needs to include several NFL draft sleepers because the team doesn't have a first-round pick this year.

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3 sleeper prospects for Rams to target in 2023 NFL Draft​

The Los Angeles Rams have spent years trading away picks to win now, so pretty much all their selections in the 2023 NFL draft will have to be NFL draft sleepers. LA doesn’t pick until the early second round (No. 36), but then has two thirds, three fifths, three sixths, and two sevenths. During this Rams draft, here are three NFL draft sleepers to consider at positions of need.

QB Aidan O’Connell, Purdue

Matthew Stafford is the only QB on the Rams roster heading into the 2023 NFL Draft. The 35-year-old is obviously in decline, though, and spent the end of last season out injured. It’s too late to get a new franchise signal-caller on the roster for 2023 (and the organization doesn’t have the draft capital to do it anyway).

That said, general manager Les Snead and head coach Sean McVay can search out NFL draft sleepers at the position to develop long-term.

Purdue QB Aidan O’Connell is a sleeper the team needs to look at.

O’Connell is 6-foot-3, 212 pounds, so he fits the profile of an NFL QB. He was also a two-year starter with 9,219 passing yards, 65 touchdowns, and 30 interceptions for the Boilermakers. The signal-caller showed excellent accuracy and solid arm strength at the combine, too, hitting 47-of-50 pass attempts (and the three missed were dropped by wide receivers).

The downside of O’Connell is that he’s not Anthony Richardson. In today’s NFL, everyone is looking for the next Patrick Mahomes or Josh Allen. They want quarterbacks with rocket arms and who can run like wideouts (or at least nimble tight ends).

Aidan O’Connell doesn’t possess these traits. He is an old-school pocket passer who can move around a little in the pocket, but he’s not beating anyone outside of it.

If anyone can take a real quarterback like this, though, and turn him into a starter without all the athletic bells and whistles, it’s McVay, which is why the Rams should take a fifth-round shot on O’Connell.

EDGE Nick Herbig, Wisconsin

The Rams were 21st in the NFL in sacks last season with 38, and 19.0 of those came from Leonard Floyd (now a free agent), Bobby Wagner (now on the Seattle Seahawks), and Greg Gaines (now on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers).

Los Angeles has a pass-rush problem, and they need to solve some of that in the 2023 NFL Draft by finding at least one (if not more) late-round NFL draft sleepers.

To find a sleeper pass-rusher, you should look for production over athletic traits. Sure, freakish athletes are great and can sometimes become dominant forces. But a player who can get double-digit sacks in a Power Six conference can probably get them in the NFL, too.

Wisconsin defensive end/linebacker Nick Herbig finished sixth in the FBS with 11.0 sacks last season. And the 6-foot-2, 240-pound pass rusher had 9.0 the season before that.

Herbig knows how to rush the passer, and with Aaron Donald taking up a lot of the attention in the middle, he should be able to use his quickness and pass-rush moves to get after opposing QBs.

The Hawaii native needs to get bigger and put on more muscle. He is definitely undersized at just 240 pounds However, like we saw with Haason Reddick on the Philadelphia Eagles, if you put an undersized pass rusher in the right position to succeed, he can dominate in the NFL.

WR Jason Brownlee, Southern Mississippi

Another thing that Matthew Stafford (or Aidan O’Connell) can use this offseason is another wide receiver. Cooper Kupp should get back healthy and go back to being one of the best pass-catcher in the league, but Van Jefferson, Allen Robinson II, and Ben Skowronek haven’t proven to be the true WR2 the Rams need.

The 2023 NFL draft WR class isn’t top-heavy like past classes with Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson, but it is relatively deep, and there should be some NFL draft sleepers in the later rounds.

One way to find a sleeper is to look to smaller school pass-catchers who haven’t gotten the attention that Power Six FBS players have.

Jason Brownlee from Southern Mississippi fits that bill.

Brownlee is 6-foot-2, 198 pounds, with long arms (33 ½ inches) and big hands (9 ¾ inches), he has an excellent catch radius and can pull down balls thrown anywhere near him.

The Mississippi native also knows how to win and dominate his competition. He was part of a JUCO National Championship team in 2018 and a JUCO All-American in 2019. He then caught 135 balls for 2,144 yards and scored 21 touchdowns in three seasons at Southern Miss.

Jason Brownlee might not have been on ESPN much, but he could be at the next level if he outperforms his draft stock.

 

[oldnotdead]

Van Jefferson, Allen Robinson II, and Ben Skowronek haven’t proven to be the true WR2 the Rams need.

ROD-BOT is FOS
Jefferson had a breakout year in 2021 with 50 receptions for 802 yds (16 yds /catch) and 6 TDs. That is solid WR 2 production and he started the season #4 WR. Last year he got injured like the rest of the team and only played 9 games with at least 5 of those with a backup QB. He still put up 24 receptions, 369 yds 3 TDs and a 15.4 yard average. That's why all this trade Jefferson crap is FOS as well.

The problem is Stafford has myopia when it comes to his receivers. He will force feed Kupp even when he's triple covered and it accounts for a lot of his INTs. If Goff did that people would want him run out of town. It's why Robinson wants out as well. The lack of production by the WRs has as much to do with Stafford as their play. More than once I saw open WRs that Stafford didn't even look at. He made up his mind before the snap that the pass was going to Kupp regardless of coverage. That is a really bad habit for a QB to get into.

O'Connell is probably going to be a late day three QB (6th or 7th rd) for good reason and he could potentially go undrafted. He needs a lot of work and doesn't project beyond an average backup talent. He's not a good fit for McVay's offense IMO. He's slow in his decision making, which would suggest he's struggling to read college level defenses. If he is moved off his spot his production really drops. There are better options.

Case in point if they are going to take a 6th rd QB, i.e. probably a career backup type player I'd want someone like Jake Haener. He knows how to read defenses, and goes through his progressions quickly. He's very accurate out to 20 yds with good timing. He can throw deeper with good accuracy but with only average velocity. But in reality, a good 20 yd pass will normally move the offense quite well as a backup and it's fine in the red zone as well. He's extremely competitive and willing to play through injuries. Watching his film I love his quick release, no wasted movement. He played behind a mediocre OL as well and put up very good numbers. I'd take Haener over O'Connell any day.

 

[So Ram]

Way to go Tom Cream. The Rams also released Hollins & Lewis who were suppose to help & replace OBO & Von Miller.
Plus Chris Garrett got cut as well.
Just to add Garrett went to the Vikings & now got signed by the Hags. Hollins had 2 1-2 sacks for Green Bay & got resigned.OBO signed a multi year contract.Lewis is with the Bears.

-When Staley & Phillips called plays it seemed like there was a lot more rotations. I even remember Smart & Gaines in as DT’s 2019 instead of AD99.Which turned out badly.

—I guess it’s an understatement The Failure of these Players or The Rams coaching Staff!! Either way EDGE RUSHERS are The #1 Need.

If a WR added he better be better than Cutch & Atwell. Add Ben Sko to the mix as well.


View: https://youtu.be/pgffvK_7d9Q

 

[So Ram]

ROD-BOT is FOS
Jefferson had a breakout year in 2021 with 50 receptions for 802 yds (16 yds /catch) and 6 TDs. That is solid WR 2 production and he started the season #4 WR. Last year he got injured like the rest of the team and only played 9 games with at least 5 of those with a backup QB. He still put up 24 receptions, 369 yds 3 TDs and a 15.4 yard average. That's why all this trade Jefferson crap is FOS as well.

The problem is Stafford has myopia when it comes to his receivers. He will force feed Kupp even when he's triple covered and it accounts for a lot of his INTs. If Goff did that people would want him run out of town. It's why Robinson wants out as well. The lack of production by the WRs has as much to do with Stafford as their play. More than once I saw open WRs that Stafford didn't even look at. He made up his mind before the snap that the pass was going to Kupp regardless of coverage. That is a really bad habit for a QB to get into.

O'Connell is probably going to be a late day three QB (6th or 7th rd) for good reason and he could potentially go undrafted. He needs a lot of work and doesn't project beyond an average backup talent. He's not a good fit for McVay's offense IMO. He's slow in his decision making, which would suggest he's struggling to read college level defenses. If he is moved off his spot his production really drops. There are better options.

Case in point if they are going to take a 6th rd QB, i.e. probably a career backup type player I'd want someone like Jake Haener. He knows how to read defenses, and goes through his progressions quickly. He's very accurate out to 20 yds with good timing. He can throw deeper with good accuracy but with only average velocity. But in reality, a good 20 yd pass will normally move the offense quite well as a backup and it's fine in the red zone as well. He's extremely competitive and willing to play through injuries. Watching his film I love his quick release, no wasted movement. He played behind a mediocre OL as well and put up very good numbers. I'd take Haener over O'Connell any day.

I’ll agree on your QB choice.Dude is a baller.You can talk all your crap about Matthew Stafford.I know 3 pick 6’s in a row on 3 straight losses still WON The Rams the Super Bowl.

— you actually think The Rams are moving on from Jefferson & or Robinson?

Tell me if The Rams add say Zach Charbonnet. How would that change The Rams offense from last season?

The Rams still need a OT & or a OG. I still trust Joesph Noteboom & think A’Jackson moving next to him at LG really makes that side of the ball solid IMO. I see a lot of UPSIDE!!

Cam Akers Williams Charbonnet could be really effective with all those WR.

Long seems to be a seem type of TE on the way he ran his routes at BC. Not a great hands catcher,but does well enough when given the ball in space.

EDGE is #1 need though and the RB from TCU could be that late rd sleeper.

—I like the kid from Wisconsin,but REALLY after Bruss & your FAVORITE Big ROB? David Edwards is gone so there’s that.

 

[Riverumbbq]

Rams pre-draft meetings tracker: Every prospect LA has met with so far

The 2023 NFL draft is coming up this month and we're tracking every prospect the Rams meet with ahead of time

www.yahoo.com

 

[PARAM]

Charlie Jones, Purdue WR

 

[Flatlyner]

I'm going to continue to pound the table for Jaren Hall. He has all the tools to be a + starter. His biggest negatives are; he is not 6'4 and he is an older prospect. Those negatives are going to push him down the draft to an extremely valuable range for us to grab a back up with potential for cheap.

 

[CGI_Ram]

I'm going to continue to pound the table for Jaren Hall. He has all the tools to be a + starter. His biggest negatives are; he is not 6'4 and he is an older prospect. Those negatives are going to push him down the draft to an extremely valuable range for us to grab a back up with potential for cheap.

He’s an awesome sleeper if he can develop his passing.

 

[Memento]

I'm going to continue to pound the table for Jaren Hall. He has all the tools to be a + starter. His biggest negatives are; he is not 6'4 and he is an older prospect. Those negatives are going to push him down the draft to an extremely valuable range for us to grab a back up with potential for cheap.

I absolutely agree. He's got incredible athleticism, a strong and accurate arm, but he's an injury concern with his size, and he'll be twenty-five because he's from BYU. But I fucking love this kid's upside.

Anyway, here's my three sleeper picks:

Thomas Incoom, EDGE, Central Michigan.

(The first thing I see when I look at Incoom is his hustle. His motor is constantly hot, he's always working toward the ball, which makes him excellent at setting the edge on contain; he knows that if he gets to the quarterback eventually, that the QB will eventually make a mistake. He's surprisingly-athletic, and he's obviously a 3-4 outside linebacker with his size. He doesn't have the technical know-how just yet, but he has that sort of potential. Honestly reminds me of Samson Ebukam at the same age.)

Lew Nichols III, RB, Central Michigan.

(Probably the single most-impressive player on this team when he's at his best. Nichols has the ability to completely take over games with his physical, punishing, tackle-breaking running. He's not just some plodder either; he's more athletic than a 5'11", 220 lbs. back has any right to be, able to beat people to the corner when he bounces out. He'll get caught from behind, but we're talking about a 5'11", 220 pounder; if he was Steven Jackson in college, he'd go in the first. As it is, I could easily see him as a Day 3 pick. He needs to work on his third down play. He's willing in pass protection, but isn't there yet. He has okay hands for screens, but I'm not sure about other receiving traits. Still, he really gives me Marion Barber vibes.)

Arquon Bush, CB, Cincinnati.

(Bush is as good a ballhawk corner as you'll see in the later rounds, and he's willing to lay the boom. He has nine picks, fifteen pass breakups, and he's got solid size at 6'0", 187 lbs. He's not the most athletic cornerback; he's not the plodder that Derion Kendrick is, but he's not one who's going to impress with long speed. It may make him more useful in the slot, but he has the instincts for the ball, to bait quarterbacks, to stick his nose in running plays to be a very valuable late round pick. He's what Derion Kendrick wishes he was.)