Grade our draft

[Merlin]

Re: being patient with the class...

First I think Goff is going to do well once he gets behind center. And I think it will be year one obviously. He will make mistakes but he will also make plays and with Gurley behind him and big plays from Tavon due to the benefit of on-time and on-target passes he is set up for success. The OL has to play well but I expect it to, so no worries there on my part.

I don't think Hemingway stands a chance of helping right away on a consistent basis. But out of four passing game weapons all we need is ONE of them to be a quick study to give this offense a boost on top of what they already have. Most likely guy to do that is Cooper, but it could be Thomas or Higbee who knows.

In short I am more worried about the staff changes working out in year one. Can Groh team with Boras to put together a passing game? Can Boras install his version of the offense and get it translated into everyone's head where they can play fast? There is enough talent now for a good offense, i.e. an offense that will rank around 15th. Question is whether these two can get 'er done.

 

[CGI_Ram]

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/writer...grades-32-grades-for-32-grades-but-only-one-a

Pete Prisco:

Best pick: Making the move up to the top spot to land quarterback Jared Goff was a smart move. They had to land a franchise passer, and Goff was the best in this class

Questionable move: Fourth-round tight end Tyler Higbee has some talent, but he had a recent off-field issue that has to cloud this pick some. That situation is still pending. There's risk here.

Third-day gem: Fourth-round receiver Pharoh Cooper was a productive player in a good league. He has a chance to come in and play as the third receiver right away.

Analysis: They finally realized that without a quarterback, it doesn't matter. Moving to Los Angeles this season, they can now start with a franchise passer under center. That's big. It's bold. It's also risky. But it's the move they had to make.

Grade: B+

 

[CGI_Ram]

Mel Kiper

http://espn.go.com/nfl/draft2016/in...t-mel-kiper-grades-draft-class-every-nfl-team

Los Angeles Rams: B-
Top needs: QB, WR, TE, G/C

They traded a mint to move into place to get Jared Goff, and then they did a pretty good job of getting weapons in the passing game despite the fact that they didn't have any picks in Rounds 2 or 3. I'm a fan of Goff -- he is my No. 1 quarterback in this draft -- but this is not a slam-dunk future franchise quarterback. They'll need to be extremely patient and find ways to protect him. What they did do is hand him a couple of useful weapons in the passing game, a little reminiscent of how the Jags tried to add pass-catchers when they drafted Blake Bortles. Tyler Higbee is a second-round talent who got into trouble off the field and landed in the fourth. If you get the talent and not the drama, that's a steal. Pharoh Cooper could be a stud in the slot. He is sudden in his movements, competitive after the catch and should have been drafted earlier. Ultimately, this draft is all about Goff. They gave up SO much for him, it has to work.

 

[FarNorth]

Mel Kiper

http://espn.go.com/nfl/draft2016/in...t-mel-kiper-grades-draft-class-every-nfl-team

Los Angeles Rams: B-
Top needs: QB, WR, TE, G/C

They traded a mint to move into place to get Jared Goff, and then they did a pretty good job of getting weapons in the passing game despite the fact that they didn't have any picks in Rounds 2 or 3. I'm a fan of Goff -- he is my No. 1 quarterback in this draft -- but this is not a slam-dunk future franchise quarterback. They'll need to be extremely patient and find ways to protect him. What they did do is hand him a couple of useful weapons in the passing game, a little reminiscent of how the Jags tried to add pass-catchers when they drafted Blake Bortles. Tyler Higbee is a second-round talent who got into trouble off the field and landed in the fourth. If you get the talent and not the drama, that's a steal. Pharoh Cooper could be a stud in the slot. He is sudden in his movements, competitive after the catch and should have been drafted earlier. Ultimately, this draft is all about Goff. They gave up SO much for him, it has to work.

I give Mel a c- for hedging his bets even though he seemingly liked the picks. Didn't even downgrade him for the hair.

 

[Sportsed]

Gave our draft a B plus, I wanted Malcolm Mitchell at 110 and Highbee at 113----hope his issues are resolved and he's with us. Mitchell went 112 to the Pats; not so sure about Hemmingway, wanted Beau Sandland instead-----think he gets on the field sooner than Hemmingway. Really glad we doubled-up on WR, Thomas looks very promising. Of course drafting the OROY in Goff actually makes the draft an A. We got ourselves a franchise QB and that is the most important element in this draft class-------can't wait to watch him play!!!!

 

[12intheBox]

I'm pretty stinking happy with it.

While I was team Wentz - I said all along that I would support the pick and thus I am now team Goff.

Hitting TE and WR twice each was spot on. Yeah, we are out next year's 1 and what would have been a compensatory 3 - but we still have a QB we can deal (probably for a day 3 pick) and we have our future.

Let's see the O Line continue to develop - may the best 5 win the starting gigs - and let's see the real Gurley hit the field. Believe it or not, I think he has a gear we haven't seen yet in the pros.

If we get lucky on one or two of these day 3 picks (or Quick rounds back into form) - this offense could actually not just be above abysmal - they could actually turn into something fun to watch.

 

[snackdaddy]

When you think about it, they did better than expected on day 3. I mean, who really expects an impact player in the 4th round and beyond? While Higbee's a risk, he's certainly talented. 2nd round talent at the least and could be close to 1st round talent.

The sleeper could be Thomas. PFF had him the 38th rated player and he was a 6th round pick. That could be a steal. He's a big play guy who wins contested balls. His inconsistency is why he was still there. I can see him getting better with that with the right coaching.

Cooper's an interesting pick. Some say he's a poor man's Tavon Austin. Makes me wonder if he isn't an insurance policy in case they lose Tavon to free agency.

 

[Mackeyser]

I think we are awful full of optimist around here. I'm as excited as the next guy about a fresh start at QB. But let's be real, this isn't the best class of QBs that has been out in a while. I hope he turns into a freaking stud, but his record was pretty atrocious. Then we don't pick again til day 3 and get a troubled TE, a TE who isn't really a TE, and two WR's that people are pumped about...if they were "pumped" worthy they wouldn't be there day 3. Day three is made for finger crossing. I like the tape I see on Cooper and Thomas. But most high light reels are pretty bad ass. I'm just skeptical. I hope that Snisher has a plan. But with the lack of FA and draft picks....color me nervous. Hope I'm wrong

I'm not one of the optimists, but it's not because of the picks.

We'll see how it plays out. We're still running this broken quasi-WCO in a division with athletic, fast LBs who can run. WCOs are meant to stretch defenses horizontally. What defeats WCOs? athletic, fast LBs who can run and this division is chock full of 'em.

Heck, when we face a fantastically mature and well executed WCO in New Orleans Gulf Coast WCO with Drew Brees running it with better weapons than we have now... we eat it up. The defenses in our division are NOT intimidated by that kind of offense and they have ready answers for it. And a rookie Goff isn't going to be Drew Brees who's playing at a HoF level throwing for 5k yards a year... Certainly not in the next few years...

I sure hope it works out, but I'm scratching my head how...

 

[Corbin]

I gave them a B because I wanted to trade Mason, Foles or Keenum and pick someone else up outstanding! haha but the players they did draft were on point.

 

[kurtfaulk]

Los Angeles Rams
Draft picks: Jared Goff (No. 1 overall), Tyler Higbee (No. 110),Pharoh Cooper (No. 117), Temarrick Hemingway (No. 177), Josh Forrest (No. 190),Mike Thomas (No. 206)
Day 1 grade: B
Day 2 grade: Incomplete
Day 3 grade: D
Overall grade: C
The skinny: Goff is the best quarterback in the class, so there's no issue there. The team gave up a lot of picks to get him; the Rams received a bunch of picks in the RGIII trade, however, and it didn't improve the team because it needed a quarterback. So I can't seriously downgrade the move.

The Rams didn't have any Day 2 picks due to the trade up for Goff.

It was a bit of a surprise when Higbee came off the board in the fourth round given his off-field issues. He'll be a seam threat if he can stay on the straight and narrow, though. The Rams kept giving Goff weapons with a solid pick in Cooper, Hemingway and Thomas. I like Forrest as an inside linebacker, but the receiver picks left the team without any offensive line or defensive back help.

this HTML class. Value is http://www.nfl.com/n

 

[kurtfaulk]

.

They drafted a million linemen last season and this guy wanted them to draft more this season?

And the dbs are set. They've been grooming them for this year's fa losses.

.

 

[Psycho_X]

I went with a B. I'm not keen on draft grades or tearing someone down over their picks or cheering for a team being offseason warriors. You just don't know until the games are played so it's all kind of pointless. BUT if I'm being objective I would say that I like most of our picks. I like Goff and I love Higbee, Pharoh, and Thomas. Forrest looks like a good pick for special teams at minimum so that's all you can ask from 6th round and later and hope some become starters eventually.

However, Higbee still has off field issues that could easily end up being nothing or could become an issue and make this the worst pick of the draft. Hemingway was kind of a head scratcher. They didn't think he'd be there as an UDFA? And we didn't add any safety help after letting McCleod walk. Better hope they nail a UDFA for that because I don't have as much faith in our depth at that position as some around here do. And I'd rather keep Joyner at nickel back.

 

[DaveFan'51]

I was trying to esplain this to my wife. She feigned interest and then went back to her facebooking. But it is interesting (to me - obviously not my wife) how this regime has worked the drafts. We had a really bad team before Snisher got here - but at least it was 3 deep in bad players at most positions. They have hit on quite a few players between the draft and UDFA. That allowed them to then concentrate on the O-line last year and put together a unit that can grow together. Now this year we look to have completed the build by filling key offensive skill positions. We could probably still use a legit #1 receiver but .... Not sure what that means in terms of wins and losses as other teams don't just stay static but I like our chances. It's a good and exciting time to be a Rams fan.

All I want to say is ....

GO RAMS

AND GO

:shades::rimshot:

 

[nighttrain]

I'm pretty stinking happy with it.

While I was team Wentz - I said all along that I would support the pick and thus I am now team Goff.

Hitting TE and WR twice each was spot on. Yeah, we are out next year's 1 and what would have been a compensatory 3 - but we still have a QB we can deal (probably for a day 3 pick) and we have our future.

Let's see the O Line continue to develop - may the best 5 win the starting gigs - and let's see the real Gurley hit the field. Believe it or not, I think he has a gear we haven't seen yet in the pros.

If we get lucky on one or two of these day 3 picks (or Quick rounds back into form) - this offense could actually not just be above abysmal - they could actually turn into something fun to watch.

yes i think, no, i am sure Gurley has another gear, he was running with a knee brace last season, had to slow him a bit
train

 

[thirteen28]

I grade it PFH - Pretty freakin' happy.

They used the first pick on a game-changing franchise QB. Then, with limited resources in the later rounds, they pretty much just killed it. I have a very good feeling about Mike Thomas, he just looks the part and it won't surprise me a bit if he develops into a high quality NFL WR. Love the pick of Higbee too.

In general, it seems like the offense has been overhauled in the last two drafts. And we've set up our incoming QB with a good situation.

Well done, Les n' Jeff.

 

[A55VA6]

I went with a B+

Goff, Higbee, and Cooper are great picks imo. Hemingway and Forrest are guys I didn't know much about but they look quite athletic. Forrest is a former WR who has some good ball skills. And I love the Mike Thomas pick. He was one of my sleepers.