Just read an interesting article

[rdlkgliders]

I hope all the Obo hype is even close to right. Dude is only hope and potential so far

 

[Akrasian]

I hope all the Obo hype is even close to right. Dude is only hope and potential so far

I've never understood it. He may eventually end up good. If the Rams felt he was close to being an impact edge rusher coming out of college, they wouldn't have waited until pick 160 to take him - it would have been risky to wait that long.

He has some good traits, but some talk like he's a sure thing, and not a work in progress who might become decently useful at some point.

 

[dang]

I don't see any scenario where the Rams are going to spend the money to keep both Brockers and Suh in 2019. I think Suh for a couple years at DT for $11m would be the best option. If that works I would guess Brockers gets traded. If Suh want more then I believe Brockers will be restructured.

 

[1maGoh]

I've never understood it. He may eventually end up good. If the Rams felt he was close to being an impact edge rusher coming out of college, they wouldn't have waited until pick 160 to take him - it would have been risky to wait that long.

He has some good traits, but some talk like he's a sure thing, and not a work in progress who might become decently useful at some point.

I don't know that I can agree with that logic. Granted there's a difference in positions, but the Rams were pretty sure that GZ, Hekker, and Kupp would be solid additions at their positions. They waited on those guys. I wish I could say the same for JFM, but I really think he was a pleasant surprise rather than a for sure he can perform at this level kind of guy. We traded back last year and grabbed Noteboom, and I'm fairly certain they were sure he could perform. They didn't wait as long, but they did pass up an opportunity to get him earlier. If they think he can be the LT of the future, waiting is risky. That is, unless they're fairly sure they still have a shot at him.

If they feel he's (Obo) a fourth round talent, but they hear from everyone that they think he's a 5th round talent... See if he lasts.

 

[Akrasian]

I don't know that I can agree with that logic. Granted there's a difference in positions, but the Rams were pretty sure that GZ, Hekker, and Kupp would be solid additions at their positions. They waited on those guys. I wish I could say the same for JFM, but I really think he was a pleasant surprise rather than a for sure he can perform at this level kind of guy. We traded back last year and grabbed Noteboom, and I'm fairly certain they were sure he could perform. They didn't wait as long, but they did pass up an opportunity to get him earlier. If they think he can be the LT of the future, waiting is risky. That is, unless they're fairly sure they still have a shot at him.

If they feel he's (Obo) a fourth round talent, but they hear from everyone that they think he's a 5th round talent... See if he lasts.

<cough>Bobby Wagner</cough>

leaving aside kicker and punter, which were taken where they normally would be except by the Raiders, Kupp was taken when the Rams did not have a lot of picks to move around with, and a lot of holes to fill.

Noteboom they moved back a couple of spots - normally you do that when there are several players you would like so you might as well pick up the extra pick.

Edge rusher is a highly valued position, not like kicker or punter. It was also a position the Rams were rather thin at. IF they felt that Obo was likely to fill that hole, especially his rookie year, they would not have gambled that no other team would also recognize his talent, especially when trading the 5th they used on him and their 2nd 6th would have been enough on the value chart to move up about 30 spots. A small price to pay, if they actually felt he would be a significant part of the defense right away, in a season where they were to some extent "going for it". I mean, they liked him - but not enough to give up a fairly late pick to move up, which tells me that they wouldn't be overly traumatized by another team taking him. Kiser they were willing to make a move for, so it's not like the concept of trading up was foreign to them.

 

[1maGoh]

<cough>Bobby Wagner</cough>

leaving aside kicker and punter, which were taken where they normally would be except by the Raiders, Kupp was taken when the Rams did not have a lot of picks to move around with, and a lot of holes to fill.

Noteboom they moved back a couple of spots - normally you do that when there are several players you would like so you might as well pick up the extra pick.

Edge rusher is a highly valued position, not like kicker or punter. It was also a position the Rams were rather thin at. IF they felt that Obo was likely to fill that hole, especially his rookie year, they would not have gambled that no other team would also recognize his talent, especially when trading the 5th they used on him and their 2nd 6th would have been enough on the value chart to move up about 30 spots. A small price to pay, if they actually felt he would be a significant part of the defense right away, in a season where they were to some extent "going for it". I mean, they liked him - but not enough to give up a fairly late pick to move up, which tells me that they wouldn't be overly traumatized by another team taking him. Kiser they were willing to make a move for, so it's not like the concept of trading up was foreign to them.

I would point to Wagner and say that Snead is willing to move back or wait for a player if he thinks he can get away with it. It might have happened this last draft with that OL that people were all over the map about. I really want to say Orlando Brown, but I'm pretty sure that's wrong. I've got to go to bed, otherwise I'd look it up. They had a chance to take him and traded back, possibly thinking they could still get him but had to go with Noteboom instead. Clearly it's worked out, but you never know.

 

[FrantikRam]

I've never understood it. He may eventually end up good. If the Rams felt he was close to being an impact edge rusher coming out of college, they wouldn't have waited until pick 160 to take him - it would have been risky to wait that long.

He has some good traits, but some talk like he's a sure thing, and not a work in progress who might become decently useful at some point.

First, "they wouldn't have waited until pick 160 to take him" makes zero sense. Most of the players in the NFL today were not first round picks - so by definition, every team passed on most of the players in the NFL. There are plenty of examples of round 5/6/7/UDFA players making an impact.

Second, who is talking like he's a sure thing? When you make the decision to pay Aaron Donald that money, you're going to have unknowns at certain positions.

Here's why I would have no issue with him starting: we kept him even though he's unproven AND was injured to the point where he was basically redshirted - that tells us that the coaching staff thinks highly of him, and even though OLB was one of our weaker positions, our roster was one of the most difficult to crack last year. The fact that he did speaks volumes to me.

We relied on Ebukam - who was essentially in an identical situation - and we made the Super Bowl and held the Patriots to 13 points.

I'm pumped about what Obo can possibly do and would have no issue with penciling him in there like we did Ebukam.

 

[FrantikRam]

<cough>Bobby Wagner</cough>

leaving aside kicker and punter, which were taken where they normally would be except by the Raiders, Kupp was taken when the Rams did not have a lot of picks to move around with, and a lot of holes to fill.

Noteboom they moved back a couple of spots - normally you do that when there are several players you would like so you might as well pick up the extra pick.

Edge rusher is a highly valued position, not like kicker or punter. It was also a position the Rams were rather thin at. IF they felt that Obo was likely to fill that hole, especially his rookie year, they would not have gambled that no other team would also recognize his talent, especially when trading the 5th they used on him and their 2nd 6th would have been enough on the value chart to move up about 30 spots. A small price to pay, if they actually felt he would be a significant part of the defense right away, in a season where they were to some extent "going for it". I mean, they liked him - but not enough to give up a fairly late pick to move up, which tells me that they wouldn't be overly traumatized by another team taking him. Kiser they were willing to make a move for, so it's not like the concept of trading up was foreign to them.

On the flip side, if you aren't excited about him, why keep him on the roster last year?

Teams draft players late all the time - it doesn't have any impact on how good the player will be.

 

[Akrasian]

On the flip side, if you aren't excited about him, why keep him on the roster last year?

Teams draft players late all the time - it doesn't have any impact on how good the player will be.

If he's hurt, they had to pay him anyway. Sometimes if the injury isn't bad, the player will agree to take less so he can be picked up by another team.

And yes, while occasionally a star gets drafted late - even more occasionally, a star is drafted late and makes an immediate impact - most of the better players in the league are drafted early, not late. Edit: I went and looked at the results of the 2014 draft (went back 5 years) and there were 17 Pro Bowlers drafted in the first 32 picks. The next 224 picks had 10. So yes, you can get good players late - the odds are much longer. That's why early picks are valued so much higher by every single team in the league.

Edge rushers are highly sought after - if the Rams felt he would make a major impact immediately, they would be afraid another team would see that also and not risk waiting until pick 160. Heck, they moved up for Micah Kiser (and drafted him before Obo). They had the picks to move up for Obo too - if they felt there was a significant chance he would be a starting edge rusher for them in 2018 they would gladly have moved up to ensure that they got him. It's what teams do - if they feel there is an excellent value at a position of need, they move up to make sure they get him, rather than staying put and risking another team drafts him, or that another team jumps ahead of them to get the player.

 

[Akrasian]

First, "they wouldn't have waited until pick 160 to take him" makes zero sense. Most of the players in the NFL today were not first round picks - so by definition, every team passed on most of the players in the NFL. There are plenty of examples of round 5/6/7/UDFA players making an impact.

Second, who is talking like he's a sure thing? When you make the decision to pay Aaron Donald that money, you're going to have unknowns at certain positions.

Here's why I would have no issue with him starting: we kept him even though he's unproven AND was injured to the point where he was basically redshirted - that tells us that the coaching staff thinks highly of him, and even though OLB was one of our weaker positions, our roster was one of the most difficult to crack last year. The fact that he did speaks volumes to me.

We relied on Ebukam - who was essentially in an identical situation - and we made the Super Bowl and held the Patriots to 13 points.

I'm pumped about what Obo can possibly do and would have no issue with penciling him in there like we did Ebukam.

Obo wasn't on the roster - he was on the PUP. Cutting him would have required his salary being paid anyway, there was literally zero advantage not keeping him on the PUP.

Oh, and from the moment Obo was drafted, there were posters on this board going on about him and how a problem was solved, etc etc. rdlkgliders did not do the post I initially replied to for the heck of it.

 

[Akrasian]

Inappropriate, Mikey Ram? Inappropriate isn't for disagreeing with the post.

You might want to familiarize yourself with forum rules and standards.

 

[Mikey Ram]

I've never understood it. He may eventually end up good. If the Rams felt he was close to being an impact edge rusher coming out of college, they wouldn't have waited until pick 160 to take him - it would have been risky to wait that long.

He has some good traits, but some talk like he's a sure thing, and not a work in progress who might become decently useful at some point.

I don't understand the unbridled support for him either, because we really have zero idea how he

Inappropriate, Mikey Ram? Inappropriate isn't for disagreeing with the post.

You might want to familiarize yourself with

I didn't disagree with anything...It's been mentioned here many times that sometimes inadvertent ratings are given while scrolling or just flat hitting the wrong rating key...Please don't lecture me without first asking if I meant to give that rating since I'm sure I've not done it to you before....I have NEVER used that rating intentionally to anybody here...in fact, I've asked why it couldn't be removed, simply to avert this very type situation...Sorry for the perceived slight, not intentional...

 

[Malibu]

There are 5-6 pass rushers in the top 15 probably 4 in top 8. There will be no quality left other than hopefuls. Not to mention I seriously doubt all 5 are going to be great it never works out that way.

I always hear on these sites that we have got to retain all our draft picks. That is crap vs a FA who we trade vs a draft pick. Whoever we would have picked last year vs Cooks (a PROVEN 1100-1200 yard wr in the league) was never going to have been remotely as good as Branden. Everyone hopes for lightning in a bottle with lower draft picks in the 3rd and below. The success rate of those players are small vs a proven FA commodity. I don't advocate getting a bunch of mid level nfl players but going after one elite guy always makes sense to me, because there is a quantitative analysis on his work.

The other thing we need to look at is level of competition the college player played. How good was the other person on the Offense or Defense. Take OLB/DEs. Lots of sacks could be generated by that player because thetOLman he faced was terrible. The NFL there is no such thing as terrible. This makes analyzing NFL players easier to judge.

Lots of Tom Brady's/Tyreke Hills slip through the cracks in the draft making that another reason why not to put most of our eggs in the draft basket. To me that would be huge mistake.

I loved what Snead did last year and he, Wade and McVay have had enough working time together to know precisely what we need.

They will get it right.

 

[Malibu]

There are 5-6 pass rushers in the top 15 probably 4 in top 8. There will be no quality left other than hopefuls. Not to mention I seriously doubt all 5 are going to be great it never works out that way.

I always hear on these sites that we have got to retain all our draft picks. That is crap vs a FA who we trade vs a draft pick. Whoever we would have picked last year vs Cooks (a PROVEN 1100-1200 yard wr in the league) was never going to have been remotely as good as Branden. Everyone hopes for lightning in a bottle with lower draft picks in the 3rd and below. The success rate of those players are small vs a proven FA commodity. I don't advocate getting a bunch of mid level nfl players but going after one elite guy always makes sense to me, because there is a quantitative analysis on his work.

The other thing we need to look at is level of competition the college player played. How good was the other person on the Offense or Defense. Take OLB/DEs. Lots of sacks could be generated by that player because thetOLman he faced was terrible. The NFL there is no such thing as terrible. This makes analyzing NFL players easier to judge.

Lots of Tom Brady's/Tyreke Hills slip through the cracks in the draft making that another reason why not to put most of our eggs in the draft basket. To me that would be huge mistake.

I loved what Snead did last year and he, Wade and McVay have had enough working time together to know precisely what we need.

They will get it right.

 

[Ram65]

Edit: I went and looked at the results of the 2014 draft (went back 5 years) and there were 17 Pro Bowlers drafted in the first 32 picks. The next 224 picks had 10. So yes, you can get good players late - the odds are much longer. That's why early picks are valued so much higher by every single team in the league.

Nice research. Makes sense too. Many here were surprised that the Rams and everyone else let Obo get as far as he did in the draft. Really have no idea what the Rams have in Obo. Rams got to see him in practice so they should at least have a better idea. Looking forward to seeing him compete.

 

[FrantikRam]

If he's hurt, they had to pay him anyway. Sometimes if the injury isn't bad, the player will agree to take less so he can be picked up by another team.

And yes, while occasionally a star gets drafted late - even more occasionally, a star is drafted late and makes an immediate impact - most of the better players in the league are drafted early, not late. Edit: I went and looked at the results of the 2014 draft (went back 5 years) and there were 17 Pro Bowlers drafted in the first 32 picks. The next 224 picks had 10. So yes, you can get good players late - the odds are much longer. That's why early picks are valued so much higher by every single team in the league.

Edge rushers are highly sought after - if the Rams felt he would make a major impact immediately, they would be afraid another team would see that also and not risk waiting until pick 160. Heck, they moved up for Micah Kiser (and drafted him before Obo). They had the picks to move up for Obo too - if they felt there was a significant chance he would be a starting edge rusher for them in 2018 they would gladly have moved up to ensure that they got him. It's what teams do - if they feel there is an excellent value at a position of need, they move up to make sure they get him, rather than staying put and risking another team drafts him, or that another team jumps ahead of them to get the player.

If your goal is to have a pro bowler at OLB, we probably shouldn't have invested in some of the areas that we did.

When you pay Aaron Donald that much money, sacrifices have to be made. Wanting all pros at every position is not realistic - we all know that.

Every team believes edge rushers are important - I get that. But having Donald makes everyone around him better, so you don't need to spend a ton of money or draft capital on edge rushers - the Rams showed this tactic last year with Ebukam, and it worked. By some stats, the Rams pressured the QB more than any team - and we made the Super Bowl and held the opposition to 13 points.

We have no idea what we have with Obo - but again, when you have Donald, Gurley, Cooks, and Goff making what they will be making here in a year or two, you have to be smart about how you build your team. Late round picks are going to have to contribute, and they should be able to with Donald commanding so much attention.

It would be great to upgrade at OLB - but I think we have more pressing needs and based on how the pass rush performed last year, I have no problem with Obo and Ebukam as our two starting OLBs - because we have Aaron Donald.

 

[FrantikRam]

Nice research. Makes sense too. Many here were surprised that the Rams and everyone else let Obo get as far as he did in the draft. Really have no idea what the Rams have in Obo. Rams got to see him in practice so they should at least have a better idea. Looking forward to seeing him compete.

Obviously pro bowlers aren't realistic at every position - the fact that there are NFL players on a roster that are non first round picks tells you that those guys are contributing.

 

[Akrasian]

Wanting all pros at every position is not realistic - we all know that.

Of course. My comments were to those who seemingly expected Obo to be an impact player right away. The Rams didn't act like they expected that in the draft. I have nothing against Obo - I hope he succeeds eventually. But it's rare that late picks like that become impact players right away, if they ever do. If they've fallen that far - especially at an in demand position like edge rusher - it's usually because there is some sort of hole in his game or question marks because of an injury, things like that. Teams either think that physically he isn't quite there, or that he needs time to build up to a higher level of competition, or that he has a specific hole in his game that needs coaching up (Like Kiser - the Rams liked him enough to draft him higher than Obo, and to trade up specifically to get him, but he couldn't get into the lineup still - supposedly because while he's fierce against the run, his coverage skills are not quite there yet, as expected by some coming out of college. They like him, but didn't expect him to be a starter right away).

Again, I have nothing against Obo - but he apparently was not somebody they expected immediate help from, but more a long term guy they think they can develop - teams need those too, though given how they got rid of all the linebacker starters except Barron, who was coming off of multiple surgeries, it would have been nice if they'd made more of an effort to find more guys to contribute in 2018.