Rams Select Braden Fiske, DL at #39 Overall.

[Elmgrovegnome]

If the team actually had him rated as a late 1st round pick, then it isn't really much of an overpay to get him.

The only time we are going to be upset about this is watching next years draft on day 2.

next year the Rams will have pick 32, that is nearly a second round pick

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSptmpz5190

Senior Bowl reps in practice.

I hope he can learn some moves. If he used his hands more he could really be a terror

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

I know some people will give us a lower draft grade because what we gave up to get Fiske. But the way I see it, if we stood pat at 52, was there a player remaining that could give us the same impact at a needed position? I don't think so. Call it the cost of doing business. He's the type of player coaches love. And he works very well in tandem with Verse. And draft grades are basically worthless unless its 3 years later.

Hall and Kneeland were drafted just after pick 52. Apparently the Rams had Fiske graded much higher than either, but their play could be a measure against Fiske's to judge if the Rams won the trade or not.

 

[TexasRam]

This is message boards for you.

Poster 1 observes it was an overpay. Which it was by definition of the trade up chart and accepted draft norms.

Poster 2 takes exception to the perception of an overpay.

Poster 3 tries to observe it is an overpay regardless.

Poster 4 takes exception of this continued perception of overpay nonsense and people crying about it.

Poster 5 takes exception of posters crying about those crying.

And on and on we go. Never mind the fact that we seem to unanimously agree Fiske is a fuckin badass.

Poster 6 observes of the absurd nature of message boards and the need for each individual to share an opinion — which leads poster 6 to share his opinion on the other posters shared opinions.

 

[TexasRam]

That is pretty rare on any board.

Not only they are both very good, they bring a synergy I have never seen in a draft.

How do you replace a football player who is the GOAT? With the synergy of these two.

View attachment 65478

Donald be like.......


View: https://media2.giphy.com/media/l0zAiJHyg0fMA/200.webp?cid=790b7611orq8r9edb5aef4hwtfkhmzx42wsnomvaq0cyx5wi&ep=v1_gifs_search&rid=200.webp&ct=g

 

[TexasRam]

Especially if the V8 won't even be available the next year.

View: https://media1.giphy.com/media/WiyczarN2XMm4/200.webp?cid=790b7611oe4bv3jqas78939ygs0wflu6ssc3adcyxsdsvhvw&ep=v1_gifs_search&rid=200.webp&ct=g

 

[TheTackle]

There, fixed it, it turns out he doesn't have baby T-Rex arms after all

Prepare for takeoff

 

[Faceplant]

This breakdown is a month old, but it's great because Butter talks about and breaks down how great Fiske and Verse played together. Also respectfully compares Fiske's combine #s to AD. Would love to see a follow up since the Rams drafted both these studs... Good shit here.


View: https://youtu.be/7MgPLst_Fy8?si=ue87M1q24O9qN6-x

 

[fearsomefour]

Listening to breakdowns of Fiske it is varied.
Elite athleticism, explosive, both quick with top end speed, understands using angles etc.
Then, others say routinely driven 5 + yards off the ball on run plays at the college level.
Really, really interested to see how he plays in preseason. I loved the pick but there are some concerns.
A lot of young talent to watch in the front seven and DL this year. Both rookies and 2nd year guys.
This rotation could be great.

 

[JimY53]

Scouting report for Rams second-round pick Braden Fiske | Sporting News

The Rams traded up in the second-round of the 2024 NFL Draft to select Florida State DT Braden Fiske

www.sportingnews.com

The Los Angeles Rams traded their 2024 and 2025 second-round picks, as well as pick 155 to move up to pick 39 with the Carolina Panthers to select Florida State Braden Fiske. They reunite Fiske with Jared Verse, who the Rams took in the first-round of this draft.

Braden Fiske Scouting Report​

Strengths​

• Very good quickness
• Very good motor
• Very good competitive toughness
• Good play strength
• Good awareness

Weaknesses​

• Below-average length
• Below-average lower body strength
• Average pad level
• Average pass rush plan
• Average block shedding ability
• Injuries in multiple seasons

Braden Fiske is a competitive defensive tackle who can be a valuable part of a rotation at the next level. Fiske wins with his very good quickness off the line of scrimmage that he uses to shoot gaps or create movement at the point of attack. He has good play strength that knock blockers back. With his quickness, Fiske can be used on stunts and loops as a pass rusher. Florida State lined him up in multiple spots throughout the year.


Fiske isn’t as developed as a pass-rusher as I have seen others suggest. He has to be pinpoint with his hands to make up for his lack of length. He has a good initial club or swim he’ll pull out, but if his initial rush fails, he stalls out and gets controlled by blockers.

Fiske is role-limited at the next level. He doesn’t have enough “sand in his pants” to anchor and hold up against double-teams. Fiske’s issues in the run game make me believe he is a three-technique only, and I’m unsure how much upside he has to develop there. Fiske battled multiple injuries in his career and is already 24 years old, capping his development trajectory.

Draft Grade​

Fiske graded out towards the end of the third-round for me, so taking him at 52 would have been a slight reach. The fact that the Rams gave two second-round picks to move up for him is way too much. He's 24 years old with multiple injuries and doesn't do much to aid their run defense in any way. Just as low of a draft grade as I can give.

 

[JimY53]

Where will Braden Fiske play for the Los Angeles Rams? | Sporting News

The Rams traded up to draft Braden Fiske in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft, but where he fits on the Rams roster is a mystery.

ng-sportingnews.com

​

​

Where will Braden Fiske play for the Los Angeles Rams?​

AJ Schulte
04-26-2024•6 min read

Bleacher Report

The Los Angeles Rams made a massive trade up in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft, a move that has drawn plenty of criticism, to select Florida State defensive tackle Braden Fiske 39th overall. The Rams have needed a defensive tackle since Aaron Donald's retirement, so in a vacuum, the pick makes sense. The trade UP for him is a head-scratcher, but the position itself is what they needed, right?
Well...sort of.

I broke this down in a previous article of mine discussing why the Rams shouldn't panic into a first-round defensive tackle to replace Donald (something they seemingly did anyways a round later), but from what we can gleam the Rams' defensive fronts to be, Fiske's fit is...a bit odd.

In the Rams' base odd front looks, they'll look something like this:
EDGE
DE/4
NT/0T
DE/4
EDGE

and their sub-package (third-down) looks with two defensive linemen and "four-down" looks are something like this:
EDGE
3T
1T
EDGE

The 3T, in their sub-package looks (typically a 2-4-5), is the primary interior pass rusher of the unit, the role that Aaron Donald played and the spot that the Rams have said Kobie Turner will likely move into. Turner will also expand into playing more of the DE/4i looks in their base defense, something he didn't do last year. The 1T is usually aligned in between the center and guard and typically handles a lot more double-teams. Both the 1 and the 3 are still "one-gapping", but usually 1T players are bigger in size (for the Rams, think Greg Gaines) and help shore up the team's run defense.

The Rams are a pretty heavy "5-1" front team (an offshoot of a 3-3-5), using it as their main base defense, and they have for years ever since Brandon Staley revitalized that unit. The 3-down linemen in that grouping are playing 4-0-4 techniques. They're all "two gapping" or occupying blockers and handling double-teams in the run game. Typically, much like the 1T, these players are bigger, stronger players that can control the line of scrimmage.

The Rams needed players to play the other defensive end spot in base looks and the 1T opposite of Turner. These players have a little more mass in order to two-gap effectively, take on double-teams, and hold up against the run while still offering some value as a pass rusher. The problem is: That's not where Braden Fiske fits.

Fiske is a three-technique, much like what Kobie Turner is. He's undersized and doesn't have a lot of mass on him. Ask any draft analyst out there and I doubt you'll find anyone thrilled about Fiske playing the run in a two-gap approach or handling double-teams as a 1T or 4i. I wrote in my scouting report that Fiske would be best served as a sub-package 3T in the NFL early in his career.

What about the idea of putting Fiske at 3T and keeping Turner at the role he played last season? The idea does hold some merit, but the role Turner played as the 1T doesn't suit him. The Rams played him there as the best way to get both him and Donald on the field at the same time and Donald could occupy multiple blockers. Turner isn't best served taking on double teams, but rather in the pass-rushing role the Rams seem set to play him at because he's also an undersized lineman. He's a great three-technique who they also plan on playing in base, something Turner didn't do last year.

The Rams played "light boxes" (six or fewer defenders in the box) at the *highest* rate last year, #1 in the NFL, and that number likely isn't changing anytime soon. That works when you have Aaron Donald occupying multiple blockers, but they don't have Aaron Donald anymore. Instead, the Rams have two undersized linemen who don't really have the power or size to occupy blockers and keep linebackers clean. Both are best suited for attacking roles pursuing the quarterback. How does this translate into helping them maintain their light box fronts moving forward? I'm not quite sure.

All this begs the question: Where is Braden Fiske going to play to make him worth the massive trade-up the team paid for him? How can the Rams get him and Turner out there in a way that doesn't compromise their run defense? That answer remains a bit more complicated.

I don't believe Fiske will be a player the team relies on in base formation. You just simply cannot ask him to two-gap and occupy inside. He doesn't have the size for that. This was the issue the Rams had with Kobie Turner last season, as he rarely played in base. Maybe the other player opposite of Turner in base front will now be Michael Hoecht, filling in for Jonah Williams, but that has its own risks over their depth and both he and Turner's ability to play those roles.

Fiske should see the field in their sub-package looks. However, the team has to be wary about both he and Turner's sawn-off length and size getting taken advantage of in the run game. This could be mitigated by the Rams having an established linebacker unit, the vision they had when they signed Bobby Wagner, but they don't have anything close to resembling that, so I won't bother going down that line.

Long story short, the Rams traded up to take a player that doesn't seem to solve the needs of their defensive front post-Donald, doesn't project well to be a three-down player, and might be better off rotating with Kobie Turner instead of complementing him. It's a risky gamble on their parts and they'll need it to pay off fast if they want to keep winning.

 

[JimY53]

The 3-down linemen in that grouping are playing 4-0-4 techniques.

Not really.
4-0-4; 4i-0-4i; 5-0-3, 5-1-3, 4i-0-3; 4i-1-3 and so one. 4-0-4 is not common. Cannot recall every seeing Aadon Donald head up. Cannot say it NEVER happened, but he was not a head-up guy and even if he had been ... it would have been a slant call.

They're all "two gapping" or occupying blockers and handling double-teams in the run game. Typically, much like the 1T, these players are bigger, stronger players that can control the line of scrimmage.

Oh boy. Not another one.

Gap-1/2

I don't believe Fiske will be a player the team relies on in base formation. You just simply cannot ask him to two-gap and occupy inside. He doesn't have the size for that.

They won't ask him to two-gap because they don't two-gap.

They will ask him to gap-1/2. Penetrate some - control his single gap and help with the gap next two him.

But then again ... what if he's right? LOL then Staley and now Shula will be doing it, too... and we can't have that.

It's clear this guy is trying. And he's not a Ram apologist - he's just covering the Rams for The Sporting News -- so his distaste for Fiske is fine. Reasonable people can disagree.

He's also wrong on things pertaining the scheme. He's just assuming things but not showing what he means but that one thing.

The other is no one kenws for sure what Fiske will do in the NFL. This guy has one idea based on where Fiske played in college and he's projecting that in the NFL. So, cannot get on him too much. A disagreement on what is being done is different that saying the wrong thing was being done by some idiot coach.

But this guy is also a breath of fresh air from the fan sites who are sycophantic and too pro-Rams. A little objectivity won't hurt. And he he thinks the Fiske trade is terrible, so be it.

But he does need up his study time and throw out tropes of two-gapping that just don't happen like he thinks they do.

 

[RamFanWA]

The Rams have needed a defensive tackle since Aaron Donald's retirement, so in a vacuum, the pick makes sense. The trade UP for him is a head-scratcher, but the position itself is what they needed, right?
Well...sort of.

I'm just a fan, not a beat writer.... but...
Who the hell plays in a vacuum.?? Besides, the Rams drafted some grown men here.
Fiske on his own, might not be as good as the Fiske playing next to Verse. I think this is going to fun to watch.

All the measurements and commentary, is what it is. What the right side of the FSU line puts on the field for the Rams, is what matters. I for one, can't wait.

 

[JimY53]

I'm just a fan, not a beat writer.... but...
Who the hell plays in a vacuum.?? Besides, the Rams drafted some grown men here.
Fiske on his own, might not be as good as the Fiske playing next to Verse. I think this is going to fun to watch.

All the measurements and commentary, is what it is. What the right side of the FSU line puts on the field for the Rams, is what matters. I for one, can't wait.

What he is missing a little bit is Jonah Williams. Williams took over for A'Shawn and he took over for Brockers.

It's a distinct position apart from what AD did. This guy is errantly thinking that the Rams have two 3-4 DEs and one was Donald and that it's kind of mirrored positions.

he does get some things right, though, which is a positive. He does at least talk about the 5-1. But again. he things the so called "DEs" are the same.

Where he deserves credit is maybe he honestly thinks Fiske cannot play in Williams' spot. That his upside is as a DT in the passing defensive ... But he's new to Rams beat as far as I can tell. I have never heard of him before the last 2-3 weeks. So, whatever

not everyone is going to be like Jake E or Blaine --- and kind of tow the company line.

 

[JimY53]

​

AJ Schulte


In the Rams' base odd front looks, they'll look something like this:
EDGE
DE/4
NT/0T
DE/4
EDGE

All you have to do is take Staley's word for it.

Here you can see the alignment goes more by game plan than perhaps anything. Sometimes it's Williams playing 5 tech, sometimes 4 sometimes 4i.

Donald --- usually a 3 ... maybe a 4i .... never head up

 

[JimY53]

Honestly didn't know Fiske pick was all that controversial.

I heard the "overpayment" stuff --- but that matter of how you value Fiske. I wonder if this AJ guy represents what a lot of the draftnik sites are talking about. He worked for one for a long time prior to Sporting News. So, that's probably where he's coming from --- not an Xs and O's place like a Ted Nguyen or Jourdan and he really doesn't know Staley's D all that well, but not terrible, either, DOn't want to be too hard on him

 

[kurtfaulk]

Not really.
4-0-4; 4i-0-4i; 5-0-3, 5-1-3, 4i-0-3; 4i-1-3 and so one. 4-0-4 is not common. Cannot recall every seeing Aadon Donald head up. Cannot say it NEVER happened, but he was not a head-up guy and even if he had been ... it would have been a slant call.



Oh boy. Not another one.

Gap-1/2


They won't ask him to two-gap because they don't two-gap.

They will ask him to gap-1/2. Penetrate some - control his single gap and help with the gap next two him.

But then again ... what if he's right? LOL then Staley and now Shula will be doing it, too... and we can't have that.

It's clear this guy is trying. And he's not a Ram apologist - he's just covering the Rams for The Sporting News -- so his distaste for Fiske is fine. Reasonable people can disagree.

He's also wrong on things pertaining the scheme. He's just assuming things but not showing what he means but that one thing.

The other is no one kenws for sure what Fiske will do in the NFL. This guy has one idea based on where Fiske played in college and he's projecting that in the NFL. So, cannot get on him too much. A disagreement on what is being done is different that saying the wrong thing was being done by some idiot coach.

But this guy is also a breath of fresh air from the fan sites who are sycophantic and too pro-Rams. A little objectivity won't hurt. And he he thinks the Fiske trade is terrible, so be it.

But he does need up his study time and throw out tropes of two-gapping that just don't happen like he thinks they do.

Are you arguing with yourself? You got some sort of split personality?

Disclaimer - I know he's arguing with the article writer.

.

 

[WestCoastRam]

Some here say they heard the Rams had a first round grade on Fiske. If true then it’s worth it.

Would love to get more info on that

 

[Merlin]

Listening to breakdowns of Fiske it is varied.
Elite athleticism, explosive, both quick with top end speed, understands using angles etc.
Then, others say routinely driven 5 + yards off the ball on run plays at the college level.
Really, really interested to see how he plays in preseason. I loved the pick but there are some concerns.
A lot of young talent to watch in the front seven and DL this year. Both rookies and 2nd year guys.
This rotation could be great.

He's interesting. When I was watching DL as a group early in the offseason, kind of going through them fast my first pass through with a game each, whatever game I watched of his was not particularly impressive. Can't recall which game it was but he did get blown off the ball a time or two and didn't look all that great.

Then a month or two later I went through the guys listed higher and whatever game I watched looked pretty damn good. Was probably Louisville. Can't recall but then I looked at his reps in the Senior Bowl and knew he'd be on our radar.

So idk what his deal was or if maybe I was watching an older tape of him. It is certainly possible. But I don't think motor is an issue for him and he's got good quickness and athleticism so I really have no worries on him. In fact I suspect he's going to be a beast for us.

 

[majrleaged]

In the NFL you get held. It never gets called. His short arms could be a real problem.

 

[HE WITH HORNS]

In the NFL you get held. It never gets called. His short arms could be a real problem.

https://images.app.goo.gl/Rso81NCvjGtKH8Dg7