Good vision and patience from Ole Miss RB Zach Evans. Ole Miss running IZ, Evans IDs the MIKE in the A gap, waits for his OL to climb to the 2nd level to get the MIKE then explodes through the B gap….then it's speed for the chunk play pic.twitter.com/aiiqqyXHnI

— EJHolt_NFLDraft🏈 (@EJunkie215) September 5, 2022

Kobie Turner had the highest career PFF grade of any DT in this class 👀

3 more facts to know about the Rams' 3rd-round rookie https://t.co/MZ5jwPoNZZ

— Cameron DaSilva (@camdasilva) April 29, 2023

By Jourdan Rodrigue

https://theathletic.com/4471020/2023/04/29/los-angeles-rams-picks-draft-2/?source=emp_shared_article

ENCINO, Calif. — Fourteen picks later, the Rams’ 2023 draft is complete.

They mulled their options for a trade into the first round — five players (all on the offensive side of the ball) were considered depending on how the picks fell and the cost, according to a person with direct knowledge of the proceedings, and they “knocked on some doors” with teams to see what this would take. But ultimately they stayed at No. 36 and on Friday snagged an offensive lineman who sat at the very top of their board after they reset it ahead of the second round: TCU’s Steve Avila.

General manager Les Snead, head coach Sean McVay and their staff traded back multiple times to add a fourth-rounder (quarterback Stetson Bennett), then traded back a few more times to add picks in the fifth and sixth rounds (plus a late trade up for running back Zach Evans at No. 215). Their final haul skewed pretty evenly, as it should considering the holes on the current roster: seven defensive picks (including two of their three top-100 picks), six offensive picks and a punter.

Late into Saturday afternoon, some assistant coaches and scouts hung around, wheeling and dealing on the phone as they worked to bring in the rest of their undrafted free-agent class (the Rams usually announce those signings the following Sunday or Monday). The Rams IT and operations staff coiled up internet cables and packed away WiFi routers, and disassembled hundreds of other individual pieces required to make the “draft house” function as a crash-proof operation for three long days. Fourteen picks and it’s over.

Now they get to the football.

The picks

• Steve Avila, G/C, Round 2, No. 36
• Byron Young, OLB, Round 3, No. 77
• Kobie Turner, DL, Round 3, No. 89
• Stetson Bennett, QB, Round 4, No. 128
• Nick Hampton, OLB, Round 5, No. 161
• Warren McClendon, OT, Round 5, No. 174
• Davis Allen, TE, Round 5, No. 175
• Puka Nacua, WR, Round 5, No. 177
• Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson, CB, Round 6, No. 182
• Ochaun Mathis, OLB, Round 6, No. 189
• Zach Evans, RB, Round 6, No. 215
• Ethan Evans, P, Round 7, No. 223
• Jason Taylor II, S, Round 7, No. 234
• Desjuan Johnson, DL, Round 7, No. 259

Best pick

Avila. Not only is he massive (6-foot-3 and 332 pounds) and a total road-grader in the run game, but he also didn’t give up a single sack in 2022 at TCU.

“Tough guy, I mean a large human being who moves very well for that size,” said Cedric Jones, who was the lead area scout on Avila. “A guy that is in the business of moving people.”

As a person, Avila draws rave reviews for his character and work ethic. He’s exactly the kind of player the Rams need to help stabilize a roster in disarray.

“He has a great personality, he can relate to a lot of different people,” Jones said. “You can put that guy in, he’s gonna come and do his job. We’re pretty confident in that.”

Pick who will make biggest immediate impact

In the short term, again it should be Avila. The Rams have options with him — they have a vacancy at guard, or they could play him at center. In the long-term outlook, I can see Avila taking over at center and having a solid career there.

Biggest surprise

Hodges-Tomlinson is a surprise, but only because his size profile (5-7 and 178 pounds) is smaller than they’ve generally targeted, even for a player who best projects as a nickel. His assertive playing style is right in their wheelhouse, however, and he’s going to be arriving in Los Angeles with a chip on his shoulder because he, the 2022 Jim Thorpe Award winner presented to the nation’s best collegiate defensive back, fell to the sixth round.

“Even though I’ve done as much as I’ve done … it seems to still go over others’ heads,” Hodges-Tomlinson said. “The Rams believed in me. So, I’m going to make sure that this pick right here is one of the greatest picks that they’ve ever had.”

Hodges-Tomlinson doesn’t lack confidence, and the Rams could use a presence like that roaming underneath their zone and jumping the quick routes that plagued them in 2022.

Biggest question mark

All of their pass rushers — Young, Hampton and Mathis — have some exciting qualities that project well as professionals. But all also come with questions. Young is blazing fast, the speed the Rams have needed off the edge especially with quarterbacks attacking their match-zone with a quick game. However, Young has to take several steps forward as a run defender. Hampton is a powerful player, and solid against the run and in pursuit but inconsistent as a pass rusher. Mathis has all of the athletic potential but is raw.

Remaining needs

The Rams still don’t have a kicker or a long snapper, but their undrafted free-agent (and possibly veteran free-agent) additions will take care of that. They could stand to add a cheap veteran along the defensive line, with so many of their draftees in need of development before they will be impact players. They also could use a little more cornerback depth. Hodges-Tomlinson is a fiery, competitive and assertive player who will immediately compete for time in the slot, but they’re still thin at outside cornerback.

Post-draft outlook

Much of this draft was, in a word, sensible. The Rams didn’t firefly toward shiny skill players with their earliest picks and instead beefed up both sides of their lines. They found a running back and a promising safety way later than they were projected to be drafted and now have a cheap backup quarterback on the roster (the pick point for Bennett has been argued by some fans, but there was an internal sense that other NFL teams were higher on him than they publicly let on so they went for it).

It’s not that they’re thinking Bennett will be their future starter, but more so that they believe he could win them some games and be a competitive leader should quarterback Matthew Stafford get hurt.

The Rams also spent many of their defensive picks either on players at premium positions (outside linebacker and cornerback) or on players who eventually will need to fill a role in unlocking star defensive tackle Aaron Donald.

I never like to judge a draft before the players even take the field. We don’t know what we don’t know! Still, the Rams’ methods this year, and the logic behind many of the picks, moved away from flashier picks and most filled needs with generally hungry, leadership-forward players who will hit a steep learning curve because they’ll have early playing time on such a depleted roster.

Many of the players the Rams selected are still on a developmental path. How they compete — and are coached — in practice will make all of the difference in the coming months.

Rams select Oklahoma State S Jason Taylor II with 234th overall pick in 2023 NFL draft https://t.co/AfkTpDRbOn

— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) April 29, 2023

The Rams took Puka Nacua with the 177th overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft and here’s our instant analysis of the selection. https://t.co/ba1tXxQISV

— Rams Wire (@TheRamsWire) April 30, 2023