Chris Ransom grades the St. Louis Rams 2015 NFL Draft. Does St. Louis have a bright future after drafting Todd Gurley with the tenth pick in the 2015 NFL Draft?
10. Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia F Grade
When healthy, Todd Gurley has very similar tape compared to former Ram Steven Jackson. At the same time, he's as durable as Willis McGahee coming out of college.
Gurley was the second best running back in this years draft after Melvin Gordon. I get that Brandon Scherff and Ereck Flowers were gone, but that still doesn't justify not taking an offensive tackle. You could have gone with T.J. Clemmings or Andrus Peat at 10 and made them your starting right tackle.
Taking Todd Gurley tenth overall created so much friction. The Rams had 2 other SEC running backs on their roster with Zac Stacy and Tre Mason. Both running backs were more furious than Dr. Doom following the Rams decision to take the former Bulldog after previously drafting a former Commodore and Auburn Tiger to bolster their backfield. Stacy got dealt to the New York Jets in an attempt to resolve some team chemistry issues because Stacy demanded a trade following the Gurley selection.
It's not just that, as of May 19, 2015, Mason is ranked ahead of Gurley on the depth chart at the moment. The Vikings were in a similar situation before when Chester Taylor was ranked ahead of Adrian Peterson on the depth chart after the Vikings surprised everyone by taking Peterson seventh overall. Mason is not as good as Taylor was, and I cannot see Todd Gurley having an Adrian Peterson type of impact at the next level. That's why this pick got an F grade.
57. Rob Havenstein, RT, Wisconsin D Grade
Rob Havenstein began his career on such a promising note in 2011 when he took Josh Oglesby's job at right tackle. Back then Havenstein was the starting right tackle on a Wisconsin offensive line that featured Ricky Wagner at left tackle, Travis Frederick now the Cowboys center at left guard, Peter Konz at center, and Kevin Zeitler the Bengals 2012 first round pick. Havenstein only started the final 6 games during his freshman season where he did a solid job with an offense featuring Russell Wilson at quarterback and Montee Ball at running back.
Havenstein continued to dominate and maintained his job as a right tackle for the next four years. He even saw some action at left tackle even though right tackle was always his natural position.
Havenstein had excellent tape at Wisconsin which is why he was a second round prospect heading into the 2015 NFL Senior Bowl. Following his week in Mobile some teams still had him graded out as a second round pick while others had him listed as a fifth round pick. Things took a turn for the worse after his horrendous NFL Combine with his 5.46 official 40 time and 16 reps on the bench press after weighing 6-7 332 lbs. Havenstein's combine was so bad it made you about his performance at Wisconsin's Pro Day.
I originally gave this an F grade because I believed it was a huge reach especially with T.J. Clemmings still available. Havenstein is currently listed as the starting right tackle on the depth chart which is why this pick got bumped up to a D grade.
72. Jamon Brown, LG, Louisville D- Grade
Jamon Brown may have made history by being the first player to win a starting job without working out the Senior Bowl, NFL Combine, or his Pro Day. Brown weighed in at 6-6 320 lbs in Indianapolis when he was measured at the 2015 NFL Combine.
Jamon Brown has the versatility to play left tackle or right tackle. He has no experience starting at guard though. If the Rams wanted a left guard they should have gone with Louisville left guard John Miller, who I believe is a superior prospect compared to his teammate Jamon Brown.
The other reason I dislike this pick is because it creates friction at guard on the interior offensive line. Roger Saffold started at left guard. Saffold was solid enough to keep his starting job, but not spectacular. Rookie right guard Brandon Washington was a backup to Davin Joseph at right guard last season. I feel like Washington has more long term potential than Saffold who will be moving to right guard. Washington was expected to be the starting right guard after the departure to Joseph, but with Saffold moving to right guard, the Rams will have friction at running back and guard so that could affect the Rams' team chemistry with the running game in a big way if the Rams fail to finish in the top half of the NFL in rushing yards.
There are a few reasons why you can defend the Rams for moving Brown to guard. This guy has poor pass blocking, terrible pass blocking footwork, along with a horrible knee bending technique off the snap. Those three reasons can justify why you would want a 320 lb offensive lineman to move inside to guard.
89. Sean Mannion, QB, Oregon State D- Grade
Leave it to Beaver! Oregon State Beaver Sean Mannion who managed to get drafted in the top 90 with an excellent Senior Bowl week and awesome Pro Day workout at Oregon State. The 6-5 229 lb signal-caller was a 4 year starter, and he only had one season with more than 16 passing touchdowns in 2013.
St. Louis needed to take a developmental quarterback in the first three rounds. I'm just amazed by the fact that the Rams passed on both Bryce Petty and Brett Hundley for Mannion.
When you watch Mannion on tape you see a guy with Mike Glennon's arm strength, Matt Moore's accuracy, and Derek Anderson's awareness. Mannion was not a top 5 quarterback in the 2015 NFL Draft. Brett Hundley, Garrett Grayson, and Shane Carden were all ranked higher in my final quarterback rankings. Mannion is a backup at best, and he's so pedestrian that I would rather have a 43-year-old Kurt Warner over a 23-year-old Mannion.
Right now Mannion is listed as a 4th string quarterback on the depth chart. Nick Foles is the starter with last years starter Austin Davis now a backup on the Rams once again after starting a few games following Sam Bradford's season ending injury in the 2014 Preseason. Case Keenum who went 2-0 as the starter in the Texans final 2 games is the third stringer. I feel like Brett Hundley, Bryce Petty, or Shane Carden may have beat out Keenum for the third string job. Handley would have beaten out Keenum for that role, and may have even challenged Davis for the backup gig in St. Louis.
119. Andrew Donnal, LT, Iowa D- Grade
I think I gave this a C grade in my NFL Draft results page. My reasoning behind moving Donnal down to a D- grade is because he was a right tackle/right guard at Iowa and he's now a backup left tackle on this roster. Playing left tackle in the NFL is much harder than starting at right tackle in the Big 10.
Greg Robinson was woeful as a rookie, but began to blossom near the end of the season once he got the starting left tackle job. I never thought I would say this after Robinson did an awful job at left tackle in 2014, but if Robinson gets injured in 2015, the Rams are royally screwed at left tackle. Even more royally screwed after Jake Long dealt with season ending injuries the past two seasons.
The Rams haven't had a good left tackle since Orlando Pace retired. One could argue that Jason Smith was a bigger bust than Robert Gallery or Tony Mandarich at left tackle. The injury bug that Jake Long received kept Sam Bradford from maximizing his potential. Greg Robinson looked awful as a rookie in 2014, but he went second overall in the 2014 NFL Draft and is only 22 years old. There's still time for Robinson to develop.
Despite the Rams inability to replace Orlando Pace, Andrew Donnal is not the answer at left tackle if Robinson fails. This offensive line is so bad that the Rams need to pay Pace $1 million dollars a year to be the offensive line coach, and offensive line coaches only make anywhere from $75,000 to $200,000 a year. Paying pace $1 million and giving him 10 percent of the Rams ownership should sway him into returning to St. Louis to coach this awful offensive line following the 2015 NFL Draft.
201. Bud Sasser, WR, Missouri D Grade
Bud Sasser stepped up big time with 77 receptions, 1,003 receiving yards, and 12 receiving touchdowns. This guy did a great job showing outstanding production in 2014 after Dorial Green-Beckham got dismissed from Missouri.
Sasser is the #7 receiver on the depth chart behind Brian Quick, Kenny Britt, Tavon Austin, Damian Williams, Chris Givens, and Stedman Bailey. I'm not sure Sasser can make the 53 man roster because I really believe all 6 of those receivers will be on the Rams final roster come September. That's the only reason I gave the Rams a D grade at this point.
215. Cody Wichmann, LG, Fresno State D+ Grade
Cody Wichmann will be a backup left guard to Jamon Brown. Even though this is a reach, it's more responsible than taking Rob Havenstein or Jamon Brown with a day 2 pick.
224. Bryce Hager, MLB, Baylor D Grade
Bryce Hager is a talented linebacker with solid production at Baylor. If Hager was a backup middle linebacker instead of a third stringer on the Rams' depth chart this would easily be a C+ grade.
227. Martin Ifedi, LE, Memphis F Grade
Martin Ifedi is a third string defensive end. I'm not sure why the Rams took a third string defensive end in the second round. I feel like they could have taken the best player available like Cody Prewitt at safety for depth.
St. Louis Rams Team Grade: F Grade
General Manager Les Snead and Head Coach Jeff Fisher might finally lose their jobs in 2016. The highest grade I gave anyone on the Rams is a D+ which speaks volumes about how bad their draft was. The fact that I gave Todd Gurley an F grade at 10 also speaks volumes.
Let's recap what the Rams did in the 2015 NFL Draft. They reach for the second best running back in the top 10 and Gurley could end up being a #2 running back behind Tre Mason as a rookie. Then the Rams reach for 2 offensive linemen who will start right away at right tackle and left guard before taking Sean Mannion who would be a third stringer on most teams and is currently a fourth string quarterback on the Rams. On day 3, the Rams drafted a right tackle and moved him over to left tackle in Andrew Donnal. The rest of the Rams day 3 picks are third string players except for Cody Wichmann out of Fresno State who got drafted as a backup left guard to Jamon Brown who the Rams took in round 3.
The Rams draft was so horrendous that they may end up picking in the top 5 again. If that happens they better draft an offensive tackle instead of going crazy by emotionally investing in another quarterback.
The Rams had the worst draft among any team picking in the top 10. When I'm done with my draft grades for all 32 teams, there's a good chance the Rams end up with an F grade.
St. Louis Rams 2014 NFL Draft Grades
Posted By Chris Ransom on 5/12/2014
Chris Ransom breaks down the Rams 2014 NFL Draft grades.
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Chris Ransom on 5/19/2015
St. Louis Rams 2015 NFL Draft Grades
F Grade
D Grade
D- Grade
D- Grade
D- Grade
D Grade
D+ Grade
D Grade
F Grade
