10 Draft-Related Questions On My Mind

[AvengerRam]

Here are 10 draft related questions that I'm looking forward to getting the answer to in the coming weeks/months:

1. Will Julio Jones be there at pick #14?

2. If not, is there another WR (Jonathan Baldwin, perhaps) worth taking at #14 if Jones and A.J. Green are gone?

3. How far will Bruce Carter and Mark Herzlich fall due to their injury/illness?

4. Just how deep is the DL class (and, is it so deep that the Rams should wait until Round 2 to address that need)?

5. Is the RB class deep enough to find a good No. 2 option in Round 3 or 4?

6. How fast are the following players: Mark Ingram, John Clay, Leonard Hankerson, Torry Smith, Greg Little, Akeem Ayers and Aldon Smith?

7. Is the OG position deep enough to wait until Round 5 or later to bolster that spot?

8. Dontay Moch: Workout Warrior or biggest sleeper in the draft?

9. How many QBs will go in the first round (and, more importantly, in first 13 picks)?

10. Who will be the biggest "risers" after teh East-West Shrine Game, Senior Bowl and Combine?

[richtree]

1. Will Julio Jones be there at pick #14? Probably, Guys like Britt and Nicks went late in the first round and Jones isn't as talented. I guess combine will tell. I would argue Tolliver may end up higher on more boards than J.Jones come trade day.

2. If not, is there another WR (Jonathan Baldwin, perhaps) worth taking at #14 if Jones and A.J. Green are gone? A.J Green is the only player (that declared, worth a top 15 pick). Little, Tolliver, Broyles, etc can fall into round 2 for us.

3. How far will Bruce Carter and Mark Herzlich fall due to their injury/illness? Carter may go late Round 2/3. Herzlich may fall very far, sadly.

4. Just how deep is the DL class (and, is it so deep that the Rams should wait until Round 2 to address that need)? I think all of the elite guys are gonna be gone by our 2nd pick. DT is deep, DE is not...that is the key.

5. Is the RB class deep enough to find a good No. 2 option in Round 3 or 4? Definitely. RBs can be found late this year. Especially change of pace guys. That is not a problem at all.

6. How fast are the following players: Mark Ingram, John Clay, Leonard Hankerson, Torry Smith, Greg Little, Akeem Ayers and Aldon Smith? I think Smith and Little are probably the fastest. Hankerson is the biggest WR dissappointment so far. All good players but Ingram may be alittle overhyped due to team around him.

7. Is the OG position deep enough to wait until Round 5 or later to bolster that spot? I think we can get a guard late in the draft that will be serviceable as a run blocker. Ideally it would seem best to jump on a guard in the draft Round 5 but we need to fill some voids in Free Agency, and this may be a logical void.

8. Dontay Moch: Workout Warrior or biggest sleeper in the draft? Workout Warrior only. He has horrible feet and no moves. No need to reach for him.

9. How many QBs will go in the first round (and, more importantly, in first 13 picks)? 1 in first 13 picks. 3 in the first round. Plently of top 10 teams will pass early as they will feel they can trade up for a guy that falls to the end of Round 1.

10. Who will be the biggest "risers" after teh East-West Shrine Game, Senior Bowl and Combine? Terrence Toliver (LSU) is a stud so far !!! (like I said)...lol -- other than that maybe Delone Carter ('Cuse)

[AvengerRam]

1. Will Julio Jones be there at pick #14? Probably, Guys like Britt and Nicks went late in the first round and Jones isn't as talented. I guess combine will tell. I would argue Tolliver may end up higher on more boards than J.Jones come trade day.

Disagree on most of that. I think Jones has the potential to be better than all the guys you listed.

4. Just how deep is the DL class (and, is it so deep that the Rams should wait until Round 2 to address that need)? I think all of the elite guys are gonna be gone by our 2nd pick. DT is deep, DE is not...that is the key.

Actually, the DE class is very deep. The question is how many of them would fit in the Rams' 4-3 scheme opposite Chris Long.

6. How fast are the following players: Mark Ingram, John Clay, Leonard Hankerson, Torry Smith, Greg Little, Akeem Ayers and Aldon Smith? I think Smith and Little are probably the fastest. Hankerson is the biggest WR dissappointment so far. All good players but Ingram may be alittle overhyped due to team around him.

I don't know where you are getting your info on Hankerson, but he is much faster than you think. He might not have the best 40 time (I'll guess he'll be in the 4.50-4.55 range) because he's a long strider, but he's not slow.

8. Dontay Moch: Workout Warrior or biggest sleeper in the draft? Workout Warrior only. He has horrible feet and no moves. No need to reach for him.

Moves? He's a LB. What kind of "moves" are you looking for?

[sosa39rams]

1. Will Julio Jones be there at pick #14? Probably, Guys like Britt and Nicks went late in the first round and Jones isn't as talented. I guess combine will tell. I would argue Tolliver may end up higher on more boards than J.Jones come trade day.

2. If not, is there another WR (Jonathan Baldwin, perhaps) worth taking at #14 if Jones and A.J. Green are gone? A.J Green is the only player (that declared, worth a top 15 pick). Little, Tolliver, Broyles, etc can fall into round 2 for us.

3. How far will Bruce Carter and Mark Herzlich fall due to their injury/illness? Carter may go late Round 2/3. Herzlich may fall very far, sadly.

4. Just how deep is the DL class (and, is it so deep that the Rams should wait until Round 2 to address that need)? I think all of the elite guys are gonna be gone by our 2nd pick. DT is deep, DE is not...that is the key.

5. Is the RB class deep enough to find a good No. 2 option in Round 3 or 4? Definitely. RBs can be found late this year. Especially change of pace guys. That is not a problem at all.

6. How fast are the following players: Mark Ingram, John Clay, Leonard Hankerson, Torry Smith, Greg Little, Akeem Ayers and Aldon Smith? I think Smith and Little are probably the fastest. Hankerson is the biggest WR dissappointment so far. All good players but Ingram may be alittle overhyped due to team around him.

7. Is the OG position deep enough to wait until Round 5 or later to bolster that spot? I think we can get a guard late in the draft that will be serviceable as a run blocker. Ideally it would seem best to jump on a guard in the draft Round 5 but we need to fill some voids in Free Agency, and this may be a logical void.

8. Dontay Moch: Workout Warrior or biggest sleeper in the draft? Workout Warrior only. He has horrible feet and no moves. No need to reach for him.

9. How many QBs will go in the first round (and, more importantly, in first 13 picks)? 1 in first 13 picks. 3 in the first round. Plently of top 10 teams will pass early as they will feel they can trade up for a guy that falls to the end of Round 1.

10. Who will be the biggest "risers" after teh East-West Shrine Game, Senior Bowl and Combine? Terrence Toliver (LSU) is a stud so far !!! (like I said)...lol -- other than that maybe Delone Carter ('Cuse)

I disagree with you too. I also think Julio's potential is through the roof and he could be better than everyone you listed. Also, I will guarantee you Jones is picked before Toliver. Also Ryan Broyles decided to go back to school.

[richtree]

Hankerson isn't that good...i know that....Dontay Moch rushed the passer alot and got pushed away without alot of fight, the moves I ment were to get to the QB....DT is deeper than DE and 4-3 DE that get at the QB are slimmer..

Jones won't do more reps that Britt, won't have a higher vert., won't be faster.....so why is his potential higher?

Speaking of striders, J.Jones is a short strider....his hands are not good...

If he is here Round 1 for the Rams I can see us passing him up ....

[AvengerRam]

Hankerson isn't that good...i know that....Dontay Moch rushed the passer alot and got pushed away without alot of fight, the moves I ment were to get to the QB....DT is deeper than DE and 4-3 DE that get at the QB are slimmer..

Jones won't do more reps that Britt, won't have a higher vert., won't be faster.....so why is his potential higher?

Speaking of striders, J.Jones is a short strider....his hands are not good...

If he is here Round 1 for the Rams I can see us passing him up ....

Only a Sith deals in absolutes, Anakin.

[Nick]

1. Will Julio Jones be there at pick #14?

My thinking right now is yes.

2. If not, is there another WR (Jonathan Baldwin, perhaps) worth taking at #14 if Jones and A.J. Green are gone?

No.

3. How far will Bruce Carter and Mark Herzlich fall due to their injury/illness?

Carter, round two. Herzlich, round four or five.

4. Just how deep is the DL class (and, is it so deep that the Rams should wait until Round 2 to address that need)?

It's deep enough for the Rams to get a decent starting prospect in the second or third round, IMO.

5. Is the RB class deep enough to find a good No. 2 option in Round 3 or 4?

Depends on how you define #2 option. If you mean a change of pace 'back, yes. If you mean a guy who could eventually become a starter, the chances decrease a bit but sure, why not.

6. How fast are the following players: Mark Ingram, John Clay, Leonard Hankerson, Torry Smith, Greg Little, Akeem Ayers and Aldon Smith?

We'll find out later this year. Until then, we're all just giving our best guesstimates.

7. Is the OG position deep enough to wait until Round 5 or later to bolster that spot?

I mean, it's never impossible for a late-round OL - particularly an interior lineman - to emerge from the pack and become a starter. I wouldn't necessarily count on that, though.

8. Dontay Moch: Workout Warrior or biggest sleeper in the draft?

He's fourth in the nation in TFL, so I don't think he's a pure workout warrior. That said, he'll fly up draft boards if he runs in the 4.2 range as he's been reported to hit. In the right scheme, he could become a very good player. The question becomes whether or not the Rams run that scheme.

9. How many QBs will go in the first round (and, more importantly, in first 13 picks)?

Again, as I see it now...

First round, four.

First 13 picks, let's go with three.

10. Who will be the biggest "risers" after teh East-West Shrine Game, Senior Bowl and Combine?

IMO, Cameron Jordan and Jake Locker will probably help their stock a fair amount this offseason. I think the more people see of Jordan, particularly as a fit in the 3-4, the better his stock will do. As for Locker, he had a poor season but I think he'll rise due to intangibles and character as well as raw athletic skill.

[bruce4life]

I would really just like to see the Rams use the BPA approach for their first 2 picks obv other than QB and OT. Every other position could use some depth and or stability

[TheBritishRam]

He's fourth in the nation in TFL, so I don't think he's a pure workout warrior. That said, he'll fly up draft boards if he runs in the 4.2 range as he's been reported to hit. In the right scheme, he could become a very good player. The question becomes whether or not the Rams run that scheme.

A 4.2 forty? Is it too early to call him a Raider?

[lostsoul]

Moch has claimed he ran a 4.08 40