Les wriggles out of this one to some extent by getting rid of so many first round picks.
But I think his drafting has improved in the past few years, and that might have to do with his group and the Rams coaches continuing to refine the definition of what they are looking for in the players. Or maybe better effort on finding players who love the game idk. Whatever it is, those high ceiling types who have some iffy elements seem to be avoided for the most part nowadays and damn near every pick is someone that I either like or will like after I look at more of their film. That was not always the case in Les and Sean's early days of drafting together.
Going back 3+ years to get a fair look at the draft hauls... Note that the 2023 Draft looks like an elite haul still to this day, a true masterpiece and Les' best effort in his time with the Rams. And the 2024 Draft might be on par with it, though there's a long way to go and things can change dramatically in a couple more years. So sticking with the older drafts...
2022 Draft
Williams and Lake are starters. Durant has been more a rotational depth type but we'll see what he does this year. Kendrick is similar, like Durant he can fill a role for you. And Yeast rounds out three good rotational types for the depth chart.
Two starters and three good depth players is a hell of a haul in a round 3-7 draft.
2021 Draft
I think this draft was very important to Les and Sean in that something occurred afterwards in their evaluation of players. Simply put they raised the bar after this draft and since this draft we have three hauls of players that seem to be very focused in on players who fit all around, not just in terms of let's say upside in the scheme.
Jones was a starter, though I think the knee killed what was already questionable mobility at the position so he's a between the tackles thumper, i.e. two down backer. Atwell is an upside tease who might have finally put it all together if the separation metrics are to be believed, however I am still waiting on him to actually produce. Brown was a bit of a slug who required someone motivating him to get the game out of him. Skow was a good teams addition and depth rotation player, as well as a decent lead blocker when used for it.
So one starter, a tease, and a couple iffy depth types is what I would consider a rather poor return. Not a fan of this draft.
I'd love to see Jourdan do an interview with Les on this time period and draft and what the Rams did behind the scenes to change their approach. Because I am convinced something significant was achieved in their analysis of how they were drafting and we have been on a roll benefitting from it since.
