The 2024 NFL Draft is approaching with just over two months before seven rounds of college athletes get welcomed into the professional ranks. The draft takes place on April 25-27, with the first round happening on the 25th. That day, something that hasn’t happened in several years may finally occur: the Los Angeles Rams making a Day 1 selection.
The Rams have not made a first-round selection since they took Jared Goff with the No. 1 overall pick in 2016. They have traded away seven consecutive first-round picks in various trades, including the Goff deal, Jalen Ramsey, Brandin Cooks and Matthew Stafford. They had a first-round pick in 2019, but opted to trade down on the day of and select Taylor Rapp in the second round.
This makes 2024 an intriguing year for the Rams, as the draft order for the first round has been set and L.A. is slated to pick No. 19 overall. The full first round order can be seen here:
The first round of the 2024 @NFL Draft starts on Thursday, April 25, in Detroit!
Take a look at the 2024 first-round draft order: https://t.co/upaBsOo9eR pic.twitter.com/AabHf0s42B
— NFL Football Operations (@NFLFootballOps) February 14, 2024
The No. 19 overall pick has been a relatively good one in recent NFL history. It landed Jeffrey Simmons with the Tennessee Titans in 2019, Leighton Vander Esch with the Dallas Cowboys in 2018, Shaq Lawson with the Buffalo Bills in 2016 and Prince Amukamara with the New York Giants in 2011.
The most recent NFL.com mock draft has the Rams landing Oregon interior offensive lineman Jackson Powers-Johnson with the 19th pick. He is considered the best interior offensive lineman in this draft after five offensive tackles.
The Rams have some other areas of need they could go for with this selection, most of them on the defensive side of the ball. But either way, it feels as though the Rams are shaping up to actually use this draft pick, but of course with head coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead, anything is possible.
Steve Young: Zach Wilson should join Rams
Matthew Stafford has made it clear that he intends on returning next season so there are no questions about who will be the Rams’ starting quarterback. The same can’t be said about the backup quarterback spot, however.
The Rams will have some options to explore for the backup quarterback spot and an intriguing player could be New York Jets quarterback Zach Wilson.
The former BYU star has shown flashes of the talent that made him the second overall pick in 2021 and a Hall of Famer believes joining the Rams could be the best move for him. In an appearance on the Adam Schefter podcast, ESPN analyst Steve Young feels that Wilson going to the Rams under Stafford and Sean McVay would be perfect.
