The Los Angeles Rams selected Washington defensive tackle Greg Gaines (fourth round), Wisconsin offensive lineman David Edwards (fifth round), Penn State safety Nick Scott (seventh round) and Texas Tech linebacker Dakota Allen (seventh round) on Day 3 of the 2019 NFL Draft.
They join Taylor Rapp, Darrell Henderson, David Long and Bobby Evans to complete the Rams’ 2019 NFL Draft class, which was full of trades both up and down.
Gaines will help replace the loss of Ndamukong Suh on the defensive line, and it can’t hurt that he will be able to pick the brain of Aaron Donald on a daily basis.
In his four seasons at Washington, Gaines was known more for his ability to clog up run lanes than to rush the passer. He had a total of 149 tackles, 21.5 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks, including 56 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in 2018.
Offensive line was an area of need for the Rams in this draft, and Edwards will provide some versatility with his ability to play both tackle and both guard positions. Los Angeles will need to replace two starting offensive lineman from a year ago, and Edwards and Evans should both get opportunities to battle for those spots during training camp.
Scott was the second safety the Rams drafted this year along with Rapp. He had 113 total tackles, three interceptions, two passes defended and two forced fumbles in four years at Penn State. Getting to learn under veteran Eric Weddle will be a valuable experience for both Rapp and Scott.
Allen, who attended East Mississippi Community College before transferring to Texas Tech, becomes the first player that was featured on the Netflix show ‘Last Chance U’ to be drafted into the NFL. He had 247 total tackles and 17.5 tackles for loss in three seasons for the Red Raiders.
Coming off a year in which they advanced to the Super Bowl, the Rams did not have a ton of needs coming into this draft. Head coach Sean McVay and general manager Les Snead addressed the needs they did have though and the team should be ready to go for the 2019 season.
