Rams draft profile (1st round): Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia

ESPN

Todd Gurley, 6'0.5" 222
RB, Georgia

Rankings
NFLDraftScout: #11 player overall, #1 running back. First-round grade.
Nawrocki: #7 player overall, #1 RB guard. Grade: 6.60, sure-fire first rounder who should make an immediate impact.
Mayock: #19 player overall, #2 RB.
Kiper: #10 player overall, #1 RB.
Draft Countdown: #4 player overall, #1 RB. First-round grade.
Sports Illustrated: #16 player overall, #1 RB.
Scouts Inc: #8 player overall, #1 RB. Grade: 92, rare prospect.

Biography/Honors
2014: Voted offensive team MVP. Played in six games, starting five. 123-911 rushing (7.4 ypc) with 9 TDs. 12-57 receiving (4.8 ypc). 4 kickoff returns (44.8 ypr) with a TD. Also threw a 50-yard TD. Second in school history in TDs, rushing yards and all-purpose yards, trailing only Herschel Walker.

Suspended four games for taking over $3,000 for autographed memorabilia.

2013: Second team all-SEC. Started 10 games. 165-989 rushing (6.0 ypc) with 10 TDs. 37-441 receiving (11.9 ypc) with 5 TDs.
2012: All-freshman SEC team and second team all-conference. Started 12 of 14 games. 222-1,385 rushing (6.2 ypc) with 17 TDs. 16-117 receiving (7.3 ypc). 7 kickoff returns (34.7 ypr) with a TD. First true freshman to rush for 1,000 yards since Herschel Walker in 1980.

Academics: Pre-business major. Left school with a year of eligibility remaining
Twitter: @TG3II

Injuries

2014: Tore left ACL in mid-November game against Auburn and missed final three games.
2013: Missed three games due to sprained ankle. Missed parts of two other games with hip and ankle injuries.
  
Combine/Pro Day
No offseason workouts; recovering from ACL injury

Scouting Report
Pluses: Big, strong, physical and explosive. Looks every bit the NFL RB, can run around defenders as easily as he runs over them. Runs through arm tackles, wears down defenses and gets better the more carries he gets. Runs with great balance and has exceptional speed and bend around the corner for a big back. Has alarming speed and acceleration to the edge. Does not go down easy. Has exceptional body control, balance after contact and leg drive. Regularly breaks losses for big gains (he'll have to). Bounces off tackles and throws a mean stiffarm. Finishes his runs and won't run out of bounds. 62% of his yards last season came after initial contact. Has the speed and suddenness to score from anywhere on the field. Doesn't dance; hits the hole hard. Presses the line of scrimmage to set up cutback runs. Gets downhill with good forward lean and knee bend and makes himself small in the hole. Keeps the ball high and tight as a runner and a receiver. Averaged 6.4 yards a carry for his career and fumbled only 3 times in 586 touches. Catches well and is dangerous on screen passes. Soft hands and adjusts to throws well. Makes sharp cuts in the open field. Alert in pass pro. Added value as a kick returner. Said to be ahead of schedule in his injury rehab. ACL clouds his near future, but taking only 40% of snaps 2014-15 means there's plenty of tread on his tires. (Nawrocki) True workhorse back who can carry an offense and has the potential to be a perennial all-pro; a top-five player.

Minuses: Durability has to be questioned. May not be at full health for his rookie season. May not get his original speed back. Takes some heavy hits. Field vision is iffy. Will cut back out of runs when he has a nice gain right in front of him. Can be more elusive in the open field and picking through traffic. Has to run with more patience. Needs to refine hand placement and positioning as a pass protector. The Miami Herald reports that he's at 80%, has not been doing lateral movements and is likely to start his rookie season on the PUP list.

Compares to: Here comes the hype. NFL.com says Marshawn Lynch; Sports Illustrated says Adrian Peterson. I'll throw in Herschel Walker.

Fun Facts
Todd played on three straight North Carolina state football championship teams. He ran hurdles on Georgia's track team and represented team USA at the World Youth Championships in Athletics in France in 2011. He has run the 60-meter hurdles in 8.12 seconds.

RamView
Todd Gurley is the stud RB of this draft and one of the best RBs of the past several drafts. I see a player with every bit the potential to become one of the NFL's elite players. He and Tre Mason should become quite a 1-2 running punch and Gurley restores the Steven Jackson element the Rams have been missing in their backfield. Everything I see about Gurley says he can do it all. He's an excellent value where he was taken and is an outstanding pick. Rams fans can get excited about this pick. It could transform the franchise. One thumb up. The other thumb's down. For a team that's 20-28 in three years under Fisher and Snead, if Gurley's truly unable to contribute until well into the 2015 season, he's a luxury pick for a team with gaping holes in its offensive line and a receiving corps that's still pedestrian. I think this pick has a good chance of becoming a great one, but it wasn't made with winning games in St. Louis in 2015 in mind. Fisher and Snead owe us more urgency than that, and without rushing back another player too soon off an ACL injury and messing up his future, either.

Sources: Georgia Athletics, NFL.com, Wikipedia

Rams first-round pick: Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia.

Let's see... trade away a QB with two blown ACLs, draft a RB YOU DON'T FREAKING NEED with one blown ACL. Well, we're up an ACL.

Where is Gurley going to go with no blockers in front of him? I get that he could very well grade out as the best player on the board, I get he and Tre Mason could form a potent 1-2 punch (Zac who?) but what the hell are the Rams doing taking him? Unless he is trade bait, I really can't make a lot of sense out of this pick.

RUNNING BACK WAS THE RAMS' BIGGEST NEED IN THE DRAFT?

Let me project the rest of this draft.
2nd round, Ameer Abdullah
3rd round, T.J. Yelden
4th round, Cameron Artis-Payne OF AUBURN
6th round, Zack Zenner
7th round, Malcolm Agnew

Can't have enough running backs!

-$-

Last last-minute mock draft

1. Tampa, Jameis Winston
2. Tennessee, Marcus Mariota
3. Jacksonville, Amari Cooper
4. Oakland, Leonard Williams
5. Washington, Kevin White
6. Jets, Todd Gurley
7. Chicago, Trae Waynes
8. Atlanta, Dante Fowler
9. NY Giants, Vic Beasley
10. Rams, Brandon Scherff

Winston and Mariota are my top 2 players at any position. Tennessee has no business going with Mettenberger. Jags need a WR worse than they need defense. Raiders can use the pass rush. With Washington, I'd go with a big WR that I don't think RG3 really has vs. a pass rusher who's not a scheme fit. About the same thing with the Jets. RB's the one place they don't look strong enough. Well, QB, but. Pass defense was a horror show in Chicago last year. Pass rusher for Atlanta, BPA for the Giants plus a possible Robert Quinn-type for new DC Steve Spagnuolo.

I'll get to work on profiles for Scherff and Kevin White, even though neither may ever hit the blog. With the top two QBs and top two WRs gone, the Rams have no business looking anywhere but offensive line. I will cut them some slack on DaVante Parker but would be very surprised. I'll downplay the official confirmation that the Rams did not have a top-30 visit or an on-campus workout with Scherff. He's the best o-lineman in the draft, he's more physical and guard-versatile than Peat or Flowers would be, and the Rams need a lineman. Plus, I think they're close enough to having Barksdale back to not have to worry about taking a pure tackle.

Take a defensive lineman, especially one with a rich history of marijuana transgressions, neither of whom would even be a scheme fit in St. Louis, and let's just say it's going to be a long night here at RamView.

-$-

Last-minute draft thoughts

RamView's going to have to bail on the mock draft this year. After an hour, I still hadn't made it past #6. I'll replace it instead with a bunch of dumb draft night predictions:

1. QBs go 1-2. Yes, that means you, Tennessee. I can't decide if "We want to see what we have in Zach Mettenberger" is the dumbest smokescreen ever or the dumbest offensive plan ever.

2. Most mocks have picks 3 and 4 reversed. I think the Jagwires are hurting a lot more at WR than they are on defense. 32nd in scoring, 31st in passing, their QBs were sacked 71 times, and they don't even have Cecil F. Shorts coming back. They'd better take Amari Cooper or Kevin White if they don't want Julius Thomas triple-teamed every week, or if they want Blake Bortles to outlast Sam Bradford. Derek Carr needs targets in Oakland, but they're pretty old and very unproductive up front on D. Think they'd better pounce on Leonard Williams if he falls to their pick.

3. A big reason my mock draft stalled was because I couldn't figure out defensive scheme fits. Lots of mocks have 4-3 guys like Vic Beasley and Dante Fowler going to 3-4 teams like the Jets and Redskins. Unfortunately for those teams, the best 3-4 pass rushers usually left to them are Randy Gregory and Shane Ray. Let's see if one of them trades down.

4. Chicago could go three or four logical ways with their pick. I'm figuring they take one of the top two WRs. Either would be BPA and fill a need.

That will also save a significant long scream from a few miles east of St. Louis. On NFL Network the last two nights, mock drafters have had Amari Cooper available at #10, then Cooper AND Marcus Mariota available at #10, and projected the Rams to take an offensive lineman. For the record, Winston, Mariota, Cooper or White should trump all needs the Rams have on offensive lines if their "war room" has anyone in it with any brains.

5. Allow me to make one correct prediction... a pass rusher to Atlanta. Next?

6. The Giants are very intriguing at #9. Lots of folks say o-line/Brandon Scherff to them, but I thought their o-line had rounded into shape pretty nicely by the end of last season. Just ask Sack City. Their reputation is that they consistently take the BPA, but would they really take a QB or WR at #9? My sleeper pick there is Trae Waynes; the Rams would have made last December's game a real shootout if they'd had a QB who could throw a decent deep ball. Ram receivers were getting behind that secondary, but Shaun Hill cost them a good 3 TDs.

7. 25% the Rams have a shot at one of the top two WRs, 75% the pick's an offensive lineman, if they stay here. My guess is still that they are close enough to having Barksdale signed that they can plan on having him at RT. I think that rules out Andrus Peat and probably Ereck Flowers. And La'el Collins picked exactly the wrong time to be caught up in a murder investigation. Even though there's no report he visited Rams Park or the Rams worked him out, I'm starting to think I need to whip up a Brandon Scherff profile for tomorrow night.

8. Giving me until Friday night to whip up a profile for Bryce Petty.

All I'll really be trying to do this weekend is get profiles up here for the players the Rams do pick. Enjoy the madness!

-$-

RamView draft profile: Tre Jackson, G, Florida State

Florida State University

Tre Jackson, 6'4" 330
G, Florida State

Rankings
NFLDraftScout: #76 player overall, #4 guard. Second-third round grade.
Nawrocki: #53 player overall, #5 guard. Grade: 5.66, likely second-rounder with immediate starter potential.
Mayock: TBA
Kiper: TBA
Draft Countdown: #84 player overall, #3 guard. 2nd-3rd round grade.
Sports Illustrated: #53 player overall, #3 guard.
Scouts Inc: #66 player overall, #2 guard. Grade: 78, solid prospect.

Biography/Honors
2014: Unanimous first team all-America. First team all-ACC. Senior Bowl South Team MVP. Started all 14 games at right guard. Final season grade was 87.1%, leading FSU linemen. Highest-graded FSU lineman in 12 out of 14 games. Was ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week three times.
2013: First team all-ACC. Started 13 games at right guard. Season grade of 80.2%. FSU ran for 5.6 yards per carry and 42 TDs, averaged over 500 total yards per game and set at least 7 school single-season offensive records.
2012: Second team all-ACC. Started all 14 games at right guard, with 22 knockdown blocks and a season grade of 84.7%.
2011: Appeared in 8 games, mostly on special teams and at guard, starting one. Made first career start at right guard in bowl game vs. Notre Dame and did not allow a pressure or a sack.


Academics: Florida State does not list its football players' majors.
Twitter: @TreJackson54

Injuries

2013: Missed one game due to right ankle injury.
2011: Missed first five games due to groin injury.
2009: Missed entire junior season in high school due to torn left ACL.
  
Combine/Pro Day Stats
(2015 NFL Combine averages for guards in parentheses)

40-yard dash: 5.52 (Tied for 2nd-slowest among guards. Average was 5.36)
10-yard split: 1.88
Vertical: 25" (3rd-worst guard. Average was 27")
Broad: 8'0" (3rd-worst guard. Average was 8'3")
3-cone: DNP (8.00)
Shuttle*: 5.27 (Would have been worst time for a guard at the Combine. Average was 4.79)
Bench*: 20 (Would have tied for last. Average was 26)

* Pro day; Jackson chose to skip these drills at the Combine.

Scouting Report
Pluses: Big, strong, wide body. Exceptional size and very good anchor strength to handle power rushers. Very big hands; controls defenders with very strong grip. Can short set and stop an oncoming rusher cold. Gathers well and can re-establish the line of scrimmage. In pass pro, has powerful punch, good initial quickness and mirrors adequately. Pretty much can't be bull-rushed. Doesn't stand around if not engaged, he looks for somebody to hit. Dominated in 1-on-1 drills at the Senior Bowl. Has the size and strength to excel in a power scheme. Plays with an edge and tries to put the defender on his back. Hard worker and very competitive. Has also worked out at center. No off-field issues.

Minuses: Heavier and shorter-armed than ideal. Needs to lose weight and improve conditioning. Clumsy feet. Best in a phone booth. Not suited for a zone scheme. Does not change directions well in space and doesn't have arm length to make up for it against quicker interior rushers. Athleticism is average at best. Showed better lower-body drive and explosion his junior year. Lets his hands get wide. Tends to stop moving his feet, so he'll lose balance at the point of contact or fail to drive-block to the second level. Slow getting to the second level. Recognizes simple blitzes but struggles with line games and more complicated blitzes. Doesn't recover well when he over-extends.
 
Compares to: Justin Blalock

Fun Facts
Among the other offensive linemen in Seminole history who have been consensus all-Americans: NFL Network's Jamie Dukes, current Raiders center Rodney Hudson, and... wait for it... wait for it... Alex Barron. He was a consensus all-American TWICE.

RamView
Maybe this is why the Rams haven't signed Jason Blalock as has been rumored; they've got a good shot at drafting a similar player in the second round anyway. I much prefer A.J. Cann. It sounds to me like Jackson let his conditioning slip as a senior. He got by because he has the technique and athleticism to make it in the pros, but the team that drafts him is going to have to work him back into shape. Jackson could be the top guard to come from this draft, but only if he gets into elite shape and stay there.

Sources: Florida State Athletics, NFL.com, Wikipedia

RamView draft profile: A.J. Cann, G, South Carolina

CBS Sports

A.J. Cann, 6'3" 313
G, South Carolina

Rankings
NFLDraftScout: #58 player overall, #2 guard. Second-round grade.
Nawrocki: #42 player overall, #3 guard. Grade: 5.75, likely second-rounder with immediate starter potential.
Mayock: TBA
Kiper: TBA
Draft Countdown: #47 player overall, #1 guard. 2nd-3rd round grade.
Sports Illustrated: #51 player overall, #2 guard.
Scouts Inc: #73 player overall, #3 guard. Grade: 77, solid prospect.

Biography/Honors
2014: Second team all-America and second team all-SEC. Team captain. Started all 13 games at left guard. Ranks second in school history with 51 career starts.
2013: Started all 13 games at left guard. Voted permanent team captain.
2012: Started 12 of 13 games at left guard.
2011: Started all 13 games at left guard.
2010: Redshirted. 

Academics: Graduated December 2013 with a degree in African-American studies. Three-time member of the SEC Fall Academic Honor Roll.
Twitter: @AJCann_50

Injuries

2015: Did not play in Senior Bowl due to knee injury. Missed on-field workouts at Combine due to calf injury. Did not complete all drills at pro day due to a hamstring pull during his first 40.
  
Combine/Pro Day Stats
(2015 NFL Combine averages for guards in parentheses)

40-yard dash*: 5.46 (5.36)
10-yard split: n/a
Vertical*: 32.5" (Would have been best by a guard at the Combine. Average was 27")
Broad*: 9'1" (Would have been 2nd-best by a guard at the Combine. Average was 8'3")
3-cone: DNP (8.00)
Shuttle: DNP (4.79)
Bench: 26 (26)

* Pro day; A.J. only benched at the Combine due to a calf injury.

Scouting Report
Pluses: Strong player with strong lower body and natural knee bend. Controls the line of scrimmage. Plays with solid technique and good leverage. Understands leverage and positioning. Keeps his pads low and takes pride in it. Has excellent hand placement. Pins defenders effectively as a down-blocker. Has strength and leverage to drive defenders off the ball, and power and knee bend to absorb bull rushes. Agile enough to get to second level. Anchors well as a pass protector but still shows good agility. Has a strong punch. Had no problem blocking Gabe Wright in Auburn game. Rarely penalized. Four-year SEC starter who also played center in high school and impressed working out at center at his pro day. NFL-ready. Very durable player with great intangibles. A leader on the line and positive influence in the locker room. Smart player and hard worker with no off-field issues. Nawrocki expects him to contribute immediately, lift the play of his teammates and be a 10-year starter in the league.

Minuses: Shorter than ideal and arm length is just average. Best in a phone booth. Lumbers off the snap. Is not explosive off the ball. Could finish his blocks better. Has struggled against power. Is slow out of his stance. Slow laterally and vulnerable to spin moves. Can be late finding defenders on the move. Man-blocker only. Footwork nowhere near good enough to suit him to zone schemes. Needs pass pro refinement. Needs to punch more, lean less and keep his feet underneath him better.
 
Compares to: Larry Warford, Justin Blalock, Ben Grubbs

Fun Facts
A.J. participated in a 10-day mission to Israel after his junior year and taught football. He and teammate Dylan Thompson put on six camps in six days. A.J. played on both lines in high school and was also on the track team.

RamView
Those comparable guards tell us why the Rams have shown interest in Cann. They nearly drafted Larry Warford a couple of years ago and have shown interest in free agent Blalock this year. Cann's scheme fit,  guard/center versatility, proficient run-blocking and impressive character would make him a superb pick for the Rams in the second round, if he's still available at #41.

Sources: South Carolina Athletics, Kansas City Star

Rams 2015 pre-draft visits

updated April 26

Every year NFL teams are allowed to bring up to 30 prospects in the upcoming draft to their facility for face-to-face meetings. April 22nd was the last day for player visits. Here's the a list of players who have made pre-draft visits to Rams Park...

Vic Beasley, DE/OLB, Clemson
Jamon Brown, T, Louisville 
A.J. Cann, G, South Carolina
T.J. Clemmings, T, Pitt
La'el Collins, OL, LSU
Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama
Jamil Douglas, G, Arizona State
Bud Dupree, DE/LB, Kentucky
Cameron Erving, C, Florida State
Ereck Flowers, T, Miami
Dorial Green-Beckham, WR, Mizzou, Oklahoma
Randy Gregory, DE, Nebraska 
D.J. Humphries, T, Florida
Tre Jackson, G, Florida State
Ali Marpet, C/G, Hobart
Bernardrick McKinney, LB, Mississippi State 
Deiontrez Mount, LB, Louisville
DeVante Parker, WR, Louisville
Andrus Peat, T, Stanford
Bryce Petty, QB, Baylor (according to CBSSports.com)
Shane Ray, DE, Mizzou
Laken Tomlinson, G, Duke
Trae Waynes, CB, Michigan State 
Ramik Wilson, LB, Georgia (according to CBSSports.com)

As Jim Thomas noted, of the 24 players confirmed to have made pre-draft visits, a whopping 12 of them are offensive lineman. I would say we can expect the Rams to have a lineman-heavy draft. (As they should, with three gaping holes on the current line.) Very curious by his absence from the list, though, is Iowa lineman Brandon Scherff, who's rated by most as the best offensive lineman prospect in the draft. I'm unaware of a visit by him or a Rams workout at Iowa. Teams can still make campus visits up until the day before the draft. The Rams have made such visits with many QBs: Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota, Brett Hundley, Garrett Grayson, Bryce Petty and Sean Mannion, and also Wisconsin tackle Rob Havenstein and Florida LB Neiron Ball.

Reliable sources say the Rams have interest in TCU LB Paul Dawson, and West Virginia WR Kevin White said in a Sirius XM that he had a St. Louis visit scheduled, but we have no report that either has visited Rams Park.

Again, the Rams have stuck very closely to this guest list on recent draft nights. It's an o-lineman-heavy list, and I'd expect an o-lineman-heavy draft, though I think we can project they won't be afraid to draft a QB, WR, LB or even a DE if the value's right.


Teams are permitted to workout players considered local to their territory prior to the draft, and these players do not count against the 30-visit limit:
Charles Brooks, TE, Kansas, Findlay
Jimmy Hunt, WR, Mizzou
Travis Manning, CB, NW Missouri
MyCole Pruitt, TE, SIU

-$-