Los Angeles Rams first-round pick Ty Simpson hasn’t played a snap yet this season. Would a different first-rounder have contributed much more?
The debate over whether or not it was smart of the Rams to take their hopeful quarterback of the future with the 13th-overall pick in a win now year was debated in the heat of the moment and will be debated for years to come, in all likelihood. But if the Rams had gone in a different direction, would they be getting more bang for their buck right now? It’s
not a sure thing they would be.
Wide receivers
Wide receiver was an obvious position of need for L.A. heading into this year’s draft. The Rams waited until the sixth round to take one, selecting C.J. Daniels out of Miami. But with the benefit of hindsight and in the wake of Davante Adams’s injury, it’s even more obvious how badly Los Angeles needed help in that room this offseason.
The Rams didn’t get a shot at the player who’s been the best rookie receiver so far, Carnell Tate, since he went fourth overall to the Tennessee Titans. There were several others who went later in the first round, however.
Makai Lemon was a popular mock draft selection for the Rams, but he’s been less than impressive with the Philadelphia Eagles after being taken with the 20th-overall pick. So far, Lemon has 18 receptions for 127 yards with no touchdowns. That’s just 7.1 yards per reception. Then there’s Omar Cooper Jr., now with the New York Jets, who went 30th overall and, while he’s only played three games, already has 12 catches for 248 yards and two scores.
The best non-Tate receiver in the first round this year, when you factor in production and availability, has been KC Concepcion with the Cleveland Browns, who has 30 receptions for 315 yards so far.
In fact, Concepcion is third in Rookie of the Year odds, according to FanDuel, only trailing Tate and his own teammate, second-round pick Denzel Boston.
First rounders making an impact
Along the offensive line, Vega Ioane of the Baltimore Ravens has been as impactful as nearly any rookie so far this season, though he won’t get the same accolades as skill-position players for obvious reasons.
At tackle, four players were drafted after Simpson: Blake Miller to the Detroit Lions (five starts, coming off a strong Week 7 win), Monroe Freeling to the Carolina Panthers (increased playing time due to injuries), Max Iheanachor to the Pittsburgh Steelers (praised heavily by his head coach on Monday) and Caleb Lomu to the New England Patriots (one start on a poor offensive line).
The Rams haven’t needed a ton of additional help along the line this year. In fact, they’re allowing one of the lowest pressure rates in the NFL, and they’re eighth and fifth, respectively, in ESPN’s pass block and run block win rate stats.
Wide receiver and offensive line help were arguably the two most commonly mocked positions for the Rams in the leadup to the draft. Based on early returns, it’s still reasonably easy to make the argument Los Angeles would be better off right now with one of those aforementioned players than with Simpson sitting and learning.
Of course, the Rams could have gone in a different direction entirely. Tight end Kenyon Sadiq has been decent for the Jets, and taking him early would mean no Max Klare pick in the third round (four games played, zero receptions). Jacob Rodriguez didn’t go until the second round, but the Rams need linebacker help badly and he’s been excellent to start his career with the Miami Dolphins.
We knew Ty Simpson’s presence on the Rams’ roster would be a hot-button topic all year. The performance of a few late first-round rookies isn’t helping the optics of that pick any more as things currently stand.
