Scott Cunningham - Getty Images
6 months ago: ATLANTA, GA - DECEMBER 3: Morris Claiborne #17 of the LSU Tigers returns an interception for a touchdown against the Georgia Bulldogs during the SEC Championship Game at the Georgia Dome on December 3, 2011 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)
The Steelers jumped up to snag Trent Richardson with the last pick we've covered. Now, it's time for the Rams to make their pick. With Kalil and Blackmon gone, options 1A and 1B aren't available. So who does GM Charlie Pankey go for?
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Morris Claiborne, CB, LSU
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Pick Grade:
B+
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The St. Rams will select Morris Claiborne, CB, LSU. Rated as the top player on my Draft Board the Rams are excited to see this player available at #6. He is an electric player that will provide huge upgrades in talent on one corner and provide an exciting return package for the Rams. Look for new Offensive Coordinator Brian Schottenheimer to feature a few offensive packages for this talented player in the coming years. |
Analysis after the jump.
It's a tough call with Blackmon and Kalil gone, but Claiborne is definitely worth the pick. However, I think that the Rams are passing up on prime offensive line talent by going with Claiborne. That isn't to say Claiborne isn't a talent himself, but the Rams have plenty of holes to fill elsewhere.
Of course, with the picks the Rams have, they could move back into the first and select an offensive lineman. Or, if they planned on Claiborne, they could release someone like Ron Bartell, saving valuable cap space that could bring in a free agent.
That is the problem with the Rams. They have so many holes, there are so many possibilities. This may not be my favorite (at this point I'd be on the Reiff bandwagon), but there is no way you can say this doesn't add talent to a team that desperately needs it.
Goodbye sixth pick! If you missed any of the previous picks, or want to see what trades have been made so far, check out the full schedule. If you are GM and would like to see dbcouver's awesome Big Board, go here (hint, it's the second tab at the bottom).
0 recs | 48 comments
YES!!
Love this pick!!
Brick Top - February 17, 2012
+1
great pick.
Josh Wehrle - February 17, 2012
How's the offers coming?
dbcouver - February 17, 2012
we're still too far apart on the bengals
and I told the Browns guy I would do the trade for #4, #37, their 5th rounder, and 2013 first but I haven’t gotten a response yet. The Redskins and Dolphins haven’t contacted me, and I haven’t even seen them since they signed up.
Josh Wehrle - February 17, 2012
I have no clue why everything is center justified
Just the ongoing shitfest of our glorious editing software.
Eric Nagel - February 17, 2012
Have you looked in on the big board and draft tracker yet?
dbcouver - February 17, 2012
Yes, it's awesome
I’ve linked to it at the bottom.
Does that work for you?
Eric Nagel - February 17, 2012
Yeah works greatI didn't see that till now,lol
dbcouver - February 17, 2012
You want me to have a go at centering it? I have no idea why the SBN publishing utility likes some formats, and hates others?
Douglas M - February 17, 2012
sure
even in the HTML, it specifically had:
align=“left”
I don’t get it.
Eric Nagel - February 17, 2012
I have a site that where I build any post that has a chart of any kind
If you’d send me an e-mail to let me know when the next post is in the hopper, I’ll copy it and take to my site and see if I can wraggle it around, then re-enter the fixed piece into your post.
I’m going to take this one and see if I can adjust it now.
Douglas M - February 17, 2012
I don't like it at all....
We have to protect Bradford. That should have been the main objective in the 1st round with either Martin or Reiff
Rcoon1307 - February 17, 2012
Yes,
quartermidget - February 17, 2012
This is a very solid pick I give it an "A" grade
Douglas M - February 17, 2012
I do love Claiborne though...
Just not as pressing of a need as o-line
Rcoon1307 - February 17, 2012
yeah because our oline is going to stop vernon davis and larry fitzgerald
corner is a big time need.
joemammaz - February 17, 2012
And a corner isn't going to stop Bradford from getting PTSD.
Offensive tackle is a big time need.
RAMpage28 - February 17, 2012
the tackle class is deeper then the corner class imo
and you can always had the ball off.
joemammaz - February 17, 2012
Handing the ball off behind Jacob Bell every down isn't a recipe for success.
In the NFL you need to be able to have your QB stand up for more than 1 second so he can get the ball to his receiver. Running the ball every down won’t get you very far no matter how good the running back is. An improvement in the passing game and offense in general is needed and we won’t get a big improvement if we get a run of the mill serviceable tackle. I would prefer we get a tackle with elite potential.
RAMpage28 - February 17, 2012
horrible pick
RAMSALLTHEWAY - February 17, 2012 via mobile
I suppose this a good value pick and this kid certainly has a lot of potential but
I still think we have much bigger holes at other positions.
Buck Nasty87 - February 17, 2012
BPA. but i still rather grab Rieff here.
Tampa_Ram - February 17, 2012
would hate this pick
Not saying he isn’t good but we have some decent corners, we need an offense that can score and we won’t do it by wasting top picks on corners.
Marty McKeown - February 17, 2012 via mobile
+1
Pekka for Predator Pontiff - February 17, 2012
+2
quartermidget - February 17, 2012
Wouldnt mind it but....
O-line and WR needs some help. I know we’ve been killed on CB’s last year but Bradford and Jackson need serious help.
Hopefully finnegan can sign with us?
Paparro8 - February 17, 2012
not enough cap room son
RAMSALLTHEWAY - February 17, 2012 via mobile
there will be enough
once the new FO cuts some dead weight costing millions.
ECURam87 - February 17, 2012 via Android app
If we cut Fred Robbins
it saves 4 million and there isn’t any penalties….
He should be the first one let go with The jasons
RAMSALLTHEWAY - February 17, 2012 via mobile
C Grade
Good selection. Kendall Wright would give a playmaking offensive threat to stretch the defense. Claiborne is an excellent CB, but I think The Rams should address offensive playmakers first.
ValdezY - February 17, 2012
Not a good pick at all
Cb is not our biggest need and right here since Blackmon is gone we would be better served getting Reiff. We have to get either a person to protect Sam or catch the ball for him in the first round. Not a good pick..
RG31 - February 17, 2012
Love it.
If Claiborne is still there, you take him. Sorry, I’ve been burned too many times on the “need pick”.
We needed another bookend tackle to compliment Pace, so we drafted Barron.
We needed a corner, so we took Tye Hill.
We needed a DT, so we took Jimmy Fucking Kennedy. Then Carriker a few years later.
We needed Pace’s replacement, so we drafted Jason Smith.
Whatever the reasons- poor coaching, injuries, blah blah, those guys never panned out and the team suffers today because of those decisions.
With Claiborne, you’re assuring that your team has at least one CB slot locked down for the next 5-7 years. Not to mention, since it appears virtually every one of our current cornerbacks bears a striking similarity to Sam Jackson’s character in “Unbreakable”, you can even classify CB as a position of need; but make no mistake about it- Claiborne is the best player available at this spot.
FailureDrill - February 17, 2012
+1000000
navybluenachos33 - February 17, 2012
Defense! Whoop!
Rather not “reach” for the 2nd rated OT or WR when we can “steal” the best play maker on D in the draft.
Joe Mazzi - February 17, 2012 via mobile
A wise pick long term
As much as the offense needs help, I don’t believe you can pass up on such a talented player at a position where there are the quick and the dead. Also with the health concerns lingering over our current CBs it’s obvious we’ll need to add a legitimate starter. This is a low risk pick that should pay off immediately.
Sure our needs at OL and WR are huge but a sure way to screw up is to by pass superior talent to try and force an inferior prospect just to fill a need.
Sggladden - February 17, 2012
I imagine
that the person who picked this is after BPA. He nailed it in that sense. I disagree with the pick, but their are many teams that have this as their philosophy and have had more success than the Rams. The logic makes sense. If he’s that good, he’ll MAKE room for himself. Being unsure about Bartell (neck/back) and Fletcher (2 ACLS) again makes sense. However, IMO, the defense wasn’t the problem last year. It was the offense. I was actually encouraged by Murphy and Gordy in a completely decimated cb brigade. I think Mikell makes up for a lot of deficiencies.
And we simply have to take care of a franchise quarterback in a qb league. Either with a receiver who can get open, a tackle that can block, or a RB that can be counted on to get a couple yards a pop consistently, which we already have. You can build an offense around that. I’ll be posting an article soon about the 3rd oldest defense.
RamHock - February 17, 2012
Murphy encouraged you when he got hurt during training camp?
I would take Claiborne over Blackmon, but not over Kalil. Great pick
Tevin Broner - February 17, 2012
No
He encouraged me by what he did during training camp. A couple of these guys are going to get healthy. I think he’s one of them. I’ve seen several glowing reports about what he accomplished. To dismiss the depth that Spags built in the secondary is asinine.
If there is any position at all with depth, it’s the secondary. Name a position with greater depth, even assuming that a couple of them will be hurt. Therefore, if you’re bpa, good pick. If you’re thinking about the whole team, IMO, not so much.
RamHock - February 17, 2012
There are legit arguments for this being a good and bad pick
but I think CB will be addressed in FA and the OT position would be addressed here. Claiborne brings a lot to the table since he was a great shut down corner and return man but it would be cheaper to address the CB need in free agency since CB’s don’t cost as much as offensive tackles do and with the rookie wage scale getting a rookie OT here wouldn’t break the bank like Barron or Smith. Our CB situation isn’t bad enough for us to be using top ten picks on it.
RAMpage28 - February 17, 2012
Terrible pick
Rams problems from last season:
1) Run Defense
2) Keeping the QB upright
3) Scoring points
This pick does none of these. Fail, Fail, Fail! You could pick Rieff or elect to trade back further to a team who needs a CB (NE).
81 Witness - February 17, 2012
Or Dallas
and grab Decastro.
jmo53 - February 17, 2012 via Android app
Yep...
This pick sucks, cause we need more early round corners (Tye Hill, Fletcher, Murphy). The track record with them has been so flawless.
PMack1982 - February 17, 2012
Please don't make that mistake
You don’t not draft a player because you’ve busted on them before. It’s the same as saying don’t draft an OT because you’ve busted on them. The fact remains, you have to keep trying until you hit on one. You can’t simply ignore the position because you have a bad record of developing them. Brady in the 6th is the exception, not the rule, and was probably the best pick of the last 50 years.
RamHock - February 17, 2012
No thanks
As far as need goes, there’s little to be said- taking Fletcher off the field is not our problem, and that’s what this does. As far as player value, this guy might be my choice for most overrated. He will probably get some Champ Bailey comparisons given his wiry frame, good quickness, good speed, good hands, but he’s not as smart or technically flawless like some of the best CB’s to come out these passed few years.
I think the offense is where the deficiencies are most prevalent, as well as presenting the most value in this spot. Jonathan Martin, Reilly Reiff, Alshon Jeffrey, Michael Floyd, or even Kendall Wright would be ahead of him on my board. Great for discussion’s sake though :)
kinzav29 - February 17, 2012
Sanuuuu
Hes my favorite in this draft!!
RamTX - February 17, 2012 via mobile
Press Conference for all my loyal fans!
Ok I know being the rookie I should just keep my mouth shut but I think there a lot of great points above so let me put my two cents in on why this pick.
First thanks for those who thought it was a good choice.
As I think about the team I have followed for the past 35 years of my life I have seen us draft maybe a handful of truly talented league changing players. (Dickerson, Pace, Bettis, add your favorite here) If Kaill falls here I take him, but to be honest I don’t think any of the top 3 Tackles in this Draft are Orlando Pace Type players. WR- Russian Roulette would be safer with this class. I don’t look at any of them and see a player that is a game changer. I would prefer we go get a solid FA in the WR spot and trust our new coaching staff to coach up the players we have to the next level. Honestly If Trent Richardson is here I have a hard choice because as much as I love SJ, he is at the end of his rope not the beginning and Richardson I think has a chance to be special in this league.
Claiborne provides us with an exciting multi-dimensional player that can have impact in todays league immediately. I did not discount that our offensive filed position could be dramatically better with his return skills. I predict that there will be special moments in his rookie season where he gets the entire crowd off their butts in STL.
Looking forward o filling more needs later in Draft. Two more picks to play with.
Charlie Pankey - February 17, 2012
This instantly upgrades our special teams too
The kid is dynamic in the return game.
Midasknight - February 17, 2012
And the Rams select.....
Tye Hill. Not saying Mr, LSU is going to be another Hill, but I am wary of this position ever since we picked that guy years ago.
I get it, he is the sexy pick, the BPA kind of mentality. I do think that spending that kind of pick on this position at this point in the draft is way too risky and there are better options out there. No, I am not going to list them, we all know what is still on the board, just look at the link provided in the article.
First, I really think we should be looking at need here. How the hell is drafting a CB this high going to help out our most glaring need which is help on offense?
Second, drafting the LSU product with #6 pushes the envelope and leaves us with the risk of having to go with need vs BPA with the second round picks we got in the trade.
Call me crazy but I would rather spend that 1st round pick on the player that matches the need of the team, then focus on BPA afterwards.
I guess my point is that we don’t need a rookie corner when there are people we could bring in via free agency like Cort, Porter, Carlos Rodgers, and Brent Grimes. Even with the new rookie wage cap we would spend a lot less on signing one of these guys versus signing a CB with a top 10 pick.
Just my opinion.
Love the draft coverage, keep it coming!
papapegasus - February 18, 2012
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