Barring an unforeseen trade into the first round, the Los Angeles Rams won't be on the clock until the second round and No. 52 overall pick in this year's NFL Draft.
What kinds of players have been available at that spot in previous years? TheRams.com examines four notable names below.
2016: Falcons outside linebacker Deion Jones
Coming out of LSU, Jones was one of five finalists for the Butkus Award, given annually to college football's top linebacker, and considered one of the 10 most underrated defensive prospects in that year's draft class by NFL Media senior analyst Gil Brandt.
An outside linebacker in college, Jones was named the Falcons' starting middle linebacker as a rookie in 2016 and led the Falcons in total tackles in his first and second NFL seasons. After a foot injury limited him to six games in 2018, he bounced back by finishing as Atlanta's second-leading tackler in 2019. He has 409 combined tackles, 32 pass breakups, nine interceptions (four of which were returned for touchdowns) and two forced fumbles through his first four seasons.
2015: Cardinals nose tackle Jordan Phillips
Former NFL Media draft expert Mike Mayock regarded this Oklahoma product as someone with "first-round ability all over him," but attributed his slide into the second round to character issues. Even so, a second-team All-Big 12 performance in his final season as a Sooner was enough to get the attention of the Dolphins, who used their second round pick on Phillips in 2015.
Released midway through his fourth and final season with the Dolphins in 2018, Phillips was claimed off waivers by the Bills. His 19 combined tackles and three pass breakups made such a strong enough impression on Buffalo during the second half of the season, there was mutual interest in his return to the team and he re-signed on a one-year contract. Phillips responded with career highs in combined tackles (31) and sacks (9.5), subsequently earning a three-year contract with the Cardinals this offseason.
2013: Lions outside linebacker Jamie Collins
A high school quarterback-turned-safety-turned-linebacker, Collins totaled 92 tackles 10 sacks, four forced fumbles, and five pass breakups during his senior season at the University of Southern Mississippi to earn first team All-Conference USA honors and the attention of NFL scouts. The 6-foot-3, 250-pound Collins "presents scouts with surprising agility for his size and the length to be an effective 3-4 backer capable of doing a bit of everything, with untapped potential as a mid-round pick," wrote NFL Media draft analyst Lance Zierlein in 2013.
Coincidentally, the Patriots did not have a first-round pick that year, and spent their highest choice on Collins. In 2015, his third NFL season, he received the seventh-highest overall grade of any linebacker evaluated by Pro Football Focus after collecting 89 combined tackles, six pass breakups, one interception and five forced fumbles in 12 games.
Though New England later traded him to the Cleveland Browns midway through the 2016 season, he returned to the Patriots two and a half seasons later via a one-year contract. Like Phillips, Collins flourished under that prove-it deal, posting career-highs in sacks (7.0), pass breakups (7) and interceptions – including his first-career pick-six – to land a 3-year deal with the Lions and reunite with his former defensive coordinator in Detroit head coach Matt Patricia.
2006: Packers wide receiver Greg Jennings
Jennings had become a household name well before the 2006 draft. During his final collegiate season, he led the nation in receptions with 98 for 1,259 yards and 14 touchdowns to take home the Mid-American Conference's Offensive Player of the Year award. Five months later, the Packers used their second of two second-round picks to select him.
The Western Michigan product became a starter as a rookie and surpassed 900 receiving yards in five of seven seasons in Green Bay, including three consecutive of more than 1,100 from 2008-10. Jennings was also the Packers' leading receiver in each of those three seasons.
Including two seasons with the Vikings and one with the Dolphins, Jennings enjoyed a 10-year NFL career and finished in the top 10 on the Packers' career receptions and receiving yards lists.
