The St. Louis Rams got themselves some players last April in the NFL Draft.  Inside linebacker James Laurinaitis was the Rams’ 2nd round pick (#35 overall) out of Ohio State and he had a excellent rookie season.  He played in all 16 games for the Rams last season and he finished up with 120 tackles, 2 sacks, 4 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble, defensed 5 passes and he had 2 interceptions.  He was the best pick the Rams had last season and he will be a building block for the Rams’ D for years to come.  The Rams selected LT Jason Smith out of Baylor in the first round (#2 overall) last April.  He showed well in his limited playing time as he played in 8 games (5 starts) while battling with injuries most of the year.  If he can just stay healthy the Rams have another keeper in him.  3rd rounder (#66 overall) Bradley Fletcher was having a decent year until injury finished it.  The young corner played in 7 games in which he made 23 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and he defensed 1 pass.  The Rams selected DT Darell Scott out of Clemson in the 4th round (#103 overall).  He played in 11 games for the Rams last year and he made 18 tackles including three tackles for a loss.  WR Brooks Foster was taken in the fifth round (#160 overall) for the Rams last April and he didn’t make it onto the field last year for them.  In the 6th round (#196 overall) the Rams selected QB Keith Null out of West Texas A&M.  They wanted to bring him along slow but he was forced into action late in the year when Marc Bulger and Kyle Boller went down to injury.  He played in 4 games for the Rams last season and he completed 73 of 119 passes (61.3%) for 566 yards with 3 TD passes and 9 INTs (49.9 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 5 times for 6 yards (1.2 ypc) last year.  It’s hard to judge Null on his rookie season because he didn’t have much help.  RB Chris Ogbonnaya was the Rams’ last pick in the draft in the 7th round (#211 overall) out of Texas.  He got some P.T. at the end of the year due to injuries at RB for the Rams and he didn’t look too bad.  He played in 2 games for the Rams last season and he carried the ball 11 times for 50 yards (4.5 ypc) and he also caught 1 pass for 19 yards.

GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON:  B-

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  A-

23-year old inside linebacker James Laurinaitis is quite simply the best defensive player on the Rams.  The 2nd round pick out of Ohio State has played in 13 games for the Rams this season and he has 104 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 1 sack, defensed 3 passes and he has 2 interceptions.  Despite the awful season the Rams have had on defense they now have a building block in Laurinaitis. 

The Rams have lost 23-year old CB Brandon Fletcher for the rest of the season as he needs surgery to repair a hyperextended knee.  Fletcher played in all 7 games for the Rams this season and he had 23 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and he defensed 1 pass.  This hurts the depth of the Rams’ secondary.  Fletcher was the teams’ third round pick out of Iowa in last April’s NFL Draft.

Rookie linebacker James Laurinaitis is off to a good start for the Rams.  He is leading the team in tackles with 25 and he has one for a loss.  Sure the team is giving up 148.0 yards rushing per game this season but it’s not the rookie’s fault as he is playing hard.  He has been having to deal with a lot of guards on the second level of the D because the D-Line is not demanding any double teams.  To fight through the blocks maybe Laurinaitis should learn some tricks from his dad who was “Animal” from the wresting tag team World Champion Road Warriors.

The Rams have lost starting tackle Jason Smith for at least 1-2 weeks due to a sprained MCL.  This is a huge blow to the offensive line as Smith was being counted on big time.  Adam Goldberg will start in his place and he has a lot of experience to the Rams are hopeful that he will do a decent job while Smith is out.