SB Nation St. Louis - 2012 NFL Draft: New GM Les Snead Addresses Both Sides Of Ball In First Draft

2012 NFL Supplemental Draft: Time, Schedule, Order And More

2012-07-12T12:00:52Z

The 2012 NFL Supplemental Draft features one major target: Baylor Bears wide receiver Josh Gordon. Gordon was a teammate of first round picks Robert Griffin III and Kendall Wright, and may be tabbed with a mid-round pick in the supplemental draft. The Rams, who selected WR Brian Quick in the second round of the the 2012 (regular) Draft, are unlikely to blow a pick on Gordon, but there is a host of other players who may get selected in the later rounds.

The supplemental draft doesn't work like the NFL's regular draft, though. Instead, it's a lottery of sorts. Every team in the NFL is grouped into one of three tiers: teams that won six or fewer games, teams that won more than six games but missed the playoffs and teams that made the playoffs. From there, the teams are ordered within each tier via a lottery system, with teams with worse records having a greater chance of getting a higher pick.

Teams then may enter electronic bids for players, and a team that submits the highest bid for a player is awarded that player. Ties are broken first via the tier system, and then by the order determined via lottery if two teams in the same tier enter an identical bid for a player. If a team is awarded a player, they lose that corresponding pick in the 2013 draft.

The groupings for this year's lottery, in increasing number of wins, are as follows:

Group 1 - Indianapolis Colts, St. Louis Rams, Minnesota Vikings, Cleveland Browns, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Redskins, Jacksonville Jaguars, Miami Dolphins, Carolina Panthers, and Buffalo Bills
Group 2 - Kansas City Chiefs, Seattle Seahawks, Arizona Cardinals, Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles,New York Jets, Oakland Raiders, San Diego Chargers, Chicago Bears, and Tennessee Titans
Group 3 - Cincinnati Bengals, Atlanta Falcons, Detroit Lions, Pittsburgh Steelers, Denver Broncos,Houston Texans, New Orleans Saints, Green Bay Packers, Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco 49ers, New England Patriots, and New York Giants

Draft date: Thursday, January 11

Draft time: 12 p.m. CT

For more on the 2012 NFL Draft, visit SB Nation St. Louis' NFL Draft StoryStream. For more in-depth coverage of the Rams' 2012 draft haul, head over to Turf Show Times. For league-wide coverage of the NFL Draft, visit SB Nation's NFL news hub and Mocking The Draft.

NFL Draft Grades: Isaiah Pead Could Save St. Louis Rams' Next Draft, Too

2012-05-04T12:30:13Z

Granted: I spent nearly all of the 2012 NFL Draft season begging the St. Louis Rams not to take Trent Richardson because I think all running backs are overrated. You my not, then, trust my NFL Draft grades, especially as they relate to Isaiah Pead, the running back the Rams eventually did take with the last of their second-round picks. But hey: Pead could save the Rams a pick when Steven Jackson finally slows down, and if he does that then the Rams' draft grade is a solid A from me, at least.

Here's how it could happen: Isaiah Pead needs to have a solid rookie season as Steven Jackson's change-up and Sam Bradford's safety valve. He needs to keep doing that as Steven Jackson declines. Then: The Rams need to not feel the need to spend a first-round draft pick on a running back who won't make nearly as many carries as Jeff Fisher or anyone else thinks he will, because they're satisfied with Pead's performance to date. Voila! Instant A+ from your local running back hater and NFL Draft grader.

More NFL Draft 2012 coverage from SB Nation St. Louis:

Here's a complete look at the St. Louis Rams' draft, with a rundown of the results and links to all our other coverage.
The current talk of the Rams rumor mill is the idea that Isaiah Pead is already their running back of the future.
Here's a look at our quick-and-easy St. Louis Rams draft grades.

St. Louis Rams DT Michael Brockers Gets A Detailed Scouting Report From Turf Show Times

2012-05-03T16:31:51Z

The St. Louis Rams selected defensive tackle Michael Brockers of the LSU Tigers with the No. 14 overall pick in the 2012 NFL Draft, and he will be expected to anchor the interior of defensive line very early on in his NFL career. With an eye towards this upcoming season, an intrepid reader from SB Nation's Turf Show Times broke down Brockers' performance against the Alabama Crimson Tide from the BCS National Championship Game in painstaking detail to see exactly what Rams fans can expect from their first-round pick.

In the biggest game of LSU's season and up against a respected Alabama offensive line, Brockers did a wonderful job disrupting blocking schemes in the running game, but one thing the reader noticed is that their new DT failed to attack the quarterback with consistent effort on passing plays and struggled to collapse the pocket on drop backs. For a terrific look at the strengths and weaknesses of Brockers and some videos to back up the analysis, be sure to check out the full post at Turf Show Times.

NFL Power Rankings: Rams Still With Lots Of Ground To Gain

2012-05-02T14:34:53Z

In the lead up to the last season, the St. Louis Rams were the favorites in Las Vegas to win the NFC West. As we start looking forward to the 2012 season, the expectations surrounding Jeff Fisher's team are slightly more tempered. The Rams, many hope, will be better than they were last season, but they were still one of the absolute worst teams in the NFL, and that isn't overcome easily.

In his post-draft NFL power rankings, SB Nation's Joel Thorman ranks the Rams at No. 30, aka the third worst team in football, ahead of only the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Cleveland Browns. Thorman notes that the Rams have a theoretically bright future between this year's draft and all of the picks they have stockpiled, but it likely won't translate into a significant amount of wins next season.

For more on the 2012 NFL Draft, visit SB Nation St. Louis' NFL Draft StoryStream. For a complete list of 2012 NFL Draft results, visit SBNation.com. For even more comprehensive coverage of the NFL Draft, visit Mocking The Draft.

2013 NFL Mock Draft: St. Louis Rams Will Still Need Offensive Line Help

2012-05-02T14:01:32Z

The existence of so much 2013 NFL Mock Draft analysis already, way back here in 2012, suggests that something about this year's NFL draft season must have left a particularly strong hangover. For St. Louis Rams fans and starting quarterbacks I can offer one suggestion, at least: The Rams, as solid as Les Snead's first draft was for Jeff Fisher, didn't really address the offensive line.

Lucky for the Rams, they'll have a few options with which to address that in the first round of the 2013 draft. Mock drafters have already connected them to D.J. Fluker; Texas A&M's Jake Matthews, LSU's Chris Faulk, Florida's Jelani Jenkins, and Alabama's Barrett Jones are all possible first-rounders at this early juncture as well.

And don't forget: The Rams have two first-round draft picks next year. You can thank the Washington Redskins for that.

More NFL Draft coverage from SB Nation St. Louis:

Here's a handy list of the St. Louis Rams' draft results, with scouting reports and analysis just a click or two away.
Here's a very overgeneralized 2013 NFL Mock Draft designed specifically for Rams fans who want to begin complaining already.

NFL Draft Results Podcast: SB Nation St. Louis, SpreeGoogs Mock The (Seahawks') Draft

2012-05-02T12:15:04Z

The 2012 NFL Draft results are in, the mock draft season is mostly behind us—all that's left to do while we wait for Michael Brockers and company to report to training camp is talk about the NFL Draft results. That's why I sat down with Adam Bonefeste and Frank Bouch of noted sports and 90s-TV-focused blog SpreeGoogs to talk through every pick in the 2012 draft's wild first round. Here's the first half of the fruits of our labor.

SB Nation St. Louis and SpreeGoogs Present: A 2012 NFL Draft Mockery Podcast

In addition to mocking Bruce Irvin we talk about the Rams' major draft picks, from Brockers to Janoris Jenkins, and wonder whether the Rams will be disappointed, down the line, about failing to select both Justin Blackmon and Michael Floyd. Also there's a cameo from Zack Morris.

Here's more handpicked NFL Draft 2012 coverage from SB Nation St. Louis:

Here's a complete look at the St. Louis Rams' draft results, complete with scouting reports and further links.
Meanwhile, the Rams' draft grades were complicated by the Michael Brockers selection.
But I don't know, I'm at least vaguely excited about it.

NFL Draft Grades 2012: Janoris Jenkins Shows St. Louis Rams' Risky Side

2012-05-02T12:01:18Z

Over at Rams Herd, a concise examination of the two picks most likely to influence the St. Louis Rams' 2012 NFL Draft grades: Janoris Jenkins and Trumaine Johnson, the two high-risk cornerbacks the Rams selected, making a symbolic break with Steve Spagnuolo's "Four Pillars" theory of team conduct in favor of lots of upside. If there's one thing NFL Draft grade writers like, it's upside—it has the chance to make them look brilliant in two years, and by then, if it hasn't made them look brilliant, nobody remembers.

Jenkins, at least, should pay off or cash out pretty soon. His problem isn't performance-related, and if Jeff Fisher and the Rams can keep him on the field they could have two top-of-the-line cornerbacks a year after sporting the worst secondary I've ever seen. Just that—even if Johnson, the other character-issues type, busts—would be enough for me to give this particular draft risk a high A.

More NFL Draft 2012 coverage from SB Nation St. Louis:

Here's a look at the St. Louis Rams' draft results, featuring links out to all the draft coverage we produced on the Rams' newest players.
And here, if you're interested, is the inevitable template for any St. Louis Rams-based 2013 NFL Mock Draft.

St. Louis Rams Draft Grades: Michael Brockers Divides NFL Draft Experts

2012-05-01T13:30:08Z

The St. Louis Rams's NFL Draft grades for 2012 have, so far, been mostly positive, but there's a lot of variance in how experts see their No. 1 overall pick, Michael Brockers. ESPN's Todd McShay focused on Janoris Jenkins when he reviewed their draft; SB Nation Studios didn't like the Rams' constant trading down, which led to Brockers, and Mel Kiper's response could best be described as ambivalent.

But: Sports Illustrated appeared to be a fan, and SB Nation proper gave the Rams an A, suggesting that the Michael Brockers pick completes a defensive line that was already looking strong. As a Rams fan, I have to say it is kind of nice to look at a unit besides "starting running back" and think, "Well, that looks about right for 10 or 11 wins." It's been a while since I've had the chance, and Brockers, with Robert Quinn and Chris Long, makes me think I'll feel that way for a while yet.

For more NFL Draft 2012 coverage, take a look at our complete 2012 St. Louis Rams draft results feature, with links to all our coverage.