THE NFL DRAFT : No. 5 Pick Could Help Pass Rush : Rams: Team has eye on Miami defensive tackle Russell Maryland. Tennessee offensive tackle Antone Davis and Nebraska linebacker Croel are among other possibilities.
Searching for instant impact on a defense that was down, out and not exactly loaded with pass-rushing talent last season, the Rams have underlined University of Miami defensive tackle Russell Maryland as the player they expect to draft with the No. 5 choice overall in today’s NFL draft.
Unless they trade for Detroit Lion nose tackle Jerry Ball. Or unless Maryland is taken, possibly No. 1 by the Dallas Cowboys. Or unless they take Tennessee offensive tackle Antone Davis. Or unless they trade their top choice for two later picks.
In this year’s volatile draft market, it’s fairly simple: The Rams’ biggest need is a dominant defensive lineman. Maryland is a dominant defensive lineman. Barring late-breaking developments, Maryland should be there for the Rams. Maryland will be the pick, right?
Problem is, late-breaking developments, such as the signing of Raghib (Rocket) Ismail by the Toronto Argonauts, are a draft tradition, and those who are paid to do the evaluating say this year’s crapshoot from top to bottom is the most unpredictable and nerve-racking in maybe 20 years.
So, all that the Rams, who are not used to drafting so high, can do in the 60 minutes allotted the four teams in front of them to make their picks is sit tight, keep their ears open and wait. And hope they do not hear Maryland’s name called before they get to do it themselves.
“If he’s there, then he’s a Ram,” new Ram defensive coordinator Jeff Fisher said. “The question is, will he be there?”
The Rams are plotting other directions to go should Maryland, a hustling, quick but slightly short--he is 6 feet 1--tackle, be selected before their turn.
Facing their most critical draft in years, the Rams shuddered a bit late last week when they heard that the Denver Broncos, picking one slot ahead of them, were thinking of drafting Maryland, the Outland Trophy winner.
Also, the Dallas Cowboys, who Friday traded with New England to get the No. 1 choice, reportedly were interested in Maryland after Ismail went to Canada.
The Rams’ consolation prize could be Davis, a huge offensive tackle and a favorite of Coach John Robinson. Davis, though he has his critics, might anchor the Rams’ aging offensive line for a decade or so. Or if the top four picks are a surprise, Nebraska linebacker Mike Croel could drop through to the Rams.
There’s some Ram sentiment to take Davis--a client of Marvin Demoff, an agent the Rams know they can work with--even if Maryland is available. Right now, the Ram decision-makers are split, with one side emphasizing the deep, instant need for Maryland and another pointing to Davis’ long-range benefits.
“That would be an interesting opportunity,” Robinson said coyly of a decision between Maryland and Davis.
A real possibility if Maryland is gone or if the Rams don’t want to choose between him and Davis, is that the club might stall during its allotted 15 minutes and wait for the best offer to trade down.
Detroit might be interested in giving them Ball for the right to switch first-round positions. The Rams think highly of Ball, a former Pro Bowl player, and rate him as a perfect right tackle for their new 4-3 defensive scheme.
The Lions have the 10th choice overall, and with that pick the Rams probably could still take Louisville defensive tackle Ted Washington or Nebraska cornerback Bruce Pickens, both slightly less than blue-chip prospects but capable of filling starting spots. If the Rams walk out of the first round with both Ball and Pickens, they would have filled two huge needs before brunch was over, with two high spots in the second round to come.
The Rams also could try to move down and get an extra second-round selection, scooping up Washington and perhaps UCLA linebacker Roman Phifer with the new picks.
“There’s always the potential in the draft to trade down,” Robinson said. “If somebody makes you an offer, they’ll make it in that 15-minute period you have; that’s what makes it exciting.”
This is the highest the Rams have drafted since they took Eric Dickerson with the No. 2 pick overall in 1983, which did not turn out half-bad. This is probably also the most important draft since then. The team is still reeling from its 5-11 season and needs to start patching up the bare spots again.
And the spots are most bare on defense.
Although Maryland isn’t the sure-fire talent Dickerson was or an awesome physical specimen like Croel or Davis, he is probably the one player in the draft who can give the Rams quality play immediately.
The Rams want to get three immediate starters out of this draft, and have spotlighted defensive tackle, outside linebacker and cornerback as the positions where they would most like to get those starters.
They don’t have a third-round pick because of the trade with Detroit for Chuck Long, but they have an extra fourth-rounder acquired from the Raiders for running back Greg Bell.
But sitting so high, the Rams’ draft almost surely will be decided by what they do with that No. 1 pick.
“He could step into our starting lineup,” Fisher said of Maryland. “I think the thing that stands out with him is he plays all the time. He hustles all the time and plays. There’s no reason he can’t get 12-14 sacks a year just from hustling, and that’s the thing you’re looking for.”
No Ram defensive lineman came close to 10 sacks last season. Fisher visited with Maryland a few weeks ago and came away impressed with his intelligence and character. By contrast, there have been some rumblings about Davis’ desire to play hard every down.
“At tackle, we might have been concerned about Russell’s size,” Fisher said, “but he’s got enough feel and sense to get him around that. And he’s more than an inch taller than Jerry Ball and maybe a quarter of an inch shorter than Jerome Brown, two Pro Bowl tackles you’re talking about.”
The Rams are a little wary of any perception that they are drafting purely out of need. So, even though they made offensive lineman Bern Brostek their top choice last year, Robinson said that if the best pick is Davis, another offensive lineman, he would have no qualms picking another offensive lineman this year.
“Sure, you’re overbalancing in one area,” Robinson said. “But if you took him, you take him because it’s a man who (could be) a 10-year player.”
And what will the defensive staff do if the choice isn’t a defender?
“Well, we’d have to make do with the guys we’ve got,” Fisher said. “Coach a little harder. From a team standpoint, if Antone Davis is there, maybe we can’t pass him up. Maybe you equate it to a Keith Jackson (the Eagles’ perennial Pro Bowl tight end), a guy who comes out only once every so often. Maybe you just cannot pass up that type of player.
“We’ll just move him over, put him on defense.”
RAM DRAFTS A look at the Rams’ first-round selections in the past five NFL drafts:
Year Player Pos. College 1990 Bern Brostek C Washington 1989 Bill Hawkins DE Miami 1989 Cleveland Gary RB Miami 1988 Gaston Green RB UCLA 1988 Aaron Cox WR Arizona 1987 No selection 1986 Mike Schad OT (Canada)