Rams News: LA Considered Trading Into Top 10 for This Year's Draft

The Los Angeles Rams made a solid pick midway through the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, selected former Florida State star defensive end Kyle Verse with the No. 19 pick.

But the team wasn't always committed to drafting that low.

The Athletic's Diana Russini reported ahead of the draft that Los Angeles had indeed considered trading up for a top 10 pick.

Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports that one of those conversations included a possible deal with the Atlanta Falcons, who instead of agreeing to a trade with L.A. made the most inscrutable first round draft pick of the year. The Falcons selected an old-for-college (23) quarterback with the eighth pick, former All-American Washington Huskies, despite having just shelved out a whopping four-year, $180 million (with $100 million of that fully guaranteed) for veteran signal caller Kirk Cousins.

"Early Thursday morning, hours before the start of the first round, Snead made a series of calls," Rodrigue reveals. "He checked with the Atlanta Falcons, who were scheduled to pick at No. 8, as well as teams situated around the Rams’ own pick at No. 19 to see what it might cost to move up or down in the round."

It's fascinating to consider whom the Rams would have gone after with that high a draft pick. Penix's Washington teammate, wide receiver Rome Odunze, was still on the board at the time (he went ninth to the Chicago Bears). Instead, the Rams waited until the sixth round to select a receiver, Jordan Whittington out of Texas.

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