{"id":4208,"date":"2025-04-27T12:19:12","date_gmt":"2025-04-27T12:19:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/4208\/"},"modified":"2025-04-27T12:19:12","modified_gmt":"2025-04-27T12:19:12","slug":"why-rams-traded-out-of-nfl-draft-first-round-plus-targets-for-day-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/4208\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Rams traded out of NFL draft first round, plus targets for Day 2"},"content":{"rendered":"

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NFL Draft: Sanders falls out of Round 1, Jags take Travis Hunter at No. 2<\/p>\n

USA TODAY Sports’ Mackenzie Salmon breaks down the biggest storylines from Round 1 of the 2025 NFL Draft.<\/p>\n

Sports Pulse<\/p>\n

The Los Angeles Rams traded their first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft to the Atlanta Falcons.The Rams acquired a 2026 first-round pick, a second-round pick, and a seventh-round pick in the 2025 draft as part of the trade.Rams GM Les Snead indicated the team had multiple trade offers but felt Atlanta’s offer provided the best value.The Rams now have eight remaining picks in the 2025 draft and are expected to focus on defensive needs.<\/p>\n

Editor’s note: Follow 2025 NFL Draft live updates, grades and analysis<\/a>.<\/p>\n

VAN NUYS, Calif. \u2014 Day 1 of the 2025 NFL Draft<\/a> was anticlimactic for the Los Angeles Rams<\/a>. But it was an outcome head coach Sean McVay forecasted.<\/p>\n

The Rams<\/a> traded<\/a> their first-round pick (No. 26) pick and third-round pick (No. 101) to the Atlanta Falcons<\/a> for a 2025 second-round pick (No. 46), a 2025 seventh rounder (No. 242) and a 2026 first-round selection.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a feeling that this was a possibility that this could happen tonight,\u201d McVay said Thursday. \u201cHad a bunch of great dialogue with teams throughout and ended up exactly where we wanted to be. To be able to get a future (first-round pick) is a big deal to just move back 20 spots. The next couple days will be exciting, but feel really good about the way that tonight unfold for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rams general manager Les Snead revealed the team had multiple trade inquiries.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a lot of offers but Atlanta\u2019s value was best for us,\u201d Snead said.<\/p>\n

Atlanta used the 26th pick on Tennessee edge James Pearce Jr<\/a>. The Rams’ trade with the Falcons was one of four deals<\/a> that took place on Day 1.<\/p>\n

How many draft picks do Rams have?<\/p>\n

Entering Day 2, the Rams have eight picks: One in the second round, one in the third, one in the fourth, four in the sixth, one in the seventh.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a draft with great football players in it. It\u2019s a draft that\u2019s got punch and not a lot of wow,\u201d Snead said. \u201cI would predict that in a few years, you look back and a lot of these players that have been picked are going to end up being contributors and successful contributors for NFL teams.\u201d<\/p>\n

The trade provides the Rams some flexibility in what they believe is a deep draft.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cThere’s a lot of appreciation for, let’s just say, your top 100 players, and there’s maybe not as big of a discrepancy between those guys that are in that top 15 to those guys that are maybe in our 85 to 100,\u201d McVay said.<\/p>\n

Rams draft targets<\/p>\n

The Rams could address the defensive side of the football on Day 2. Their pass defense ranked in the bottom half of the league and their defense that gave up 130 rushing yards per game. Saquon Barkley gashed the defense for 460 rushing yards in two games, including the postseason.<\/p>\n

Michigan cornerback Will Johnson, Marshall edge Mike Green, Boston College edge Donovan Ezeiruaku, South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori and Toledo defensive tackle Darius Alexander are some of the top defenders still available entering Day 2.<\/p>\n

The Rams, because of various trades, have only had two first-round picks since 2017. Snead\u2019s famous \u201c(expletive) them picks\u201d strategy doesn\u2019t apply this time around, though, because the club built more draft capital this year and next.<\/p>\n

Snead and the Rams had one of the NFL\u2019s best 2024 draft classes. They had an NFL-high three players \u2014 edge Jared Verse, DE Braden Fiske and WR Jordan Whittington \u2014 named to the PFWA All-Rookie First-Team last season.<\/p>\n

This year, their selection process starts a little later than many anticipated, at least for those outside the Rams draft war room. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon on X\u00a0@TheTylerDragon<\/a>.<\/p>\n