The Los Angeles Rams’ draft history is littered with success stories and failures over the past 50 years. USA Today Sports’ Nate Davis went back in time to compile the biggest draft busts over that span, and only found two Rams players who he’d deem as failures at the their respective picks — and one collection of players from a major trade.
The only players to make the list were running back Lawrence Phillips and quarterback Sam Brandon, who were on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of their rank on the list. The trade compensation, meanwhile, was from the Robert Griffin III trade from 2012 that didn’t really help the Rams in the long-run.
Here are the biggest Rams busts from the past 50 drafts, stacked up against the rest of the NFL.
No. 6: RB Lawrence Phillips, 6th overall in 1996
Bad player. Bad dude. And St. Louis should have known better. The Rams parted with DT Sean Gilbert to acquire the Phillips pick – Eddie George was still available – and they exported Jerome Bettis to Pittsburgh in a separate deal to clear the way for Nebraska’s fallen star. Phillips averaged 3.4 yards per carry and didn’t make it through his second season with the Rams, cut amid excessive in-season drinking.
No. 9a: Rams’ haul for Robert Griffin III in 2012
On the opposite end of the RG3 coin? St. Louis parlayed its bounty into Michael Brockers, Janoris Jenkins, Isaiah Pead, Rokevious Watkins, Alec Ogletree, Stedman Bailey, Zac Stacy and Greg Robinson. Some decent (and not-so-decent) players there, but obviously not a group that came anywhere close to salvaging the NFL in The Gateway City, much less providing the bedrock for a perennial powerhouse.
No. 30: QB Sam Bradford, 1st overall in 2010
He certainly wasn’t a bad player, and many forget he was Offensive Rookie of the Year. But his injury history at Oklahoma was predictive. The six players selected after Bradford? Ndamukong Suh, Gerald McCoy, Trent Williams, Eric Berry, Russell Okung and Joe Haden, with Earl Thomas off the board at No. 14. Bradford later cost Minnesota a first- and fourth-rounder in 2016 to replace Teddy Bridgewater but didn’t get the Vikings to the postseason and lost his job to Case Keenum the next year. Bradford never appeared in a playoff game.
The crux of all three entries are more about who the Rams didn’t pick with the selection they had. The Rams needed a running back in 1996, but ended up with a player who had a litany of off-field issues. In 2012, the Rams didn’t capitalize on a massive trade. And in 2010, the Rams ended up with a short-lived franchise quarterback when they could have added generational talent at different positions.
While the Rams lived in mediocrity for a few years in the early 2010s, L.A. has since turned into a juggernaut thanks to the draft prowess of Sean McVay and Les Snead. They’ll look to continue that trend in 2026.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams have 3 entries in all-time draft busts list since 1975
Reporting by Oliver G., Rams Wire / Rams Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
