Rams Provide Outlook at 2026 First Round Draft Strategy

The Los Angeles Rams have a vision for how they will tackle what could be the franchise's biggest draft ever

Jul 23, 2025; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead watches during training camp at Loyola Marymount University. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

WOODLAND HILLS, Ca. Historically, especially in the Sean McVay era, Rams general manager Les Snead has not had access to one first round pick, let alone two because he was trading them for big time players. From 2017-2023, the Rams did not make a single first round pick before selecting Jared Verse in 2024. In 2025, the Rams made a trade with Atlanta that would move them out of the first round, giving them an extra pick this year.

Snead has had two first round selections twice but that was with Jeff Fisher and those situations occurred over a decade ago. On top of that, the picks (expect for one) ended up not working out in the long-term.

In 2013, Snead selected Tavon Austin and Alex Ogletree. In 2014, Snead selected Greg Robinson and Aaron Donald. Donald was the only player to live up to his potential and remain with the team for more than five seasons.

Snead Entered Uncharted Waters

In 2025, things are different. There's a genuine culture in Los Angeles under Sean McVay and the team actually knows what success tastes like.

Jan 25, 2026; Seattle, WA, USA; Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay walks on field after the 2026 NFC Championship Game against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Ng-Imagn Images | Kevin Ng-Imagn Images

Thus, Snead spoke on how he'll prioritize his top picks without sacrificing the preparation that have made the Rams the kings at plucking day three and undrafted talent.

“You don't want to do anything so different that now having success in the day three, some of those later picks somehow that process suffers," stated Snead. "What we did change a little bit is once we knew right about where we were going to be picking, there was a group of us that really got in the lab and said let's focus on the players that we subjectively think would be in play at what ended up being pick 13. Long story short, you can definitely go, ‘We need 13 players that we would pick at 13.’ Again, that's subjective. It's not going to be right. It's not going to be league wide."

Dec 22, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Los Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead watches his team warm up before a game against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

"Each team's different. Once we did know right about where we were going to be picking, a group of us went in the lab and said, ‘Let's make sure we get 13 solved to the 90, to the 95% place in terms of prep. That way we can spend these next few months really doing what we normally do. Now we just have to get Sean and his coaches up to speed. What we'll be able to do is let's tackle this, let's call it threefold. Let's tackle 13 first because that's a little bit more strategic. Then let's go the second pick in the first round, that's a little bit harder because you can't just go, ‘Oh, let's have 30 or so players.’ Then we'll focus on that on those day two and day three picks like we normally do.”

While Snead has his plan in place, don't be surprised if the NFL's ultimate deal maker orchestrates another bombshell move.

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