After years of eagerly shipping out future draft picks for short-term production, the Los Angeles Rams were one of the most pick-happy teams in the 2024 NFL draft. They selected ten players in April and added another five UDFAs to their original 53-man roster.

What gives? How did the Rams go from a team that saw their General Manager wear a shirt that said “F**k them picks,” to the Super Bowl parade, to one of the most astute selectors of collegiate talent, based on a strong collection data collection and NCAA scouting? Did they recognize the issue of building a team with big players with expensive contracts? Or was a homegrown approach considered better than adding and losing stars every season or two?

Les Snead discussed the change in philosophy with reporters after the trade deadline, noting that after years of building a team, it was time to turn the page and enter a new era, much like when a collection of seniors all graduate from the university.

“On a macro level, going back to that time, it probably started maybe even before Sean (McVay) got here. There was an element of having core players growing together and in that particular window it was very satisfying when we went to two Super Bowls and won one. I wish we had won two. I wish we had been to more, all that stuff. We can always go through that,” Snead told reporters.

“If you use the analogy of college football, there’s a time when all of a sudden your players become seniors and graduate. Maybe it’s age, they’re getting older and retiring. There’s always going to be, on a macro level, some version of where… hey, you have players who grew up together. They’re at their peak, and then there’s the natural opportunity to kind of restart that as you start a new one, start over and start adding new players. That’s the big picture of what we’ve been through from a 2021 standpoint.”

McVay also discussed the issue ahead of the Rams’ Monday Night Football showdown against the Miami Dolphins, noting that while the strategy has changed, they are still looking to maintain a formula for success.

“We will continue to try to evolve,” McVay told reporters via ESPN. “It’s different from what it looked like a few years ago. It is different from what it looked like in my very first year in 2017, which has allowed us to continue to formulate a lot of good decisions.”

Will this new strategy work? Will the Rams be able to build a team with long-term legs around their young core? Only time will tell, but considering how good Jared Verse has looked for the Rams in 2024, things certainly look promising.