The 2026 NFL Draft is here, and it got me thinking about past NFL Drafts including the 2016 NFL Draft when Jared Goff was taken by the Los Angeles Rams first overall. A few picks later, and Jalen Ramsey (Super Bowl Champion with the Rams) would be selected by the Jacksonville Jagurs with the 5th overall pick.
At the time, no one likely thought that Goff would Ramsey would be teammates at the NFL level, but that’s exaclty what happened, and both players were instrumental to what the Rams are today.
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The Rams planned to grab Goff as he was taken at number one after L.A. worked out a MASSIVE trade with the Tennesee Titans to move up and grab the one-time rookie quarterback. In his first year, Goff struggled, but to be fair, the entire organization was underperformaning under head coach Jeff Fisher.
In Year 2, the Rams hired Sean McVay, and Goff ascended. In his Year 3, Goff led L.A. to a Super Bowl. Year-3 of Goff with the Rams may have been their best year together, as Goff never made it back to another Super Bowl with L.A., leading Goff to be sent off to the Detroit Lions in 2021. In return, the Rams received Matthew Stafford, and went on to win the Super Bowl that same season, with Ramsey who at that time had been traded to the Rams (a bit more on that later).
If the Rams don’t draft Goff, then they likely do not trade for Stafford, and McVay and Les Snead could still be on the hunt for their first Lombardi Trophy as opposed to their second.
For Ramsey, he of course spent time with the Jaguars after being selected by them, and he made an NFC Championship with the Jags and Blake Bortles (another future L.A. Ram) at the helm before wanting out of Jacksonville experience.
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The Rams once again made a MASSIVE move (similar to when they traded up for Goff back in 2016), but instead of a quarterback, they added a cornerback in Ramsey.
Ramsey basically came in and replaced two defensive backs in Aqib Talib and Marcus Peters. The veteran showed he was a shutdown corner who could often take away one side of the field more often than not, even in the modern passing era of the NFL. He could tackle, he could blitz, he was the whole package for L.A. The Rams got the most out of him during his time with the team. as Ramsey solidified himself to be almost as important to L.A.’s defense as Aaron Donald.
As stated above, Ramsey was still be on the team after the Rams sent Goff to the Lions for Stafford, and he was integral to their 2021 Super Bowl run.
Will either Goff or Ramsey be a Hall of Fame player? I would think Ramsey has a better chance, but I am not sure he is a lock. Either way, a decade ago two players were drafted in the top-10, both ended up being Rams, one went on to win a Super Bowl with L.A., and both are still in the league today.
A new top-10 will be selected tonight, and their own history will be theirs to make, as Goff and Ramsey continue to make theirs at the NFL level.
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