St Louis Rams: Impact of K. Langford Signing on Free Agency and 2012 NFL Draft

According to ESPN, the St. Louis Rams have agreed to terms with defensive tackle/end Kendall Langford, formerly of the Miami Dolphins.

Langford played defensive end last season with the Dolphins due to the fact that they utilized a base 3-4 alignment.

The 26-year-old Langford will likely play almost exclusively at defensive tackle with the Rams, however, in the St. Louis 4-3 alignment.  

Walterfootball.com had Langford rated as the fourth-best free-agent defensive tackle this year, ahead of Jason Jones, who ranked seventh.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Jason Jones, another defensive tackle/end the Rams have pursued, has chosen to take his talents to Seattle:

"Adam Schefter ‏ @AdamSchefter

Former Titans DT Jason Jones agreed to a one-year deal with the Seahawks, according to his agent Mike McCartney.

"

Last night, Pat Kirwan of CBS tweeted that new Rams corner Cortland Finnegan, a teammate of Jones in Tennessee, was optimistic that Jones would eventually join him in the Gateway City:

"Pat Kirwan ‏ @PatKirwanCBS

Cortland Finnegan told me he has great feeling that defensive tackle Jason Jones will join him in Saint Louis.

"

As for Langford, he seems excited about a fresh start with the Rams, according to the following tweet from earlier today:

"Kendall Langford ‏ @KendallLangford

Now it's time to start a new chapter in my life here wit the St. Louis Rams and I'm pretty excited about it!

"

With the signing of Langford, how will the Rams' approach to the 2012 NFL Draft or the NFL Free Agency period be altered, if at all?

As for free agency, the Rams could still look to land another defensive tackle, but after the Jones signing in Seattle, that appears to be greatly reduced.  I expect the Rams to focus more on wide receiver moving forward, for example, rather than DT.

As for the draft, Langford's signing will not make an impact in terms of whether they would consider drafting a defensive tackle altogether (because they could still use talent and depth there), but it might affect the the type and size of a DT that they would be more likely to select.

Langford is a smaller (295 pound), three-technique type of defensive tackle. 

So, who would be some good options in the 2012 NFL Draft to literally fill the bill for the Rams inside? 

After landing Langford, it could make drafting players like Fletcher Cox and Michael Brockers a little less likely, as both of these players (and other prospects of similar size and style) project to be very similar to Langford, in terms of their roles. 

However, players like Dontari Poe, Alameda Ta'amu, Brandon Thompson, Josh Chapman, Hebron Fangupo or Nick Jean-Baptiste will almost certainly be desired just as strongly by St. Louis, even after the addition of Langford, because they are bigger and play different roles. 

These prospects are more one- or two-technique defensive tackles that would complement players like Langford (who play the three-technique).

These aforementioned DTs, such as Poe and Ta'amu, would still be appealing to the Rams, without a doubt, even after landing Langford, because they bring different tools to the table and more size to the interior defensive line of St. Louis.

This would not necessarily preclude the Rams from targeting a Cox or Brockers, however.  Those guys are terrific prospects and many NFL teams insist that they draft according to their board, and will grab the best player available regardless of the circumstances.

That said, the bigger need and better fit would suggest adding a one- or two-technique to complement Langford (such as the aforementioned Poe, Ta'amu, Thompson or Chapman).

I would lean towards expecting St. Louis to add a one- or two-technique to complement Langford in the 2012 NFL Draft. 

Shane Gray covers the St. Louis Rams year-round. You are encouraged to check out the rest of his work here and to follow him on Twitter.