NFL Draft: Why The St. Louis Rams Should Not Draft Glenn Dorsey

Andrew Kneeland by Senior Writer Written on April 25, 2008
Dorsey

I have read many articles on this site, and other sites, that explain why Glenn Dorsey would be a perfect fit for the St. Louis Rams.

They are all wrong.

There is now word out of the Rams camp that they may "vote" on who they draft. Are you kidding me? How ridiculous is that?

St. Louis has a horrible recent record in the draft, and they will very possibly take the wrong player.

They may draft Dorsey, but they shouldn't. 

There are many reasons why I would not draft the defensive tackle out of LSU. Here are a few:


Defensive Scheme

Most NFL teams run the 4-3 defense. Simply put, they have four down linemen and three linebackers in the front seven. If you are unfamiliar with this defensive set, here is a good read.

The Rams ran the 4-3 under defensive coordinator Jim Haslett until late last season, when they experimented with the 3-4. The 3-4 scheme is just the opposite of the 4-3. The 3-4 involves three down linemen and four linebackers in the front seven. Here is a good read on the 3-4 defense.

If Dorsey were drafted, it would force the Rams into an awkward situation. Haslett has been quoted as saying that he wants to move his team to the 3-4 defensive scheme on a more permanent basis. This would be very hard if Glenn Dorsey was on their depth chart.

Injury Risk 

People have been comparing Dorsey to the infamous Courtney Brown.

Brown, the first overall pick in 2000, had a career plagued by injury. Many scouts think that Dorsey could be heading down the same road.

Dorsey played his final two years in LSU while injured, and it was discovered that he has other injuries that no one even knew about. If I were an NFL GM, there is no way I would take Glenn Dorsey in the top five.

Other Needs 

The Rams need help almost across the board. They have a solid quarterback and running back, but their receivers are on the old side. If I were the Ram's GM, I would adopt the Jet's philosophy of old: build from the inside out.

They should focus on the offensive and defensive lines before they focus on the skill positions. After all, a tight end or receiver can be a lot better if they have three more seconds to get open.

St. Louis needs defensive ends. They currently have Leonard Little and Victor Adeyanju filling that position. Some people may argue that Adam Carriker would fill this hole if Dorsey were drafted. Think again.

Carriker was asked to gain 20-25 pounds last year in order to become a defensive tackle. How can they think about asking him to lose those 20-25 pounds the next year? As Walter Cherepinsky of Walterfootball.com puts it:

"Now, they're going to ask him to drop 20-25 pounds despite coming off shoulder surgery? Sounds like a lawsuit waiting to happen."

The Rams also need offensive line help. They could stand for a few wide receivers, but I think they should go with the build inside-out plan.

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written on April 25, 2008 Preview/Prediction

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