Why the St. Louis Rams Must Draft Dorial Green-Beckham

The "Greatest Show on Turf" featured one of the most potent passing attacks in football history, but the St. Louis Rams have been inept in that department ever since. The addition of a potentially elite wide receiver, such as Dorial Green-Beckham, could help the franchise rekindle that lost aerial excitement.

The attack was fueled by two great receivers—Isaac Bruce and Torry Holt—and the drop-off was enormous after both players exited their prime years.

Between 1999 and 2006—which extends slightly beyond the "Greatest Show on Turf Era"—the Rams averaged 270.4 yards per game on average. During that stretch, the Rams never finished below fifth in the NFL in passing, and the team finished with the No. 1 passing offense for three consecutive seasons from 1999 and 2001.

Since 2007, the Rams have averaged just 195.9 passing yards per game, and St. Louis' passing offense has finished no higher than 18th (2012).

Other factors have certainly contributed to the decline, but the lack of talent at the receiver position has been one of the major setbacks. In fact, if you look at the top 10 passing offenses of 2014, all of them possess at least one receiver who can be considered top-tier (other than Keenan Allen of San Diego, who had an off year and played in less than 14 full games):

1. Indianapolis Colts: T.Y. Hilton (82 Catches, 1,345 Yards)
2. Pittsburgh Steelers: Antonio Brown (129 Catches, 1,698 Yards)
3. New Orleans Saints: Jimmy Graham (85 Catches, 889 Yards), Kenny Stills (63 Catches, 931 Yards)
4. Denver Broncos: Demaryius Thomas (111 Catches, 1,619 Yards)
5. Atlanta Falcons: Julio Jones (104 Catches, 1,593 Yards)
6. Philadelphia Eagles: Jeremy Maclin (85 Catches, 1,318 Yards)
7. New York Giants: Odell Beckham Jr. (91 Catches, 1,305 Yards)
8. Green Bay Packers: Jordy Nelson (98 Catches, 1,519 Yards)
9. New England Patriots: Rob Gronkowski (82 Catches, 1,124 Yards)
10. San Diego Chargers: Keenan Allen (77 Catches, 782 Yards)

Also, the elite quarterbacks of this league—Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Andrew Luck—all have at least one of the above receivers to throw to.

Top-notch quarterback play certainly makes receivers look better than they actually are, but it can be the other way around as well. Good receivers can make a middle-of-the-pack passer become a top-10 NFL quarterback.

Sam Bradford can elevate his receivers to a degree. Both Danny Amendola and Brandon Gibson were solid contributors in St. Louis, but both receivers have declined since leaving the team. However, Bradford is incapable of elevating receivers the way Manning, Brady, Rodgers and Brees can.

If the Rams can move on from mediocrity and provide Bradford with a truly remarkable talent at the receiver position, such as Green-Beckham, the passing offense will surely flourish in a way we haven't seen since Holt and Bruce were wearing the horns.

Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press

Dorial Green-Beckham: Is His All-Pro Talent Worth the Gamble?

With Green-Beckham, the talent is hardly the biggest concern. He's impressive on the field, and no one denies that—at least, not anyone who's seen him play or knows anything about him.

It's the off-field troubles that will make teams reluctant and send Green-Beckham's draft stock into limbo. The legal concerns are both numerous and troubling.

It started off with a 2012 arrest for marijuana that resulted in a one-game suspension for Green-Beckham while with the University of Missouri, according to The Associated Press' Alan Scher Zagier (h/t The Huffington Post). Then, in 2014, Green-Beckham was arrested for another incident related to marijuana, according to USA Today, but he claimed the drugs did not belong to him, and he hasn't been charged.

Concerns with marijuana are common enough and considered minor in some cases, but Green-Beckham's final alleged off-the-field meltdown in 2014 ultimately ended his NCAA career.

According to The Associated Press (via ESPN.com), an alleged heated confrontation between Green-Beckham and his girlfriend reportedly ended with him injuring a female (a friend of the girlfriend) by giving her a two-handed shove down several stairs.

Green-Beckham was dismissed from Mizzou following the alleged incident, though no arrest was made and he wasn't charged. He transferred to Oklahoma for the 2014 season, but the NCAA never allowed him to play a down.

Given the NFL's issues with domestic abuse, the reported incident between him and his girlfriend will raise red flags and rightfully so.

Even so, some NFL team is going to overlook the off-field concerns and take a gamble on him. The Rams will have to carefully consider their options and decide if they should be that team.

While it's important for teams to take moral stands and keep things in perspective, we must also remind ourselves that this is a league of redemption and second chances. Just ask Michael Vick, Ray Lewis, Tyrann Mathieu and countless others.

Though Green-Beckham has only been found guilty of trespassing (related to his first arrest on suspicion of marijuana possession), a lot will depend on his predraft interview with Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead. If they determine that Green-Beckham won't have any more off-field problems, then he deserves to be on the team's draft board.

After all, Fisher has a reputation for controlling questionable characters and getting them on the proper track.

The team drafted Janoris Jenkins in the second round of 2012, and his draft stock suffered from his own marijuana concerns. Since then, Jenkins has been a professional and hasn't caused any problems off the field. The Rams took a similar risk with Kenny Britt in free agency, and not only has Britt excelled, but he has developed into a team leader.

Green-Beckham is from Missouri. Keeping him in-state with his family and support system intact, while remaining under Fisher's watchful eye, could reignite his career in a big way.

John Bazemore/Associated Press

As for his contributions on the field, there's no question that drafting Green-Beckham will immediately pay dividends, as long as he keeps his head straight. He's the rare, elite talent the Rams have been trying to pair up with Bradford for years.

It's still hard to say where the Rams should target him in the draft. There are two likely scenarios that could have Green-Beckham wearing horns:

1. If the elite and obvious selections at No. 10 overall—Marcus Mariota, Jameis Winston, Amari Cooper—are all unavailable, it wouldn't be hard to argue that Green-Beckham is the best overall player at No. 10.

2. If Green-Beckham's stock suffers and he slips to the back end of the first round, it would not be unwise for St. Louis to trade back into the first and grab him.

Green-Beckham will have to blow teams away at the combine (not just on the field, but in the interviews as well). If that happens, he's a legitimate first-round pick and will likely be viewed as one of the best pure receiver prospects since A.J. Green and Julio Jones.

If the Rams snag a receiver of that caliber, the aerial drought we've witnessed since the end of the "Greatest Show on Turf" could come to a sudden end.

Steven Gerwel is the longest-tenured Rams Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report and serves as the Rams' game-day correspondent. You can find more of Gerwel's work by visiting his writer profile or by following him on Twitter.