In case no one here heard, Adam Carriker just got traded.  He was traded from the Rams to the Redskins.  the trade was the teams would switch draft picks in the 5th and 7th rounds.  So, the Redskins got a guy who might fit a 3-4 defense better for almost nothing.  (as a sidenote, it is interesting to see how Shanahan is forming this team this offseason).

So, what does this mean for the draft?  I think it could mean that Suh has a better chance at going #1 overall.  There was talk for a while about Ndamukong Suh going to the St. Louis Rams. The talk died down and it seemed as though they were enamored with Bradford as a QB.  Last couple weeks, even though Bradford was considered pretty much a lock, it didn't seem like they were as enamored with him as was first thought.  Still, there were some legitimate arguments against drafting Suh, such as:

-The Rams had recently drafted Adam Carriker.  Adam Carriker is payed first round money at the DT position.  Usually you don;t want to pay 2 people at that position that kind of money.

-The Bigger need May be at Quarterback.  You don't want to pass again on a possible Franchise QB.  You did it last year with Matthew Stafford and Mark Sanchez. 

-DTs do not always make as big of a splash as a QB.  If Suh lives up to the hype, that is good.  If he doesn't, then from his production, he may not be worth the #1 overall pick.  While there is not a salary cap this season, there will likely be one in the future and you do not want to gamble large amounts of future money away on a guy who even if he reaches his ceiling, will not win 4-5 games for you on his own like an elite Quarterback will.

However, with the trade of Carriker, this could be a move to free up money at the position (when the cap comes back) and make room for Suh. These are some of the reasons that they might go after Suh.

-By many scouts Suh is rated as the most talented player by far in this draft.  Yes, DTs don't always hit but Suh may be that once in a generation DT like a Warren Sapp that teams will look back on and regret passing on.  Suh really has all the skills and does everything asked for from a DT; Stop the run, Rush the Passer effectively, and impacts the game in a big way.

-The St. Louis Rams had one of the worst Run Defenses last year.  They really couldn't stop anybody from running the ball really, and they faced some of the worst running teams including Indy and Seattle.  They Ranked 27th in Yards per game and last in the league in Touchdowns allowed.  They were 30th in percentage of Rushes for a first down with 25.4.  Plain and simple, their run defense inhibited them from making stops and from stopping teams from scoring.

-They do not have Legitimate talent on the inside and no one who can truly Dominate.  When you look at their D-Tackles last year, you see a lot of average NFL players.  You see no one who was drafted in the top 100 of the NFL; a lot of young players who as starters, are really marginal.  They really need Talent and pass rushing ability inside..  They did add Fred Robbins, but he had a very subpar 2009 is now 33, and is a stop-gap player at best.

-St. Louis needs a guy who is a threat to rush the Passer.  Ndamukong Suh has shown consistency all throughout college.  He has shown he can rush the passer and put pressure on the QB in the backfield.  The Rams have 2 solid Ends in Chris Long and Leonard Little.  Little may only have one or 2 more seasons at this level though.  A guy like Suh on the inside can make both of their lives easier.  If Suh can dominate and rush the passer effectively from the inside, it lets Long and Little rush the passer more freely now that the defense also has to focus inside.

-They are not ready to win now and Jason Smith still might not be all the way there in his development as a solid LT. The Rams got their Left Tackle of the future in last years draft.  However, he has played almost extensively at Right Tackle.  He is coming along as a player but his technique might not be all the way there to be anything more than an average Left Tackle at this point.  The rams may think that it is better to get their QB of the future when Jason Smith improves to the point where he is more than average.  They are not yet a good blocking team, especially in the passing game and would not want to expose a Sam Bradford or Jimmy Clausen to a Tim Couch-like first year experience.  

-They do not NEED to take an elite Quarterback out of this draft and have him start right away.  They need a QB but not to the point where taking one high is "necessary". Bulger isn't a long term option but isn't terrible. They also got AJ Feeley, who is a very capable backup and can start in a pinch. Feeley and Bulger are similar to what we have in cleveland with Delhomme and Wallace but they may be better than our QBs. The Rams may like what they have seen so far with Keith Null.  Yes he didn't have good outings when asked to start, but he is a Division II prospect who has prototypical staring QB skills (arm and size). He showed some promise in 2009, but is still adjusting to the difference in game speed between D II and the NFL, and could be a solid QB with a year or two more experience. It's not out of the question that the rams look to their later picks to get a developmental guy like a Pike, Lefevour or maybe even Snead.

-With Suh, he can start right away, whereas with Bradford, the team will likely want to sit him on the bench but eventually start him and throw him in too early.  We have all seen this before.  A team drafts a QB extremely high but decides to sit him until he is ready.  The GM isn't happy because he has a large cap number (and he drafted him) and he's on the bench.  The Fans aren't happy because they want to see the first round pick play.  Finally the coach succumbs to the pressure and puts him in, often too early.  If Sam Bradford is taken by the Rams, I see this scenario being quite possible.  I like him in college college but have my doubts if he can handle NFL pressure because he never faced serious pressure in his face at Oklahoma..  Jason Smith is the Left Tackle of the future, though that future is not 2010 and may not even be 2011. If taken first, the pressure on the team to start him may be too great and he will be forced in too early, which would hurt his career.

-This team of GM and Coach are Committed to fixing the Defense and Offensive lines of this team.  In New York, Spagnuolo came from a team that dominated the line of scrimmage on defense and really hit you in the mouth. Spagnuolo really liked to get pressure from his Defensive Tackles in New York and brought pressure from many positions. In the 2 drafts the GM Bill Devaney has had a hand in, the Rams have really built up their Defense.  the one position that they haven't targeted much, is DT.  Quite possibly he was hoping Carriker (drafted before he got there) would pan out.  Now that Carriker is now a failed experiment there, maybe he goes after a premier player at the position.  Looking at the history of the Coach and GM, Suh in a way makes more sense.

What are your thoughts?