If he’s not the Executive of the Year now, it will never happen

Rams GM has overseen a masterclass on finding cheap talent nobody wants and winning

The competition for the NFL’s Executive of the Year award could come down to two people: The Master and the Grasshopper. Will Les Snead’s ragtag team of unlikely Rookie of the Year candidates and undrafted free agent finds out-do the juggernaut Lions built by Brad Holmes with first round picks and a quarterback who was drafted … by Snead?

It could be difficult for anybody to beat Dan Campbell for Coach of the Year and Holmes for executive as Detroit is dominating the rest of the league, but after their latest win, Sean McVay and Snead can no longer be overlooked.

We thought the Rams were a cheap miracle in 2023.

We had no idea cheap miracles could look THIS good.

How did they find these guys?

Snead went into the 2024 offseason with the news that Aaron Donald was not only retiring, but that left behind $24 million in dead cap for his contract — more than any ACTIVE player on the team other than Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp.

What little money he had to spend, Snead re-signed Kevin Dotson, added Jonah Jackson, and pieced together a new secondary mainly with veteran castoffs like Tre’Davious White and Darious Williams. The results have been mixed, at best, with Jackson missing basically the entire season so far and that’s after he was moved to center because the Steve Avila project was a massive failure in the middle.

That’s not the amazing part though.

The amazing part is that none of those disappointments, including White, have even mattered.

The most amazing part is that losing Jackson and getting nothing from White hasn’t mattered because undrafted free agents like Justin Dedich and Jaylen McCollough are having better seasons than high-priced players making $10-$20 million!

How did the Rams pull this off…AGAIN?

First Round Steal

The Rams had the 19th pick in the first round — not that great — but Jared Verse has been more than the leading candidate to win Defensive Rookie of the Year. He’s probably going to be a Pro Bowler and he might even get a few votes for All-Pro. Verse has been dominant and he’s getting better by the week.

The Rams wanted to trade up for somebody else but Snead—for once—stuck to his guns and didn’t trade future first round picks. (He was waiting until he could trade a second for Braden Fiske.) And Verse is better so far than almost all 18 players picked above him. There were only three defensive players picked above him, but he’s been better than all of them too.

Verse is top-10 in pressures, pressure rate, and he’s leading the NFC in tackles for a loss.

This is only part of the rookie class story, as Verse is joined by Fiske, Jordan Whittington, and Beaux Limmer as players who have been contributing more than expected for the entire season. Now third round pick Kam Kinchens is fresh off of winning NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors after his two-interception game against the Seahawks.

Then there’s the undrafted free agents like Jaylen McCollough and Justin Dedich, a guard find who could be the future of the position depending on how long the team sticks with Jackson after he returns.

Snead’s rookie class is not “good”.

It’s amazing. And this is two years in a row now.

Second Year Sensations

When Puka Nacua has played, he’s been sensational. Kobie Turner and Byron Young have picked up where they left off after really good rookie campaigns. Ethan Evans has turned into one of the best punters in the NFL.

If I’m voting for Coach and Exec of the Year, I’m not just taking this year’s moves into account. I’m taking ALL MOVES into account.

Well, the Rams didn’t have any draft capital or money to spend in 2023 and the team got a lot better. Those additions have not been flash in the pans — Avila could also be great when he returns soon — their work has carried over into 2024.

Furthermore, some other picks that have been questioned in the past, like Logan Bruss, Tutu Atwell, Quentin Lake, they’re all contributing and helping the cause.

Not to mention that Snead traded nothing for Dotson. He picked Kyren Williams in the fifth round. He got Demarcus Robinson for under $5 million. And the Rams starting left tackle is another former undrafted free agent.

Some fans are ONLY focused on a bad deal like Tre White or Colby Parkinson (plenty of time for him to turn it around too), but the only reason that the Rams can afford bad deals and still compete in the NFC is that this franchise keeps finding the best bargain players in the league!

How can that continue to be overlooked every year at awards season? Or even in the middle of the year when we’re debating who did good and who did bad.

And if anything, the success that Brad Holmes has had with the 7-1 Lions DIRECTLY REFLECTS back on Les Snead. And though Detroit has had plenty of really good picks after the first round, the Rams got here without top-10 picks (Aidan Hutchinson, Penei Sewell), only one top-20 pick (Jameson Williams, Jahmyr Gibbs, Jack Campbell), and Holmes was able to steal Sam LaPorta because he was picking right ahead of his former boss.

That’s ONE Jared Verse compared to ALL OF THOSE top-34 picks.

The Lions are amazing in part because we’re comparing this team to the last 100 version of the Lions.

The Rams are amazing because they were held back by their own success…and it still didn’t matter when they ran out of ammo.