The 2024 NFL Draft is only 15 days away, and like in previous years, the buzz is always centered on the quarterback position. Reports indicate four to five quarterbacks in the draft’s first round could be taken with the first few selections. Once the names of Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye, and JJ McCarthy are called, speculation will start to mount on where passers such as Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix will land.
ESPN NFL Draft Analyst Mel Kiper Jr. has mocked the former Huskies QB to the Los Angeles Rams as a day-two pick. However, Kiper doesn’t envision Penix falling into the lap of the Rams in the second round with the 52nd pick; instead, he believes that a trade to move up needs to occur. The team that Kiper has the Rams moving up with is the Los Angeles Chargers.
“This deal would see the Chargers moving back down the board again after I had them sliding back in Round 1 and adding both of the Vikings’ top picks (plus a 2025 first-rounder).
To move up 15 spots, the Rams would need to give up Nos. 52, 83, and 196. They can afford to do the deal because they have a bunch of extra comp selections. As for the Chargers, they’d end up with two picks in the first, third, and fourth rounds in this draft.
Why would the Rams make this deal? Well, don’t they need to start thinking about the future at quarterback?”
Yes, the Rams have Matthew Stafford. Yes, they brought in Jimmy Garoppolo. And yes, they drafted Stetson Bennett in Round 4 last year. But Stafford is 36 and has dealt with serious injuries in recent years, while Garoppolo is on a one-year deal, and Bennett spent his rookie season on the reserve/non-football illness list. There’s a lot of uncertainty in L.A. past 2024.
Penix could be the future franchise signal-caller for coach Sean McVay and the Rams. He is accurate at every level of the field and is a great decision-maker. He had 67 touchdown passes and 19 interceptions in his two seasons at Washington. I have a Round 2 grade on him, just behind Bo Nix in my rankings.”
Why the Move Makes Sense
Penix may have had aspirations of being selected as a top-five pick in this year’s draft, but sometimes, it’s best to fall into a better situation. Prospects such as Daniels, Maye, and Williams are going into rebuilding franchises. However, the expectation for Williams at QB is that the Bears’ roster is so talented that he should be able to lead them to a playoff berth in his rookie season. The team seems to be going in a better direction under the watch of general manager Ryan Poles.
However, they do not have the reputation of what it takes to consistently build a competitive roster like the Los Angeles Rams. Since Sean McVay took over as a head coach in 2017, the Rams have only missed the playoffs twice. If taken by the Rams, Penix will have an opportunity to learn from a perennial All-Pro quarterback in Matthew Stafford. There will be no pressure to start immediately unless Stafford is out with a serious injury. In what was supposed to be a rebuilding year in 2023, the Rams overcame those expectations by getting to double-digit wins, resulting in a playoff berth.
