Greg Robinson had an inkling for quite some time that the Rams were interested in him at No. 2 overall in the 2014 NFL draft. But the massive offensive tackle from Auburn was taking nothing for granted. “I knew they were very interested, and a lot of people projected me to go there,” Robinson said. “But I just wanted to wait it out, just to make things seem more real. Because I didn’t want to think I was there before it actually happened.” In New York City on Thursday morning for NFL draft festivities, Robinson got a pretty good hint: the Rams called him just to double-check his phone number. “It wasn’t a specific coach (on the line),” Robinson said. “They just wanted to confirm my phone number.” It became real for Robinson right around 7:30 p.m. Thursday — when the Rams made him the second player taken in the draft, just behind South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, who went as expected to Houston. It was the first offensive lineman taken by the Rams in the first round since Baylor’s Jason Smith in 2009. (Uh, never mind.) And it’s the first offensive lineman taken by Jeff Fisher in his 19 drafts as an NFL head coach in St. Louis, Tennessee, and Houston. At No. 13 overall, with their second of two first-round picks, the Rams took Pittsburgh defensive tackle Aaron Donald, a highly-decorated interior pass rusher. That may seem like a surprise to some Rams fans, but Donald did make a “top 30” visit to St. Louis, and the Rams have had him on their radar for some time. Not many people, including reporters covering the team, thought defensive tackle was high on the Rams’ offseason wish-list when the offseason began. But the team made it clear through their actions that they considered that position a need area. They considered several defensive tackles in free agency, eventually signing Alex Carrington of the Buffalo Bills to a backup role. And later, during the pre-draft process, the Rams brought in at least six college defensive tackles for “top 30” visits. Donald won just about every award a defensive lineman can win this past season for the Pitt Panthers, including the Outland, Nagurski, Bednarik, and Rotary Lombardi awards. He told St. Louis reporters after his selection that he had to create additional room at the family home in Pittsburgh to display all of his trophies. In 2013, he had 11 sacks, 16 pressures, and a staggering 28½ tackles for loss. At 6-1, 285, Donald is undersized at the position, and there will be times he could get manhandled by 330-pound pulling guards defending the run. But with a very quick feet and penetration skills, Donald frequently gets by blockers before they can get to him. There hasn’t been a coach or general manager in the history of NFL drafts that told the media they weren’t happy with their picks. But it was clear Fisher and general manager Les Snead were genuinely pleased with the night’s work. - See more at: http://www.stltoday.com/sports/foot...cle_810337e0-5c53-5d4b-bead-d36af922ffc2.html
