Power ranking all NFC West teams ahead of 2022 NFL Draft

NFC West power rankings No. 1: Los Angeles Rams

Well, if you win the Super Bowl, you wind up in a lot of NFL power rankings’ No. 1 spot for a reason. And unlike some prior Super Bowl-winning teams, the Rams didn’t exactly endure a mass exodus of players seeking hefty payouts elsewhere.

Sure, there are a few departures that hurt. Veteran left tackle Andrew Whitworth retired on a high note, while injured wide receivers Robert Woods and Odell Beckham Jr. aren’t coming back.

But when LA ended up signing former Chicago Bears standout receiver Allen Robinson to make up for it, pairing him with All-Pro wideout Cooper Kupp, it won’t hurt too bad. And on the defensive side of the ball, losing 2021 midseason addition EDGE Von Miller was accounted for by the Bobby Wagner signing.

It pays to be aggressive, and Los Angeles always finds a way to pay.

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Last season’s championship also revealed why quarterback Matthew Stafford didn’t have to be perfect, just good enough, and the also-aggressive move to go get him from the Detroit Lions the previous offseason was more than justified.

The Rams are the champs, little else needs to be said. And they’ll enter NFL Draft season as the No. 1 team in the NFC West, a distinction that’ll carry into Week 1 of the regular season, too.

Maybe LA’s strategy of damning its high picks in the draft to the trade market for players like Stafford and Miller is the right approach.

For now, Los Angeles is tops within the division and close to the top in the NFL.