This past April saw three former Gamecock football players get selected in the 2016 NFL Draft. The first Gamecock off the board was wide receiver Pharoh Cooper. He was drafted by the recently relocated Los Angeles Rams with the 19th pick of the fourth round. Later, the New York Jets selected offensive tackle Brandon Shell with the 19th pick of the fifth round. Finally, the New York Giants selected tight end Jerell Adams with the ninth pick of the sixth round.
Pharoh Cooper is entering into an interesting situation. The Los Angeles Rams made the biggest jump to the first overall pick in NFL history when they gave the Tennessee Titans a bundle of picks to move from the 15th slot. They drafted what they hope is their franchise quarterback when they took Jared Goff from University of California. Goff is a great quarterback, but every great quarterback needs weapons, and the Rams identified Cooper as such.
After the massive trade, the Rams knew they were not going to have many picks left. This means that their scouts had to identify players that they thought would be available in the middle rounds but were also capable of coming in and making an immediate impact. They obviously pinned Cooper as one of those players, and I (along with ESPN analyst Todd McShay, who said Cooper was the Rams' best pick) think this was a brilliant move.
Pharoh Cooper is a reliable receiver and a playmaker when he gets the ball in his hands. The Rams have no real receiving threats outside of Tavon Austin, but the duo of Austin and Cooper with Goff throwing the ball could emerge as one of the best young passing attacks in the NFL in a year or two.
The next Gamecock to get his name called was Brandon Shell. The Jets traded a 2017 fourth-round pick to the Redskins so they could move up to get Shell.
“As the draft unfolded, the player [Shell] slid to a point where we felt it would be worth investing and trading a [2017] fourth-round pick to get the player we liked in the fifth round,” Jets general manager Mike Maccagnan said. “He’s a big, long athletic offensive tackle who has the chance to potentially develop into a good backup, possibly a starter in time.”
The general consensus is that Shell will need some time to develop, especially when it comes to pass protection. If he can't get it done at tackle, he is a big guy at 6’5” and 324 pounds. He could definitely shift inside and play guard.
Jerell Adams was the final Gamecock selected when the New York Giants took him at the beginning of the sixth round. This came as a shock to many because draft gurus like Mel Kiper and Todd McShay had him rated as one of the top tight ends in the draft. Kiper even had Adams rated as the 57th best overall player in the draft.
Some Gamecock alumni might fit in their teams a bit better than others. However, whatever might be the situation for the former Gamecocks, they got drafted into the league. So they've got that going for them.