Rams still profess uncertainty on their first draft pick Saturday

ST. LOUIS -- No. 2 is the new No. 1 in the NFL draft, now that the Miami Dolphins have signed Jake Long. That doesn't mean the games and the misdirection are over for the St. Louis Rams.

The team refused to tip its hand Thursday beyond acknowledging interest in taking LSU defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey, Virginia defensive end Chris Long and Ohio State defensive end Vernon Gholston with the second pick of Saturday's draft.

Vice president of player personnel Billy Devaney, heading into his first draft with St. Louis, said the team has yet to reach a consensus on who would best help a team that went 3-13 last season. After the Dolphins locked up Long on Tuesday, coach Scott Linehan joked about needing a three-sided coin to flip.

"If there was a gap between one guy and the other two, he would have been eliminated already," Devaney said. "That's why all three are right there clumped together."

Both Devaney and Linehan said the Rams weren't actively seeking to trade down with the first of their nine picks.

"It sounds like a broken record, but any of those three guys that we've been kind of zeroing in on, we would be thrilled," Devaney said. "It would take something really exciting to get us off of that."

The Rams didn't seem to mind the NFL ruling not to allow them to begin negotiations with a prospective pick. The league wants to save most of the suspense for the weekend.

"We wouldn't have been near to starting negotiations," Devaney said. "We haven't figured out which way we're going yet."

Intrigue is helpful if the Rams are looking to swap picks and maximize the payoff from a team desperate for a specific need. They traded down four spots in 2006, Linehan's first year with the team, before taking cornerback Tye Hill with the 15th overall pick, and after the fact said Hill would have been their selection at either spot.

On Saturday they won't be waiting for anyone while keeping an open mind.

"I think the Rams have been as active at being on the phone with anybody, listening to anybody about anything," Linehan said. "The great thing is we've got great choices, and they're going to be outstanding players for us for years to come.

"I think the momentum of all of our goals for next year can really be jump-started by a great draft and we feel comfortable, obviously, not trading this pick."

The pick could hinge on where the Rams want to put Adam Carriker, last year's first-rounder. Carriker was a defensive end at Nebraska and started all 16 games at nose guard his rookie season, although he often lined up at end.

"His versatility probably creates some confusion for the whole process," Linehan said. "Tackle is his best position, but there's no reason he can't play anywhere on the line, to be honest with you."

Even with Carriker in the middle, the Rams have need at tackle given that La'Roi Glover will be 34 next season and has been getting more spot duty. Defensive end is perhaps more glaring, with top pass rusher Leonard Little limited to one sack by a toe injury that required surgery, which could push Long or Gholston to the top.

The Rams have one pick in each of the first five rounds and two each in the sixth and seventh rounds. Their final pick and the 252nd overall, is the last selection of the draft, long nicknamed "Mr. Irrelevant."

St. Louis has as many third-round picks as first-rounders, six each, on the current roster. Mark Setterstrom, a seventh-rounder last year, started at guard before a season-ending knee injury. Little, safety Oshmiomogho Atogwe and guard Richie Incognito were third-round picks.

Wide receiver Calvin Johnson was the second pick of last year's draft, catching 48 passes for the Detroit Lions. The last time the Rams had the second overall pick, they landed Hall of Fame running back Eric Dickerson in 1983.