EARTH CITY, Mo. (KMOX) — For the first time since 2008, the St. Louis Rams have selected a defensive player with their first-round pick by taking DE Robert Quinn out of the University of North Carolina.

Robert Quinn was one of the North Carolina Tar Heels suspended for the 2010 season. The athletic talent is evident from his sophomore campaign when he had 11.0 sacks. Quinn, who is 6-5 and 268 lbs, has the ability to play 4-3 defensive end with a lot of speed and explosion off the line.

In 25 career collegiate games, Quinn accumulated 13.0 total sacks. His 11.0 sacks in 2009 was good enough for fourth-best in school history behind the likes of Lawrence Taylor, Julius Peppers, and Greg Ellis.

A two-time state heavyweight wrestling champion in high school, Quinn’s biggest fight before arriving at Chapel Hill was recovering from brain surgery from a benign tumor in October 2007. Quinn said he was experiencing a lot headaches, and the final straw for his parents was a series of three blackouts. His football career looked to be over, but after a strong recovery, Quinn said he has not had a headache since the surgery and gets an MRI about every six months.

Nicknamed, “El Roy”, Quinn wasted no time making an impact for the Tar Heels. Quinn took over the starting job the second game of his freshman season. He collected 34 tackles, 6.5 tackles for losses, two sacks and forced two fumbles in 12 starts.

Quinn’s career really began to take off with a first-team All-ACC sophomore season as he increased his impact plays. He finished 2009 with a league-high 19 tackles for loss and was second in the ACC with 11 sacks to go along with six forced fumbles.

However, in 2010, his college career came to an end when he got caught up in the agent scandal. Quinn was suspended for the season by the NCAA, and he decided it was time to move on to the NFL.

The 2011 NFL Draft was full of surprises for the first thirteen picks. Three quarterbacks, one trade, and two Missouri Tigers were already off the board. The St. Louis Rams had plenty of choices at pick No. 14, even though they probably lost their most coveted prize in WR Julio Jones, who went to the Atlanta Falcons at pick No. 6.

The 2010 first-round pick was not as suspenseful when it became clear that the Rams would take quarterback Sam Bradford from Oklahoma. The No. 1 pick was never a disappointment winning the NFL AP Offensive Rookie of the Year award. Bradford made all sixteen starts leading the Rams to within one game of their first appearance in the NFL Playoffs since 2004. More importantly, Bradford help restore excitement in St. Louis Rams football after many years of losing football.

Along with Bradford, the Rams also found quick success in their other draft picks from 2010. They had a total of eleven picks with majority of those coming in the later rounds.

Second-round pick Roger Saffold out of Indiana jumped right into the left tackle position. Based on his first season, Saffold could be protecting Sam Bradford’s blind side for many years.

Third-round pick Jerome Murphy, a cornerback out of South Florida, did not make an immediate impact. Yet, Murphy came around towards the middle of the season to become an important role player on special teams and defense.

Tight end Michael Hoomanawanui, the first fifth-round pick out of Illinois, had to battle injuries throughout the season, but clearly turned into Bradford’s favorite targets when on the field. If he can stay healthy, ‘Illinois Mike’ is sure to have a bright future.

Eugene Sims, a sixth-round pick from West Texas A&M, and George Selvie, a seventh-round pick also from South Florida, even had to step and get quick experience when the team became more banged up towards the end of the season.

Before that, Billy Devaney, who has been the General Manager since 2008, and the Rams are seeing development, whether quick or gradual, out a lot of their recent draft picks.

The 2008 class may still have something to prove, but seeing first-round pick Chris Long have a big 2010 season was huge. Second-round pick Donnie Avery has not had a shot to show what he can due to constant injuries, but his potential future catching passes from Sam Bradford is exciting. Later picks John Greco, Justin King, and David Vobora have provided excellent depth.

The 2009 class had two important impact players while the rest continue to develop. First-round pick Jason Smith was a key foundation pick at right tackle. Just like Smith, James Laurinaitis was another foundation pick becoming a team leader and one of the best up and coming linebackers. Third-round pick Bradley Fletcher has had to battle injury, but continues to improve at cornerback when on the field. Darrell Scott, the fourth-round pick, has been able to provide good depth on the defensive line.

Only time will tell how much impact Thursday night’s pick will have on the future of the St. Louis Rams franchise. The team will continue to try and improve the team with draft picks through Saturday.

So far, the new leadership that arrived in 2008 has increasingly taken positive steps in just a few years. Now that Stan Kroenke is the sole owner of the franchise, only more success can be expected in the years to come for the Rams.

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