I checked at the time, there were plenty available players who were rated above Sam at the time, and at least 5 OLBs that were projected ahead of him.
Sam is a DE, not a OLB
He’s actually a ‘tweener - too slow to play LB and too small to play DE and his LB skills are more suited for a 3-4 Defense and the Rams play a 4-3 so Sam will play DE in the NFL, not LB
That’s if he makes the cut.
Again, he was the SEC co-defensive player of the year and the SEC is the toughest division in college football, so he was the BPA at pick # 249 out of 255 players.
Were any of those other players Defensive players of the year?
If not, they likely weren’t better and probably played in weaker divisions against lesser competition.
Again, the Rams had three picks at the end of the 7th round and took a flyer on the BPA according to their scouting dept., and they are likely more knowledgeable than you.
Or are you a pro scout for an NFL team?