Series of Tweets Hint Los Angeles Rams May Have Asked Tavon Austin to Take Pay Cut
By Dan Parzych
The Los Angeles Rams rewarded Tavon Austin with a hefty $42 million extension before the start of the 2016 season.
When it comes to the most overpaid players in the NFL, there’s no question Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Tavon Austin ranks near the top of that list when comparing his contract to lack of production from last season. For reasons that can’t be explained, the former first-round pick out of West Virginia received a hefty $42 million extension ($30 million in guarantees) from the Rams last year, and thanks to a recent series of tweets, it’s hard not to wonder if the team asked Austin to take a pay cut.
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A few days ago, Austin posted an interesting message on Twitter about never dropping the price once someone discovers the value, which plenty of Rams fans obviously had a field day with. It would be one thing if Austin deserved every penny of the large amount of money he made last year, but the fact that he set a career high with 509 receiving yards while only finding the end zone four times shows why fans are frustrated over his production.
Check out some of Austin’s messages on Twitter from the last few days, and see why it’s fair to assume the team may have asked him to take a pay cut heading into next season.
Clearly, Austin is upset over something, and wants the world to know when considering the last time he posted a personal message on Twitter came during Super Bowl 51 when the New England Patriots pulled off a miraculous comeback against the Atlanta Falcons. Austin may strongly believe he deserves every bit of that hefty contract he signed back in August, but his disappointing production from the 2016 season doesn’t provide a strong case to back himself up.
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When considering Austin is going to be the league’s second highest paid wide receiver ($14.9 million) heading into the 2017 season, it’s easy to understand why Los Angeles would approach their wideout about the pay cut, if that was in fact what happened. Who knows, maybe the addition of offensive mastermind Sean McVay as the new head coach will finally help get the best of Austin on offense, but he still has a long way to go when it comes to proving he deserves that ridiculous contract he’s currently under.