Trumaine Johnson’s absence from OTAs on Tuesday for Los Angeles Rams seems odd

The Los Angeles Rams recently used the franchise tag on cornerback Trumaine Johnson for the second year in a row.

Organized team activities for the Los Angeles Rams officially got underway last week, and while the absence of Aaron Donald, who may be waiting to receive a long-term deal, was a popular topic of discussion, Trumaine Johnson seems to be joining the conversation. Rumors have been swirling for months when it comes to the cornerback’s future with the Rams, and after Tuesday’s session of OTAs has left fans wondering about what’s going on with Johnson.

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First off, even though OTAs are completely voluntary, Johnson’s absence on Tuesday came as a bit of a surprise, mainly due to the fact that he didn’t seem to give a heads up that he wouldn’t be attending. For a player making a hefty amount of money from Los Angeles for the 2016 season while hoping to land a long-term deal at some point, Johnson should be doing everything in his power to prove his value instead of leaving his teammates hanging.

As mentioned before, rumors have been swirling for months over Johnson’s future with the team, ranging from the Rams trying to trade him to potentially working out a long-term deal for their cornerback. Either way, it will be interesting to see the follow up to this story since it can’t be a good sign that nobody knows the reasons behind Johnson being absent.

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It sounds bad, but it’s easy to see why Los Angeles has been hesitant towards rewarding Johnson with a long-term deal since the debate is still out there when it comes to whether he’s fit to be a No. 1 cornerback in Wade Phillips‘ defense. If the Rams were truly convinced Johnson had what it takes, a long-term deal would have been a no brainer instead of spending all of that money for one more year under the franchise tag.