The Rams keeping Tavon Austin is smarter than you may think

Just when you thought Tavon Austin was all but gone, the Los Angeles Rams throw a curveball everyone swung and missed on, except LA.

It seemed to only be a matter of time. The Los Angeles Rams would cut seldom used Tavon Austin, and we all would close the chapter on the receiver who seemed a bad fit in a Sean McVay offense.

Ultimately, the “bad fit” was wide receiver Sammy Watkins.

So hey, how about a big group hug for Tavon and the jet sweep!!!

Mock the move, lament it, and second guess it. But in a world where you make a choice between ending up with a receiver like Watkins, or a player who brings more to the table like Austin, the latter makes a ton more sense.

Ultimately, and definitely read between the lines on this one, but do you really think Watkins was going to be worth the effort? Did anyone who watched the Rams last season see McVay making sure Watkins got his requisite targets?

LA just isn’t built that way. And based on the acquisitions of Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib, the Rams were all full on the diva quota.

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At least they had the self awareness to know so.

Austin is the one year experiment, based on his deal, to see if they can make something work with a hybrid type of a player. Sure, it’s a blast to make fun of the “jet sweep”,  but at the discounted price he came with, it was a better option than Watkins would ever have been.

Watkins just didn’t fit, and for reasons that completely do, Austin does.

McVay has a guy who gives him options, and Watkins did not, and when you’re tracking towards a possible Super Bowl run, options are a premium.

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A show of hands for everyone who thought Austin was the more expendable than he was the better “get”, versus the guy many believed would get the franchise tag in LA?

Credit Tavon for being the player who “gets it” and the Rams for doing the same.