Is a mobile QB the future of LA Rams offense?

With the recent news that the LA Rams picked up QB Devlin “Duck” Hodges from the Pittsburgh Squealers, er, Steelers scrap heap discard pile, I’m just wondering/speculating/musing aloud here that perhaps this move portends a bit more is afoot with the future of the Rams offense than just picking up a bargain-basement camp arm on a futures contract.

Uncomfortable Truths Department: This year’s Rams offense ranked in the bottom third of scoring offenses in the NFL (Per ESPN, the 23rd-ranked scoring offense). It desperately needs an injection of some sizzle, some zing, some playmakers.

The Duck move just might be foreshadowing a move LA Rams head coach Sean McVay envisions toward a future offensive scheme that relies less on a pocket passer quarterback and more on a dual-threat, bootleg-capable, mobile QB. After all, that does seem to be the trend in the NFL now. And it appears as if the Rams are not moving in the direction of a pocket passer. If you haven’t noticed, the Rams quarterback room has one pocket passer (Jared Goff) and three mobile quarterbacks (John Wolford, Bryce Perkins, and now Devlin Hodges).

Perhaps they are subtly moving in the direction of an offense that relies less on Goff’s arm. . . and maybe even an offense that relies less on Goff, period.

Let’s be real – Duck offers no competition for Goff and probably only marginal competition for backups John Wolford or Bryce Perkins. I think the Rams might have liked what they saw from the RPO plays and bootlegs installed in their offense for the one game Wolford played in. this season. The offense seemed snappier, crisper, less predictable – if only for one game.

Hanging a mobile over the QB position

Now, the team has three mobile passers seated in its quarterback’s room. . . and two different playbooks. Not by accident. But by deliberate decisions. A determined effort is leaning towards mobile quarterbacks by the LA Rams front office.

Does the Duck move make Goff more expendable, err tradeable?

Realistically, putting all talk of his back-the-Brink’s-truck-up contract aside, what could the Rams get for Goff? There’s a lot of teams out there right now looking for a decent QB – the Chicago Bears, Washington Football team, Detroit Lions,  and even the New England Patriots. Demand is high, supply is low.

Methinks Goff could easily command a late first-round draft pick or an early second-rounder. Perhaps a few mid-rounds picks to sweeten the offer, too. And yes, that is with full awareness of his contract. Most of the pain of paying Goff will remain with the Rams, even if Goff is traded.

For what a new team will pay for his services, they are purchasing QB Jared Goff, who has led the Rams to the playoffs three of his five seasons. His playoff record is a solid 3-3. Yes, he is tradeable and should attract interest from any team seeking to quick start a rebuild.

Right now, there is a lot of talk among NFL analysts, many of whom are very reputable. One links the Rams to Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson. Another links the Rams to Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. And there is a general consensus that the Rams will inquire as to who the Detroit Lions want for Matthew Stafford.  But in all three scenarios, the Rams will be trading picks. Is there a better use of the team’s draft assets?

Do you feel a draft in the QB room?

If that were to happen, the Rams could draft someone like, say, Wake Forest/Georgia QB Jamie Newman, whom many scouts are calling a “wild card” QB of this draft. Scouts are eagerly looking forward to his Senior Bowl performance this Saturday because Newman opted out of playing this year due to Covid.

His dual-threat skills – running ability and big arm – were certainly showcased in 2019, however, at Wake Forest. Newman’s numbers actually out-paced Ohio State’s Justin Fields in passing and rushing yards per game in 2019.

Newman will be among a group of senior quarterbacks that includes NFL draft prospects Mac Jones and Kyle Trask slated to take the field for Senior Bowl workouts beginning on Tuesday. NFL scouts’ binoculars will surely be focused like laser beams on him at that time, anxious to discern how much rust exists after a year off the gridiron.

At 6-feet-4 and 230-pounds, with a rocket arm and good mobility, Newman could be just the wild card the Rams are hoping can inject some high-octane jet fuel into a moribund offense this season. Keep in mind that the Rams backup quarterback, John Wolford, hailed from Wake Forest, and no doubt has a strong connection to the young man as a result.

Of course, with enough draft picks, the Rams could trade up in the 2021 NFL Draft for a more prestigious quarterback who is ready to turn the keys to the Rams offense from the moment he arrives.  But the LA Rams are not ‘locked in’ with Goff, nor stuck in the crosshairs of another NFL team, hoping to fleece the Rams in a one-sided trade that relieves the Rams of Jared Goff and plenty of picks for a veteran quarterback.

It feels as though the LA Rams are up to something, doesn’t it? While the whispers and rumors right now suggest that the Rams are dallying with trading for a veteran quarterback, it actually makes more sense for the Rams to dip into the draft and get ‘his guy’. Who might that be?  We’ll find out soon enough.