3 reasons why LA Rams needed to trade Jared Goff

Reason II – Production fell behind the pay

From the moment the 2018 season ended, the LA Rams offensive scoring production has been in a decline. Offense scoring plummeted. In 2017, the Rams were atop the NFL in scoring. In 2018, the Rams were second-overall in scoring. But by 2019, several factors combined to pull the Rams offense down.

As the offensive line began to fall apart at the seams that year, the Rams turned to the highly compensated players to pull the offense back together. Quarterback Jared Goff, wide receiver Brandin Cooks, and running back Todd Gurley were all relied upon to deliver. None did. In fact, the opposite effect occurred. They regressed.

The decline was significant enough to post the question of whether the trio stopped trying after they got paid? It’s a natural question because players are not only expected to perform at a higher level when signing a big contract, but they are also expected to make the players around them perform at a higher level as well.

Pay rose, production plummeted

That precipitous drop in production sealed the fates of both Gurley and Cooks in 2020. Gurley was outright released. Cooks was traded with a 2022 fourth-round pick for a 2020 second-round pick. Even while the Rams made the tough decisions to part ways with both Cooks and Gurley, the team reaffirmed their trust and commitment to Jared Goff.  Or did they?

Ultimately, the Rams did not add any veteran targets to the offense. In fact, the Rams pulled a second-verse-same-as-the-first maneuver on the offensive roster. The team returned WRs Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, and Josh Reynolds. The team also welcomed back tight ends Tyler Higbee and Gerald Everett.  While the Ram did bring in rookie RBs Cam Akers and Xavier Jones, WRs Van Jefferson and Trishton Jackson, and TE Brycen Hopkins, the offense remained focused upon the tried-and-true veterans.

And the offense hit an all-time low of Sean McVay’s career.