Guess what? LA Rams effectively swap a DL with Lions too

Everyone is aware by now that former Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford will suit up as the LA Rams play-caller in 2020, and that former Rams quarterback Jared Goff will now be under center for the Detroit Lions. That was one heckuva blockbuster trade, sending the Detroit Lions a huge package of gift-wrapped draft picks in the process.

In short, the two teams swapped quarterbacks and the Lions’ front office made a killing on the deal, walking away with a king’s ransom of draft picks. That is a nice way to start off when you are a new GM like Brad Holmes. Two firsts and a third, and in the process still have the top pick of the 2016 NFL Draft under center. The Lions got much younger at a key position.

But that was not the only exchange in the past two seasons between these two teams. Former LA Rams defensive lineman Michael Brockers will soon be playing for the Detroit Lions in 2021, and former Detroit Lions NT A’Shawn Robinson will soon be returning for his second season with the LA Rams. And the Rams have a 2023 seventh-round draft pick to show for it.

Much like the permanent unintentional link that will bind the careers of Stafford and Goff going forward, the careers of Robinson and Brockers will undoubtedly be compared, analyzed, and dissected as though they were in direct competition with one another.  A coincidental circumstance, to be sure, yet unavoidable. They are assuming each other’s roles. Whether they wanted it to play out that way or not, the two teams have effectively swapped defensive linemen.