LA Rams: Did Matthew Stafford trade constitute ‘last call’ for Lombardi?

Last stop for Whitworth, next stop…

The proud and proficient offensive left tackle for the LA Rams, Andrew Whitworth, turns 40 years old this season. For those of you looking up at that benchmark, let me forewarn you that life takes a 180-degree shift of perspective somewhere in that age range. To survive the rigors of youth, younger people are protected by insatiable curiosity, a self-prophetic rule of reason, and an impenetrable belief in invulnerability.

Los Angeles Rams

Life is so fragile, but in the mindset of the young, that inevitability is pushed far out of the range of thought.  Even now, as we align the contributing components of why these LA Rams are desperate to claim the Lombardi, younger minds are already busy forming counter-arguments. The Rams have all the time in the world some may argue.  Oh, how I wish that were true.

As you cross the great divide at 40+ years, people gradually become aware that life is not forever. The human form is not purchased existence on the planet Earth, but rather is a lease of somewhere averaging 80+ years. That singular epiphany changes everything. Suddenly acquiring becomes paying it forward. Suddenly the need for the approval of others subsides, and we find ourselves taking stock of our own lives. Regrets pop up, not for the things we did, but for the chances not taken, doors in our lives we never dared to open.

Andrew Whitworth is a giant. Entering his 16th NFL season, and starting a new chapter with the LA Rams after 11 seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals is not a textbook NFL career track. But Whitworth is larger than life in many ways. Not in his height, which is an impressive 6-foot-7, but in the way he embodies so many standards of this LA Rams team.

He is the veteran leader. He organizes workouts for the offensive line. He ensures that rookies are welcomed personally. He fights like a tiger on the football field but is warm and personable to his teammates. He is paying it forward by almost all accounts. Yet, as good as his career has been, and as durable in his incredible long NFL career, Andrew Whitworth has not earned a Super Bowl victory yet. He is not alone.