Timber! LA Rams trade beloved WR Robert Woods to Titans

The LA Rams signed up WR Allen Robinson, and to many NFL analysts, the writing was on the wall for the team’s wide receiver room. The LA Rams, as a result of the trade, ended up with a wide receiver group that was the most expensive in the NFL. What were the Rams getting? The wide receiver included:

• WR Cooper Kupp – NFL’s best WR in 2021
• WR Robert Woods – Outstanding WR who was coming off an ACL injury*
• WR Allen Robinson – Tough physical presence who can win contested catches
• WR Van Jefferson – Young WR who can stretch defenses and run crisp routes
• WR Tutu Atwell – Rookie WR with speed but no production
• WR Ben Skowronek – Big-bodied young WR w invaluable experience in 2021

* Rams trade Robert Woods before $3.5 million roster bonus comes due

And the team wanted to sign free-agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. as well. And so, the LA Rams needed to make a move, a painful move that would eliminate overspending on one position, but would also mean trading away someone who the LA Rams fans were deeply fond of.

The LA Rams front office was against the wall on this one. WR Robert Woods was due to make $15.7 million in 2022, including a $3.5 million roster bonus that will kick in this Sunday, March 20, 2022. That is in less than 24 hours.

This was not about fair compensation. This was not about getting fair market value for Robert Woods. This was a salary dump with less than 24 hours to make it happen. Under those conditions, the Rams were lucky to get much compensation.

The fact is that this was an expected turn of events. On the fiscal front, the LA Rams loaded up a wide receiver with a different skillset for less money, and the result is that the Rams could not afford both players. On the roster front, WR Allen Robinson aligns with the team’s new quarterback Matthew Stafford and arrives healthy.

Woods is coming off an ACL injury. While expected to heal and be ready to play when the season opens, he is one of several receivers returning to the team with significant injuries in 2021. If the Rams follow through on re-signing Odell Beckham Jr., that would simply be far too many receivers rehabbing. The collective risk for the Rams to assume in that scenario is simply not worth it.

On the bright side, Robert Woods did earn a Super Bowl LVI ring with his teammates, and the Tennessee Titans are perennial contenders. The trade likely makes the Rams’ extension of OBJ much more likely to happen. Based on what we know at this moment, the Rams’ offense is reformulating its configuration.

But follow-up reports indicate that the Rams front office worked very closely with Robert Woods to ensure he landed on a team he was comfortable with. No team is more of a fit than the Tennessee Titans, where running and play-action passing are still the bread and butter of their offense.

That now begs the question… Did the team end up with significantly less compensation in the trade by steering Woods to the Titans?

For now, it is what it is. We will let the dust settle and discuss what this means soon. The Rams are very active today. More to come?

It certainly feels like it.