5 of the worst moves made by the LA Rams this offseason

No OBJ?

The LA Rams were certainly incredibly fortunate in the 2021 season, at least in terms of signing free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr.  Just after doing so, the team learned that they had lost veteran wide receiver Robert Woods for the season.  So the luxury signing of OBJ suddenly became a miraculously timed addition to the team’s roster.

While it did not produce immediate fantastic results, it did reinforce the offensive weaponry at a point where adding a veteran starting wide receiver was most needed. It allowed the Rams to reroute much of their offense through a player not named Cooper Kupp.

The results were obvious. OBJ was a scoring machine for the Rams, a receiver who had tremendous body control and who could strong hand contended catches into touchdowns. In fact, OBJ’s eight games with the Rams produced more touchdowns than all but one of his previous full seasons.  He added two more scores in post-season play, plus a phenomenal catch rate of 80.8 percent. But he fell to injury in the first half of SB LVI.

So here we are, heading into the 2022 NFL season, but no Odell Beckham Jr. Despite all of the rhetoric of bringing back the team to have another Super Bowl run, the reality of economics and the passing of time had already done their work. OBJ won’t be available to contribute until November. So how do you set a value on a player who will rehab and work out for another six months? Do you pay him an advance for what he might do? Or do you wait for him to heal fully, and then bargain in good faith?

The LA Rams have made offers, but none have lured OBJ to sign with the team. And all of the 2021 heroics stand the likelihood of remaining a one-and-done season for OBJ and the LA Rams.