Does Rams Wagner release mean these 5 unthinkable moves happen?

Wagner would rather test NFL Free Agency than bet on Rams turning things around

The LA Rams need cap space. Wagner wants to win. Neither message is alarming nor startling in itself. But combined, and then held up against the fact that the Rams and Bobby Wagner are parting ways is an entirely new message altogether. We know that Bobby Wagner is likely in or nearly in the last contract or two to play in the NFL. So what are his goals?

He signed with the LA Rams to come home, and win for the home team. But it was obvious that the LA Rams did not exactly have everything under control. The team's first disappointment happened when veteran OLB Von Miller broke the ranks and signed with the Buffalo Bills. The team was further strained by the inability of starting quarterback Matthew Stafford to throw to receivers in training camp. Finally, the team's roster began to experience unrelenting wave after wave of injuries.

We can only guess at what transpired

While Wagner was the sane voice in the confusion, it was not what he had signed up for. He joined the Rams to get to the NFL Playoffs and see what happened once the team had gotten there. Can you blame him? The LA Rams had made it to the playoffs on four of the previous fives seasons. And the Rams had competed in the Super Bowl in two of those previous five seasons.

But whatever discussions were held between the player and the team did not result in an interest to remain together. Whether it was simply the need to free up salary cap funds, or it was the need to go a different direction, I suppose that is what it is. But tossing in the 'Wagner wants to win,' statement adds a bit of mystery to the matter. Why doesn't Wagner, an accomplished NFL veteran, think that the Rams can win in 2023? Is there another shoe to drop? Is this a team that is going to recast the roster, and perhaps endure a multi-year plan of improvement in the process?

The decision to part ways could be something as simple as the LA Rams asking Wagner to restructure his deal, the two sides reaching an impasse, and the Rams making a decision to release Bobby Wagner. But this team has a way of parting ways with players at a certain age. The Rams parted ways with Michael Brockers, getting a ridiculously cheap future seventh-round pick in the process. The same outcome occured when the LA Rams traded injured WR Robert Woods for next to nothing.