Rams Allen Robinson should intrigue with weak FA WR group

The LA Rams are putting some rather recognizable names in the trade market before the 2023 NFL season begins. And while wide receiver Allen Robinson is among that group, there is cause for some hope. Allen Robinson did not work out with the LA Rams. Hey, it happens. But the cause of the disappointment was more about what the Rams' offense did not do than what wide receiver Allen Robinson did not do.

ToMAHto, ToMAYto. It all comes down to the fact that the LA Rams will lose another talented veteran. In the case of Allen Robinson, the LA Rams have given him permission to seek a trade and the Rams have also let it be known that they are willing to 'chip in' on the salary in an effort to facilitate a trade:

The #Rams have given WR Allen Robinson’s agents permission to seek a trade, and L.A. is willing to pay a portion of Robinson’s $15.25 million guaranteed salary to facilitate a deal, per sources.

Robinson is still only 29. Another big-name veteran potentially leaving L.A. pic.twitter.com/9ndri1H35x
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 6, 2023

The good news to all of this is that the NFL Free Agency Market for wide receivers is pretty shallow right now. Does that mean that a deal is imminent, that several NFL teams are knocking down the door to pry Allen Robinson from the Rams roster? Not at all. But it does mean that the Rams do indeed have a better chance of piquing the interest of NFL teams than were this a year with abundant wide receivers available via free agency.

In truth, some NFL Analysts have already stated that if Allen Robinson is released, he immediately jumps to the top of the WR free agency list, who are currently:

Has to be all-time bad free agency class at WR. I'd have the top-10 something like:

1. Jakobi Meyers
2. Odell Beckham (if healthy-ish)
3. Michael Thomas (if healthy-ish)
4. Juju
5. Mecole Hardman
6. DJ Chark
7. Allen Lazard
8. Darius Slayton
9. Mack Hollins
10. Parris Campbell
— Adam Levitan (@adamlevitan) March 6, 2023

So what do the LA Rams get out of all of this? Well, there is not a lot of salary cap savings in 2023 to shed Allen Robinson, And the sum of all of the Rams roster moves swirling about in NFL Rumors do not free up enough salary cap space to make the effort worth it to the team. The true cap savings from moves known about today show up in 2024 when the Rams will clear nearly $68 million off the books. Per Spotrac.com, if the Rams succeed with their intentions, the Rams will have over $50 million available salary cap dollars in 2024.

Why 2024? Well, that is a year when the LA Rams finally own their first-round draft pick, and the team may be targeting 2024 as the second year of a two-year roster refurbish. Good things come to those who wait, and it may very well be that the LA Rams have pivoted from a Win Today to Win Tomorrow philosophy.

Stay tuned, because it's never boring with the LA Rams in the offseason.

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