Scott Fitterer accidentally set the LA Rams down a new path to success

Brian Burns vs this Rams pass rusher

The matter becomes a bit trickier when examining the production of veteran Brian Burns. He continued to play out his contract with the Carolina Panthers through 2023 before demanding to be paid or traded in the 2024 offseason. But the Rams did address their need at outside linebacker in the 2023 NFL Draft by selecting Tennessee's outside linebacker, Byron Young.

Again, Young arrived as a rookie to the Rams defense in 2023, and has competed in the NFL for only two seasons. When the Rams sought Burns, he was already in his fourth NFL season. and on track for his second consecutive season of being honored by the Pro Bowl.

Once more, the best way to do this is to compare the production of OLB Byron Young with that of veteran OLB/DE Brian Burns and see which player has had the better carers in the past two NFL seasons via another data table.

Once again, the numbers are nearly identical. But the tide turns in Byron Young's favor when you start stacking up his rookie contract to the huge payments to Brian Burns. And you cannot ignore the fact that Byron Young was chosen in Round 3 of the 2023 NFL Draft, Round 3 is a far cry less valuable than picks in either Round 1 or 2.

Thanks to Panthers GM Scott Fitterer, the Rams abandoned their 'win-now,' strategy of roster building, and have assembled a cast of very talented young players on rookie contracts. Eventually, the Rams will need to pay those players, and in many cases, they will.

But when that time comes, the team will be paying players for their production in Horns, and not for production with another team that may or may not translate to the Rams roster.

As always, thanks for reading.

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