Fallout continues from Rams-Titans trade

April 16, 2016

The buzz from Thursday’s blockbuster deal in which Los Angeles acquired the #1 pick at this month’s draft from Tennessee for a package of picks, including the Rams’ first-round pick in 2017, continues to reverberate around the league. For example, while just about everybody agrees that the Rams made the deal to move and get the top QB on their board, there is less of a consensus as to whether that guy is Carson Wentz of North Dakota State or Cal’s Jared Goff. On the one hand, there doesn’t seem to be much doubt in the local LA media that Wentz is the guy whereas there is more than one national writer who think Goff either is, or should be, the target. Even the Rams themselves were rather coy about whether they had made their choice in the immediate hours after the trade, but Rams’ GM Les Snead later confirmed in an ESPN Radio interview on Friday that the team was “97%” decided on the pick, but would still use the last couple of weeks before the draft to do some “last minute fine tuning” to turn over every rock and stone they can find. Of course! No team gives up six premium picks, including two first-rounders, to move up if they don’t know who is the target. And while both Wentz and Goff are good, although not necessarily great prospects, Goff in particular, just doesn’t have the prototype arm strength and upside that teams normally trade up for, although he reportedly threw the ball very well at a private workout for Rams’ officials earlier this month that was conducted in a veritable monsoon. Whatever, we’ll find out on April 28th whether it be Wentz or Goff.

Meanwhile, Tennessee G.M. Jon Robinson is not ruling out more moves for the Titans on before the draft. Indeed, there is some speculation that the Titans, who were fully expected to take Ole Miss OT Laremy Tunsil if they had kept the #1 pick, could use one of the second round selections acquired from the Rams as part of a package to move back up several spots to grab Notre Dame OT Ronnie Stanley, the second rated tackle behind Tunsil. Of course, the Titans could always just sit tight and select Michigan State OT Jack Conklin who is expected to be there at #15.

If the Titans were able to land Stanley or Conklin it would represent a neat coup for Tennessee which hasn’t had many neat draft coups of late in the sense that they would be able to address the same position they would have done with Tunsil with a pretty good player, but still have 4-5 other premium picks to work with. At the same time, though, one has to wonder if the Titans could actually have done better, especially given that Rams actually got more when they traded down from #2 to #6 to allow Washington to select QB Robert Griffen in 2012 that they gave up to move up from #15 to #1 this year.

The other question here is why, if there were in fact as reported other teams interested in the top pick, why Tennessee didn’t wait until closer to the draft with the expectation that the price would go up even higher. Robinson did address this when he said that the Titans wanted the extra time to study their options with the extra picks, but that really doesn’t hold a lot of water. One other possibility is that the Rams’ offer was the only really competitive offer out there, but that LA had actually made the same offer to Cleveland for the second pick where the Rams would have been able to get their guy if the Titans were not able to find another trade partner at #1.

In fact, there has been a growing buzz around the league that even before the Titans-Rams deal that given their druthers Cleveland would prefer to trade down from the #2 pick rather than take a QB at that spot. And if the Browns were leaning toward Wentz rather than Goff for that pick, the incentive to trade is likely multiplied. There is also a growing feeling that even if they did stay at #2, the Browns might very well be tempted to take a position player like Florida State DB Jalen Ramsey or local hero Joey Bosa of Ohio State rather than the ‘other’ QB. In fact, it’s unlikely any deals for the #2 pick are consummated until the Browns get on the clock on the 28th once the Rams have made their selection. Philadelphia was believed to the Rams’ main competition to trade with Tennessee this week, but just didn’t have the same kind of ammunition. Ironically, one of the key bargaining chips that put the Rams over the top had was an extra 2nd round pick that they acquired from Philadelphia last year in the deal involving QBs Sam Bradford and Nick Foles. Again, nobody really knows whether the Eagles were targeting the same player as the Rams, but would appear to be still a possibility to move up if the #1 pick becomes available.

The other team that just won’t go away when it comes to talk about taking a QB with an early pick on the 28th is Dallas. Owner/G.M. Jerry Jones, whose Cowboys have the 4th pick, is on record as saying the pick would be wasted on a QB if incumbent starter Tony Romo is largely healthy over the next few years. Indeed, the consensus around the league is that the Cowboys are leaning toward taking either Jalen Ramsey, the top guy on their board, or maybe Bosa with the 4th pick and then use a second day selection on a developmental QB to groom behind Romo. However, Jones travelled half way across the country on Saturday to check out Goff at a private workout at Cal. Fact is NFL G.M.s just don’t travel that far less than two weeks if there wasn’t some genuine interest there. Stay tuned.

And speaking of travelling men, Jacksonville G.M. Dave Caldwell and head coach Gus Bradley travelled ALL the way across the country this weekend to visit with UCLA LB Myles Jack. For those who have been on another planet the past week or so, Jack is a top 5 prospect who would be a natural target for the Jags at the #5 pick if he is healthy. That’s the big if though as Jack has been slow to recover from a torn MCL suffered way back in September. However, for the Jaguars to dispatch their top two front office decision makers all that way at this late date also suggests some very serious interest.