The Los Angeles Rams 2024 season has certainly not started off on a positive note, and QB Matthew Stafford seems to be the only star player still standing.
The team announced this morning that Cooper Kupp would avoid IR but he is still expected to miss multiple weeks with no real timetable to return.
The Rams currently have 12 players on IR, which includes:
- Jonah Jackson, C
- John Johnson, S
- Puka Nacua, WR
- Steve Avila, LG
- Tyler Higbee, TE
- Darious Williams, CB
- Joe Noteboom, OL
- Larrell Murchison, DT
- Derion Kendrick, CB
- Conor McDermott, OT
- Tre’ Tomlinson, CB
- KT Leveston, OL
Per NFL Rules, each team can have 8 players on IR with the designation to return (out a minimum of 4 weeks). However, a new rule allows teams to put up to two players on IR prior to the season with the designation to return. This was the case for Larrell Murchison and KT Leveston.
Derion Kendrick and Tre’ Tomlinson were put on season-ending IR, so that leaves the Rams with the 8 player designations. This would lead us to believe that while Kupp’s injury is not season-ending, he most likely would have landed on IR if there was an open spot.
Just brutal injury luck for the Rams.
But that takes us to retired quarterback and now NFL Analyst and Podcaster Chase Daniel.
On an episode of The Facility on FS1, Daniel lays out the idea of the Los Angeles Rams trading star QB Matthew Stafford to the Miami Dolphins in a three-team trade with the Carolina Panthers.
The trade details are as follows:
| Rams Receive | Panthers Receive | Dolphins Receive |
|---|---|---|
| Bryce Young | Dolphins 2nd Round Pick | Matthew Stafford |
| Rams 3rd Round Pick |
You can watch the video exchange here:
NFL Analyst Urges Rams To Trade Matthew Stafford For Bryce Young
As painful as it would be to see Matthew Stafford traded from the Rams, with how the season is unfolding, if they are able to set themselves up for the future, there is a semblance of reasoning here.
However, the compensation is ludicrous and should/would cost Les Snead his job. Having to trade Matthew Stafford (who through 2 games with all of the injuries around him, is playing like a Top 5 QB) AND a third-round pick for an NFL Draft bust/project in Bryce Young is not only laughable, it is borderline malpractice.
Again, I am not saying that I want, or that the Rams should trade Stafford, but the overall idea of shedding his contract and bringing Bryce Young back to Los Angeles (played High School ball at Mater Dei), is not the crazy part, it’s compensation.
The Rams have the leverage here. With McVay and Snead at the helm, they will always be in win-now mode, so they should not be desperate to off-load Stafford. But if a team like Miami, becomes desperate for a QB of Stafford’s caliber, then the Rams could exploit that.
Related: Latest Cooper Kupp Injury Update
The days of Stafford netting two first-round picks are over, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t still worth high compensation. If the Rams were able to get Young, a pick swap, and then a 2nd or 3rd rounder, it actually could make some sense. (The Jets swapped first-round picks with the Packers and sent the 42nd, No. 207, and a conditional 2nd-round pick for Aaron Rodgers, for example).
Young was put in a terrible situation and is still only 23 years old. Everyone who watches football knows that coaching and team situation have a lot of importance. Young would be able to come to LA, sit behind Jimmy Garoppolo for the remainder of an injury-riddled rebuild year, and learn from one of the best in McVay.
Then, if he is ready, he would be handed the keys to the Rams, or LA would still have the ability to draft a QB in the 2025 NFL Draft (looking at you Miller Moss), and they are $50 million lighter in Cap space, per Over The Cap.
I know Rams fans would probably hate it, and I am not advocating for it, but if the compensation was right, it could actually make some sense in setting the team up for the future.
Thoughts Ramily?