Can the Rams "win the trade'' in a swap of Jalen Ramsey to the Jags or the Cowboys? It's much harder than it seems.
The Los Angeles Rams' roster is in a state of flux, and maybe the Rams' career of perennial Pro Bowler Jalen Ramsey is in the same place.
With Ramsey tweeting cryptically about a possible departure from L.A. - "I went out with a BANG!'' - destination speculation is sensible.
But is the speculation more sensible that simply retaining one of the roster's best players?
Along come the dueling thoughts of two media pals, Marcus Mosher at Pro Football Focus "vs.'' USA Today's Cameron DaSilva.
PFF's idea in in part is about a "shake-up,'' as site writes - and about creating a reunion with the Jacksonville Jaguars. That concept comes amid speculation that maybe the Dallas Cowboys might be interested in the star who in the 2016 NFL Draft viewed as being the "tags-touching'' equal to the guy they drafted at No. 4 ... Ezekiel Elliott.
And yes, Dallas could use cornerback help.
PPF's argument, in part: “Wouldn’t a return to Jacksonville just be perfect now that the Jaguars are contenders in the AFC once again?”
"Perfect''? Maybe not. "Fun''? Sure - though we're not sure Ramsey thinks that.
Meanwhile, DaSilva makes the same point we've made when it comes to a media-proposed Cowboys and Rams swap: Not only does the new team need to figure out the salary, but the old team (the Rams) - cap-strapped as PFF points it is - doesn't really benefit from a trade cap-wise.
Trading Ramsey in a conventional way (that is, before June 1) only gives L.A. $5.6 million of room ... so all that's "saved'' is his salary/cap number of about $25 ... minus the $19.6 million that must be "paid to the cap'' in in dead space.
There's your net of $5.6 million.
Would the Rams rather have a 28-year-old Pro Bowl corner and pay him $25 million ... or "pay'' $19.6 million to not have him?
There are three other wrinkles here.
One, if Ramsey is traded after June 1, the Rams free up $17 million. That's a difference-making amount ... but it means the draft picks obtained couldn't be used until the 2024 NFL Draft. So Ramsey would be gone, with a year's wait for the payoff.
Two, everything is worth considering if the Rams "win the trade.'' Do the Jags or the Cowboys want to give up a first-round pick here? Our smart bet on Dallas is that the answer is a resounding "no.''
And three, DaSilva has spoken to Ramsey, who says his "BANG!'' tweet was about the end of his season, not the end of his Rams career.
So as the Rams try to "bang'' their way to roster improvements and cap decisions, they might need to look elsewhere than to movement of Jalen Ramsey.
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