Turf Show Times
Five years later, how did the blockbuster trade age for the Rams and what can they learn?
The Los Angeles Rams enter a 2025 season in which they’ll be seen as a top contender. As they enter another Super Bowl window, it would not be surprising to see general manager Les Snead make a move to capitalize one more time with quarterback Matthew Stafford under center.
Since joining the Rams in 2012, Snead has been one of the more aggressive general managers in the NFL. That was especially the case during the “F Them Picks” era in which the Rams gave up draft capital for star players. The 2025 season hasn’t even started and the Rams have already been mentioned as a potential team for star cornerback Jalen Ramsey.
It was five seasons ago that the Rams traded for Ramsey the first time as he was acquired in the middle of the 2019 season. Along with A.J. Bouye, Ramsey had helped lead a revamped secondary with the Jacksonville Jaguars. In 2017, the Jaguars had the number one pass defense, allowing the fewest total yards and fewest net yards per pass attempt. By 2019, the relationship between Ramsey and the Jaguars had soured. Ramsey and former Jaguars head coach Doug Marrone had a heated exchange on the sideline during a game and the cornerback was in need of a new contract. A month later, Ramsey was traded to the Rams.
Making a splash move for a top cornerback was nothing new to Snead. The Rams general manager traded for cornerback Marcus Peters during the 2018 season. However, Peters was never a great scheme fit for Wade Phillips’ defense. It wasn’t often that a top cornerback of Ramsey’s caliber became available, and the Rams saw an opportunity to move on from Peters for an upgrade at the position.
The Jalen Ramsey trade signified very different things for both the Rams and Jaguars. For the Rams, it meant that this was a team that would do whatever it could to get over the hump and chase a Super Bowl. The trade for Ramsey was Snead’s largest to date. While he gave up a first-round pick to acquire wide receiver Brandin Cooks, the trade for Ramsey would require multiple first-round selections. With multiple first-round picks on the line, there was also an added pressure to sign the cornerback to a contract extension.
Ramsey would be a big part of the Rams’ eventual Super Bowl run as he was awarded a five-year, $105 million contract extension before the 2020 season. Ramsey would go on to win first-team All-Pro selections in 2020 and 2021. While he had some shortcomings in the playoffs, he had two pass breakups in the 2021 NFC Championship game against the San Francisco 49ers and another...
