Sigh - what were the Rams thinking?
Yeah, that's what's so hard to figure out.
Knee concerns-- if it was so bad, then why is EJ playing like a "beast" as the top-rated Titan defender?
Contract-- A reasonable salary at the end of his rookie deal. And EJ said he was fully prepared to play out his contract and then become a FA next year.
Personal issues-- EJ said he was "shocked" by the trade and there was "no bad blood." And McVay has repeatedly said EJ was a great leader and handled things well and was a "pure professional."
Reeder and Rozeboom passed him on depth chart?-- kinda hard to believe this one, given the mediocre ILB play for the Rams and the glowing reports on EJ from the Titans.
Trade value-- Rams got next to nothing in return... not even a straight-up 5th round pick, just a SWAP of a 6th for a 5th. And the salary cap savings sure doesn't seem to justify the trade either.
So yeah, basically nothing makes sense. McVay says it was "good for the team in both the short-term and long-term."
Love McSnead, but this trade is unjustifiable from publicly available information. Gotta be a secret reason, but I'll be damned if I can figure it out.