robert woods traded

The Rams traded receiver Robert Woods to the Titans on Saturday afternoon in exchange for a 2023 sixth-round pick, multiple sources told The Athletic. While the reason for the trade was simple — largely financial, I was told — the ripple effects from it won’t be.

There’s a lot to unpack in a transaction as emotionally loaded as this one is. Woods is a perennial team captain and has been a core leader in the locker room since the Rams signed him in 2017. He helped build the culture that ultimately became so crucial to the Rams’ Super Bowl win. He’s also a Los Angeles native and former USC Trojan who heartbreakingly could not participate on the field through the backstretch of last season’s championship run because he tore his ACL during practice in November (he’s expected to return to full form before training camp).

This trade requires us to hold many things in our minds at once as truths, even as fans and teammates are reeling from it:

• The Rams were not going to pay three receivers $12 million-plus annually. Their acquisition of high-profile receiver Allen Robinson on Thursday was the first in a series of moves that foreshadowed major changes coming to a talent-crowded receivers room. Robinson’s own contract averages about $15 million per year, and I expect the Rams to also restructure triple crown receiver Cooper Kupp’s deal in the coming months to reflect the higher pay of a player of his caliber.

They also want to re-sign Odell Beckham Jr., but it’s important to note that trading Woods wasn’t an either/or situation as far as Beckham is concerned. Beckham’s offer from the Rams isn’t likely to be a high one in its first year at least (or front-loaded if it’s a multiyear deal), because he will play only half a season at best when he returns from his own ACL injury suffered in the Super Bowl.

The Rams will incur a dead-money hit of $8.6 million because they didn’t wait until after June 1 to trade Woods. But, a source directly familiar with the transaction said, the team will save about $10 million between cash, bonus and cap considerations previously owed to Woods in 2022.

They are currently trying to restructure star defensive tackle Aaron Donald’s contract, and it’s likely to be very expensive. They’re also trying to remain aggressive in free agency through the spring and summer to add at important positions (they need another pass rusher and a cornerback, though one of the two can’t affect their compensatory-pick formula).

• Why did the Rams acquire Robinson in the first place if they knew it would mean parting with Woods? Free agency isn’t always linear. Multiple action plans are required, and the Rams pivoted when they didn’t retain outside linebacker Von Miller. They believed as late as Wednesday morning that they would get him back, before the Bills’ quiet push and higher offer (six years, $120 million with $45 million guaranteed) persuaded him away.

As they waited for Miller to explore free agency fully for the first time and make his decision, the other top available pass rushers were signed by other teams. A source said the Rams even internally discussed trade possibilities with Minnesota, who midweek was still figuring out what to do with pass-rusher Danielle Hunter.

When it became clear their top pass-rush options were not viable, they signed Robinson, who was arguably the best free agent still available (and a top-10 player in this free-agent class overall) and fits what specifically Matthew Stafford and McVay want to do with their passing game. Moving Woods then seemed like an inevitability because of Robinson’s salary and Woods’ own.

That’s not to say that the Rams wouldn’t have tried to trade Woods if Miller had stayed, considering his contract. They still could have done so after June 1, and incurred far less dead money in 2022. But, if Miller had stayed, they probably wouldn’t have also been able to afford Robinson. If they couldn’t afford Robinson, they wouldn’t have had an overcrowded and financially disproportionate receivers room (again, Beckham Jr.’s expected offer does not factor into this). Football’s calculus can be cruel.

It was not ideal for the Rams to miss out on pass rushers in free agency’s initial wave (although there were mixed feelings internally about the size of the offer to Miller) On the other hand, a team can’t sit on its heels if its first plan goes awry and another elite player is available. The savings from not retaining Miller, extending Stafford and creating more cap space in 2022, and the extra savings from trading Woods will fold into more moves beyond the acquisition of Robinson.

• Why couldn’t the Rams get more in return? A source said the team got a few calls and offers on Woods over the last two days, especially after they added Robinson. But they also wanted to find a good spot for Woods, and the Titans’ offense certainly is that — his blocking will unlock even more in their already-dangerous run game, and he thrives in play-action-heavy offenses. The Titans still use a ton of play-action, while the Rams dramatically moved away from their usage of it after trading for Stafford.

Between offloading Woods’ salary and the fit, the Rams seemed prepared for the inevitable (and fair) criticism of receiving only a 2023 sixth-rounder for a player of Woods’ caliber.

• To me, this move signals even more of schematic shift in 2022. We saw pieces of this last season, including the movement away from sweeps and play-action passes and the increased usage of pure dropback concepts and empty sets. Adding Stafford, then figuring out what he was truly capable of as a passer, then understanding how defenses were rapidly changing to contain the offense McVay ran from 2017 to 2020 forced the coach to adapt. Schematic changes often mean personnel changes.

The move also signals a dramatic changing-of-the-guard in locker-room leadership, too — or at least, it will have to if the Rams want to keep their team culture cohesive. Stalwart left tackle Andrew Whitworth retired, and veteran punter Johnny Hekker was released. Like those players, Woods’ contributions to the Rams’ ethos were invaluable.

His departure will require younger or newer players to emerge as stability points. The Rams have gambled in many phases of their team-build, and it has worked out for them. But the emotional implications of this move might be among their riskiest bets yet.

Yes, there’s a lot to unpack from a move such as this.

In physics, every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Each reaction is in itself a new action, and the cycle continues. Time will tell what this move’s ultimate result is. We currently see only about half of the picture.

The difficult part is that, in losing a player as meaningful as Woods has been to this franchise, to his teammates, coaches, fans and to media, we feel all of it