The best track and field coaches will tell you races begin long before the actual gun goes off. Training. Mental preparation. Strategic planning. All of those lead-up factors play a major role in the eventual outcome. And while no race is ever won before it actually starts, many have certainly been lost.
Clearly, the Rams are trying to avoid the latter.
MORE: Inside the Rams podcast breaks down the many moves
And they are doing it by acting every bit like a franchise situated in the second-biggest market in the country, one that genuinely believes it’s on the cusp of Super Bowl contention and is confident in the leadership and culture in place to add difference-making players with the kind of bold, combustible personalities that sometimes accompany them.
The new league year doesn’t technically begin for another five days, but when the gun sounds to set off free agency and the opportunity for teams to reshape their rosters and fill needs and better position themselves for the 2018 season, the work general manager Les Snead and head coach Sean McVay and Vice President of Football Operations Kevin Demoff have put in prior to the actual frenzy has already given them a major leg up on the process of building off last year’s surprising 11-5 season.
The Rams are thinking big.
Like Super Bowl big.
And they are doing so with a level of intelligence and calculation often lacking when teams take big, mighty swings for the fences only to be undone by their own aggressiveness.
The Rams are being bold and smart. That’s a fine line that often gets crossed.
By agreeing to trade for Chiefs and Broncos Pro Bowl cornerbacks Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib and trading away linebackers Robert Quinn and Alec Ogletree and using their franchise tag to guarantee the return of safety Lamarcus Joyner, the Rams have already addressed a major area of need while preserving the financial flexibility to do even more.
Peters and Talib provide Wade Phillips with two critical components for his 3-4 defense: A pair of elite cornerbacks whose coverage skills will create more opportunities for the front seven to pressure the quarterback. And they make as much money combined (about $12 million) as it likely would have cost to retain free agent to be Trumaine Johnson by himself.
Thank You!!! pic.twitter.com/QySNPhr1on
— AqibTalib21 (@AqibTalib21) March 9, 2018
Meanwhile, both are under contract for the next two seasons on their base salaries. To put that in perspective, just imagine what it would cost in salary and signing bonuses to reel in players of Peters’ or Talib’s caliber on the open market. Let alone two.
Yes, both come with big personalities and emotional levels that sometimes need checking, but the Rams believe they have the necessary leadership in place to manage them accordingly.
Joyner’s return keeps intact a young, effective safety pairing — along with John Johnson — equally adept in pass coverage and run support. Throw in former Packers Pro Bowl cornerback Sam Shields, who is returning to football after sitting out all last year recovering from multiple concussions, and the Rams have the foundation of a dominant secondary.
Maybe even the best in football.
And while trading away Quinn and Ogletree is certainly a net loss in the locker room and, to some extent, defensive production, neither were ideal fits in the 3-4 scheme, and their departures preserve salary cap flexibility while increasing the Rams draft arsenal.
When all the dust settles once the trades are officially recorded — and the likely release of veteran wide receiver Tavon Austin is added — the Rams will have a shade under $40 million in cap space, and ten picks in the upcoming draft.
Think about that for a second: The Rams have already dramatically improved their secondary — an area that required the most attention this offseason — and increased their draft picks by one, while remaining net neutral on cap space. They have just as much money to spend under the cap as they anticipated, only with far less needs to address.
No longer in need of another cornerback to play opposite Johnson — or two if he left as a free agent — the Rams can focus on finding replacements for Quinn and Ogletree and beefing up the interior of their defensive line either in free agency or through the draft.
And keep in mind there are young players on the current roster they believe are ready to step in as starters. Samson Ebukam and Cory Littleton will be in the mix at outside linebacker and inside linebacker after both flashed last season in their first and second years.
Most importantly, they have the flexibility to match any prudent contract offer free agent wide receiver Sammy Watkins might get on the open market (provided it isn’t an irresponsible overpay) and, peeking ahead down the line this year and beyond, they are well positioned to retain core players Aaron Donald, Todd Gurley, Jared Goff and Peters on eventual long-term deals.
The Rams are acting big — and shrewd — all right.
And the race hasn’t even started.