Hear him out first.
Here’s Mackeyser...
Heresy in the age of Free Agency
Firstly, I know that even the idea of this is heresy to RamNation.
I get it. Thing is... if the goal is winning the Super Bowl, there's an off-chance that this might be the better road.
So, this is simply a scenario. I'm not promoting this. I just think it's important for discussion (and you can bet that in the quiet moments away from the building, Snead and Demoff have had this conversation... probably more than once.
Okay, enough. Here goes.
It involves the trade of Aaron Donald. (ducks) Hear me out. I dunno what the issue was with signing the deal this past off-season, but JJ Watt has started to make me rethink this whole notion that Donald HAS to be a Ram at any costs.
So, here's what I thought:
Now, understand much of this is predicated on Dominique Easley coming back full strength.
Trade Aaron Donald to the Indianapolis Colts. Easley replaces AD.
The trade would be AD for the Colts' 1st and 3rd rounders this year and 2nd next year. For a top 5 NFL defensive talent still on his rookie contract, that's honestly a steal, but the upcoming contract mitigates that.
FA – Acquire Malcolm Butler, CB. Resign Trumaine Johnson. Sign Longacre to an extension and Resign Barwin to a short contract.
Draft:
1a) Da'Ron Payne, NT, Alabama. Dude's a physical freak at the NT spot with already developed pass rush moves and the strength and ability to move the pile. The more I read up on him, the more I see teams that will trade up for him. We'd need to be at the Colts' spot to get him as I see him more and more as being a top 5 guy that teams will be interested in at the 1tech DT spot in a 4-3 D as well as NT in a 3-4. This guy won't last until our spot in the 20s. A DL of Brockers, Payne and Easley would actually be better overall than what we have now. Overall. And yeah, we'd miss AD.
1b) Josh Jackson, CB, Iowa who's straight up balling out this year. Actually, Jackson may have risen above Tarvarus McFadden, CB, FSU and I'd be happy with either. Both are press-man CBs who fit this scheme. With Butler, Johnson and a top rookie CB as well as NRC and Webster, we would go a long way to solidifying the back end. And we'd have depth to withstand losing guys like Webster in 2019 if Jackson makes the steps he should make.
If Dorance Armstrong, Jr, OLB, Kansas is there at some point in the mid 2nd, I can see Snead trading our early 3rd and 4th for a 2nd to nab him. Otherwise:
3a) Porter Gustin, OLB, USC. He's had injuries, but the talent and athleticism is there as well as a Chris Long type motor. He might slide because of injuries and that'd be fine as he looks like a young Conor Barwin, but with more upside. Already plays the run strong.
3b) Lorenzo Carter, OLB, Georgia. We've done well with UGA OLBs and Carter is more of a pass rusher than Gustin who sets the edge well, but needs development time as a rusher. Carter is ready to rush as a rookie.
How does this change things?
Well, firstly, we'd have depth at CB and OLB, something we don't really have now. And we'd have rounds 4, 6, and 7 as well as UDFA to improve the OL, TE and maybe RB or WR depth.
Secondly, we'd have a better DL across the board (that's saying the improvement from the NT position going from Walker to Payne would offset the drop from AD to Easley which while some, isn't massive.)
Moreover, we'd have plenty of money to lock up our younger players which is key to having the kind of long term success we want.
Would I prefer Donald retire as a Ram more than a decade from now having rewritten the record books? Of course. But football is a business and we may not have a choice in this matter.
Something to consider.
I chose the Colts because they have the cap space to nab an FA QB if Luck isn't going to play again (looking at you, Cousins) AND pay Donald. And they have a top 5 pick at this time and there aren't any top QB prospects this year. No top 1-3 guys, anyway. Works for the Colts because they already have a lot of pieces on O and adding AD would alleviate some of the pressure on their Dbs.
Anyway, I see us having a very bright future and I see that with or without AD. I know... that feels strange to even think that.
