Why Rams were willing to trade Brockers for almost nothing...

Why the Rams were willing to trade Michael Brockers for almost nothing

[theramswire.usatoday.com]

Cameron DaSilva

The Los Angeles Rams signed Michael Brockers to a three-year deal last offseason, paying him an average of $8 million per year. But just one year into that contract, they’re parting ways with him.

The team agreed to trade Brockers to the Lions in exchange for a 2023 seventh-round pick – essentially the lowest possible return in a trade. The compensation for Brockers surprised a lot of people, given the way he’s played in Los Angeles and contributed as a run defender.

But there’s a reason the Rams were willing to move him for next to nothing: cap space.

Financially, it made a lot more sense to trade Brockers for a seventh-round pick two years down the line than it would have to outright cut him. By trading Brockers, the Rams take on $3.67 million in dead money but also save a total of $6.17 million, per Over The Cap. If the Rams cut him, the savings would’ve only been $4.67 million with $5.17 million in dead money hitting the books.

That’s a difference of $1.5 million in 2021. Not a ton of money, but put it this way: It accounts for almost a third of Darious Williams’ first-round tender ($4.77 million). So every penny helps.

The Rams probably shopped Brockers around in an attempt to get something better than a seventh-round pick in 2023. But if you look at recent trades across the NFL involving defensive linemen, they were never going to get more than a sixth-rounder for him.

Calais Campbell: 2020 5th-round pick
Jurrell Casey: 2020 7th-round pick
Hassan Ridgeway: 2019 7th-round pick
Marcell Dareus: 2018 6th-round pick
Steve McLendon: 2022 6th- and 2023 7th-round picks
Damon Harrison: 2019 5th-round pick
P.J. Hall: Conditional 2021 7th-round pick (trade fell through)
Not to mention, Brockers’ $6.5 million base salary was set to become fully guaranteed on the fifth day of the league year. So the Rams had to get a deal done before then if they wanted to get maximum cap space for parting ways with Brockers.

They tried to keep him by asking him to tweak his contract. You can’t blame Brockers for declining to, considering he just signed his contract a year ago. So the Rams did what they could to recoup anything possible for Brockers, while also saving the most money.

A seventh-round pick and $6.17 million in their pocket is better than no draft pick and only $4.67 million in savings. This deal was all about money for L.A.