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GroundPounder
The man has got us by the kahoonies as he knows he makes the defense go. He is the defense. We know it too as several here speak of the "Donald Effect" on other defensive players. Donald doesn't get what he wants or thinks is fair, he walks / retires. And our defense will suffer and he knows that too. We know it and Snead / McVay knows it. Him retiring changes the complexion if the ENTIRE team.
Donald holding all the cards is true. His legacy and career are set: First ballot HOFer, tons of money, fame, awards, et.al. What our team will be like AFTER he retires (whether this year or whenever as it IS going to happen, sorry, reality check here for some) is not so concrete and I think this is what is p!$$ing off a lot of people here. It's not the money, the threat of him retiring, how it's being handled, Kupp's camp doing this or that. It's the unknown of what life is going to be like if and when he walks. It's been easy being a Rams fan the last several years but this situation going on with AD is a hard reminder that there will be and are changes coming on the horizon that may result in hand wringing and gnashing of teeth in the future.
Disagree, Pounder. Strongly.
There are only so many ways this AD contract thing can end.
1. Rams and AD work things out, everybody is happy, and AD plays in ‘22. Best case scenario, of course.
2. AD holds out for a while, possibly even a few games. THEN an accommodation is reached and AD plays. Rams are still a SB contender here.
3. AD retires. He loses a fortune in future earnings, torpedoes his off-field marketing strategy in it’s infancy, alienates coaches, teammates, and fans. Plus he will have to pay back literally millions in advanced bonuses, etc.
4. Rams can’t work things out with AD and trade AD for a boatload of future picks. Rams are still competitive in ‘22 although no longer a SB favorite. But Rams can reload quickly with those future high picks together with a much reduced cap.
In all but one of the above scenarios Rams come out smelling like a rose even in the trade scenario long term.
If AD does retire he shoots himself in the foot on multiple levels. Even in that scenario Rams own his rights for 3 more years as his prime physical gifts slowly dissipate AND Rams save literally tens of millions off their salary cap. Money that would be invested in other quality players via FA, no doubt.
How can anybody claim that Rams are not holding the better cards here and have supreme leverage? C’mon…
I know that some have fallen in love with the player but not me. I learned a long time ago that team always comes before player. ANY player. Always…
