The Los Angeles Rams completed a blockbuster trade Monday ahead of the 2021 NFL Trade Deadline to acquire former Denver Broncos All-Pro edge rusher Von Miller.
Here are six takeaways from the league-altering deal:
— First and foremost, and admittedly this isn’t expert-level analysis, but the Rams really are all in to the point even the team’s official Twitter account shared it. Rams general manager Les Snead continues to make blockbuster deal after blockbuster deal in pursuit of a Super Bowl. It was the case during the middle of the 2019 season when LA traded two first-rounders for cornerback Jalen Ramsey, the case this summer when the organization traded two first-rounders for quarterback Matthew Stafford and the case again Monday while landing another big fish in Miller despite being so low on cap space.
The Rams are 10th in points and 21st in yards allowed this season. They have, however, allowed the second-fewest passing touchdowns and fourth-fewest passing yards. Miller should only help that defensive unit.
— No, Miller is not the same player who was named an All-Pro in consecutive seasons during 2015 and 2016. He may not even be the same player who was named to six straight Pro Bowls before missing the 2020 season. But even a 32-year-old, Miller is the best edge rusher Aaron Donald has ever played with. The outside linebacker has 4.5 sacks and nine quarterback hits in seven games this season. Offensive line coaches are not going to get much sleep the week before playing the Rams.
— There’s no other way to feel about it: Snead and the Rams despise draft picks. If you will allow us to cross-reference sports, Snead is the anti-Sam Presti, the Oklahoma City Thunder general manager who covets picks like someone covets air as they dive into the deep end. Snead dealt a second- and third-rounder to Denver for Miller on Monday. It continued to show Snead’s willingness to regularly trade away picks, including first-rounders, and it sets him apart from the vast majority of NFL general managers. Snead is on pace to go seven straight years (through 2023) without making a first-round selection. That’s unbelievable! The Rams’ first pick in the 2022 NFL Draft is a compensatory pick in the third round before their own fifth-rounder and a pair of seventh-rounders.
— Oddsmakers have, of course, taken notice. The Rams now have jumped to co-favorites to win the NFC along with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to DraftKings Sports. LA was 5-to-1 before the trade for Miller behind the Buccaneers, Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers. They jumped from +500 to +350.
The Rams also are +650 to win the Super Bowl, which, conveniently will be hosted at their own SoFi Stadium in February and — and this may be the best bet — even money to overcome the Arizona Cardinals and claim the NFC West.
— Not that the Rams defense is available in your fantasy football league (spoiler alert: it’s probably not), but fantasy owners who took LA as one of the first defenses off the board have received a godsend. The Rams almost certainly will be better on that side of the ball, and that should help fantasy teams, too.
— The Broncos actually got some good value back for dealing the 32-year-old who was set to become a free agent after this season. Denver essentially will pay Miller to play in LA while covering $9 million of his $9.7 million salary remaining this year, which may be strange to hear, but in covering that they received a pair of Day Two picks in the upcoming NFL draft. They would not have received such good long-term assets if they did not help LA with the short-term finances. That’s not a bad return for a team that probably isn’t going anywhere this year, either.
The NFL trade deadline is set for Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
