The Bizarre Drama of the 1987 Rams, Leroy Irvin

In the middle of the 1987 season, Rams CB Leroy Irvin was so disgruntled with his contract, he asked to get traded. It was looking so likely, the Rams cleaned out his locker. The only problem? Irvin never got traded.

This is the crazy story behind the 1987 Rams drama between HC John Robinson, Leroy Irvin, and the Front Office.



View: https://youtu.be/njjdff5-KTM

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

Todd Lyght couldn’t hold Irvin’s jock.

 

[den-the-coach]

Todd Lyght couldn’t hold Irvin’s jock.

That's an understatement and if Gary Green doesn't get hurt, he would be in the conversation as the best CB overall.

As to 1987 this is why i love Enos Stanley Kroenke because Georgia Frontiere led by her henchman John Shaw and his lackey Jay Zygmunt, the Rams were always a nickel & dime organization before the move to the Gateway City.

Frontiere always seem to pull this type of stuff, sometimes being penny wise & dollar foolish. There were some players that got paid, but most of them did not and in this case, it was an excellent example as if they had paid Irvin in the first place, they would not have gone through the dog & pony show.

Frontiere & Shaw continued to pull this BS throughout their tenure the worst being Eric Dickerson and not paying him. That is why many of us never liked her, Frontiere was a nice person and did quite a bit in the community, but the team was her only source of revenue and that is why she moved it to St. Louis because the stadium situation in Anaheim did not offer them the windfall they needed and the move to St. Louis did.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

Green was a great corner. Back then he was my favorite Ram.

 

[CGI_Ram]

That's an understatement and if Gary Green doesn't get hurt, he would be in the conversation as the best CB overall.

As to 1987 this is why i love Enos Stanley Kroenke because Georgia Frontiere led by her henchman John Shaw and his lackey Jay Zygmunt, the Rams were always a nickel & dime organization before the move to the Gateway City.

Frontiere always seem to pull this type of stuff, sometimes being penny wise & dollar foolish. There were some players that got paid, but most of them did not and in this case, it was an excellent example as if they had paid Irvin in the first place, they would not have gone through the dog & pony show.

Frontiere & Shaw continued to pull this BS throughout their tenure the worst being Eric Dickerson and not paying him. That is why many of us never liked her, Frontiere was a nice person and did quite a bit in the community, but the team was her only source of revenue and that is why she moved it to St. Louis because the stadium situation in Anaheim did not offer them the windfall they needed and the move to St. Louis did.

It was also pre-salary cap era.

The cap in 1994 brought more of a labor cost structure to things.

Sure glad we have a cap. Next we need to figure out QB pay solution. Those contracts are nuts.

 

[Merlin]

We were such a joke back then because of our ownership. To now be a fan of what has become an elite franchise feels almost surreal. Thank you Stan and also thank you Coach McVay. What a time we are living in.

 

[Neil039]

I was a young teenager back then. Loved Irvin but never understood the whole situation at the time.

 

[Allen2McVay]

We were such a joke back then because of our ownership. To now be a fan of what has become an elite franchise feels almost surreal. Thank you Stan and also thank you Coach McVay. What a time we are living in.

The ownership was a joke and the Front Office was sub-par but the Team was really good in the 1980's.

Robinson, Shurmur and Zampese did a terrific job.

Except for the two strike-shortened seasons, the '80s Rams were a playoff-team every season but 1981 ... and were good. Unfortunately, the best team of that decade was in the same division

 

[Merlin]

The ownership was a joke and the Front Office was sub-par but the Team was really good in the 1980's.

Robinson, Shurmur and Zampese did a terrific job.

Except for the two strike-shortened seasons, the '80s Rams were a playoff-team every season but 1981 ... and were good. Unfortunately, the best team of that decade was in the same division

Yes and I remember it well, all the way to the 30-3 loss in the '89 NFC Championship that seemed to take the soul out of Robinson and his Rams roster. When he fired Zampese I knew it was over, which really pissed me off because he was a case of a coach making chicken salad out of chicken shit for many years for us.

The 9ers were the better team because they were smarter on personnel too. They had the better coach, who installed that culture. And it all started from the top.

Honestly Georgia taught me as a fan the importance of ownership. It was a steep cost too, what with the 90s and all.

 

[PARAM]

The 80's weren't as frustrating as the 70's. Despite getting to the SB in 79 (rather surprisingly), we were clearly one of the best teams in the NFL from 73-78 and couldn't make that leap. In the 80's, not so much. But we were relevant year in and year out. And entertaining. The loss to the Bears in 85, though totally expected was still a disappointment. The loss to the niners wasn't expected and was therefore, more disappointing IMHO. Same incompetent front office in the 80's and 90's and 00's, which just goes to show......find a legit NFL head coach, get a HOF RB to couple with a HOF WR, discover an NFL Superstar QB and even a joke of a front office can't hold you back!!!

 

[Memento]

The 80's weren't as frustrating as the 70's. Despite getting to the SB in 79 (rather surprisingly), we were clearly one of the best teams in the NFL from 73-78 and couldn't make that leap. In the 80's, not so much. But we were relevant year in and year out. And entertaining. The loss to the Bears in 85, though totally expected was still a disappointment. The loss to the niners wasn't expected and was therefore, more disappointing IMHO. Same incompetent front office in the 80's and 90's and 00's, which just goes to show......find a legit NFL head coach, get a HOF RB to couple with two HOF WRs, a HOF left tackle, discover an NFL Superstar QB and even a joke of a front office can't hold you back!!!

Fixed. Can’t believe you forgot about Torry and Orlando.
:facepalm: