Quinn would get a third rounder, not a few picks.
As a 3/4 LB he is a liability because he can't cover anyone. That's a big deal because it's a big responsibility and he is no good at it.
A 3rd would be wonderful! but so would a
few picks like a 4th rd & a 5th rd
. On TA some good more bad....
Here’s my Readers Digest take on these 3 players.
Tavon is a goner. No earthly reason to keep him and waste a valuable roster spot.
Quinn is likely 80% gone. Just not a good fit in Wade’s D, it seems (being polite here). Bonifay made an intriguing argument for a trade opportunity. If feasible, that would be a win-win. Contract re-structure seems unlikely.
Barron? I just don’t know. My guess is that he’s slightly more likely to be gone. But it’s only a slight lean in that direction.
We should brace ourselves for a lot of probable new replacement starters on Wade’s ‘18 D.
Current starters that are possible, or even probable to be replaced include:
Westbrooks (or whoever the hell our current NT is)
Barwin
Barron
Quinn
TruJo
Webster (almost certain due to injury)That’s some significant change from our ‘17 starters, huh?
The release of
TA before June 1st would cost the Rams an instant 5 mil in dead $$. That alone is tough to do & get hit on. But you would save $3 million of the 8 million in the end & that where you need to keep your mind set on.It would be seriously Unwise to pay TA 8 million for his services this upcoming season. When you add up the minuses & few pluses there is no real reason to cut TA. I just want this chapter in our history closed.
My position on
Rob Quinn is clear from all my posts this season. Nothing has changed here & I would hope for a trade of some type where the Rams might get a 2nd day draft selection or a few 3rd day draft picks or where a team would exchange draft positions so we would draft a earlier. Bottom line with or without a trade Rob Quinn is cut before June 1st.
Mark Barron has been a very good player for this Ram defense for four seasons. With Barron you have a very talented player who is in the prime of his playing career. MB will be 29 yrs old in October this season. He can be an impact player on the field when he is healthy & playing in the right position. Barron has started @ both deep safety & strong safety positions including a start @ outside corner as a DB. Gregg Williams 43 D Barron started @ both outside LB'er posts but was most effective when playing the weak-side LB'er post. This past season Barron played the inside LB'er position in Wade 34 D & his effectiveness dropped dramatically.
It should be noted here that Mark Barron battling various ailments all season. Barron missed many practice time through-out last season too some for non-injury reasons. The most serious problem later in this season was a damage worn Achilles heel injury. Before the Achilles issue he broke his thumb & missed even more practices. Before the broken thumb his knee was sore early in the season. In training camp & pre season Barron was mostly a no show due to either that bad knee or something else. Bottom line here is his 2017 season was one big injury after another that kept him from practicing from beginning to end.
Barron’s salary-cap hit for the 2018 season is $10 million, but if the Rams cut him before June 1, he would count only $3 million against the cap. Cutting Barron after the loss of LB'ers Conner Barwin & the high probable loss of LB'er Rob Quinn is a loss of a ton of veteran LB'er talent? Barwin might be brought back for a moderate price again but there some stuff to consider.
Finally there’s no guarantee Barron will return to full health in 2018.
Bottom line Barron is
not a good fit with Ogletree inside this Wade 34 D. Barron is much better playing a role in the pass defense than plugging the running lanes & that's where the Rams D has its big problem. Rams would save a good bit of future salary cap if Barron departs.
There are an abundance of good looking UFA veterans 34 D inside LB'ers who could be better plug ins in Wade D i.e. Todd Davis (Broncos) or NaVorro Bowman (9ers/Raiders) even a great old vet like Derrick Johnson (KC) could play one more season. None will come close to demanding the near 10 million a season that Barron demands.
