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Jaguars trade Fowler to Rams
- Thread starter Legatron4
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RamsOfCastamere
I drink things, and know nothing
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XXXIVwin
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jjab360
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Ebukam is the starter at ROLB, but we've had a rotation at LOLB all season long with no one really standing out. Fowler starts there.
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Zaphod
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To be honest, with Talib out, I just think we play better with four man fronts, so likely Ebukam or Franklin-Myers. Then I guess he's an option for a rotation with Longacre on 3-4.
But if Fowler really works out, yeah I think with those four guys and so much proficiency with 3 and 5 tech throughout your top players on the D line, you really go with even more 4 man fronts out there, because then it's all about moving those guys around for matchups.
That's just my thoughts.
But if Fowler really works out, yeah I think with those four guys and so much proficiency with 3 and 5 tech throughout your top players on the D line, you really go with even more 4 man fronts out there, because then it's all about moving those guys around for matchups.
That's just my thoughts.
Big Game
Living The Dream
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Bro I'll be in section 109 row 35 seats 4, 5. If you tailgating let me know where man. We are getting there early and gonna try and find all the Rams fans and hang out.
BTW enjoy your first Rams game and victory hahahahhah
BonifayRam
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Both Longacre & Ebukam flip from left to right / strong to weak all the time. Ebukam ends up more in coverage than Longacre does. Ebukam is still a work in progress in coverage but he is getting better. Wade has been limiting the amount of Longacre snaps all season. Trevon Young had been making some headway into the rotation with Ebukam & Longacre but caught the bad back virus from Longacre & was a "no go" last Sunday. Lawler is more ST'mer right now.
I would expect that Dante Fowler will first see his time in the Ram uni primarily as a pass rusher for both sides in the front FOUR DL. DF was used all over when he was a Gator. But DF is no rookie he has been in the NFL since 2015 as the #3 overall pick,but his brain has been slow to grow in. Only 1 start tells a very big story.First day of his first NFL mimi camp he tore his ACL missed his entire rookie season. Since DF's arrival in the NFL he has lined up on the left outside of the Jags defense against the right side OL. DF has made most of his dynamic plays when he gets one on one against a LOS blocking TE. DF's Jag's future ended when on May 2, 2018, the Jaguars declined the fifth-year option on DF's contract. I do not have enough time to get into all the nasty many Legal issues DF loves to collect.
Sad fact is the moment DF lines up on the field in practice @ the Rams facility is will be the best OLB/ER on the Rams team. Wade is still waiting for his drafted OLB'ers/ER's (Ebukam/ Young/ Lawler/ Okoronwko) to get it together & find thier pass rush. DF's arrival for the rest of this season is the needed element & mixer that this defense Badly needs @ this time.
Assist HC & LB'ing Coach Barry is sure to have some serious discussions with this 24 yr old & what is expected from him as a Ram.
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nighttrain
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https://theramswire.usatoday.com/20...les-rams-jaguars-dante-fowler-trade-analysis/
Instant analysis of Rams' blockbuster trade for Dante Fowler Jr.
By: Cameron DaSilva
Given the compensation and the fact that Fowler is set to be a free agent after this season, there’s certainly some risk in this move for Los Angeles. It’s not as if the Rams simply gave up a sixth-rounder in 2019 to make the deal happen. Third- and fifth-round picks are expected to make NFL rosters as rookies, and many of them turn into quality starters.
That being said, this was a worthwhile risk – one that will make the Rams even better now and in the future. Fowler will step in right away and be a starter at outside linebacker opposite Samson Ebukam. That will push Matt Longacre and Trevon Young to the sideline, making them role players.
It’s too early to call this a home run right now, but given Fowler’s build, skill set and athleticism, it’s easy to get excited about this move. With the Jaguars, Fowler played defensive end in a 4-3 scheme. In Wade Phillips’ scheme, that’ll obviously change. Instead of putting his hand in the dirt and rushing from that position, he’ll be a stand-up outside linebacker.
In 2017, Fowler had his best season in the NFL. He recorded eight sacks, 10 quarterback hits, seven tackles for loss and 37 pressures. His Pro Football Focus grade was just 53.1, but he was a productive pass rusher for Jacksonville – a team with about as much talent as the Rams up front, if not more.
There’s no question about Fowler’s talent or potential. Sure, he needs to refine his pass-rush moves and realize that potential, but there are some concerned about him putting it all together this season. He only hit the quarterback once and had two sacks in seven games this season. If that’s the sort of production Los Angeles is going to get, this trade is going to look like a loss by season’s end.
However, if he breaks out and becomes that go-to rusher the Rams so desperately wanted Ebukam to be, this will be a fantastic deal for L.A.
Then comes the contract situation. The Jaguars didn’t feel good enough about his play to pick up his fifth-year option in 2019, which is telling in its own right. It’s unlikely Fowler plays himself out of the Rams’ range with a phenomenal finish to the season, so no matter what, the Rams will be in the market to re-sign him.
With an estimated $35 million in cap space next season, pending recent moves, there’s plenty of room to sign Fowler long-term. If he walks in free agency, it won’t be the end of the world, either.
As long as he shows enough potential to earn a nice payday in March, the Rams will get at least a fourth-round compensatory pick for him in 2020. That splits the difference between the picks they gave up to get him, almost making it a wash.
Given the Rams’ Super Bowl aspirations and their need for an edge rusher, this was a wise move – a risk worth taking for a team as talented as they are. The ideal scenario is Fowler racking up a handful of sacks in the final eight games and signing with the Rams long-term, which is the exact intent Les Snead had with this contract.
https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/10/30/nfl-los-angeles-rams-dante-fowler-facts-stats-florida/
6 things to know about new Rams OLB Dante Fowler Jr.
By: Cameron DaSilva
While you’ve probably heard plenty about the deal, here are six things to know about Fowler, who was born and raised in the Sunshine State.
He’s spent his entire football career in Florida
It’s pretty safe to say Fowler doesn’t know the feeling of playing for a football team outside of Florida. He was born in St. Petersburg, played high school at Lakewood, which is in that very city, and attended the University of Florida. When he was drafted by the Jaguars, he was afforded the chance to remain in his home state, which he was likely elated about.
By joining the Rams, it will be his first team not in the state of Florida, having to move all the way across the country to Los Angeles.
He ran a 4.60 40-yard dash at the combine
At the combine, Fowler weighed in at 6-foot-3, 261 pounds with 33 3/4-inch arms. Suffice to say, he’s a well-built young man. In the 40-yard dash, he ran a 4.60, which is a solid number for a player his size. He put up 19 reps in the bench press, jumped 32.5 inches in the vertical and 112 inches in the broad – both respectable performances. His athletic profile makes him a perfect fit in Wade Phillips’ 3-4 defense.
He was All-SEC twice at Florida
There’s a reason Fowler was the third overall pick in 2015 and it’s because he played extremely well for three years at Florida. As a freshman, he played 13 games, making 2.5 sacks and eight tackles for loss. The following year as a defensive end, he had 3.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss, being named second-team All-SEC.
As a junior, his final season at Florida, he got even better, recording 8.5 sacks and 15 tackles for loss, earning first-team All-SEC honors. He also forced five fumbles in his career with the Gators.
He tore his ACL on the first day of minicamp in 2015
Disaster struck for Fowler on his first day of minicamp with the Jaguars, tearing his ACL on the first day of practice (May 8). The injury occurred a little more than a week after Jacksonville made him the third overall pick, making matters even worse.
Fowler rebounded nicely in 2016, recording four sacks, six tackles for loss and 11 quarterback hits, which is still a career-high.
He comes with some baggage
Fowler doesn’t have a perfect track record in the NFL. In July 2017, he was arrested in his hometown of St. Petersburg for simple battery and committing mischief. Fowler struck a man and threw his bag of liquor into a lake after the man criticized his driving. Fowler was released the next day on bond, but this past March, he was sentenced to one year probation and 75 hours of community service.
His 14 career sacks are the 10th-most among players from his draft class
The 2015 draft was a bit of a mixed bag. The first round yielded eight first rounders, while gems such as Landon Collins, David Johnson and Danielle Hunter were had in the second and third rounds. Hunter leads the draft class with 33.5 career sacks, five more than Frank Clark, who’s second.
Fowler missed his entire rookie season, so he’s behind the curve a bit, recording 14 sacks in 39 career games. Hunter, by comparison, has played 54 career games. That puts Fowler 10th, behind players like Leonard Williams, Trey Flowers, Bud Dupree and Preston Smith, among others.
https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/10/30/nfl-los-angeles-rams-dante-fowler-salaryc-ap-contract/
Salary cap impact of the Rams acquiring Dante Fowler Jr. from Jaguars
By: Cameron DaSilva
In the NFL, salary cap concerns are often overblown. There’s really no such thing as “salary cap hell,” given the variety of moves teams can make to easily free up space. There are trades that can be made, players to cut and restructures to go through, opening up oodles of money with very little effort.
The Los Angeles Rams proved that this year after extending Aaron Donald, Todd Gurley, Rob Havenstein and Brandin Cooks. Yet, they still had enough room to go after Khalil Mack.
On Tuesday, they acquired Dante Fowler Jr. from the Jaguars in exchange for a third-round pick in 2019 and a fifth-rounder in 2020. Despite having very little cap space with which to work, the Rams were able to trade for a former first-round pick with a manageable cap hit.
According to Over The Cap, Fowler carried a cap hit of $7.3 million in 2018, but only $1.926 million of that will be paid by the Rams. He’s a free agent in 2019 so there are no future ramifications, making this a very easy financial situation to break down. Los Angeles had just about $1.8 million in cap space before the move was made, which means it had to part ways with someone before adding Fowler to the 53-man roster.
The Rams did exactly that, waiving guard Jamon Brown and saving $1.7 million. When these transactions are reflected on the salary cap, the Rams will be in the green and have about $1.7 million to spend for the rest of the season.
In simple terms, the Rams basically swapped out Brown for Fowler, losing about $200,000 in the process. A very small price to pay for a guy who will be an immediate starter at outside linebacker.
https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/los-angeles-rams/dante-fowler-jr-16727/
View: https://twitter.com/dantefowler/status/1057364932025638914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1057364932025638914&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheramswire.usatoday.com%2F2018%2F10%2F30%2Fnfl-rams-dante-fowler-twitter-reaction-trade-deadline%2F
Instant analysis of Rams' blockbuster trade for Dante Fowler Jr.
By: Cameron DaSilva
Given the compensation and the fact that Fowler is set to be a free agent after this season, there’s certainly some risk in this move for Los Angeles. It’s not as if the Rams simply gave up a sixth-rounder in 2019 to make the deal happen. Third- and fifth-round picks are expected to make NFL rosters as rookies, and many of them turn into quality starters.
That being said, this was a worthwhile risk – one that will make the Rams even better now and in the future. Fowler will step in right away and be a starter at outside linebacker opposite Samson Ebukam. That will push Matt Longacre and Trevon Young to the sideline, making them role players.
It’s too early to call this a home run right now, but given Fowler’s build, skill set and athleticism, it’s easy to get excited about this move. With the Jaguars, Fowler played defensive end in a 4-3 scheme. In Wade Phillips’ scheme, that’ll obviously change. Instead of putting his hand in the dirt and rushing from that position, he’ll be a stand-up outside linebacker.
In 2017, Fowler had his best season in the NFL. He recorded eight sacks, 10 quarterback hits, seven tackles for loss and 37 pressures. His Pro Football Focus grade was just 53.1, but he was a productive pass rusher for Jacksonville – a team with about as much talent as the Rams up front, if not more.
There’s no question about Fowler’s talent or potential. Sure, he needs to refine his pass-rush moves and realize that potential, but there are some concerned about him putting it all together this season. He only hit the quarterback once and had two sacks in seven games this season. If that’s the sort of production Los Angeles is going to get, this trade is going to look like a loss by season’s end.
However, if he breaks out and becomes that go-to rusher the Rams so desperately wanted Ebukam to be, this will be a fantastic deal for L.A.
Then comes the contract situation. The Jaguars didn’t feel good enough about his play to pick up his fifth-year option in 2019, which is telling in its own right. It’s unlikely Fowler plays himself out of the Rams’ range with a phenomenal finish to the season, so no matter what, the Rams will be in the market to re-sign him.
With an estimated $35 million in cap space next season, pending recent moves, there’s plenty of room to sign Fowler long-term. If he walks in free agency, it won’t be the end of the world, either.
As long as he shows enough potential to earn a nice payday in March, the Rams will get at least a fourth-round compensatory pick for him in 2020. That splits the difference between the picks they gave up to get him, almost making it a wash.
Given the Rams’ Super Bowl aspirations and their need for an edge rusher, this was a wise move – a risk worth taking for a team as talented as they are. The ideal scenario is Fowler racking up a handful of sacks in the final eight games and signing with the Rams long-term, which is the exact intent Les Snead had with this contract.
https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/10/30/nfl-los-angeles-rams-dante-fowler-facts-stats-florida/
6 things to know about new Rams OLB Dante Fowler Jr.
By: Cameron DaSilva
While you’ve probably heard plenty about the deal, here are six things to know about Fowler, who was born and raised in the Sunshine State.
He’s spent his entire football career in Florida
It’s pretty safe to say Fowler doesn’t know the feeling of playing for a football team outside of Florida. He was born in St. Petersburg, played high school at Lakewood, which is in that very city, and attended the University of Florida. When he was drafted by the Jaguars, he was afforded the chance to remain in his home state, which he was likely elated about.
By joining the Rams, it will be his first team not in the state of Florida, having to move all the way across the country to Los Angeles.
He ran a 4.60 40-yard dash at the combine
At the combine, Fowler weighed in at 6-foot-3, 261 pounds with 33 3/4-inch arms. Suffice to say, he’s a well-built young man. In the 40-yard dash, he ran a 4.60, which is a solid number for a player his size. He put up 19 reps in the bench press, jumped 32.5 inches in the vertical and 112 inches in the broad – both respectable performances. His athletic profile makes him a perfect fit in Wade Phillips’ 3-4 defense.
He was All-SEC twice at Florida
There’s a reason Fowler was the third overall pick in 2015 and it’s because he played extremely well for three years at Florida. As a freshman, he played 13 games, making 2.5 sacks and eight tackles for loss. The following year as a defensive end, he had 3.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss, being named second-team All-SEC.
As a junior, his final season at Florida, he got even better, recording 8.5 sacks and 15 tackles for loss, earning first-team All-SEC honors. He also forced five fumbles in his career with the Gators.
He tore his ACL on the first day of minicamp in 2015
Disaster struck for Fowler on his first day of minicamp with the Jaguars, tearing his ACL on the first day of practice (May 8). The injury occurred a little more than a week after Jacksonville made him the third overall pick, making matters even worse.
Fowler rebounded nicely in 2016, recording four sacks, six tackles for loss and 11 quarterback hits, which is still a career-high.
He comes with some baggage
Fowler doesn’t have a perfect track record in the NFL. In July 2017, he was arrested in his hometown of St. Petersburg for simple battery and committing mischief. Fowler struck a man and threw his bag of liquor into a lake after the man criticized his driving. Fowler was released the next day on bond, but this past March, he was sentenced to one year probation and 75 hours of community service.
His 14 career sacks are the 10th-most among players from his draft class
The 2015 draft was a bit of a mixed bag. The first round yielded eight first rounders, while gems such as Landon Collins, David Johnson and Danielle Hunter were had in the second and third rounds. Hunter leads the draft class with 33.5 career sacks, five more than Frank Clark, who’s second.
Fowler missed his entire rookie season, so he’s behind the curve a bit, recording 14 sacks in 39 career games. Hunter, by comparison, has played 54 career games. That puts Fowler 10th, behind players like Leonard Williams, Trey Flowers, Bud Dupree and Preston Smith, among others.
https://theramswire.usatoday.com/2018/10/30/nfl-los-angeles-rams-dante-fowler-salaryc-ap-contract/
Salary cap impact of the Rams acquiring Dante Fowler Jr. from Jaguars
By: Cameron DaSilva
In the NFL, salary cap concerns are often overblown. There’s really no such thing as “salary cap hell,” given the variety of moves teams can make to easily free up space. There are trades that can be made, players to cut and restructures to go through, opening up oodles of money with very little effort.
The Los Angeles Rams proved that this year after extending Aaron Donald, Todd Gurley, Rob Havenstein and Brandin Cooks. Yet, they still had enough room to go after Khalil Mack.
On Tuesday, they acquired Dante Fowler Jr. from the Jaguars in exchange for a third-round pick in 2019 and a fifth-rounder in 2020. Despite having very little cap space with which to work, the Rams were able to trade for a former first-round pick with a manageable cap hit.
According to Over The Cap, Fowler carried a cap hit of $7.3 million in 2018, but only $1.926 million of that will be paid by the Rams. He’s a free agent in 2019 so there are no future ramifications, making this a very easy financial situation to break down. Los Angeles had just about $1.8 million in cap space before the move was made, which means it had to part ways with someone before adding Fowler to the 53-man roster.
The Rams did exactly that, waiving guard Jamon Brown and saving $1.7 million. When these transactions are reflected on the salary cap, the Rams will be in the green and have about $1.7 million to spend for the rest of the season.
In simple terms, the Rams basically swapped out Brown for Fowler, losing about $200,000 in the process. A very small price to pay for a guy who will be an immediate starter at outside linebacker.
https://www.spotrac.com/nfl/los-angeles-rams/dante-fowler-jr-16727/
View: https://twitter.com/dantefowler/status/1057364932025638914?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1057364932025638914&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftheramswire.usatoday.com%2F2018%2F10%2F30%2Fnfl-rams-dante-fowler-twitter-reaction-trade-deadline%2F
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https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/10/31/nfl-trade-deadline-2018-takeaways-analysis
Rams get: DE/OLB Dante Fowler
Jaguars get: 2019 third-round pick, ’20 fifth-round pick
Los Angeles logic: The Rams’ greatest need was for an edge rusher, and injuries to Morgan Fox and Dominique Easley only heightened that. And in the team’s view, the price point made sense. The pick is conditional—it’ll be the highest compensatory selection or, if they don’t get third-round comp picks, the team’s slotted third-rounder. And they feel confident they’ll have comp threes, plural—one for Sammy Watkins, and another for Trumaine Johnson.
In that case, they’d lose a pick in the low 90s, and still have three picks in the first three rounds (their second-rounder belongs to Kansas City as part of the Marcus Peters trade). And if they let Fowler go in March, they’ll get a 2020 comp pick coming back.
There’s also the belief that getting away out of Florida will have a good affect on Fowler’s maturation (we’ll get into that in a minute). And his experience in college standing up and moving up and down the line make him a pretty decent match for what Wade Phillips asks of his outside linebackers.
Jacksonville logic: Remember when Jalen Ramsey got suspended? That wasn’t just about a fight or a tweet, but it was also a warning shot to the locker room. And consider this another. The makeup of the team has become combustible, and it’s the big personalities—like Ramsey, Yannick Ngakoue and Fowler—that make it that way.
So along with the fact that the Jaguars simply weren’t going to pay him as a top edge rusher, which made these known to be his final months as a Jaguar, there’s an element of addition by subtraction here at a position that’s strong regardless.
The Jaguars still really like Fowler as a person, and he has matured some from the kid who drew a bevy of fines in his first couple years, with a long history of unforced errors (like being late). But he still wasn’t there the Jags wanted him, and privately they agree with the Rams’ assessment that leaving his home state could help him.
The other blunt truth here is that he just wasn’t as effective as the other two. Ramsey has played 99% of the team’s defensive snaps this year, Ngakoue is at 70% and Fowler, who doesn’t play special teams, is at 32%. Add that together, and the idea of moving what would’ve been a decent comp pick up a year and tacking on a fifth-rounder in 2020 makes plenty of sense.
https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/10/30/nfl-trade-deadline-2018-grades
DANTE FOWLER TO THE RAMS: Surprising to see the Jaguars parting ways with defensive depth, even if Fowler was passed a little bit in their pecking order. The compensation—according to ESPN, a third- and fifth-round pick—isn’t bad considering the motivation behind the deal. Meanwhile, Los Angeles spends what little capital they have left to acquire a screamer off the edge for crunch time in the playoffs.
They’re all in on 2018, which is what you’d expect for the only undefeated team in football. Jacksonville wouldn’t tinker with that defense—their lifeblood—if they didn’t think something else was in the works. GRADE: B-
Rams get: DE/OLB Dante Fowler
Jaguars get: 2019 third-round pick, ’20 fifth-round pick
Los Angeles logic: The Rams’ greatest need was for an edge rusher, and injuries to Morgan Fox and Dominique Easley only heightened that. And in the team’s view, the price point made sense. The pick is conditional—it’ll be the highest compensatory selection or, if they don’t get third-round comp picks, the team’s slotted third-rounder. And they feel confident they’ll have comp threes, plural—one for Sammy Watkins, and another for Trumaine Johnson.
In that case, they’d lose a pick in the low 90s, and still have three picks in the first three rounds (their second-rounder belongs to Kansas City as part of the Marcus Peters trade). And if they let Fowler go in March, they’ll get a 2020 comp pick coming back.
There’s also the belief that getting away out of Florida will have a good affect on Fowler’s maturation (we’ll get into that in a minute). And his experience in college standing up and moving up and down the line make him a pretty decent match for what Wade Phillips asks of his outside linebackers.
Jacksonville logic: Remember when Jalen Ramsey got suspended? That wasn’t just about a fight or a tweet, but it was also a warning shot to the locker room. And consider this another. The makeup of the team has become combustible, and it’s the big personalities—like Ramsey, Yannick Ngakoue and Fowler—that make it that way.
So along with the fact that the Jaguars simply weren’t going to pay him as a top edge rusher, which made these known to be his final months as a Jaguar, there’s an element of addition by subtraction here at a position that’s strong regardless.
The Jaguars still really like Fowler as a person, and he has matured some from the kid who drew a bevy of fines in his first couple years, with a long history of unforced errors (like being late). But he still wasn’t there the Jags wanted him, and privately they agree with the Rams’ assessment that leaving his home state could help him.
The other blunt truth here is that he just wasn’t as effective as the other two. Ramsey has played 99% of the team’s defensive snaps this year, Ngakoue is at 70% and Fowler, who doesn’t play special teams, is at 32%. Add that together, and the idea of moving what would’ve been a decent comp pick up a year and tacking on a fifth-rounder in 2020 makes plenty of sense.
https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/10/30/nfl-trade-deadline-2018-grades
DANTE FOWLER TO THE RAMS: Surprising to see the Jaguars parting ways with defensive depth, even if Fowler was passed a little bit in their pecking order. The compensation—according to ESPN, a third- and fifth-round pick—isn’t bad considering the motivation behind the deal. Meanwhile, Los Angeles spends what little capital they have left to acquire a screamer off the edge for crunch time in the playoffs.
They’re all in on 2018, which is what you’d expect for the only undefeated team in football. Jacksonville wouldn’t tinker with that defense—their lifeblood—if they didn’t think something else was in the works. GRADE: B-
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https://www.theringer.com/nfl/2018/10/31/18047286/nfl-trade-deadline-doesnt-change-super-bowl-race
I am of the belief that barring something miraculous, the Chiefs, Rams, Saints, and New England Patriots will remain the top four contenders and no move made at the deadline has convinced me otherwise.
I do not think Dante Fowler, ranked 34th among edge defenders by Pro Football Focus, is a big enough presence to materially change anything within the hierarchy of those great teams. It’s a good move—the Rams already rank third in the NFL in hurries and the price was right—but does not do much to separate them from the pack. The Rams were previously thought of as “all in” on 2018 and they just got more in.
https://www.theringer.com/nfl/2018/10/30/18045142/trade-deadline-winners-and-losers
Winner: The Concept of Going All In
At 8–0, the Rams didn’t exactly need to make that proverbial “put them over the top” move at the trade deadline. They’re already the elite team in the NFC, and have an offense that looks capable of carrying them to the Super Bowl. But after spending the entire offseason wheeling and dealing to stack their roster, why the hell should they stop now?
The trade for Fowler does address a weak spot on the defense―the edge rush―and it wouldn’t be a huge shock for longtime defensive genius Wade Phillips to unlock the disappointing former third overall pick’s mostly unrealized potential. Playing next to Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh certainly won’t hurt, and like many of the team’s other “all-in” rentals, if he plays well, he’ll have the chance to earn a long-term extension.
I am of the belief that barring something miraculous, the Chiefs, Rams, Saints, and New England Patriots will remain the top four contenders and no move made at the deadline has convinced me otherwise.
I do not think Dante Fowler, ranked 34th among edge defenders by Pro Football Focus, is a big enough presence to materially change anything within the hierarchy of those great teams. It’s a good move—the Rams already rank third in the NFL in hurries and the price was right—but does not do much to separate them from the pack. The Rams were previously thought of as “all in” on 2018 and they just got more in.
https://www.theringer.com/nfl/2018/10/30/18045142/trade-deadline-winners-and-losers
Winner: The Concept of Going All In
At 8–0, the Rams didn’t exactly need to make that proverbial “put them over the top” move at the trade deadline. They’re already the elite team in the NFC, and have an offense that looks capable of carrying them to the Super Bowl. But after spending the entire offseason wheeling and dealing to stack their roster, why the hell should they stop now?
The trade for Fowler does address a weak spot on the defense―the edge rush―and it wouldn’t be a huge shock for longtime defensive genius Wade Phillips to unlock the disappointing former third overall pick’s mostly unrealized potential. Playing next to Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh certainly won’t hurt, and like many of the team’s other “all-in” rentals, if he plays well, he’ll have the chance to earn a long-term extension.
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