We are now at the point on the offseason where conflicting reports will conflict with other conflicting reports. Just a few days after the St. Louis Rams made it clear that they plan to bring Sam Bradford back as the team’s starter next year, CBS Sports insider Jason La Canfora is reporting that the Rams’ brass has given the former No. 1 overall pick permission to seek a trade.
Bradford, who has never lived up to the hype of being the first overall pick in the 2010 NFL draft, has suffered a torn ACL in each of the past two seasons. Overall, the mediocre signal caller has put up 59 touchdowns compared to 38 interceptions in 49 career starts. He has led the Rams to a 18-30-1 record during that span.
Outside of Bradford’s lack of on-field success, he was the last top pick to sign under the old collective bargaining agreement. The former Oklahoma standout inked a six-year, $78 million deal with $50 million guaranteed before ever stepping on to a NFL field. He’s also set to count $16.6 million against the cap this upcoming season—a number the Rams simply can’t afford to pay him. And while a contract restructure still remains on the table, there are questions about Bradford’s ability to be a franchise signal caller.
This past season saw the combination of Austin Davis and Shaun Hill lead the Rams to a 6-10 record while combining for 20 touchdowns compared to 16 interceptions. Both are set to become free agents next month.
Needless to say, the quarterback situation in St. Louis is up in the air right now. The team possesses the 10th pick in the draft, so it’s unlikely that either Jameis Winston or Marcus Mariota will be on the board at that time. Short of trading up, St. Louis may have to look at a weak veteran market should Bradford not return in 2015.
Among teams that might be interested in a trade for Bradford, the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills come to mind first. With that said, the veteran quarterback will have to work out a new deal if he is going to be traded. No team is going to pay him that $16.6 million cap hit for the 2015 campaign.
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