Rams' Les Snead opens up about trading Ernest Jones IV before Week 1
The Los Angeles Rams have battled their way back into the NFC West race after an injury-riddled start to the season. Recently, the Rams have gotten star wide receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua back and have responded accordingly, winning three games in a row.
Now, the Rams are just a half-game behind the Arizona Cardinals for first place in the NFC West after a dramatic overtime win against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday. They have made things work on defense despite a makeshift unit. They made themselves thinner before the season when they headed away linebacker Ernest Jones IV to the Tennessee Titans.
Jones IV has since moved again, this time back into the Rams' division. Before Sunday's Seahawks-Rams battle, the Titans traded Jones IV to the Seahawks as Seattle looked to bolster their linebacker room. On Tuesday, Rams general manager Les Snead addressed the surprising decision to trade Jones IV before the season started.
"Being [an] active [General Manager] right now and Ernest being in the league, there were many variables that went into that," Snead said. "I don't think it's good for anyone to sit here and really make that public. It's always in our case what we do... we try to think it's definitely going to help the Rams in some form or fashion. Again, there are many variables in that, but it's obvious, and we saw him last week.
"Ernest can play football. He's going to continue playing football, and at this point, we're going to play him again this year. Depending on what happens with him in the future, we might play him twice a year for a lot of years, and we expect that with him. That's just the kind of person he is and obviously the talents that he has."
Rams are sneaky playoff contenders in the NFC
The Rams have quickly become one of the hottest teams in football since getting their star receiver dup back in the lineup, and now they are in prime position to make a push in the wide-open NFC West.
Sean McVay and company have picked up three consecutive wins , against the Raiders, Vikings and Seahawks, and are now right back in the playoff mix at 4-4. Now that Matthew Stafford has his full contingent of weapons back, this offense is back to being one of the best in the league, and the defense is doing just enough to get the job done.
Specifically, defensive end Jared Verse has been a revelation for the Rams on that side of the ball this year. The 2024 first round pick has given the Rams the difference that they desperately needed up front after Aaron Donald's retirement. Verse immediately became an impact player in his rookie season and has recorded 3.5 sacks and nine tackles for loss in eight games.
Stafford has shown time and time again this season that he can still spin it with the best of them, and the offense is extremely hard to slow down if it can stay healthy. It seemed extremely unlikely a few weeks ago, but the Rams have a very realistic path to the postseason.
