Jonathan Taylor Allowed to Seek Trade; Should Rams Call Colts?
The Indianapolis Colts continue to fumble the ball in their dealings with star running back Jonathan Taylor, on Monday granting him permission to seek a trade.
And there is one reason why the Los Angeles Rams should make a call ... and it's not because of all of the assets L.A. has in the cupboard.
Rather, it's because the Colts are ripe for the picking here ... and some NFL team has a chance for a steal.
Yes, the Rams have been one of the league's worst rushing teams over the last few seasons. And in terms of a talent? Taylor, just 24, is one of the best in the game. But he's unhappy with his fourth-year salary from his rookie contract, and he's probably unhappy, too, with a recent controversial quote from Indy owner Jim Irsay may have played a role.
“If I die tonight and Jonathan Taylor is out of the league, no one’s gonna miss us,” Irsay said recently, per The Athletic. “The league goes on. We know that. The National Football (League) rolls on. It doesn’t matter who comes and who goes, and it’s a privilege to be a part of it.”
Irsay and Taylor met at training camp aboard the Indianapolis owner’s private luxury bus as they attempt to calm the relationship between the two sides. But the player nevertheless sat out camp and even this week, as it was announced he'd be traveling with the Colts to Philadelphia - his hometown area for a preseason Week 3 appearance (on the sideline, surely) - the situation is unsettled.
The Colts' long-term plan? One good guess, as Taylor is in Year 4 of his rookie contract, with a full value of $7.8 million? He makes about $5 million this year - a steal ... and is eligible for an extension ... but could also simply get tagged next year, at something in excess of $10 million.
He'd still be a good bargain then. And he'd still be unhappy then.
Irsay has spoken generally about agents offering up "bad faith'' ideas to their clients who play the suddenly-devalued running back position - which caused Taylor's agent, Malki Kawa, to tweet that "it's bad faith not to pay your top offensive player.'' Kawa is now expressing doubt that the relationship can be healed. And Irsay's goofy comment offers little relief to the wounds.
Irsay was recently still talking, by the way, texting SI, “We’re not trading Jonathan... end of discussion. Not now and not in October!” But now the Colts have softened on that, obviously.
Could the Rams pay the asking price? Would they even want to? That seems unlikely. With the running back market at an all-time low value, Taylor might find less money out there than he thinks. And a team will be "paying twice'' - given up something in trade and coming up with a new salary - in order to seal this deal.
But even with the Rams in the midst of trying to re-tool their roster, and having moved off of a handful of their star veterans this offseason, there is one reason to make the call: To see if the Colts can screw this up again.
Want the latest in breaking news and insider information on the Rams? Click Here
Want to join in on the discussion? Click here to become a member of the Ram Digest message board community today!
Follow Ram Digest on Twitter and Facebook.
Want even more L.A. Rams news? Check out the SI.com team page here.
