If you’re Sean McVay, the head coach of the Los Angeles Rams, what would you do this offseason alongside close friend and general manager Les Snead?
The dynamic duo has been together in Los Angeles for a decade, and the pair recently received multi-year contract extensions with the franchise. For the present and future, their vision will be how the former Super Bowl champions are built.
Reigning league MVP Matthew Stafford announced he will at least play one more season at quarterback for the Rams. He revealed that he’d return to the gridiron in his victory speech following the best individual season in his 17-year career.
But Stafford is on the verge of hanging up the cleats, be it next season or soon after. The Rams have two first-round draft selections in the upcoming NFL Draft, and there are rumors they could use their later-round pick on Alabama’s Ty Simpson or another signal-caller to sit behind Stafford for a year or two before taking over.
There’s another option for the Rams’ brain trust, though, and it’s one where they use their two first-round selections on impact players who can help the Rams win the Super Bowl next season, rather than looking years down the line.
Indianapolis Colts’ former first-round pick Anthony Richardson appears to be on the trade block following a tumultuous three years with the franchise that drafted him fourth overall in 2023.
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Richardson needs a new environment to see whether his innate physical gifts can be properly developed elsewhere. The Colts want to start anew without falling deeper into the sunk-cost fallacy of Richard’s potential.
For the Rams, a gamble on Richardson would make perfect sense, given the middle-to-deep-round picks in the 2026 Draft and knowing it won’t cost either of their firsts to pick up the former first-rounder.
When McVay took over for the Rams a decade ago, Jared Goff was seen as a lost cause with one of the worst rookie seasons of all time.
Goff is now widely considered an elite QB, made a Super Bowl and multiple Pro Bowls.
Richardson might not turn out to be Goff, but the tools are there, some of which McVay has never had access to as a head coach in the NFL. After back-to-back pocket passing QBs, the man behind the most motion-heavy offense in football could expand his playbook even more with Richardson.
The Rams are unlikely to have a top pick in next year’s 2027 NFL Draft, where Arch Manning, Dante Moore, and other blue-chip prospects are expected to be available.
Could taking a reasonable gamble on Richardson be the best play for the Rams as they begin planning their future in a non-Stafford world?
