Six years ago the Los Angeles Rams make a risky trade with the Tennessee Titans.
The trade would send the Rams 15th overall pick to the Titans for their 1st overall pick.
Tennessee also got two second-round picks and a third-round pick along with a 2017 first and third-round pick.
Los Angeles would get two additional picks from the Titans, a fourth and sixth-round pick in the 2016 draft.
The Titans got six high-valued picks while the Rams only got three picks, one of which was the very first pick overall.
At face value, people can say the Titans won the trade deal.
They gained double the trade capital and those picks they got were in the early rounds of the draft.
However, when you look at who the Rams got with the first overall pick, the story changes.
With The First Pick In The NFL Draft, The Rams Select Jared Goff
The Rams made their trade to draft a quarterback, something they needed.
Jared Goff would be the quarterback the Rams would select with the first overall pick in 2016.
With the No. 1 overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, the Los Angeles Rams select Cal QB Jared Goff. pic.twitter.com/hDpVG09C3S
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 29, 2016
His first season with the Rams was a typical rookie season for any new quarterback in the NFL.
He went 0-7 in the seven games he started in with 1,089 passing yards, five touchdowns, and seven interceptions.
However, the next two seasons went better for Goff.
In 2017, he finished with an 11-4 record and a 13-3 record in 2018.
The 2018 season saw Goff post career highs for passing yards and touchdowns.
It would also see him take the Rams to the Super Bowl.
The pick paid off for the Rams as they became a force to fear in the NFC West in 2017 and 2018.
How The 2016 Trade Paid Off For The Rams Again
Goff never had another breakout season like he did in 2018.
Here’s Matthew Stafford (2021) vs. Jared Goff (2021-2017) — At one point you were talking about a potential star QB but as you can see 2019 and on Goff hasn’t been the same. The Rams made the right move to preserve their Super Bowl window. pic.twitter.com/vB5FV0Lq5q
— JAKE ELLENBOGEN (@JKBOGEN) January 11, 2022
However, he got the Rams to another playoff appearance during his time there.
He did what the Rams needed him to do: get the team wins.
But the Rams decided in 2021 they wanted to move on from Goff to another quarterback.
They would trade him to the Detroit Lions, along with draft picks, for quarterback Matthew Stafford.
Stafford became one of the key players in the Rams’ 2021-22 NFL season.
The season ended with the Rams going to the Super Bowl and beating the Cincinnati Bengals.
Once again, that 2016 trade paid off as they used the player they drafted to trade for Stafford and a Super Bowl championship.
Why Did Anyone Think The Titans Won The Trade Deal?
People who think the Titans were the winners of the trade only look at the face value of the deal.
On paper, it looked like the Titans got a steal.
Going by the Jimmy Johnson draft trade chart (https://t.co/nCCf9CXsDT), Titans come out ahead on deal with Rams … pic.twitter.com/JyBQPipIDj
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) April 14, 2016
However, two Super Bowl appearances and one Lombardi trophy later prove otherwise.
The Titans got Derrick Henry with the second-round pick they got from the Rams.
To some people, he’s the reason the Titans won the trade deal.
However, the team has no Super Bowl appearances to show for it, despite Henry’s on field performance.
That makes the Rams the true winners of the trade deal.
