The St. Louis Rams made out like bandits on Friday night, swinging a deal with the Washington Redskins that netted them three first-round picks and a second rounder. It was a bigger haul than either the Eli Manning trade, which was their starting point, and the Michael Vick trade. Needless to say, the Rams move is playing to rave reviews.
Let's take a look at what people are saying about it.
The deal is a coup for rookie GM Les Snead of the Rams. The haul is beyond what he could have hoped for. One of the teams involved in the pursuit of the Rams' No. 2 pick told SI.com Friday night that Snead, instead of using one team against another in the deal, set a price this week and went about trying to get a team to meet it. The Redskins did.
The Rams can now move forward with a plan to acquire playmakers and upgrade their roster overall. They have the ammunition to acquire additional picks or move up in this draft, and in future drafts. They are much better off now than before this trade.
Some Washington fans are complaining about the price, but not having a franchise quarterback is a more risky endeavor.
Matt Bowen at the NFP shares that opinion:
As I said above, there is no question the Redskins paid a steep price to get this deal done. However, you can't win in today's NFL without production from the QB position on a consistent basis. In this case, Snyder made a move to ensure they can draft a player to build around and win with in the future.