Poll: Should the Rams trade Tavon Austin?

The St. Louis Rams offense has needed play makers for a while, and in 2013, the belief was when they drafted Tavon Austin, he would be "the guy". Hell, the Rams were so infatuated with Austin that they traded up to the eighth pick in the first round for him.

Why did the Rams think he would be "the guy"? Well, he was a human joystick when he played at West Virginia, playing wide receiver, running back, and making plays on special teams. If you don't remember how well Austin played in college, here's a video to remind you...

But fast-forwarding to today, the development of Austin has to be concerning for the Rams. Austin has improved over his rookie year, and doesn't drop as many balls as he did last season, but he hasn't succeeded in being the play maker the Rams needed him to be so far.

That's not to say Austin hasn't had his own set of memorable moments. The first thing that comes to mind is his game against the Indianapolis Colts. Austin would finish the game with three scores - two receiving touchdowns and a punt return which went for 98 yards. So it's not to say that Austin hasn't flashed at all, - he has - but is he still a good fit for the Rams?

Right now it feels like the Rams are just putting Austin on the field and hoping he makes a good play. Before Austin suffered a sprained MCL during the Tampa Bay Buccaneers game, the Rams were giving him carries out of the backfield and making him run between the tackles.

Does it seem like the Rams are trying to save face at the moment? When the Rams drafted Austin, it appeared as though the team had a plan. The Rams were going to run a spread offense and Austin was going to be their gadget player that they moved around during the game. At the moment however, it doesn't appear as though the Rams will continue with plans of a spread offense plan that lead them to not only draft Austin, but to bring in veteran tight end Jared Cook.

So my question is: Should the Rams trade Austin while his value is still hot? Or should they continue to try and make it work. Before last season, no one would have thought a team would trade a first round player so early. However, with the Cleveland Browns trading Trent Richardson to the Colts, it could happen.

It looks like Brian Quick and Kenny Britt have hit their stride. Austin Pettis has made some clutch catches, and Stedman Bailey is an interesting guy to watch since he can play in the slot and outside; Chris Givens was a starter for the Rams last year so he's still a possible deep-threat.

Granted, it's doubtful that the Rams will trade Austin. But hey, this is the NFL, so you never know...