Rams GM backs Stafford, Donald, Kupp, but leaves out Jalen Ramsey

Amid rumors that the Los Angeles Rams could lose Matthew Stafford, either to retirement or a trade, general manager Les Snead refuted such reports in a press conference on Thursday, saying that the team is “definitely going to rely” on the quarterback this year.

He backed that up by saying that Stafford, Cooper Kupp, and Aaron Donald would be “weight bearing walls” for the Rams to help “remodel” the franchise moving forward. Snead didn’t mention Jalen Ramsey.

Rumors of a trade or release have lingered around the former All-Pro cornerback since the end of the 2022 season. To argue that Snead didn’t know what he was doing when he mentioned three of the four obvious centerpieces of the Rams roster would seem disingenuous, either on the part of the person making that argument or Snead. You don’t trade two first round picks and pay $20 million per season to a cornerback who isn’t as much of a pillar as Stafford, Kupp, and Donald.

It wouldn’t be the first time that Jalen Ramsey parted with a team at a time when they were down on their luck and he was potentially up for a new contract.

For now, it looks like the team wants to move forward with Stafford, but what L.A.’s goals are in 2023 is still a little unclear. Is this an opportunity to add more draft picks to build something for a more realistic shot at a postseason run in 2024? Or does the team want to stay as competitive as possible in 2023, even if they seem to have limited resources to get better around those “load bearing walls””