Report: Rams trade Allen Robinson to Steelers, pending physical

The Los Angeles Rams are finalizing a trade to send receiver Allen Robinson to the Pittsburgh Steelers, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. The Steelers must first feel comfortable with Robinson’s health, pending a physical, but these situations almost always result in a trade and it appears that the Rams have managed to find a partner to complete this deal.

And it is Pittsburgh.

What will the Rams get back in return? It’s a swap of 7th round picks (251 for 234) and L.A. will pay $10.25 million of Robinson’s $15.25 million owed in 2023.

That much remains unclear, but the Rams most certainly are eating some of Robinson’s enormous salary just to get him off of the team and the books. The 29-year-old receiver signed a three-year contract in 2022 in the hopes that he would help replace the losses of Robert Woods and Odell Beckham Jr., but Robinson had barely any impact on the field when he was healthy.

He finished with 33 catches for 339 yards and three touchdowns over 10 games. The team shut him down in the second half after the season was all but lost.

L.A. gave Robinson permission to seek a trade this offseason and it appears that has now worked out. According to OvertheCap, the Rams would save $6.85 million to trade Robinson, but that seems unlikely. According to Spotrac, the freed money will only be $1.6 million. The Steelers probably got L.A. to pay a portion of his $10 million base salary just to complete the deal because he had no future on the Rams.

Where does this leave the Rams receiving corps? After Cooper Kupp, it’s uncertain, but Van Jefferson, Tutu Atwell, and Ben Skowronek are next on the depth chart.