Make California Post a Preferred Source The Los Angeles Rams have found themselves in a territory they didn’t think they would be at a day before the NFL trade deadline — shopping for a wide receiver.
The Rams’ need for a wide receiver comes at a time when they will spend the next month without Davante Adams and Puka Nacua, who are both injured.
Adams has been on the team’s injured list since October, when he suffered a ruptured hamstring against the Arizona Cardinals.
The loss of Nacua came on Monday afternoon when Sean McVay announced that he is expected to miss “at least a month” and will likely be placed on the team’s injured reserve because of an MCL, PCL sprain in his right knee.
On top of the knee injury, Nacua is also sidelined with turf toe, and McVay said he will likely land on the team’s injured reserve.
In the Rams’ 20-13 win against the Washington Commanders, Nacua was Los Angeles’ lead workhorse, having 19 targets come his way for 14 receptions and 150 yards with one touchdown.
When Nacua didn’t have the ball thrown his way, the Rams had five different receivers catch it for 12 receptions and 78 yards.
Given the Rams’ all-in mentality, they will likely look to strike a deal before the clock strikes at 1:00 p.m. PT. when the trade deadline ends.
Looking ahead, here are three candidates the Rams could look to target.
George Pickens could be a dark-horse candidate to be moved at the deadline, after he infamously left the field before the game concluded in the Cowboys’ 33-30 Week 8 overtime loss to the Cardinals and missed Sunday’s game against the Colts due to a hamstring injury.
Pickens has shown he’s been frustrated this season, as head coach Brian Schottenheimer called him out after their Week 6 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers and told reporters, “He needed to understand that he impacts us in the running game as well. He’s got to do the same thing in the run game, picking up safeties and blocking corners, just like Javonte [Williams] does, picking up blitzes so he can catch balls.”
Unless Dallas plans to place the franchise tag on Pickens for the second year in a row, which would pay him $32.8 million, he is set to be a free agent this offseason, and discussions of a contract extension have been minimal.
Pickens, 25, is a year removed from having the best season of his young career, where he had 1,429 yards with 93 receptions for nine touchdowns with the Cowboys.
Now, with his production not nearing what it was last year and the Cowboys’ 4-5 record in an NFC East division where the New York Giants are gaining separation with a 5-2 record, Dallas might want to consider moving on to next season.
Given his lengthy six foot-three inch frame, Pickens could help replicate the end zone production that Los Angeles has been missing with Adams.
Of course the asking price for Pickens could be high as the Rams would likely have to package multiple mid-to high-round draft picks for him.
The Jaguars are in a rare spot where they’re entering the deadline as buyers, after acquiring Jordan Davis from the Philadelphia Eagles, but still have a disgruntled player on their roster.
After having a dominant rookie year where he had 1,282 receiving yards with 87 receptions and 10 touchdowns, Brian Thomas Jr. was looking like a core piece of the Jaguars’ future.
But after his production went down by almost 50% the following season, and continuing to stay down, with his role in the Jacksonville offense continuing to be diminished, he’s another candidate that could need a change of scenery.
The Jaguars last played on Thursday against the Ravens, and Thomas Jr. suited up and played in the game but did not log a single catch.
The marriage between Thomas Jr. and the Jaguars is clearly coming to an end, and given the wide third year wide receiver clearly not thrilled with his role on the team, Jacksonville could look to move off of him for a lower asking price.
If the Rams continue to embrace their “all-in” mentality, that includes being willing to move off future draft picks; Los Angeles could look to offer a 2027 fourth-round pick and package it with a third-round pick in the following year’s draft.
No team has embraced the trade deadline as sellers like the Indianapolis Colts, and they could be the Rams’ best partner to strike a trade with at the deadline.
On October 28. Josh Downs said he is “open to whatever” when asked about being traded.
There’s been a pattern to who the Colts have been trading with, and that’s keeping their former players away from them as far as possible. Meaning out of the division and preferably out of the conference.
The Colts have sent DeForest Buckner to the 49ers, three-time All-Pro guard Quentin Nelson to the Seattle Seahawks, and center Sedrick Van Pran-Granger to the Bills.
Downs is entering the final weeks of his rookie contract and will likely not re-sign with the Colts once he becomes an unrestricted free agent.
Given his ability to be a dynamic, high-IQ slot receiver, Downs would make sense to fill the void of Nacua in the Rams’ offense.
In his first two seasons, Downs had over 700 yards receiving, and then saw a drop last season, where he had 566 yards, but still saw similar production in catches [56] and touchdowns [4].
Downs would likely be the cheaper option of the three receivers and could warrant a fourth-round pick from this year’s draft or a third-rounder in next year’s.
