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Los Angeles Rams News & Rumors

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/8/22

November 8th, 2022 at 6:22pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Cleveland Browns

Los Angeles Rams

New Orleans Saints

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport (on Twitter), the Rams shopped Terrell Burgess prior to the trade deadline. The former third-round pick has struggled to carve out a role in the NFL, although he did get into 16 games last year (plus another four games (two starts)) en route to a Super Bowl championship. This season, Burgess has collected 11 tackles in seven games.

Trade Deadline Notes: Burns, R. Smith, 49ers

November 6th, 2022 at 12:33pm CST by Rory Parks

The trade deadline passed on Tuesday, but reports of near-deals and trade talks featuring high-profile players continue to trickle in. Though the NFL trade deadline may never produce the anticipation that the MLB deadline seems to generate, NFL front offices are increasingly amenable to making deals, and this year’s deadline day brought with it 10 trades and 12 players changing teams, both league records. As Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets, that type of activity is wildly popular among fans and therefore good for business, and Yates’ ESPN colleague, Adam Schefter, says multiple clubs have reached out to the league office this week to discuss the possibility of moving future deadlines to later dates.

In 2012, the league pushed the deadline back two weeks, from the Tuesday after Week 6 to the Tuesday after Week 8. Another move could see the deadline moved to sometime after Week 10 or Week 12, which would presumably produce even more trades. The idea is that, the later the deadline, the more clarity teams will have with respect to their status as a playoff contender, which will lead to more trade activity. Schefter hears that the issue will be raised at the general manager committee meetings later this month.

Now for more fallout and other notes from this year’s deadline extravaganza:

  • Teams were perhaps most interested in improving their receiving talent at the deadline, as players like Chase Claypool, Calvin Ridley, Kadarius Toney, and T.J. Hockenson changed hands on or before deadline day, and big names like Brandin Cooks, Jerry Jeudy, DeAndre Hopkins, and D.J. Moore generated conversations as well. According to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, the aggression on that front was inspired at least in part by a weak 2023 class of free agent receivers headlined by the likes of Jakobi Meyers, Deonte Harty, Nelson Agholor, Allen Lazard, Mecole Hardman, and JuJu Smith-Schuster. On a related note, Joel Corry of CBS Sports believes that, if the Saints choose to move on from Michael Thomas this offseason, they may find a number of suitors, despite Thomas’ recent injury woes (Twitter link).
  • It was indeed the Rams who were willing to trade two first-round picks to the Panthers in exchange for DE Brian Burns, as Jones writes in a separate piece. Confirming prior reports, Jones says Los Angeles offered its 2024 and 2025 first-round selections — the team is without a 2023 first-round pick to due to last year’s Matthew Stafford trade — and he adds that the club also included a 2023 second-round choice in its final proposal. Carolina gave serious consideration to the offer, but it ultimately elected to hold onto Burns, which will increase the player’s leverage in offseason extension talks. Per Jones, Burns is likely to land a deal that far exceeds the $110MM pact that the Dolphins recently authorized for their own deadline acquisition, Bradley Chubb.
  • Speaking of the Panthers, we learned earlier today that the club also turned down a first-round pick for Moore. The Panthers’ reticence to trade its young talent (aside from Christian McCaffrey, of course) was on full display at the deadline, and while the decisions to retain Moore and Burns were certainly defensible, every executive with whom Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post spoke was shocked that the club did not pull the trigger on Burns. “I can’t believe they turned [the Rams’ offer] down. Now they almost have to pay him whatever he wants because everyone knows they turned down two [first-round picks] for him,” one GM said. Apparently, cornerback Donte Jackson also drew some trade interest, though another GM said the Panthers were asking too much for him as well.
  • The 49ers‘ acquisition of McCaffrey will necessitate some “bean-counting creativity” from GM John Lynch this offseason, as Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle opines. The team’s impending cap crunch, intensified by McCaffrey’s $12MM cap hit for 2023, will make it more difficult for the club to retain QB Jimmy Garoppolo — though that may not have been in the cards anyway — and RT Mike McGlinchey.
  • Bears head coach Matt Eberflus acknowledged that one of the reasons his team traded linebacker Roquan Smith is because of Smith’s lack of ball production relative to his peers, particularly the peers who have contracts that Smith wants to top, as Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic writes (subscription required). Compared to fellow 2018 draftee and three-time First Team All-Pro Shaquille Leonard, for instance, Smith has five fewer interceptions (seven), 16 fewer forced fumbles (one), and six fewer fumble recoveries (one) over the course of his career.
  • The Lions‘ trade of Hockenson will naturally create more playing time for second-year pro Brock Wright — who is expected to step into the starting TE role — and fifth-round rookie James Mitchell, as Tim Twentyman of the team’s official website notes. Mitchell, who is still strengthening and rehabbing the torn ACL he suffered as a collegian at Virginia Tech in 2021, has played just 21 offensive snaps this season but offers big-play upside at the tight end position.

Cam Akers Active For Rams’ Week 9 Game

November 6th, 2022 at 7:41am CST by Sam Robinson

NOVEMBER 6: Akers will be active for the Rams’ Week 9 matchup against the Bucs, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (Twitter link).

NOVEMBER 3: Steadily improving after an unusual blip, the Rams-Cam Akers relationship will now include the running back returning to practice. Akers will suit up for the Rams at their Thursday workout, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets.

This news comes a day after Pelissero indicated the team turned down multiple trade offers for the third-year back. Those offers likely did not include much in draft compensation, as Sean McVay had said a trade was the likely outcome here. The Rams tried to unload Akers at the deadline, but the former second-round pick appears somewhat close to suiting up for the team again.

Akers and McVay had “a good talk” following the Rams’ decision not to trade their former starting back, Pelissero adds (on Twitter). The prospect of Akers playing against the Buccaneers on Sunday looks to be in play. Akers, who came to disagree with McVay and Co. to set up this odd hiatus, has missed the Rams’ past two games.

While the recent good vibes here could signal a thawing, McVay also did not rule out the possibility of a release. And Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk notes the Rams were the ones rebuffed in trade overtures, rather than being the team turning proposals down. The Rams are believed to have included Akers in their Christian McCaffrey and Brian Burns proposals. It seems fair to assume they pitched him to non-Panthers teams as well.

Akers missed multiple practices leading up to Week 6, and the Rams said personal reasons were behind the absences. But reports soon revealed the Akers-McVay rift, leading to a likelihood of Akers being done with the defending Super Bowl champions. McVay soon said the Rams were trying to move the Florida State alum, and that effort continued up to Tuesday’s trade deadline. With nothing materializing, Akers is short on options to resume his playing career. The Rams cannot trade him again until the start of the 2023 league year.

This is obviously a key development for the Rams, who have not received consistent offensive production from anyone not named Cooper Kupp this season. But they have also not seen Akers display the form he showed before a July 2021 Achilles tear. Akers returned from that severe setback in January and played in all four Rams playoff games. His playoff yards-per-carry average: 2.6. His 2022 YPC figure (3.0) falls in line with that low-level number, inviting concern about Akers’ abilities going forward.

As a rookie in 2020, Akers broke through late in the season and became Los Angeles’ top back. He ripped off a 171-yard performance in his first career start — against the Patriots that December — and then added 131 on the ground in the Rams’ playoff win over the Seahawks. Unless Akers returns closer to that form, his re-emergence may not move the needle much for the Rams’ 31st-ranked rushing attack.

Los Angeles has used a few backs in Akers’ absence, with Darrell Henderson seeing Malcolm Brown and rookie UDFA Ronnie Rivers cut into his role. It will be interesting to see how much the Rams use Akers, whose rookie contract runs through 2023, going forward.

Minor NFL Transactions: 11/5/22

November 5th, 2022 at 8:51pm CST by Ben Levine

We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:

Arizona Cardinals

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Detroit Lions

Indianapolis Colts

Los Angeles Chargers

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

  • Promoted: OT Kion Smith

Minnesota Vikings

New York Jets

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Washington Commanders

Poll: Who Will Win NFC West?

November 5th, 2022 at 4:59pm CST by Sam Robinson

Housing the defending Super Bowl champions and the conference’s runner-up, this year’s NFC West was set to feature another chapter in the reinvigorated Rams-49ers rivalry. But both would-be contenders have offered inconsistency that has further muddled the NFC.

As the Sean McVay–Kyle Shanahan series has seen injuries and roster deficiencies cloud its sixth season, the Seahawks have gone from a team projected to be close to a top-five 2023 draft choice to one with legitimate aspirations at a home playoff game. With the Cardinals also within two games of first place — ahead of a key Hawks-Cards Week 9 tilt — this division still features many questions at the midseason point.

Winners of this division three times during McVay’s first five seasons, the Rams have been unable to generate much offense involving anyone beyond Cooper Kupp. After Andrew Whitworth retired, Los Angeles re-signed his backup — Joe Noteboom — to a three-year, $40MM deal and brought back center Brian Allen. Both Noteboom (out for the season) and Allen (five missed games) have seen injuries define their 2022 slates. The team let three-year guard starter Austin Corbett walk in free agency (Panthers), and the Rams’ guard spots have endured a litany of setbacks. Both Rams starting guards (David Edwards, Coleman Shelton) remain on IR. These issues have limited the Rams considerably. No McVay-led Rams offense has ranked outside the top 11; Los Angeles enters Week 9 with the league’s 30th-ranked offense.

While no problems have surfaced after Kupp’s extension agreement, Stafford, 34, has not started well since signing a four-year, $160MM deal. The 14th-year veteran battled an elbow issue throughout the offseason and is averaging just 6.8 yards per attempt — down from 8.1 in 2021 — and enters Week 9 with seven touchdown passes and eight interceptions. Allen Robinson posting 22 catches for 254 yards in seven games has also been an issue, with the Rams having signed him to a three-year, $46.5MM deal that included $30MM guaranteed. Football Outsiders gives the Rams just a 21.6% playoff shot. No defending champion has missed out since the 2016 Broncos.

San Francisco making the call to bring back Jimmy Garoppolo became vital after Trey Lance‘s Week 2 injury. Garoppolo inconsistency remains, but that should not surprise. The 49ers traded two future first-rounders for Lance because of their incumbent starter’s low ceiling. Of course, the 49ers are 2-for-2 in NFC title game berths with Garoppolo at the controls. But this team has battled major injury problems as well, seeing key contributors on each of their three defensive levels miss time or land on IR. That said, the 49ers still rank first defensively. Following an October swoon, the unit should be expected to stabilize once some of its pieces return.

The 49ers outflanking the Rams in the Christian McCaffrey sweepstakes made a major difference in the teams’ Week 8 rematch, and although McCaffrey’s injury history figures to inject nervousness into the equation for 49er fans the rest of the way, the prospect of CMC, Deebo Samuel and George Kittle teaming up probably gives San Francisco (67.3% playoff odds, per Football Outsiders) the highest ceiling in this division. But Seattle (71.9%) remains an obvious threat.

Moving on from two of the best players in team history — Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner — the Seahawks entered the season with long odds to win the division. They hold a one-game lead on the 49ers, thanks largely to the stunning re-emergence of Geno Smith. Off the starter radar since the I.K. Enemkpali punching incident back in 2015, Smith made one start between the 2015 and 2020 seasons. The Seahawks were able to re-sign him to a one-year, $3.5MM deal on April 14, indicating the tepid interest leaguewide. After beating out Drew Lock, Smith (13 TD passes, three INTs, NFL-best 72.7% completion rate — on 7.7 yards a pop) ranks fourth in QBR. While Smith’s offseason market and NFL past would provide signs this may not last, the Seahawks are reaping the benefits of their extended Smith partnership — one the team is interested in exploring beyond 2022.

Seattle’s rookie class — featuring left tackle Charles Cross (obtained with Denver’s No. 9 overall pick), second-rounder Ken Walker and fifth-round project Tariq Woolen — is also delivering immediate returns, doing so after recent draft-weekend struggles set back some of the late Wilson-era teams. The 49ers routed the Seahawks in Week 2, and Seattle has yet to face Los Angeles. But Pete Carroll‘s team is also showing more on defense compared to another woeful start; Clint Hurtt‘s unit has minimized the Cardinals, Chargers and Giants during a three-game win streak.

Extending their Steve Keim–Kliff Kingsbury–Kyler Murray troika this offseason — with Murray’s deal coming after a bizarre film study-based controversy — the Cardinals rank 30th in scoring. They have seen DeAndre Hopkins make a difference upon returning from his six-game PED ban, and Vance Joseph‘s defense — despite a breakup with Chandler Jones after five years — has fared better since Patrick Mahomes torched that group in Week 1. But injuries and continued offensive inconsistency have hindered Arizona season.

Should the Cards (6.9% postseason odds) not be able to upend the Seahawks on Sunday, their road back to the playoffs will be difficult. A last-place finish would certainly invite big-picture questions about the team’s path, with its power trio all under contract through 2027.

Will the Seahawks hang on? Or will one of the 2021 playoff teams surpass them with a better second half? Vote in PFR’s latest poll and weigh in on the state of this division in the comments section.

Poll: Who will win the NFC West?
San Francisco 49ers 46.90% (1,352 votes)
Seattle Seahawks 44.47% (1,282 votes)
Los Angeles Rams 6.90% (199 votes)
Arizona Cardinals 1.73% (50 votes)
Total Votes: 2,883

Rams Pursued OLB, OL, RB Help; Team Was Not In On Cooks, Hunt At Deadline

November 4th, 2022 at 3:53pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Rams’ success after in-season trades for Jalen Ramsey and Von Miller likely impacted other teams’ plans at this year’s deadline, but the defending Super Bowl champions sat out this year’s final stretch of trading. This was not due to roster contentment or lack of trying, however.

The 3-4 team is believed to have made a monster offer for Brian Burns and lost out to the 49ers for Christian McCaffrey, with a San Francisco fourth-round pick potentially being the difference for Carolina. But the Rams also pursued offensive line and wide receiver aid at this year’s deadline, according to Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic (subscription required).

Los Angeles has seen its offense crater this season. No Sean McVay-led Rams team has finished outside the top 11 in total offense; this year’s iteration ranks 30th. Injuries at almost every offensive line position, to starters and backups, have limited the Rams considerably. Allen Robinson not following the likes of Brandin Cooks or Odell Beckham Jr. as quick studies in McVay’s attack has also affected the Rams, who rank 28th in scoring. The team opted not to swing a deal before Tuesday’s deadline, however.

Although the Browns discussed Kareem Hunt before the deadline, Rodrigue notes the Rams were not a serious suitor. The Eagles were believed to be the team that would have landed Hunt, if the Browns were legitimately interested in moving him. Shortly after a Monday-night blowout of the Bengals, the Browns seemed to back off on this front. Hunt is now set to play out his Cleveland contract ahead of free agency.

McVay has attempted a few backfield solutions this season, but none has done much to help the reigning champs’ cause. The Rams rank 31st in rushing and have not seen Cam Akers (three yards per carry) return to the form he showed before his July 2021 Achilles tear. They have seen left tackle Joe Noteboom, third-round rookie guard Logan Bruss and backup guard Tremayne Anchrum suffer season-ending injuries. The team has also played extensively without center Brian Allen, who has since returned, and left guard David Edwards (who has not). Right guard Coleman Shelton also remains on IR.

Akers, who said this week he did not request a trade, became a trade chip for the Rams. But they could not reach an agreement to unload the third-year back. Akers returned to practice this week and is not on L.A.’s injury report, clearing a path to an unexpected return to the Rams’ offense.

Additionally, the Rams were mentioned as interested in a Cooks reunion. They did pursue this, per Rodrigue, but were not in the running for the oft-traded wideout in the days leading up to the deadline. The Texans made it clear they were not planning to eat any of Cooks’ $18MM 2023 guarantee. This and an asking price of second- and fourth-round picks — more than they gave up to acquire Cooks from the Rams in 2020 — cooled down the market. Cooks, who is tied to a two-year deal worth $39MM he signed in April, is planning to rejoin the Texans after a trade-related dispute led to his missing their Thursday game.

The Rams have made big moves at the deadline under McVay. Their Dante Fowler acquisition in 2018 helped that edition to Super Bowl LIII. Ramsey and Austin Corbett (2019) made big differences in the 2020 and ’21 teams advancing in the playoffs, and Miller significantly moved the needle last season. The Rams have not replaced Miller, whom they aggressively attempted to retain in free agency, leading to the Burns pursuit.

The Rams did “everything they could” to try and land Burns, a GM informed the Washington Post’s Jason La Canfora. It is somewhat surprising the Panthers would turn down an offer of two first-round picks for a one-time Pro Bowler who has yet to post his first 10-sack season, the Rams would have needed to include 2024 and 2025 first-rounders. GM Scott Fitterer, who was hired during the Matt Rhule period, may not have been too keen on not picking up a prime 2023 asset in the deal. Reports of L.A.’s Burns offer being rebuffed will only bolster the fourth-year Carolina edge rusher’s extension value, when that time comes.

After seeing their Burns push fail, the Rams have not been mentioned as being involved in the Bradley Chubb sweepstakes. While they may well have been one of the 10-plus teams to call the Broncos on the then-contract-year pass rusher, the Dolphins including a first-round pick would have given the Rams — who again are without their 2023 first-rounder — an uphill battle.

Barring a long-rumored Beckham reunion, the Rams will attempt to defend their NFC West title without a splashy addition. They will enter their post-deadline stretch 1.5 games behind the surprising Seahawks.

NFC West Rumors: 49ers, Akers, Reddick, Ward

November 3rd, 2022 at 10:00pm CST by Ely Allen

The 49ers capitalized at the trade deadline Tuesday, acquiring a fifth-round pick in exchange for running back Jeff Wilson. When the offer came in from Dolphins general manager Chris Grier, it was an easy decision for 49ers general manager John Lynch and head coach Kyle Shanahan to make, as they had already agreed on the lowest possible compensation they would take for Wilson, according to Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports.

Wilson was strategically available in this fashion due to the 49ers’ recent acquisition of former Panthers running back Christian McCaffrey. “You can only keep so many, just from a roster approach,” Lynch told the media. “We knew when we made the Christian move, someone was going to have to go, and, ultimately, Jeff’s the one.”

San Francisco will move forward with McCaffrey, Elijah Mitchell (currently on injured reserve), rookie third-round pick Tyrion Davis-Price, and undrafted rookie Jordan Mason. In Miami, Wilson will reunite with backfield-mate Raheem Mostert and head coach Mike McDaniel. He’ll also compete for snaps with Salvon Ahmed and Myles Gaskin.

Here are a few more rumors from around the NFC West, starting with some insight in LA:

  • After lots of talk around trading running back Cam Akers, the Rams retained the 23-year-old back, allowing him to return to the team. Akers has insisted on multiple occasions that “he didn’t know why he was asked to leave the team,” according to Sarah Barshop of ESPN. He spoke in the locker room and told Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic that “at no point did he ask the Rams for a trade or release.” Regardless, he reported that a conversation he had with head coach Sean McVay yesterday was good for both parties and that Akers and his teammates are glad to have him back around the team.
  • After three average years in the Cardinals‘ defense, linebacker Haason Reddick made a request that would save his career, according to Zach Berman of The Athletic. Underachieving as an inside linebacker led Arizona to decline the former first-round pick’s fifth-year option. In an act of desperation, Reddick suggested to his coaches that he revert back to the pass rushing position he excelled at in college, taking advantage of the team’s star pass rusher, Chandler Jones, going to IR. He had been considered too small to succeed at the NFL level as a pass rusher, but the circumstances left Arizona with little choice. Reddick would finish the year with 12.5 sacks, leading to the resurgence of his young career.
  • It took a while for 49ers veteran defensive back Jimmie Ward to find success in the NFL. For three years, San Francisco tried to force Ward into a nickelback role before eventually settling him into success at free safety. Now, at 31-years-old, Ward has been asked to return to a nickel cornerback role, according to Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle. After playing only one snap in the first six games of the season due to a hamstring injury and a broken hand, Ward lost his starting job to Tashaun Gipson, who has simply played well in Ward’s absence. Now, with Gipson firmly at free safety and Ward coming back from injury with a club cast, Ward’s role comes at nickel corner. He’s accepted the circumstances and his new role moving forward with the team.

Texans WR Brandin Cooks Not Expected To Play In Week 9

November 3rd, 2022 at 3:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

3:55pm: The Texans asked for second- and fourth-round picks for Cooks, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. Although Cooks fetched first-rounders in 2017 and ’18, with the Texans sending the Rams a second-rounder for Cooks in 2020, his value has dropped since. The Texans did not even pay this for Cooks that year, with Los Angeles also sending Houston a fourth-round pick in that trade. The $18MM guarantee became a no-go for teams at the deadline. This stalemate is not expected to be resolved easily, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets.

10:52am: Disappointed he was not traded at this week’s deadline, Brandin Cooks has not practiced leading up to the Texans’ Week 9 matchup with the Eagles. The disgruntled wide receiver will not play against Philadelphia on Thursday night, Ed Werder of ESPN.com tweets.

Cooks is not at the team’s facility today, though Mike Garafolo of NFL.com adds (via Twitter) the team will try to circle back to this issue Friday. After not being traded by Tuesday’s deadline, Cooks sent out a tweet appearing to indicate frustration with the Texans.

Houston’s options are limited with Cooks, until trading resumes in 2023 at least, but we did see a similar situation play out between Odell Beckham Jr. and the Browns last year. After the Browns did not trade Beckham at last year’s deadline, Beckham maneuvered his way out of Cleveland via release. Cooks, who joined Beckham in the 2014 draft class, missing a game may be the start of him attempting a similar strategy.

While this is a fluid situation, Werder adds a release is unlikely (Twitter link). It would cost the Texans $27.3MM in dead money to move on from a lucrative contract they agreed to in April. Cooks, 29, has gone from signing a two-year, $39MM Texans extension in April to being a healthy scratch by midseason.

This issue does indeed stem from Cooks wanting to be traded to a contender, with Tom Pelissero of NFL.com adding (video link) the Rams joined the Cowboys in being involved in talks with the Texans. Houston discussed Cooks trades up until the deadline; the Cowboys talked to Texas’ AFC franchise in the final hour of 2022 NFL trading. The Giants also called on Cooks, who was linked to the Chiefs, Packers and Vikings as well. No deal transpired, leading to this strange chapter of the oft-traded wideout’s career.

Months before Cooks signed a new deal with the Texans, he said he did not want to be traded for a fourth time. The Saints sent Cooks to the Patriots in 2017, while trades to the Rams (2018) and Texans (2020) later commenced. It is worth wondering if Cooks would be elsewhere now if he did not sign a Texans extension. That deal calls for an $18MM guaranteed base salary in 2023; that figure dissuaded teams from acquiring Cooks. The Rams viewed that salary as a non-starter, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic tweets, adding that the team came to the conclusion that $18MM figure was not changing in the days leading up to the deadline.

The six-time 1,000-yard receiver was linked to a willingness to give up guaranteed money to facilitate a trade to the Rams. That would indicate a desire to be moved, but Cooks received $36MM in guarantees from the Texans upon signing that extension. He seems to have changed his mind about alignment with this franchise, despite the Texans not being in position to be a 2022 contender when he signed the deal in April.

Beckham ended up sacrificing cash to be cut, leading to a successful Rams partnership. Cooks has been one of the great receiver mercenaries in NFL history, joining Brandon Marshall in posting 1,000-yard seasons for four teams. It will be interesting to see how Cooks and the Texans proceed from here, with this Thursday absence signaling this issue is not going away.

Rams Rejected Cam Akers Trade Offers, Working On Solution With RB

November 2nd, 2022 at 11:50am CST by Sam Robinson

A disagreement between Cam Akers and the Rams led to the running back’s inclusion in multiple trade offers to the Panthers — for Christian McCaffrey and Brian Burns. Carolina passed on both proposals, but they were not the only offers including Akers to come in before Tuesday’s deadline.

The Rams passed on multiple offers for Akers, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com, who adds the team is working with the third-year running back on a solution that would allow him to remain in Los Angeles this season (Twitter link). This report runs counter to a Tuesday offering that noted the Rams were not gaining much traction with an Akers trade.

This impasse initially was believed to lead Akers out of town; Sean McVay called a trade likely two weeks ago. The Rams included Akers in a McCaffrey proposal that also included two Day 2 picks and they included him as a throw-in in a Brian Burns offer headlined by 2024 and 2025 first-rounders.

The trade deadline passing limits the former second-rounder’s options. The ice seemed to be thinning here recently as well, with a report indicating Akers would be back with the Rams barring a trade. This would at least pause one of the more unusual player-team disagreements to crop up in recent years.

Akers has not recaptured the form he displayed before his July 2021 Achilles tear. Although Akers made a quicker-than-expected recovery that allowed him to play in each of the Rams’ four playoff games last season, his yards-per-carry numbers were well off his 2020 work. The Rams turned to Akers as their primary back for most of this season as well, but he is sitting on 3.0 yards per tote. Akers’ football-related dispute with the Rams has been ongoing since Week 6, when the team deactivated him after excused practice absences.

Los Angeles’ McCaffrey pursuit revealed a desire to upgrade at running back, and the team minimized Darrell Henderson‘s role in its Week 8 loss to the 49ers. Malcolm Brown and rookie UDFA Ronnie Rivers saw more time against the 49ers; Henderson received just four carries in the game. Akers returning would seemingly help the Rams, though unless he can more closely resemble his rookie-year version, the needle may not move much here.

Trade Rumors: Broncos, Cooks, Akers, Hunt, Cowboys, Lions, 49ers

November 1st, 2022 at 1:25pm CST by Sam Robinson

Brandin Cooks is available, and Dan Graziano of ESPN.com notes (via Twitter) the Texans are in discussions involving the ninth-year receiver. But Cooks’ $18MM guaranteed 2023 salary — which came to pass after Houston re-signed him on a two-year, $39MM pact in April — has proven to be an impediment here. Teams are not moving on Cooks unless the Texans pick up a chunk of that salary. Cooks, 29, was linked to giving up some guaranteed money to facilitate a trade back to the Rams. But it is unlikely he will give up too much cash to be moved. The Giants and Vikings have also been connected to the thrice-traded Cooks. For what it’s worth, Cooks was not at Texans practice Tuesday. Personal reasons — not an imminent trade — are believed to be behind Cooks’ absence, NFL.com’s Garafolo tweets.

With the deadline in less than three hours, here is the latest from the trade front:

  • The Broncos have told teams they are not conducting a fire sale, SI.com’s Albert Breer notes. A Bradley Chubb trade still could commence, but NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo hears (video link) the team is holding out for a better offer. Denver has been linked to not only wanting a first-round pick for Chubb but two firsts. With the latter price range unlikely to take shape, the Broncos figure to be put to a major decision today. Jerry Jeudy remains unlikely to be moved, per Garafolo.
  • No Cam Akers trade is imminent, Josina Anderson of CBS Sports tweets. The Rams have been looking for a trade partner to unload their 2020 second-round pick. This situation may not be as icy as previously believed, however. Akers was once rumored to be done with the Rams, but he is now prepared to return to the team if no trade occurs this afternoon.
  • Prior to acquiring James Robinson from the Jaguars, the Jets looked into Kareem Hunt, Breer notes. The Browns have dangled Hunt for the price of a fourth-round pick, but the former rushing champion may now be set to stay in Cleveland for at least this season’s remainder. Hunt, 27, should be expected to hit free agency if no trade goes down today.
  • The Lions may not be done dealing. After sending T.J. Hockenson to the Vikings, the rebuilding NFC North squad has informed teams it remains open for business. Defensive back is one of the areas in which Detroit is willing to deal, CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones tweets. Contract-year cornerback Amani Oruwariye would appear to be one name available. While Jeff Okudah arrived before the Brad Holmes regime took over, it would still be surprising if Detroit moved on from the former No. 3 overall pick.
  • In addition to making defensive end Tarell Basham available, the Cowboys are open to moving defensive tackle Trysten Hill, Breer adds. Dallas has not seen the former second-round pick develop into a starter but has used him as a part-time player throughout this season. The team just added Johnathan Hankins via trade and has rookie-contract performers Osa Odighizuwa and Quinton Bohanna ahead of Hill. Basham has only played in one game this season (Week 1) and remains on IR. The Cowboys designated the former third-round edge rusher for return late last month, however.
  • The 49ers have already made their big trade splash, sending four picks to the Panthers for Christian McCaffrey. Kyle Shanahan said (via Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area) the phone lines are always open, but the team does not expect to make another move.
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