The Los Angeles Rams came very close to the Super Bowl during the 2025 playoffs. Los Angeles had an incredible regular season with Matthew Stafford playing MVP-caliber football for the first time in his lengthy career. Their heartbreaking playoff exit gave the Rams plenty of motivation to make some big moves during the 2026 offseason.
LA wasted little time before making some splashy additions. The Rams rebuilt their secondary by acquiring Trent McDuffie in a trade with the Chiefs. They followed that up by signing McDuffie to a four-year extension worth $124 million.
The Rams also signed cornerback Jaylen Watson during NFL free agency, effectively stealing the Chiefs’ starting cornerbacks from 2025.
LA also handed out extensions for safety Kam Curl and veteran tight end Tyler Higbee.
All of these moves feel like they are preparing the Rams to make another Super Bowl run during the 2026 season. But will all of these moves look good a few years from now?
One move stands out as the biggest mistake that LA made during the first week of NFL free agency.
Did the Rams pay too much to acquire Trent McDuffie?
Perhaps the better question is whether or not the Rams overpaid for a boost during the 2026 season.
McDuffie is certainly one of the better starting quarterbacks in the NFL. The Rams had an absolutely colossal need at the position before acquiring McDuffie. In that respect alone, it is at worst a defensible move.
In total, the Rams traded away four draft picks (29th overall pick, 2026 fifth- and sixth-round picks, plus a 2027 third-round pick) to acquire McDuffie. They also spent a good chunk of cap space on that $124 million extension.
It is fair to wonder what LA might have gotten with those resources if they had not traded for McDuffie.
The 2026 draft class is full of exciting cornerback prospects. Mansoor Delane, Avieon Terrell, Jermod McCoy, and Colton Hood have all been mocked in the first round. If one of them is available at pick 29, is that a better value than acquiring a known commodity like McDuffie?
Ultimately, the McDuffie trade is a difficult trade to evaluate because the short-term future of the Rams is an unknown past the 2026 season.
Stafford is only under contract for one more season. There is hardly a guarantee that Stafford will return in 2027, regardless of how the 2026 season goes. That makes the McDuffie move really about this one-year Super Bowl window, with a slim chance at a longer window.
LA would still be in the fortunate position of having a talented starting cornerback. But how much would that really be worth if the team is directionless without a franchise quarterback?
The Rams might need that cap space for upcoming contract extensions
The salary cap should be an important issue that keeps the Rams up at night. Especially considering some of the players who will need to get paid very soon.
