The NFL Draft is getting closer and closer, and talk that the Tennessee Titans might want to trade down from the top spot had been increasing, with teams such as the Philadelphia Eagles having rumored interest.
The Titans did trade that top pick Thursday morning, but it didn’t go to the Eagles. The pick went to the Rams, who are making a fresh start in Los Angeles, and what better way to make noise in your new city like having the top pick in the draft?
Sports Illustrated’s Peter King was the first to break the news:
Titans have traded the top pick in the draft to the Rams.
— Peter King (@peter_king) April 14, 2016
Multiple outlets reported the details of the trade, which included the Rams sending their first-round, two second-round, and their third rounder in 2016, as well as their first-round and third-round picks in 2017. The Rams received the No. 1 overall pick, as well as the fourth and sixth-round picks of the Titans for 2016.
The Titans were so happy with the deal, they had an infographic prepared to show off what they received:
Let’s break down that trade: pic.twitter.com/RU4luOUQDc
— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) April 14, 2016
Titans GM Jon Robinson was very pleased with the team’s acquisitions, and said that there was plenty of interest in the top pick, as he noted via Jim Wyatt of TitansOnline.com:
“Being able to acquire six players in the top 76 this year, along with next year when you factor that into it — I am assuming five in the top three rounds — that is 11 players that we can add to this football team that should not only increase our depth, but give us good quality players at all those positions.’’
“In the end we thought it was a decision that was best for this football team. It made sense for us to do it, and that’s why we moved on it. We talked to several teams about the pick. There was interest in the pick, and in the end we thought this was the option that made the most sense for us…We think we can really bolster this roster with the picks that we now have.”
Moving down also didn’t seem to be a huge issue for the team as far as getting the player that they want. “This move does not knock us out of any player, except one,’’ Robinson said. “We now have the ammunition to work the draft and acquire players that are going to be good for this football team.”
The move definitely seems like a longer-term plan for building and sustaining success. But while the Titans are loaded with picks, they now have to make the most of them.
Now, the Los Angeles Rams are on the clock, and Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times reports that Carson Wentz is on their radar.
