An Interesting Trade Idea

A lot of trade talk and rumors have surrounded the Vikings of late now that No. 4 is back under center, and the speculation is that Sage Rosenfels is on his way out of Minnesota. Sports Illustrated’s Don Banks had an interesting article speculating on a number of possible trade fits for Rosenfels, but I think he left out maybe the most obvious one, the St. Louis Rams. Now in fairness Banks wrote his piece before A.J. Feeley went down with an injury the other night, but even before then the Rams should be interested in a stopgap starting quarterback.

A.J. Feeley isn’t exactly the best option for a starting quarterback in this league and the Rams desperately need someone to hold the reins while Bradford gets his feet wet. I know there is a growing sentiment in the NFL to start rookie quarterbacks in year one, despite the fact that it rarely works, but the Rams need to be smart here. This isn’t the New York Jets last year, a playoff caliber team (and I still believe that the Jets might have rushed Sanchez) for a rookie quarterback to hide his inexperience on. The Rams have been awful for quite some time, and they don’t exactly have the best offense around Sam Bradford.

In two preseason games Bradford has struggled mightily, and things will only get worse when he is in regular game action. I know the Rams invested a lot of money and their top pick in him, but that is no reason to rush him into the starting role. In fact it is because they invested so much in him, that they should be extra cautious and careful with Bradford. And trading for Rosenfels would help solve their dilemma at quarterback. Right now it might make sense to put Bradford atop the depth chart given that his performance isn’t that much worse than Feeley (though considering how low that bar is set, it should be cause for concern), and he has this seemingly limitless potential. But if they add Rosenfels then there is a quarterback who can keep the seat warm, and teach the kid a thing or two.

Rosenfels I think could be a solid starter in this league. And while the Rams offensive situation won’t help his numbers, he should be manageable. Now I don’t think he will turn them into automatic contenders or completely make fans forget about Bradford. What he will do is let the rookie learn the game and the league, and take all the pressure off of him.

Now I am not saying Bradford should never play, maybe some mop-up duty late in games, and if he shows something, a start or two at the end of the year. But Bradford has no business starting more than half of the Rams games. There will be no good coming from that, and will likely only set him back another year or more in his development. If Brees, Brady, Rivers, Rodgers, and even Favre (as well as plenty of others) needed a year or more to develop, do we really think that Bradford is ready from day one? If the Rams are smart, they will give up a late round pick or two for protection for their future ‘franchise’ quarterback.