Rams Talking To Denver About Lloyd Trade

[r8rh8rmike]

Rams talking to Denver about Lloyd trade

BY JIM THOMAS
Sunday, October 16, 2011

The Rams have had several conversations with Denver about the possibility of trading for Broncos wide receiver Brandon Lloyd, but there appears to be plenty of interest in his services elsewhere around the league as well.

The Broncos are thought to be seeking anywhere from a third-round to a fifth-round pick for Lloyd prior to Tuesday's trading deadline. The Rams almost certainly wouldn't offer a third-rounder.

Lloyd, 30, enjoyed his greatest success last season under current Rams offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who was Denver's head coach before getting fired in early December.

Lloyd, 6-0, 188, caught 77 passes for 1,448 yards, and 11 touchdowns, with a per-catch average of 18.8 yards. In his previous seven NFL seasons prior to 2010, the University of Illinois product had never caught more than 48 passes, for more than 733 yards, with never more than six TDs in any one season.

Because of his time in the McDaniels' system, Lloyd could step right into the St. Louis offense, and would give the Rams a true downfield threat. This season, Lloyd has 19 catches for 283 yards, but no TD catches, for the more conservative offensive system of new Denver coach John Fox. The Broncos have a bye this weekend.

Lloyd is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent after this season, so if the Rams were successful in making a trade, they could be "renting" him for just 11 games. Lloyd's base salary is $1.395 million, so the Rams _ who have about $2 million in cap space _ would pick up the remaining 11/17th of that base salary, representing the final 11 game checks of the season. (It's 17 game checks because players get paid during their bye week.)

But several other teams are showing at least some interest in Lloyd, such as New England and Tennessee, and he may want to play for a contender. There have been indications that several other receivers throughout the league are being dangled as trade bait, so the Rams may be considering other trade options besides Lloyd. Rams officials have declined comment on any trade talks.

[Keenum]

Do it! Do it now!

[RockinRam]

Alshon Jeffery + Brandon Lloyd + Danario Alexander + Danny Amendola = We might start winning some games.

[AlphaRam]

It is hard for me to get excited about this with the O-line that we have.

[LA Rammer]

pieces are falling in place to bring a winner to LA

[Fastcat]

Llyod isnt a true downfield threat, he's slow just like our recievers but he can get open and CATCH the ball! If we have to give anything higher than a 5th ill pass.... If he was 3yrs younger would be a different story.

[swatter555]

I think what we give will depend on how much he is likely to ask for in salary next year. If he wants a large payday, its probably not in the Rams interest to give up much. If he wants 2-3 million, then I can see giving up something for him. As a Ram fan, I want something to root for. Maybe BL would provide the spark we need to compete. Obviously our playoff hopes went bye-bye a few weeks ago, but I would immensely enjoy competitive games.

Lets not over-value our picks here. The same thing happened last year when a second rnd pick was out of the question for even Vincent Jackson. Thats just dumb thinking. A third rounder is still a big gamble, while BL has proven ability (if only for 2-3 years).