The revival of the Los Angeles Rams franchise started when Sean McVay agreed to become the team’s new head coach in 2017. With McVay in tow, the front office did their part in giving him weapons to bring his offense come to life.
Los Angeles first brought home Robert Woods and then gave him a running mate when they drafted Cooper Kupp. Woods and Kupp’s partnership on the field blossomed off the bat as the receivers worked well off each other and helped make the Rams one of the most explosive offenses in the NFL.
The two grew close during their time together, but L.A. made the difficult choice to trade away Woods to the Tennessee Titans in order to free up cap space. Kupp admitted that it was difficult for him to see Woods get dealt, via Greg Beachem of the Associated Press:
Cooper Kupp says it was "tough to see" Robert Woods traded: "He's always gonna be my brother. Every single year, there's someone that goes. There's only a few of us left from my time who have been here the whole 5 years." pic.twitter.com/qX8WrhyJn1
— Greg Beacham (@gregbeacham) April 19, 2022
With the Rams working on lucrative extensions for players like Kupp and Aaron Donald, they needed to free up money somewhere and Woods was an unfortunate casualty. The veteran tore his ACL in the middle of the season and even though he is on track to be ready by the start of training camp, perhaps they felt it was best to move in a different direction.
Like Kupp, fans were devastated to hear the news but should remain optimistic about the team’s prospects as they were able to reload on offense after signing Allen Robinson. The offense should remain as potent as ever, but Woods will definitely be missed both on and off the field.
