Rams Prefer To Restructure Sam Bradford’s Deal, Rather Than Trade Him

According to Jason Cole of the Bleacher Report, the Rams would prefer to restructure QB Sam Bradford‘s contract, rather than make him available for trade.

By allowing Bradford to speak to other teams, it would give him the ability to properly gauge his value and if he’s able to find a team willing to offer him a great deal, then they would see if they can work out a trade.

St. Louis reportedly believes Bradford would like to remain with the Rams, and they’re hopeful they will be able to work something out.

Cole mentions that the big issue in this particular situation is what the Rams will do if they can’t work out a trade and Bradford is unwilling to take a pay cut? St. Louis could consider releasing on March 10 if no progress is made in the coming weeks.

As for Bradford’s health, Cole mentions that he’s not healthy and there are concerns about the fact that he’s had two surgeries on the same knee.

Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports reported Wednesday that the Rams had given Bradford permission to seek a trade out of St. Louis.

However, La Canfora did admit that it will be difficult for the Rams to find compensation to their liking, and he’s more likely to be back with them next year.

Rams GM Les Snead “emphatically” denied that they’ve given Bradford permission to seek a trade, but that’s not surprising, seeing as all teams deny players being available for trade.

Even so, Snead wouldn’t commit to Bradford being atop their depth chart next year, due to the number of games he’s missed.

“I can’t say he’s top of the depth chart because he’s missed 25 [of the last 32] games,” Snead said, via Pro Football Talk.

There are a number of teams in need of a quarterback, so we’ll have to see if anyone is willing to offer the Rams decent compensation for the former No. 1 overall pick.

Bradford stands to make a $12.985 million base salary for the 2015 season, which means a restructured deal would reduce that figure while offering him the ability to recoup the saving through incentives.

For what it’s worth, the Rams would free up $12.985 million by releasing Bradford outright. This would also create $3.595 million in dead money, but the cap saving would easily be enough to justify such as move.

Bradford, 27, has yet to live up to his draft status and is now coming off of back-to-back ACL tears, so there are some real concerns about him moving forward.

Bradford last appeared in an NFL game during the 2013 season. He finished the year throwing for 1,687 yards while completing 60.7 percent of his passes to go along with 14 touchdowns and four interceptions over the course of seven games.

This remains one of the more interesting negotiations to watch in the coming weeks.