Ernest Jones is entering the final year of his contract and he’s apparently unhappy about the lack of negotiations regarding a new deal. As a result, he wants to play for a different team.
According to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, the Rams have granted Jones permission to seek a trade. This comes as a huge surprise and unexpected move for Los Angeles, considering Jones is a team captain and the signal caller on defense.
Jones, 24, was a third-round pick out of South Carolina in 2021 and has risen the depth chart each year. Last season as a full-time starter, he recorded 145 tackles, 4.5 sacks, six passes defensed and six QB hits in 15 games, all of which were career-highs.
Sources: #Rams have granted linebacker Ernest Jones IV and his agents permission to seek a trade.
Jones, a 2025 free agent, is L.A.’s defensive play caller with 145 tackles and 4.5 sacks last year. Sides discussed an extension, but with no progress, Rams open to trade. pic.twitter.com/QaMkuDj0Ko
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) August 25, 2024
General manager Les Snead said back in March that the Rams didn’t plan to give Jones an this year, forcing him to play out the final year of his rookie contract. Jones responded to that with a post on social media that just read the word “bet” above a photo of himself yelling.
Jones then said at the end of July that he wanted to stay with the Rams but acknowledged that “there’s a business side of it too that I can’t truly control.”
“I know that the work that I’ve put in these past three years, I know I’m worthy of something regardless what the worth may be,” Jones said. “I just want to put together a great year. I love to be in L.A., I really want to be here. This is truly where I want to keep my family at, grow my family here. But I also know that there’s a business side of it too that I can’t truly control. We’ll see. Hopefully we can get something done and I can be here for years to come. … And I’m up for the challenge.”
With roster cuts looming ahead of Tuesday’s deadline, if the Rams are going to trade Jones, it’ll likely be in the next three days.