A week before the NFL’s trade deadline, the Los Angeles Rams came out of nowhere and sent Kenny Young to the Denver Broncos. The return was minimal, only a late-round pick swap in the 2024 draft, which is what made the trade even more puzzling.
A team trading its best linebacker for, well, a bag of peanuts seems like an unwise decision. But as many suspected, it was purely a financial decision; the Rams saved about $1.3 million in cap space by trading Young to Denver.
Understandably, Young doesn’t seem thrilled about being traded by the Rams – two years after Los Angeles acquired him in a trade with the Ravens, no less. He spoke to Broncos reporters for the first time Wednesday and said he’s “feeling mixed emotions” about the trade.
“At the time, was on a run and I had played a very good game and it was confusing for me for a second. I think it just had to do with cap space with the finances and there’s really nothing they could’ve done about it or I could’ve done about it, but weird situation,” he said.
#Broncos Kenny Young said he was playing well, but #Rams wanted cap space “and it was about finances. It was something weird. I am not cool with it,” but said he respects it #Denver7 pic.twitter.com/w03TYbN0Fh
— Troy Renck (@TroyRenck) October 27, 2021
Young wasn’t having a Pro Bowl-caliber season, but he was also playing well enough to maintain his starting role. The Rams told him this trade had nothing to do with his on-field performance, saying it was about money.
“It had nothing to do with my on-the-field ability,” he said via Kyle Newman of the Denver Post. “I was playing well, and the way the cap was structured, they needed to take the money off my deal to give (it) to guys in other areas and up-and-comers. It was about finances … I’m not cool with it, but I have to respect it because they had no other choice.”
Sean McVay told reporters Monday that trading Young was difficult, but it gives the Rams financial flexibility moving forward, whether that’s with promoting guys from the practice squad or other transactions that might arise.
The trade deadline is on Nov. 2 so the Rams still have time to make another move, but regardless of whether they bring in help, trading a starting linebacker to save $1.3 million mid-season is tough to understand.
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