Tavon Austin Needs to Be Traded

Tavon Austin is the subject of contentious debate among fans. Is he a bust? Is he a guy who just hasn’t been in the right offense? Can he succeed as a number one receiver?

All of this talk has gotten louder after the Rams felt the need to give him an extension for $42 million with $28 million guaranteed and if he hits certain thresholds the deal could be worth up to $ 52 million. It is baffling that a guy can get so much and produce so little, but a large part of this was due to the fact that beyond Tavon Austin the Rams had little else at receiver.

What also doesn’t help is that the Rams gave a similar deal to Robert Woods this off-season and while he’s regarded as a good route runner and a solid blocker, he hadn’t produced anything downfield that would necessitate teams paying him that much but then again desperation rarely leads to sound decision making.

Sean McVay might very well be the guy to unlock whatever potential Les Snead feels Tavon Austin has but if he isn’t and it’s clear early that he isn’t, the Rams should trade him.

The Rams took Tavon Austin 8th overall after trading up with Buffalo and since then he has cobbled together 181 catches and 12 touchdowns as a receiver. As a returner he’s been quite good even going so far as to win a few games via punt returns.

His entire career he has yet to log 1,000 yards in a single season and he is unable to catch passes downfield. The only way to use him is either on hand offs in the backfield or on bubble screens which makes him a poor man’s Percy Harvin. Unfortunately, other teams were almost always able to snuff out these plays and without a competent quarterback, run game, or other weapons downfield this made it nearly impossible for Tavon Austin to find success.

That didn’t stop Jeff Fisher from calling those same three Austin plays many times per game but it made it clear that Austin isn’t the DeSean Jackson style threat many pegged him to be during the draft. He does deserve a chance to see if he’s simply been a bi-product of a terrible offensive system and its not like Snead’s phones are ringing off the hook anyway, so it wouldn’t be something that would happen immediately.

The issue then would become, what would the Rams get for him and if any team would be willing to take on that contract. Its sort of the same boat the Rams find themselves in with Trumaine Johnson but the difference is, the draft market on defensive backs is flush where receiver is in flux. If it gets to the summer and a team with cap flexibility and the need for another weapon feels Tavon Austin is worth it then the Rams shouldn’t hesitate.

Ideally, they could receive some form of a picks package and while it would technically leave them thin at receiver, they can always pick someone up after cuts are made in August. Trading Austin would allow the Rams more flexibility in signing their pending defensive free agents and once Trumaine Johnson’s contract comes off the books they can make a run at another receiver in free agency next year and or use an actual first round pick on getting a big play guy. Tavon Austin was once a can’t miss receiver that the Rams had to give up picks in order to get but now he’s simply become a financial liability that once he’s gone the fans won’t miss much at all.