Fansided

Sorry Philly, the Rams are early NFC favorites after trading for Aqib Talib

By Patrick Schmidt

PHILADELPHIA, PA - NOVEMBER 05: Aqib Talib #21 of the Denver Broncos in action during a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on November 5, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Eagles defeated the Broncos 51-23. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - NOVEMBER 05: Aqib Talib #21 of the Denver Broncos in action during a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on November 5, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Eagles defeated the Broncos 51-23. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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The Los Angeles Rams continued to load up in the secondary with their trade of Aqib Talib as the front office is ready to make a run for the Super Bowl.

The Rams made a splash earlier this offseason with a blockbuster trade of Pro Bowl cornerback Marcus Peters from the Chiefs. On Thursday night, the Rams continued making over the secondary with the second trade for a former Pro Bowl corner, acquiring Aqib Talib from the Broncos.

James Palmer and Ian Rapoport from NFL Media were the first to report the trade. All it cost the Rams to get the former Pro Bowl corner was a fifth round pick.

The Rams were able to hold off interest from the Patriots and division rival 49ers for Talib.

Talib has had his name bandied about in trade rumors for the better part of the last month and now he heads to Los Angeles where he and Peters will form as lethal of a duo as he was a part of in Denver where he was paired opposite Chris Harris.

The Rams won the NFL West last year behind breakout seasons from second-year quarterback Jared Goff and third-year running back Todd Gurley. Outside of All-Pro defensive tackle, Aaron Donald, the Rams knew they had to upgrade the secondary this offseason in order to avoid another early exit in the playoffs.

Considering they play in a division with Russell Wilson and the NFL’s highest-paid player, Jimmy Garoppolo, the Rams have a pair of shutdown corners to limit what teams can do against them via the air. Coupled with safety Lamarcus Joyner getting the franchise tag, the Rams secondary could be one of the best in the NFL. With the Legion of Boom over as we know it in Seattle, there’s definitely a new top secondary in the NFC West.

This move from General Manager Les Snead is not so much a bold move, but considering the previous trade for Peters, this has been an offseason that shows the Rams are ready to win now. They are primed to win with a young nucleus, but windows can be slammed shut in a hurry, so it’s incredibly ambitious and smart to go for it now, especially when it doesn’t cost that much.

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Sure, it’ll cost $11 million in salary against the cap, but the Rams fans that are loving these moves don’t care about how much players are going to get paid. They want to know how they’re going to stop Julio Jones and Matt Ryan should they meet in the playoffs again. With Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees and Carson Wentz all in the conference, a Talib-Peters tandem is what they’ll need to get to the Super Bowl.

And they should be the new favorite to represent the NFC after these blockbuster trades.

Rams fans should be going to bed tonight with a big smile on their face knowing the team will continue to tinker in free agency and the draft to continue adding to a team that has the mindset of “Super Bowl or bust.”

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