Marcus Peters hasn’t been good investment for Rams
By Cody Rivera
The Los Angeles Rams haven’t quite gotten what they were hoping for when they traded for Marcus Peters last year.
Back in March, the Los Angeles Rams made a trade with the Kansas City Chiefs to acquire cornerback Marcus Peters. A former first-round draft pick of the Chiefs, Peters was dealt for a second and fourth-round choice, with Los Angeles also receiving a fifth-rounder.
Initially, it seemed like a great move by the Rams, a move that could help solidify their defense to help balance things out with their high-powered offense. But a year later, Peters seems like a wasted investment.
Peters has been ineffective for the most part, and it was a weakness that the Cowboys did their best to exploit on Saturday night. When Aqib Talib hasn’t been on the field this season, the Rams gave up more explosive plays than any other NFL team this year.
Peters has been blowing assignments throughout the season, something he did again against Dallas. Additionally, his tackling (or lack thereof) has been a complete mess for years now. When he was turning the ball over, that was more palatable. Now? Not the case. In Kansas City, Peters accounted for 19 interceptions over three seasons. This year, he notched three.
Still, the Rams were able to advance this week by escaping with a 30-22 win over Dallas, but there’s a very good chance they’ll be headed to New Orleans for next week’s NFC Championship Game. Should that be the case, the season won’t end well for them if Drew Brees and the dynamic Saints offense are able to consistently exploit Peters.
The interesting part is that Saints coach Sean Payton is very aware of that. New Orleans defeated the Rams during the regular season, 45-35, which was their first loss of the year, and Payton called Peters out by saying they really liked the matchup of him covering Saints receiver Michael Thomas.
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Of course, Peters didn’t appreciate those comments, but it’s hard to disagree with Payton. Unfortunately for the Rams, Peters just hasn’t been what they hoped he would be this year.