Over the course of his career, Los Angeles Rams Les Snead has proven to be an unconventional general manager. Time and time again, he has demonstrated an aggressiveness in roster construction that most do not have the courage or authority to carry out. Snead’s “f*** them picks” mantra is hilarious, but he has lived by it, and it has served him well thus far. Being unafraid to sacrifice enormous draft capital in the past for elite players like Matthew Stafford, Von Miller, and Jalen Ramsey is a major reason why the Rams were Super Bowl champs in the 2021-22 season.
This offseason, it appears Snead and the Rams are preparing to go all in once again. The acquisitions of Trent McDuffie and now Myles Garrett instantly elevate them to one of the best defenses in the league once again. That being said, both moves came at quite a cost. Los Angeles sent the 29th pick in this past draft to Kansas City in exchange for McDuffie, while Cleveland required Jared Verse, a 2027 first-round pick, a 2028 second-round pick, and a 2029 third-round pick to pry Garrett loose. Clearly, this is a big swing for LA’s GM, but he is no stranger to those, and his team is unquestionably improved from last season already.
Rams Les Snead Is In A League Of His Own
One of Snead’s best qualities is that he is always incredibly aware of the state his team is in. That Rams squad was extremely talented, and with Stafford and Sean McVay leading the charge, they easily could have won the Super Bowl if a few things had gone differently. With this in mind, it is important to remember that they also could have just as easily lost every playoff game they were in. The Panthers and Bears both took them down to the wire, and then the Seahawks ultimately eliminated them in what essentially was the Super Bowl game in terms of competitiveness.
Instead of feeling sorry for himself, Snead gets back to work, does an autopsy of the season, and realizes where his team needs to improve. That defense was a problem last year, and they were diced up on various occasions by quarterbacks who had no business doing that. The NFL is a cruel business, but the simple truth is that if players are not performing well enough, they will be replaced.
This is not to say that Verse was not performing well, as he is one of the most promising edge rushers in the game. This is just one of those situations where almost anyone on a roster becomes available if it means acquiring a player of Garrett’s stature.
Certainly, the Rams’ GM had to feel some sense of guilt for banishing the young man to the wasteland that is the Cleveland Browns franchise, but it is part of the gig and what makes Snead great. No pick and no player is off limits if he believes he can elevate the team, and more general managers should follow his example. Sure, some are handicapped by overbearing owners, but most just sit back and put the same mediocre product on the field year after year. They are more concerned with their own job security and looking like a fool if a move doesn’t work than with producing winning teams.
Admittedly, Snead is in an enviable situation with an owner like Stan Kroenke, who truly cares about winning, and one of the best head coaches in football, McVay. That, however, does not mean his job is a cakewalk. He has done much more than just wheel and deal with trades, as Snead has also been highly successful with the draft picks he has decided to actually use.
Kyren Williams, Puka Nacua, Blake Corum, Steve Avila, Braden Fiske, Kobie Turner, Byron Young, and Kamren Kinchens are all Rams non-first-round picks from the last few years who have been impactful players. This is why Snead feels comfortable trading high draft picks so frequently. He trusts his staff and himself to find guys in these later rounds that other teams overlook, while also winning so many games that the first-round picks fall towards the end of the round anyway.
What Does The Future Hold?
Despite already having a Super Bowl ring, perhaps the most interesting part of Snead’s tenure as GM of the Rams is just beginning. Most people were shocked when LA selected QB Ty Simpson with the 13th overall pick of this year’s draft. With Stafford coming off an MVP season and the team’s championship window still open, it seemed more prudent to draft a player who could help them win now. Instead, opting to start planning for life after the future Hall of Famer retires could be a decision Snead comes to regret. Unless this is actually the perfect succession plan.
This Rams team is already stacked on both sides of the ball, and no player who was available at the 13th slot would have pushed them over the top in all likelihood. Barring any major injuries, it is fair to assume Stafford has two to three more seasons of elite-level football left in him at the least.
That gives Simpson plenty of time to get acclimated to the NFL without any pressure, learn from McVay and Stafford, and hopefully follow an Aaron Rodgers/Jordan Love career path to starting QB. During the years he watches from the bench, would it surprise anyone if the Rams won another ring or two? The answer is not even a little.
If Snead can successfully parlay the end of Stafford’s career into at least one more title, and then turn the keys over to Simpson without missing a beat, it would be one of the greatest GM runs of all time. The balancing of two timelines can be tricky, but with him overseeing the process, confidence should be sky-high. The Rams are exceedingly lucky to have Snead, and if more general managers had the intestinal fortitude that he does, their teams and the league would be in a better place.
