Van Jefferson's Los Angeles Rams Tenure Ends Uninspiringly After Atlanta Falcons Trade

After an encouraging first two seasons, receiver Van Jefferson's time with the Los Angeles Rams took a sharp downturn - and is now in the past as he's been traded to the Atlanta Falcons.

The Los Angeles Rams have officially moved on from Van Jefferson, trading the receiver and a 2025 seventh-round draft pick to the Atlanta Falcons in exchange for a 2025 sixth-round pick.

Jefferson, 27, is in the last year of his rookie contract and was the Rams' second-leading receiver in 2021 with 802 yards and six touchdowns on 50 receptions but hasn't returned to that form since.

So, what happened and how did his stock fall so low?

The answer to the first part is more complicated and really stems back to the night of Feb. 13, 2022, when Los Angeles beat the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl.

Jefferson caught four passes for 23 yards, capping off a breakout second season and inspiring confidence that he could be a long-term solution as the team's No. 2 wideout.

Immediately after winning the Lombardi Trophy, Jefferson departed SoFi Stadium for the hospital - not because he was hurt, but to be by his wife's side while the couple's first child was born. They proceeded to name him Champ.

Later, Jefferson declared he won three prizes that day - his wife, child and the Super Bowl.

A former second-round pick who beat out Kyle Pitts, Kadarius Toney and others to lead the University of Florida in receiving yards as a senior, Jefferson was well-accomplished and squarely on an uphill track.

But since then, it's all flipped.

Jefferson underwent knee surgery during 2022 offseason programs, and again that August. He missed the first six games of the season and never found a rhythm upon returning, finishing with just 24 catches for 369 yards and three scores.

Entering 2023 hoping to bounce back, Jefferson was in line to be Los Angeles' No. 1 receiver once star wideout Cooper Kupp was placed on injured reserve with a hamstring injury before the season opener.

Instead, rookie fifth-round pick Puka Nacua stole the show, and Jefferson posted just eight receptions on 15 targets for 108 yards and a touchdown during Kupp's four-week absence.

"I think there were a lot of things over the first couple games where you're saying, alright, coverage sometimes dictates it," Rams coach Sean McVay said Sept. 18 on Jefferson's limited role. "But in a lot of instances, Van Jefferson is number one and you're trying to get him the ball in a crunch-time situation.

"I think there's a lot of layers, and I also believe in Van, and I think he can play better than what he has. I know he has it in him."

Van Jefferson's time in Los Angeles has come to a close / © Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

After Week 4, McVay praised Jefferson for making a pair of clutch catches in a 29-23 overtime victory over the Indianapolis Colts ... but that didn't translate over to a larger role in this past Sunday's 23-14 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

In what proved to be Jefferson's final game as a Ram, he played only two offensive snaps as Kupp and Nacua dominated the target share, which wasn't exactly how Los Angeles expected things to play out.

“It was a really unique game because you look at it, there was eight total possessions on each side," McVay said. "Based on how the game unfolded, that was how it went down. If you had asked me before, did I anticipate him playing that few snaps, I would've not said that but that was how it unfolded.”

Jefferson ended his Rams career with 101 receptions for 1,499 yards and 10 touchdowns across 49 games with 30 starts. 

News broke Tuesday morning that Los Angeles was shopping Jefferson around the league, and a few hours later, he officially became a Falcon, sending the Brentwood, Tenn. native back to the south.

It was a quiet yet sudden move, one that mirrors Jefferson's difficult past 13 months both on and off the gridiron.

This wasn't the way many expected the marriage between Jefferson and the Rams to end, especially after that Super Bowl hospital visit some 20 months ago.

But much has changed, and Los Angeles is set to move forward with Kupp and Nacua leading its receivers room while Jefferson gets a fresh start in Atlanta, seeking to rebuild his stock before entering free agency in the spring.

And so, the book closes on Jefferson's time in L.A. - but neither he nor the team will soon forget the magic of that Super Bowl season.