Should the Rams Be Interested in Trading for Jonathan Allen?

The Washington Commanders have allowed their veteran defensive tackle, Jonathan Allen, to seek a trade. Should the Rams be in the mix to add this veteran to their young defense?

Oct 6, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders defensive tackle Jonathan Allen (93) celebrates after a tackle during the second quarter against the Cleveland Browns at NorthWest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

The Los Angeles Rams have a significant amount of money to use in free agency. I think that money should be wrapped up in extending Matthew Stafford or resigning other important free agents. The Washington Commanders have allowed Jonathan Allen to seek a trade, should the Rams be interested?

The #Commanders have had trade conversations centered around Pro Bowl DL Jonathan Allen, sources say.

Washington plans to do right by the player & Allen’s camp is involved in helping him land at the right spot — either via trade or free agency. He has one year left at $15M. pic.twitter.com/DNcQxWFACY

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 25, 2025

The Rams should be interested in bringing in Allen, but not if it means that they'll let other impactful players walk as a means to acquire him either via trade or free agency. Their biggest priorities should be coming to an agreement with Stafford while also finding a way to keep Alaric Jackson around.

While it would be nice to see Allen in the Rams' defensive scheme, he's 30 and missed most of last year due to injury. In 2024, Allen played eight games and had just 19 tackles and three sacks, the fewest games he's played since his rookie season.

If the Rams were to target Allen, it would have to be just for this year. There'd be no point in giving him a long-term contract when their defense projects to get better, and Allen would take snaps away from players who would benefit from the increased playing time.

This move would mean that they are aggressively buying into this two-year window with Stafford, where Stafford's projected contract extension would be for another two years. We saw a similar method when they traded for Stafford initially, went all in, and won a Super Bowl.

This would be to a lesser extent as they wouldn't give up copious amounts of their first-round picks to go all in, but it would maximize their window of contention to this year and the next. Under this lens, I can see why the Rams should be interested.

Allen would bring another dominant presence to their defense and, paired alongside Braden Fiske, could help with the lack of run defense that the Rams suffered from last season. The Rams have a deep roster on defense. Hopefully, this means he can remain healthy.

If the Rams were to pursue Allen and he stayed healthy, I think it could contribute to taking the Rams over the top and solidifying them as Super Bowl contenders. This move is only made if the Rams take care of more pressing matters in free agency, as a defensive tackle isn't a need for the team.

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