SANTA CLARA, CA – OCTOBER 21: Marcus Peters #22 of the Los Angeles Rams walks off the field following their win against the San Francisco 49ers during their NFL game at Levi’s Stadium on October 21, 2018 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
The L.A. Rams are willing to give cornerback Marcus Peters the long-term commitment that the Kansas City Chiefs were never ready to offer.
As Marcus Peters enters the fifth year option attached to his rookie deal, questions about his long-term future have come into view. Yet when it comes to whether or not the Los Angeles Rams are willing to commit to the cornerback for the long-term, head coach Sean McVay says there’s actually no question at all.
McVay answered reporters asking about Peters’ looming free agency, saying the Rams “absolutely” want to get a deal done with the former Chiefs corner that will keep him in L.A. for years to come.
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It’s interesting to watch two competitive franchises develop very different takes on how to handle a player like Peters. Despite creating turnovers at a historic level with the Chiefs, Peters was largely viewed as a mercurial product, a malcontent who didn’t fit well with a heartland team. A large section of the team’s fan base were just fine forgoing such incredible production on the field; in fact, some even wrote him off, claiming he was overrated or taking him to task for a lack of effort.
Given the personality conflict and attitude concerns, the Chiefs traded Peters in a shocking offseason deal last year that brought back a mere fourth round pick and a second-round choice in the following (read: this year’s) draft. For an All-Pro corner on a rookie deal, the return was fairly abysmal.
The Rams clearly are pleased with their end of the deal as they look to extend Peters. He started slow with the Rams and failed to look like the sort of shutdown option in a brand new scheme with Wade Phillips as his new defensive coordinator. However, experience brought him around as he excelled in the season’s second half and worked in tandem with Aqib Talib to make it to the Super Bowl.
It’s hard to fault the Chiefs side of things given their ability to compete in the AFC despite the loss, and it’s not as if teams were lining up to better the Rams’ offer. It will be interesting to see the terms of any forthcoming extension, including any potential outs the Rams might give themselves in case of emergency.
Peters had 3 interceptions for the Rams last year, including a game-winning pick-six against the Oakland Raiders.