The Sony Michel era in New England is over. The 2018 first round pick has been traded by the Patriots to the Los Angeles Rams for a 2022 5th round and 6th round pick.

The Patriots could end up with a 4th round pick if the Rams get a compensatory 4th round pick for safety John Johnson who signed with the Browns this off-season. If they do, the Rams would retain the 5th and 6th round picks they are sending the Patriots.

The Rams are thin at running back after losing Cam Akers for the season and an injury to back up running back Darrell Henderson over the weekend. Adding Michel gives them a veteran running back who is a good fit in Sean McVay’s offense.

Michel was having a good camp for the Patriots and was impressive last week against the Eagles racking up 71 yards of total offense. He finally started to look like the multi purpose back that he was at Georgia.

After a terrific rookie season in 2018, injuries and inconsistency derailed Michel’s tenure in New England. The Patriots declined to pick up his fifth year option this past off-season.

The trade enables the Patriots to clear up a long jam at running back. They are moving forward with Damien Harris, Rhamondre Stevenson, James White, J.J Taylor and Brandon Bolden.

Bill Belichick is also able to pick up two additional draft choices which gives him flexibility in next year’s draft. The Patriots also created more cap space as a result of the trade. The Rams are fully responsible for Michel’s salary. They would have had to eat some money if they released him.

Given the circumstances, the Patriots did well in this trade. It is not often you can recoup this much value for a running back. Their depth served them well in this instance.