WOODLAND HILLS, Calif. –– It was one of those blue-skied California days where the well-manicured green playing fields shimmer under a warm, golden sun and the cool, subtle breeze kisses the nape of your neck, stirred by airplanes flying overhead.
In this palm tree-laden paradise and sandy beaches, football is a business that goes on with an endless hum, whether players are kissed by the sun's warmth or jarred by the chill of rain or a winter's frost. That is life in the NFL.
The league can give young men the illusion that they are the future of a team; one minute, they are. In ensuing moments, players are packing their bags for new pastures or heading home.
On Tuesday, Ernest Jones IV learned this brutal truth after being packaged with a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Tennessee Titans for a 2026 fifth-round pick. Not so long ago, he was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams as a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed player and stepped in immediately as the middle linebacker on a championship team.
One could see the fervor in his eyes — dreams of becoming a cornerstone piece of the franchise, becoming a leader and perhaps hearing his name being called in the Super Bowl again. He had that fire, was a team captain and was viewed widely as the next cornerstone of a defense that the Rams would build around.
With defensive lineman Aaron Donald retiring, he gave the impression that he could do it, too. His relentlessness made you believe in him, even if you didn't know much about football.
But the NFL is a fickle business, and there's little room for compassion in business. Coaches and general managers laud players for being great teammates and a boon to the locker room, and they talk about how much they value hard work.
But at the end of the day, they will do what is best for their program. Their decisions are ruled by harsh truths and even harsher logic. The Rams had their reasons, of course; there are no doubts.
"These are ongoing things, and we have a responsibility," coach Sean McVay said. "It's something that we really feel good about. I feel really good about our defense on all three levels.
"We have a lot of guys that are willing to compete. It's a lot of new faces. You don't replace guys like Aaron. He's a special player. We're confident in that group and there's a lot of time and effort that goes into this with the evaluations and with the things and the amount of time that both personnel, ourselves as coaches, and the work these players have put in."
The Rams spoke of the future, their players' assessment and how the team has to evolve. But in the end, it boiled down to one thing: Jones was no longer a variable in their calculus. The time missed last season and during OTAs battling a knee injury that popped up weeks ago probably gave the Rams trepidation.
"It was tough, too, because there were a lot of opportunities that he missed that he wasn't available to get reps and be able to be a part of some of the things that we emphasized," McVay said. Then when you do, you're a little bit behind the eight ball and those other guys did really well."
Perhaps Jones, who is 24 and entering the final season of his rookie contract, couldn't agree to terms with the Rams and priced himself out of Los Angeles' plans.
"Football decision," McVay said. "What we felt like was best for the football team."
A phrase that has been uttered a million times before and will be used a million times afterward. In Jones' case, McVay's words denoted the end of his tenure in making Los Angeles his home.
Here, he bore his soul protecting every blade of grass in Sofi Stadium, where fans and opponents watched him sweat and bleed on the field, where the manifested greatness accounted for the countless hours of film study. The trade announcement cried his departure from L.A., the city where he forged his professional identity as one of the top linebackers in the league.
On his way to Tennessee, Jones, like the Rams, will turn a page and write a new chapter. Yet, it's not that simplistic. What lies beyond the transition to a new city, donning a new jersey and digesting a new playbook is the forlorn sense of camaraderie snatched from him with the brothers made in battle.
It's about saying goodbye to a place called home and to people you call family.
The Rams lauded Jones as they do whenever a player is released. McVay gave his well wishes and praised his professionalism and his character. But he focused on what Los Angeles gained –– the addition, new faces, younger talent, and fresh blood that would shape the future Rams football.
This is the norm in the NFL, its circle of life. Players age, young players are promoted, and the game goes on, regardless of anyone’s life; it demands their all. Although callous, the indifference to the personal toll it takes finds its way to every player; everyone has their final whistle.
"No, we feel great about the linebacker group," McVay said. "You guys are all shocked, but we feel really good about it.
"I think Troy Reeder and (Christian) Rozeboom are excellent. I think Jake Hummel has got versatility and I couldn't be more impressed with Omar Speights and his emergence as a young undrafted rookie free agent making the team. (Elias) 'Eli' Neal is another guy.
"We have a bunch of different things that we can do personnel-wise with some of the guys that we have on the back end and on our front."
The move to Tennessee yields another opportunity for Jones to prove himself. The Titans will welcome him into their fold as they manage their own set of expectations and pressures, but it won't be given.
Jones will earn his standing amongst his teammates in the locker room and on the field. Jones will have to do everything from scratch over again. He will have to prove himself in every practice as he fights for every rep, with every tackle and time he drops into coverage.
That is the reality of the NFL — there are no assurances and no pledges –– all that remains is the hustle and grind of chasing the Lombardi trophy.
There's something poetic in this bittersweet moment. Like all players in the NFL, Jones started out as a child in backyards, streets and empty lot fields. Regardless of how many times they were knocked down, they found a way to pull themselves out of the dust and off the asphalt and continued to chase their dream.
Jones will continue to do just that. He will lace up his shoes, pull on and strap his helmet and hit the field with the same tenacity that got him initially recognized by Los Angeles. Because that’s what you do.
You fight. You grind. In an ever-shifting and evolving world, you keep going, placing one foot in front of the other in times of uncertainty. The Rams have and Jones must, too.