EARTH CITY, Mo. -- In the latest churn of the Sam Bradford rumor mill, reports surfaced Tuesday that the Buffalo Bills are considering making a trade offer for the St. Louis Rams quarterback.

As is becoming increasingly common in this age of social media, those reports were summarily shot down with reports that no team has actually really pursued a trade for Bradford. The Buffalo rumors came on the heels of rumors that the Cleveland Browns had similar interest in Bradford. And those rumors followed speculation that Bradford had been given permission to seek a trade.

In addition to all of that, there have been other reports that Bradford does not want to take a pay cut and instead of being traded would prefer to be outright released.

For what it's worth, Rams coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead have dismissed most of those rumors. Fisher went so far as to call the trade permission rumor as "inaccurate" at last week's NFL scouting combine.

"When we've had him, he's 5-2-1 in our division," Fisher said. "And we weren't very good when we got here, so we're counting on him. I'm betting on him and if that doesn't happen, then we'll win games with somebody else."

So what do we make of all this? It's not unusual at this time of year and in these situations for these types of rumors to run rampant.

We do know the Rams would like to bring Bradford back at a cap number below his projected $16.58 million and a base salary less than his expected $12.985 million. We also know there isn't an agent in the league -- especially one representing a high-priced quarterback -- that would like to take a pay cut for a client.

That means it's in the best interest of Tom Condon, Bradford's agent, to do all he can to get the best deal possible out of the Rams. Rumors of other teams willing to trade or sign Bradford to big-money deals theoretically only drives the price up. It also doesn't mean any of those possibilities are real or an agreement won't eventually be reached.

If, indeed, some of those rumors materialized into legitimate offers then perhaps the Rams could consider it. While the Rams have repeatedly made it clear they are committed to having Bradford in 2015, it doesn't mean that a big offer wouldn't change their mind. Any player can be had for the right price, especially one coming off two consecutive torn ACLs.

But it's also worth noting if these teams were legitimately interested in Bradford, it stands to reason the Rams would have similar interest in keeping him. It's not like the Rams have a better option waiting in the wings and the list of available quarterbacks in free agency or ones they could realistically get in the draft don't offer a clear upgrade, either.

Simply put, Bradford is every bit as valuable to the Rams, probably more so, than he would be to other teams. It's Condon's job to figure out what that happy medium is. So even if at this very moment Condon would prefer not to take a pay cut for his client, it doesn't mean he won't after he gets a chance to gauge what Bradford might get if he were to come available.

And from a Rams' perspective, there's not necessarily a pressing need to get something done with Bradford. They need cap space but have other ways to obtain it by releasing players like tackle Jake Long, center Scott Wells and/or defensive tackle Kendall Langford or converting some of end Robert Quinn's base salary to signing bonus.

People close to Bradford insist he wants to stay in St. Louis in 2015. The Rams insist they want to keep him. What shape that takes will reveal itself in time but in the meantime, don't be surprised if the rumors persist.