ESPN ranks Rams' offseason as 2nd-worst in the NFL

[theramswire.usatoday.com]

Skyler Carlin



The Los Angeles Rams have undergone a bevy of changes this offseason as they’ll deploy a new-look roster entering the 2023 season. While there is still time for the team to make more moves, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell ranked the Rams’ current offseason as the second-worst in the NFL.

The only team that Barnwell believes had a worse offseason than the Rams thus far is the Tennessee Titans.

On the offensive side of the ball, the Rams dealt veteran wideout Allen Robinson to the Pittsburgh Steelers, eating more than $21 million in dead money in the process. And after a dismal season along the offensive line in 2022, the only notable addition Steve Avila, who they drafted with the 36th overall pick.

The defensive side of the ball is where the majority of the losses occurred for the Rams this offseason. Besides the trade of All-Pro Jalen Ramsey, the Rams released Leonard Floyd and Bobby Wagner.

Also, Nick Scott, Taylor Rapp, and Greg Gaines all signed elsewhere in free agency, as did several other starters. With the departures the Rams experienced this offseason, they’ll be starting a handful of unproven young players on defense.

Barnwell points out that the Rams are in an awkward spot due to still having Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp, Aaron Donald, and Tyler Higbee on the roster. Here is an excerpt of what Barnwell said about the Rams’ current situation:

The Rams are stuck between stations. Moving on from their veterans made sense, but they still held on to some of their core in the hopes those players could be difference-makers in 2024 and 2025. Aaron Donald is 32. Matthew Stafford is 35. Cooper Kupp is 29. Tyler Higbee is 30. Donald is a once-in-a-generation player and could still be productive in 2024, but he also could have netted the team serious draft picks. (To be fair, Donald does have a no-trade clause, but there were no suggestions the Rams were considering trading him.)

After speaking about what went wrong for the Rams this offseason, Barnwell suggests the Rams target someone such as John Johnson, Eli Apple, or Yannick Ngakoue in free agency. It’s been less than two years since the Rams won the Super Bowl, but it’s clear that not many people have high expectations of them entering the 2023 campaign.