As posted by Pressure D41...

By Vincent Bonsignore from the athletic (today-2hrs ago)

The Rams’ interest in adding veteran pass-rusher Clay Matthews III wasn’t all that surprising, given their needs and salary-cap situation. With recent big contract extensions — Aaron Donald, Brandin Cooks and Todd Gurley — felt in earnest this year, and Dante Fowler Jr. and Marcus Peters getting big bumps in pay, there were limited funds available to address roster concerns.

The plan going into free agency was to head straight to the bargain aisle, in the hopes of finding reasonably priced veterans who still had something in the tank. That’s where they found safety Eric Weddle, who was released by the Baltimore Ravens in a salary-cap-cutting move two weeks ago, and it’s where they secured Matthews on Tuesday to potentially add juice to their pass rush.

The idea of adding Matthews got a big boost last season — just like with Weddle. In many ways, the interest in Weddle started last August at the Ravens’ facility in Owings Mills, Md., where the Rams and Ravens went through two rigorous days of joint practices, and the 33-year-old Weddle displayed leadership, intelligence and playmaking. Across the line of scrimmage, Rams coach Sean McVay took note. McVay referred to those notes two weeks ago when Weddle popped onto the Rams’ radar as a possible addition. It’s part of the reason he was so eager to add Weddle.

Matthews made a similar impression on McVay last October, when the Packers pushed the Rams to the brink at the Coliseum in a hard-fought 29-27 Rams win that wasn’t secured until the closing minute. Matthews might not be as explosive and dynamic as he once was, but he was active and engaged against the Rams that day. He had six tackles and one sack in 49 snaps that saw him deployed as an outside, middle and inside linebacker and as a defensive end while being utilized as a pass-rusher and run-stopper.

It left an obvious impression on McVay, who required little swaying when the 32-year-old Matthews was brought up as a possible free-agent addition.

“Yeah, he didn’t need convincing after we played them,” a Rams source told The Athletic.

The Rams inked the longtime Packers linebacker to a two-year deal worth upwards of $16.75 million. Matthews reportedly spurned more lucrative offers for the chance to return home to help the Rams get back to the Super Bowl. He lives in nearby Calabasas and went to high school in Agoura Hills before emerging as an All-American at USC.

Given the Rams’ limited salary-cap space and need to inject more juice into their pass rush, Matthews makes plenty of sense. He comes at a reasonable price, and as he showed the Rams last year, when managed and utilized prudently he still brings something to the table. He finished last season with 43 tackles and 3.5 sacks, although he had another sack taken away by a controversial roughing-the-passer call against the Washington Redskins. The numbers aren’t great, and it remains to be seen how much gas Matthews has left, but the Rams believe he can produce respectable numbers as a rotational piece in Wade Phillips’ defense.

According to Rams sources, part of Matthews’ allure was versatility in playing outside or inside — he played inside linebacker for the Packers for most of 2014-15 — which gives defensive coordinator Phillips plenty of options when scheming packages for him.

Matthews won’t start — the Rams are set at outside linebacker with Fowler and Samson Ebukham, two young players they believe have untapped potential. And second-year player Ogbonnia Okoronkwo also will be in the mix. But given that the Rams were in base defense approximately 30 percent of the time last year, there will be ample opportunities and ways to deploy Matthews. Perhaps that even will be alongside Fowler and Ebukam — to whom Matthews will serve as a mentor — to create multiple pressure points for opposing offenses to contend with. They’ll do so with Donald occupying multiple blockers on almost every snap, so there figures to be plenty of advantageous matchups.

Keeping Matthews fresh and healthy will be the key, which is why playing in a rotation with Ebukam, Fowler and possibly Okoronkwo should benefit him over the course of the season. The Rams have shown prudence and shrewdness in how they manage players’ bodies by giving them practice days off during the week — Andrew Whitworth, John Sullivan and Rodger Saffold come to mind — and that certainly will be part of the table for Matthews. Both Saffold and Sullivan missed significant time with injuries prior to working with McVay and his staff, but both made it through the last two seasons with only minor issues.

Is Matthews the player he once was? No, obviously.

Can he still contribute? If utilized prudently and managed accordingly, yes.