It's great that the Rams have drafted well overall in the 2nd-6th rounds in recent years. Now they HAVE TO for the next several years.
It's great that they could have a productive Aaron Donald through 2023/age 32. Now he HAS TO BE (post-contract restructuring).
It's great that Andrew Whitworth has played well into his late 30s. Now he HAS TO BE back at age 39 (turns 40 around week 15 this year).
IF Stafford plays well AND the guys they're about to restructure (Donald, Ramsey, Kupp and Woods) are all still very good through 2023 AND they keep drafting well in the middle rounds then they're in good shape. All very possible. But it creates a much slimmer margin for error. Perhaps offset a little bit by the fact that I think some players do want to come play in LA, with Stafford and Donald, etc. and maybe they can find some more relative bargains that way. And I think they are playing the compensatory picks game very well.
What would I have done different? Simply not extend guys two years before their rookie deals are up. Extending Gurley in 2019 (if they did at all) would have looked much differently than summer 2018. Extending Goff in 2020 (if at all) would have looked much differently than in 2019.