6 Rams takeaways from FA tampering period…

6 Rams takeaways from free agency tampering period

[theramswire.usatoday.com]

Cameron DaSilva

With the clock hitting 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday, the new league year officially began – and so did free agency. The legal tampering period started on Monday, allowing teams to talk to agents of pending free agents and agree to terms on contracts. That was basically the start of free agency.

The Rams were pretty active on the first day, bringing back Joseph Noteboom, Brian Allen and Coleman Shelton, but they haven’t been big spenders so far. That shouldn’t surprise anyone.

Here are six takeaways from the Rams’ start to free agency.

1

Rams are focused on their own free agents

The Rams have been linked to one free agent so far: Bobby Wagner. And it’s not like they’re in hot pursuit of the former Seahawks linebacker, or that they’re the only team showing interest.

As a whole, the Rams aren’t sniffing around the free-agent market much. They don’t have the cap space to break the bank for a big name, but more importantly, they’ve made their own free agents the top priority.

They’re bringing back Joseph Noteboom, Brian Allen and Coleman Shelton, maintaining stability on the offensive line. They also tendered Matt Gay and Travin Howard. Von Miller remains a top target for Los Angeles, too.

Just as they did last year, the Rams are focused on bringing back their own players before looking elsewhere.

2

Big splash is unlikely to come

No one expected the Rams go to out and sign one of the top free agents. With the way their roster is constructed, spending big on another star wouldn’t have been the best decision. And now that the first wave of free agency has passed, we still shouldn’t sit around waiting for the Rams to make a big splash. It’s most likely not going to happen.

They could still sign Miller, Odell Beckham Jr. or one of the top cornerbacks still out there, but don’t hold your breath on more stars coming to Los Angeles via free agency.

3

Compensatory picks incoming

The Rams continue to own the compensatory pick game. They received five comp picks in this year’s draft, and they’ll get at least a few extra picks in 2023 following the departures of players such as Darious Williams, Sebastian Joseph-Day and Austin Corbett.

As of now, Williams and Corbett are projected to net the Rams fifth-round compensatory picks, and Joseph-Day will land them a sixth-rounder in 2023. Those selections could get canceled out if the Rams sign outside free agents, but with their focus on internal players, they’ll try to prevent that from happening.

4

Not much movement on Odell Beckham Jr.

There’s been a surprising lack of rumors and reports surrounding Beckham. He hasn’t been linked to any other teams, with his market getting off to a cool start. That should be good news for the Rams, who remain interested in bringing him back next season.

Beckham’s price tag is tougher to determine because he tore his ACL in the Super Bowl, so he could miss half the season. Surely, he’ll get less than someone like Allen Robinson, but for a multi-year deal, Beckham should still get paid handsomely after the way he played in L.A.

5

Leonard Floyd isn’t going anywhere anytime soon

The Rams restructured Floyd’s contract to create $12 million in cap space, which was a necessary move given the Rams’ financial situation. That helps them this year, but it also makes it extremely difficult to move on from Floyd before his contract expires because they moved money from 2021 to future years.

They’re not expected to cut or trade him, so let’s be clear about that. But if his production falls off next season, he’ll be on the books for $22 million in 2023 and cutting him would carry $19 million in dead money.

In other words, Floyd is sticking around for the long haul.

6

Rams betting big on Noteboom

The Rams agreed to a three-year, $40 million deal with Noteboom before Andrew Whitworth even announced his retirement. They knew Whitworth was calling it a career, and that’s why they felt comfortable throwing big money at Noteboom, who has only started 33 regular-season games in four seasons.

It was a wise move by the Rams, who didn’t have a really good option at left tackle outside of Noteboom, and paying him $13.3 million per year isn’t going to wreck their salary cap. If he continues to play the way he has when filling in for Whitworth, he’ll be a steal in a few years at that salary.