Rams Free Agency (wishlist/predictions)

[Ram_Rally]

OTC and Spotrac still have them 9th but you have to consider those two cap sites do not yet reflect the Stafford restructure, or the signings of Alaric Jackson and Atwell.

Depending how deals are structured, the Rams are probably in the 20s now.

Did the Rams have more than we thought or were the cap hits smaller than we thought?

 

[Ram_Rally]

hey, don't kill yourself before the draft, eh

Turns out the Rams having no cap was misjudged. I'm back to Superbowl or bust baby.

 

[Ram_Rally]

I think they will try. We only have a stud QB for 1 or 2 years max and need to capitalize. Could sign some guys to back loaded contracts.

I'm baffled that we would be low on cap with so few high end contracts, yet the eagles can keep dishing them out like halloween candy.

We got our answer

 

[Allen2McVay]

Did the Rams have more than we thought or were the cap hits smaller than we thought?

It's not one simple answer.

Neither site is currently fully up-dated; and Spotrac is way-off at the moment because it has Kupp's number reported twice ... which is really sloppy. It could change at any time.

It's tough to answer your question until contract details come out.

For example,
Adams deal is $44M and two years (that's $22M Average Annual Value) but the 2025 cap hit is just $14M. Another example is Ford's deal (3 years / $27.6M) ... that's an AAV of $9.2M but the 2025 cap hit is only $5.1M.

Neither site currently reflects the Stafford restructure, or the deals signed by Atwell and Shelton.

Better to just be patient.

 

[Flatlyner]

It also doesn't have that Asante Samuel Jr contract on there... yet.

 

[Memento]

It also doesn't have that Asante Samuel Jr contract on there... yet.

Wait, he’s still not signed with a team? I’m shocked; he’s one of the more talented safeties/big nickel corners on the market.

 

[Allen2McVay]

Wait, he’s still not signed with a team? I’m shocked; he’s one of the more talented safeties/big nickel corners on the market.

Isn't Samuel a smaller cornerback ... like 5'10" and 180-185 lbs.

 

[Ram_Rally]

It's not one simple answer.

Neither site is currently fully up-dated; and Spotrac is way-off at the moment because it has Kupp's number reported twice ... which is really sloppy. It could change at any time.

It's tough to answer your question until contract details come out.

For example,
Adams deal is $44M and two years (that's $22M Average Annual Value) but the 2025 cap hit is just $14M. Another example is Ford's deal (3 years / $27.6M) ... that's an AAV of $9.2M but the 2025 cap hit is only $5.1M.

Neither site currently reflects the Stafford restructure, or the deals signed by Atwell and Shelton.

Better to just be patient.

I'm intrigued to see it as well. This is far more aggressive than I anticipated them being given the expectation that tutu, Stafford, and Alaric ate up the cap. I'm glad they're still competing in this window.

 

[Memento]

Isn't Samuel a smaller cornerback ... like 5'10" and 180-185 lbs.

He is, but he’s been used like a nickel safety in San Diego’s defense as well.

Still surprised such a versatile and talented player is still on the market. I’d gladly go for him.

 

[dang]

Reeder is a UFA, thank God. Several LB's on the market that are better then Reeder.... actually most of them are.

I go so far as to say 80% available are better than Reeder. Note: I originally typed 90% but wanted to temper by unsubstantiated estimate.

 

[muggmeister]

My best remaining FA's for the Rams:
1. Asante Samuel Jr - CB Good young CB to grow with our young D
2. Ahkello Witherspoon - CB Was great for us last year
3. Elijah Moore - WR Still very young with a lot of potential, has always needed a good QB
4. Willie Gay Jr - LB Was very effective in KC, not sure what happened last year, but should be cheap
5. Jack Gibbens - LB Worth a shot for a cheap potential good starting MLB, when given snaps was very good
https://www.pff.com/nfl/players/jack-gibbens/57662
6. Evan Engram - TE If not too expensive. I'd rather we draft one in this good TE class, but, wouldn't be mad about it

I can see Witherspoon and Gibbens, maybe Gay, as low cost targets yet for the Rams. The others on this list are out our price range.

 

[Elmgrovegnome]

He is, but he’s been used like a nickel safety in San Diego’s defense as well.

Still surprised such a versatile and talented player is still on the market. I’d gladly go for him.

PFF gives him a 59.6 grade. That's not great. Plus teams seem to favor bigger corners nowadays. I'd rather the Rams bring Witherspoon back and sign an experienced linebacker for insurance.

 

[Ramstien]

I was somewhat surprised to see Hummel leave in free agency with an opportunity for playing time with the Rams next season. I have to trust that the coaches saw enough of him to realize he was not really an upgrade at the position, so they let him walk.

 

[dang]

I was somewhat surprised to see Hummel leave in free agency with an opportunity for playing time with the Rams next season. I have to trust that the coaches saw enough of him to realize he was not really an upgrade at the position, so they let him walk.

In limited opportunities I didn’t see Hummel playing even to Rozeboom (blind squirrel who found the occasional nut) level.

 

[dieterbrock]

As for available cap conversations, it's going to be awhile before the sportrac/OTC are updated properly. Teams had to be under the cap on the 12th and how they document that to the league doesnt include informing those sites.
Teams can also "agree in principal" with players like Stafford, Tutu etc and their "official" contract may not be signed for days/weeks. And when they are official, they will be still under the cap

 

[Allen2McVay]

As for available cap conversations, it's going to be awhile before the sportrac/OTC are updated properly.

Absolutely.

For the present, these sites are Useless for telling fans where their team currently sits cap-wise.
They remain helpful to see how specific contracts are structured. For example ...
... for Rams fans ... Poona Ford's deal averages more than $9M-per-year but his 2025 cap hit is only $5.1M.
However, it should be noted that the sites sometimes get individual contract detail wrong before eventually up-dating and correcting themselves.

Neither site currently reflects Stafford's restructure, Atwell's re-signing or the Shelton signing.

Spotrac has the Rams totally Fucked-up. As of yesterday and this morning, that site has the Rams with a mere $5M of cap space. That's So Wrong, it's just Sloppy.

Spotrac is counting Kupp twice for a total of $52M! Assuming the early reports that the Rams were designating Kupp as a post-June-1 release, he should count less than $15M against the Rams' salary 2025 cap. That would mean Spotrac is currently wrong (just on Cooper Kupp's impact to the Rams) by $37M!

One note on a post-June-1 release. The cap implications do not get reflected until June 1.

Realize many do not care about cap implications; and to those of us that do care, this stuff is confusing man ... best to just be patient, and take everything with a grain-of-salt.

 

[dieterbrock]

Neither site currently reflects Stafford's restructure, Atwell's re-signing or the Shelton signing.

Spotrac has the Rams totally Fucked-up. As of yesterday and this morning, that site has the Rams with a mere $5M of cap space. That's So Wrong, it's just Sloppy.

It's not sloppy, it's what I meant when I said that teams can also "agree in principal" with players like Stafford, Tutu etc and their "official" contract may not be signed for days/weeks. And when they are official, they will be still under the cap
Stafford, Tutu and Shelton likely dont have official deals yet. They just need to make sure that they dont go over the cap when they are sent to the league for approval

 

[Allen2McVay]

It's not sloppy, it's what I meant when I said that teams can also "agree in principal" with players like Stafford, Tutu etc and their "official" contract may not be signed for days/weeks. And when they are official, ...

...

Spotrac has the Rams totally Fucked-up. As of yesterday and this morning, that site has the Rams with a mere $5M of cap space. That's So Wrong, it's just Sloppy.

Spotrac is counting Kupp twice for a total of $52M! Assuming the early reports that the Rams were designating Kupp as a post-June-1 release, he should count less than $15M against the Rams' salary 2025 cap. That would mean Spotrac is currently wrong (just on Cooper Kupp's impact to the Rams) by $37M!

One note on a post-June-1 release. The cap implications do not get reflected until June 1.

It's Extremely Sloppy.

The $5M of cap space Spotrac has is primarily a reflection of what they currently have for Kupp ... $52M!
... see above.

I agreed with all your thoughts in your original post, and clearly said so. That's why OTC is not at fault.

Spotrac, on the other hand, needs to get it's shit together on the Kupp numbers ... $52M!!!!

 

[dieterbrock]

It's Extremely Sloppy.

The $5M of cap space Spotrac has is primarily a reflection of what they currently have for Kupp ... $52M!
... see above.

I agreed with all your thoughts in your original post, and clearly said so. That's why OTC is not at fault.

Spotrac, on the other hand, needs to get it's shit together on the Kupp numbers ... $52M!!!!

Cant tell if they add Kupp in twice or not? I dont know what Sportrac means when they list in red?
Either way, I'm pretty sure that they would have enough room, or could make room, if they had another FA in mind

 

[Allen2McVay]

Cant tell if they add Kupp in twice or not? I dont know what Sportrac means when they list in red?

I had the same thought but did the math. Spotrac is currently counting Kupp for $52M.

Either way, I'm pretty sure that they would have enough room, or could make room, if they had another FA in mind

Absolutely ... 100%

Despite them not being completely updated, I just like to check the cap sites for specific contract details (like Poona Ford), and to get a general idea where teams stand. OTC is not up-dated or accurate but it currently serves the purpose I want.

Spotrac, and it's $5M of cap space, made me do some math yesterday ... and, I did not want to do math.