The Los Angeles Rams’ decision to release future Hall of Fame linebacker Bobby Wagner after just one season has to be seen as one of the most-surprising pieces of information thus far on the young NFL offseason.
Los Angeles is just over a calendar year removed from winning the Super Bowl. Sean McVay’s squad has built that win-now mentality in Southern California. Coming off an injury-plagued and disastrous 2022 season, this mentality is coming home to roost.
Even after releasing one of the game’s best linebackers, Los Angeles still finds itself over the 2023 NFL salary cap with less than a month to go before it has to be compliant.
The team doesn’t have a whole lot of options outside of restructuring huge contracts and pushing back cap hits to later years. Without draft capital and boasting a veteran-laden roster, it stands to reason that general manager Les Snead will have to make other tough decisions within the next couple weeks.
We’re not 100% sure if the Rams are set to go into full-scale rebuild mode. McVay likely wouldn’t have returned if that was in the cards. Veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford also wouldn’t have committed to another season after suffering a spinal cord injury in 2022. Even then, there’s several players the Los Angeles Rams now have on the chopping block. Below, we look at four of them.
Related: Los Angeles Rams’ Bobby Wagner and the NFL’s top free agents
Rams move on from edge rusher Leonard Floyd
This is what we’re talking about when it comes to making tough decisions. If Los Angeles doesn’t want to push back its cap hits to future years, there’s very little options to make the team viable this offseason.
One option would be to cut ties with a consistent contributor in Floyd who has played exceptionally well since joining the Rams back in 2020. In three seasons with the team, Floyd has registered 59 quarterback hits, 29 sacks, 28 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles.
Designating the veteran a post-June 1 cut would save Los Angeles $15.5 million in 2023 with a mere $6.5 million dead cap hit. Sure, it would create a major issue out on the edge. But Floyd is one of the few players that would create substantial cap room without a restructure being in the cards.
Related: Likely NFL salary cap casualties this offseason
Los Angeles Rams trade Joseph Noteboom
Los Angeles signed Noteboom to a solid three-year, $40 million extension back in March of 2022 following the retirement of longtime tackle Andrew Whitworth. The idea was for this former TCU standout and third-round pick to help fill in the gaps in front of Matthew Stafford.
It did not come to fruition. The left tackle suffered an Achilles injury in mid-October and missed the remainder of the season. Despite this, Les Snead and Co. might be able to get a mid-round pick in return on the trade block. Noteboom would be of value to multiple teams at either right tackle or left tackle. In turn, Los Angeles creates $7.5 million in cap space.
Related: 4 ideal Jalen Ramsey trade scenarios from the Los Angeles Rams
Los Angeles Rams surprisingly release Jalen Ramsey
We’ve read reports that the Rams will look to move their All-Pro cornerback in a trade this offseason. That’s all fine and dandy in a game of Madden. Unfortunately, the financial reality in Los Angeles tells us another story. Unless the Rams wait until after June 1 to trade Ramsey, said move would create a $19.6 million dead cap hit for the 2023 season.
There’s a chance that Ramsey simply looks to rework his contract in order to facilitate a trade. In this scenario, the Rams would work with their star cornerback to find an ideal landing spot. The likelier scenario is that Los Angeles simply designates him a post-June 1 cut, saving the team $12 million in cap room. Ramsey is still playing at a Pro Bowl level. But that didn’t stop the Rams from releasing another stud defender in Bobby Wagner recently. Just some food for thought there.
Related: NFL insider says Los Angeles Rams are guaranteed to trade this superstar soon
Aaron Donald blockbuster trade
Donald made waves shortly after the 2022 season ended by changing one of his social media profile statuses to retired. While the multi-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year quickly retracted that, there’s no telling how committed he is to playing long-term. Remember, Donald seriously considered retirement ahead of the Rams’ Super Bowl win a year ago earlier this month.
What we do know is that a ton of rumors have linked the future Hall of Famer to a potential trade. Other teams might now look to buy on the cheap after Donald suffered through the first injury-plagued season of his brilliant career.
If Los Angeles were to work with Donald to find an ideal destination, it would make sense for him to redo his deal in order to facilitate a trade. With a cap hit of $26 million in 2023, this would help the Los Angeles Rams from a financial standpoint. They’d also get some nice draft assets in a potential trade.