Turf Show Times
Over the past couple of seasons, the Los Angeles Rams haven’t been a team that willfully hands out contract extensions. There is a reason why the Rams currently have three non-rookie players under contract for 2027 — Alaric Jackson, Poona Ford, and Kyren Williams. The Rams front office has prioritized the contracts of core players such as Matthew Stafford and done deals when they’ve had to as in the case of Kevin Dotson. Aside from that, the primary focus for building the team has been through the draft and the Rams have done a great job of doing that.
However, when teams draft well, rookie contracts only last four years. At some point, the bill comes due along with the benefit of the rookie deal. In one sense, that means that the Rams have drafted well, but it also means more expensive contracts are looming. That was the case when the Rams extended Williams over the summer and there are other players that they will have to make decisions on over the next few months.
Over the next few seasons, the Rams are going to have to make decisions on who is actually important to what the team wants to be moving forward. While the Rams have cap space, there are still limitations and they won’t be able to extend everybody. Next year, Puka Nacua becomes eligible for a new contract along with Kobie Turner and Byron Young. Steve Avila can be added to that mix as well. Jared Verse still has time, but the Rams will need to plan ahead for him. That doesn’t mention other potential contract extensions such as Rob Havenstein or, potentially, Braden Fiske.
There may have been some controversy over bringing back Williams due to him being a running back and the stigma around paying that position. Williams may have his flaws, but he’s clearly important to what the Rams do on offense. At the end of the day, for the Rams, extending Williams made sense.
Another player who is due for an extension and may be controversial is Rams safety Quentin Lake. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, “Week 1 can create urgency for contract extensions that teams or players slow-played over the past four months.” Per Fowler, Lake is a player that he is watching as someone who could soon get an extension.
Much like Williams, the question with Lake isn’t whether or not he’s a good player. However, it is worth wondering whether Lake is a player that the Rams should give an extension given some of the other names listed previously.
The Rams have typically been a team that doesn’t pay safeties and have an ecosystem to draft and develop the position. It’s a reason why the Rams didn’t pay John Johnson III after 2020. While they signed Kam Curl as a free agent last year, his cap number has never been more than $5 million. Simply put, the Rams have done a great job drafting and developing players. Nick Scott was...
