Rams signings & extensions: their own & outside FAs

https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/davante-adams-agrees-to-two-year-deal-with-rams

Davante Adams agrees to two-year deal with Rams

Davante Adams is headed to the West Coast.

Per Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, Adams is signing a two-year deal to join the Rams.

The initial report indicates Adams’ deal is worth $46 million with $26 million guaranteed.

Adams, 32, split his 2024 between the Raiders and Jets, finishing the season with 85 catches for 1,063 yards with eight total touchdowns. He was thought to be a candidate to follow quarterback Aaron Rodgers wherever he ends up. But instead, he’ll play his 12th pro season with Matthew Stafford behind center.

A three-time AP first-team All-Pro, Adams has 957 career receptions for 11,844 yards with 103 touchdowns in 164 games.

With Cooper Kupp on the trade block — and a candidate to be released if no trade partner is found — Adams is expected to pair with Puka Nacua to form Los Angeles’ frontline tandem at receiver.

• This reply was modified 1 month ago by canadaram.

I hope that this works out better than the Allen Robinson signing.

It will be interesting to see how this impacts the Rams approach to the draft. I feel like this increases the likelihood that the Rams draft a corner with their first pick. Who knows though, it’s tough to predict who is going to be available so late in the first round. Maybe a good TE is still there. I kind of hope that some team is eager to move up from the second round and call the Rams. It would be nice to pick up some more picks.

canadaram wrote:

I hope that this works out better than the Allen Robinson signing.

It will be interesting to see how this impacts the Rams approach to the draft. I feel like this increases the likelihood that the Rams draft a corner with their first pick. Who knows though, it’s tough to predict who is going to be available so late in the first round. Maybe a good TE is still there. I kind of hope that some team is eager to move up from the second round and call the Rams. It would be nice to pick up some more picks.

he has five consecutive seasons with 1000 yards or more. not many games missed. but older than robinson was when he was signed. i think it’s a good signing.

if they want one of the top tight ends, they’re gonna have to trade up.

he’s actually older than kupp.

but he’s also been much healthier and more productive.

i’m also reading good things about his work ethic. so hopefully he’s got two more productive years in him. it wouldn’t be unprecedented. but at the same time, there’s lots of productive receivers who fell off in their thirties.

Overthecap.com: https://overthecap.com/salary-cap/los-angeles-rams

Team Cap Space 2025: $32,609,941

Davante Adams: $14MM in 2025 (14MM guaranteed). $30MM in 2026 (6MM guaranteed). If cut next year, pre June 1, Rams will save $18MM. So this could also wind up being the equivalent of a 1year $26MM deal.

Cooper Kupp: Barring a trade partner, cutting Kupp pre 6/1 will provide $7.5MM in cap relief in 2025 and $19.85MM in 2026.
Keeping him in 2025 and cutting him next year, pre 6/1, would cost the Rams the $7.5MM in 2025 but they would still get the same $19.85MM cap savings in 2026. If the Rams had found a trade partner, the financial dynamics would have been different, saving the Rams upward to $20MM.

So the question for me is, if they cannot find a trade partner, is Kupp worth $7.5MM in 2025? I certainly would have paid 7.5MM for him before I would have re-signed Atwell for $10MM.

• This reply was modified 1 month ago by RamsMaineiac.
• This reply was modified 1 month ago by RamsMaineiac.
• This reply was modified 1 month ago by RamsMaineiac.

https://boltbeat.com/chargers-lose-extremely-important-free-agent-poona-ford-rams
“…LA Chargers fans weren’t asking for much this offseason. After a successful 2024 campaign, fans just wanted the Chargers to use their ample cap space wisely to bring back impact players and make external additions that make sense.

As one of the most impactful Chargers free agents this offseason, fans desperately wanted defensive tackle Poona Ford to return to the team. With plenty of cap space, it seemed like a no-brainer that Ford would be back in Los Angeles….”

zn wrote:

Mike Garafolo@MikeGarafolo
New #Jaguars TE Hunter Long’s deal: Two years, $5 million with a $6 million max value. GM James Gladstone taps into a familiar face from his time with the #Rams.

Well, that’ll put the Jags back in contention.

How about those Bears, huh? Added 2 solid Guards and a Center. Looks like they intend to protect Caleb Williams more seriously this year.

I like getting Shelton back. While Limmer amazed us all last year, I never reached full confidence in him. Now they need depth and development at OT, another TE, WR, and RB, and the offense is set.

A shutdown CB and a ILB who can tackle Barkley would just about put a bow on it.

The LA Rams steal a perfect Jonah Jackson replacement as Bears hibernate
This move is a perfect solution to the vacancy created by Jonah Jackson.
By
Bret Stuter
|
Mar 10, 2025
When the LA Rams entered the 2024 NFL Free Agency market, the plan for the team was to re-sign starting center Coleman Shelton. But the Rams noticed the availability of former Detroit Lions Pro Bowl interior offensive lineman Jonah Jackson, and quickly pivoted from Shelton to Jackson. The Rams signed Jonah Jackson to a three-year deal worth up to $51 million. But when the time came to suit up for the regular season, Jonah Jackson was injured in Week 1. That sent rookie center Beaux Limmter onto the football field.

And Limmer never looked back.

Beaux Limmer, unlike the failed offseason experiments of Jonah Jackson or Steve Avila, is a natural center. As such, he fit quickly into the task of hiking the football while bracing to block determined defensive linemen and linebackers who had a full head of steam up to greet the ball carrier. And I won’t lie. as the season progressed, I wondered to myself why the Rams abandoned the original plan to re-sign Coleman Shelton.

Well, the Rams permitted Jonah Jackson to seek a trade, and the Chicago Bears were happy to reach a deal. Not only did the Bears step up to take Jonah Jackson off the Rams’ hands for the price of a Round 6 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, but they were happy to retain his compensation, projecting him as their starting left guard.

Still, the trade of Jonah Jackson to the Chicago Bears leaves the Rams roster one player shy of a full complement of backup interior offensive linemen. The Rams tendered ERFA C Dylon McMahon, and have IOL Justin Dedich. But the team would have to repurpose an offensive tackle to backup right guard Kevin Dotson.

Well, the LA Rams snuck in and stole free agent interior offensive lineman Coleman Shelton back from the Bears after being a 17-game starter for the Bears. While the Bears were busying forming a new starting offensive line, the Rams quietly but swiftly have come to terms with former starting center Coleman Shelton. While terms of the deal are not yet available, expectations are that the team has a team-friendly deal with Shelton to compete for either a starting or backup role in 2025:

While he didn’t work out with the Bears, he did perform rather admirably. In 1121 offensive snaps, Shelton allowed three quarterback sacks and committed four penalties. His overall grade in 2024 from Pro Football Focus was 66.4. For comparison purposes, rookie center Beaux Limmer struggled a bit in 2024. In 915 offensive snaps, he allowed one quarterback sack but committed nine penalties. While his overall PFF grade of 57.6 is not bad, his pass blocking grade of 42.3 is alarming.

The team knows that Coleman Shelton is better at pass blocking than that. So in one simple signing, the Rams have place Beaux Limmer on notice. Get better, or we will start a center who can. And as luck would have it, that replacement player is the very starting offensive center that the Chicago Bears replaced in this 2025 NFL Free Agency market.

The Rams ended up with Coleman Shelton, and a Round 6 pick, for Jonah Jackson. In the end, the Rams came out much further ahead in this deal than I had originally expected.