LA Rams free agency shopping list a simple restructure away

The LA Rams want to re-sign Whitworth, Fowler, and Littleton from free agency. While that is more than the Rams have in available cap space, 1 restructure frees up enough to pay for nearly all.

Are the LA Rams looking at the free agency through champagne lenses in frames of beer? To hear the team talk, that could be one way you hear their free agency market aspirations.  The Rams need to find money rather quickly, as the team will not perform well in bidding wars with other NFL teams for the chance to re-sign their star players.

The LA Rams have named left tackle Andrew Whitworth, outside linebacker Dante Fowler Jr., and inside linebacker Cory Littleton as their priorities in the upcoming NFL Free Agent market.  All three are vital to the LA Rams’ success in 2020, as they are all veterans who are performing at very high levels.  With new coordinators, much of their ability to succeed right out of the blocks will be depending upon the veteran leadership to help smooth out the transition.

The success of new offensive coordinator Kevin O’Connell is having a dependable blind side offensive tackle.  The success of new defensive coordinator Brandon Staley is having a fierce pass rush, as well as excellent pass coverage in the interior of the football field.  The only flaw in that planning?  Other NFL Teams are seeking the very same thing. And some teams have more than triple the budget to spend as the Rams this off-season.

In one of our first salary cap discussions in 2020, we estimated the fair market value of the Rams’ imminent free agents.  For Dante Fowler Jr., the Rams have the franchise tag option which would guarantee Fowler is paid $16.3 million in 2020, a good bargain as an edge pass rusher.  We originally estimated Littleton at $12.5 million. But as the post-2019 grades arrived, Littleton’s reputation rose quickly.  Added to that,  the retirement of Caroline Panther linebacker Luke Kuechly shrinks the supply of linebackers while adding one more team to the market of interest buyers. All in all, Littleton will likely set the market at $15 million this off-season.  Left tackle Andrew Whitworth should be in the range of a two-year $15 million deal.  That’s about $38 million in outlays for 2020.  Right now, the LA Rams have just $23 million available.

Same Salary Cap scenario

We’ve discussed the Rams salary cap situation far too often, I’m certain. But the math of the matter is the only true hurdle to the Rams achieving their off-season goals of retaining their veteran free agents.

The disappointing fact is that the Rams can get it all done oh so very simply with one restructure. The LA Rams have committed long-term to QB Jared Goff when the team signed the September 2019 $134 million contract extension, preloaded with $57 million in guaranteed money. That contract includes a $21 million roster bonus on top of his $10 million salary earnings this year.

Here’s the simplicity. With no impact on the number of dollars paid to Goff this year, the Rams can reclassify both the salary and roster bonus into a signing bonus. That converts the $31 million salary-cap hit this year into 1/5th of that amount, or just $6,200,000, freeing up $24,800,000 of the 2020 salary cap number.

A commitment made, let’s get them paid

So there are downsides to freeing up 2020 salary cap space.  What are they?  You may already have guessed some.  For starters, it kicks Goff’s salary impact into the future. In turn, that obligates the Rams to retain Jared Goff as the team’s quarterback for the next five seasons. But with so much guaranteed money already in place, does anyone truly believe that the Rams intended to leave an escape clause in the contract?  Goff’s contract averages over $30 million per year against the Rams salary cap through 2024.

For other downsides, we simply need to turn our gaze to next year. The LA Rams will need to find enough money to re-sign WR Cooper Kupp and if not extended in 2020, to re-sign CB Jalen Ramsey.  Kupp is entering his contract year and is arguably the Rams’ most important receiver entering 2020. Ramsey is also entering his contract year, and at the price of two first-round picks, the consensus remains that the Rams are committed to extending him to a multi-year deal.

Any contract restructuring, as well as new multi-year contracts that are signed in 2020, eat away at next year’s salary cap.  All elements to consider.

Still, the NFC West is wide open heading into the 2020 NFL season. And with the LA Rams playing in SoFi Stadium this year, you can bet the team wants to open the season with wins. Add to the discussion new coordinators, both Kevin O’Connell and Brandon Staley, and the team’s interests to give them both the right players to succeed this year.  The LA Rams went “all-in” in 2019.  You can bet the team will be “all-in” in 2020 as well.