LA Rams Rumors: Could OLB Carl Nassib be on their radar?

The LA Rams do not shy away from players who have been released by other teams, particularly when that player can rush the passer. In fact, so much the better. The Rams know that as soon as any outside linebacker arrives at their defensive front, the ‘Aaron Donald effect’ kicks in, and suddenly that player is enjoying a career-high season.

So it is not really vital that a player who is signed by the Rams be an All-Pro when they add him to the roster. In fact, based on the fact that the team is frequently fighting a budget battle, it’s best that they do not. Or perhaps, as was the case of an All-Pro Von Miller, who many had written off as having lost a step, the Rams were content to add players who seemed to have fallen off the radar.

That’s why the mention of veteran outside linebacker Carl Nassib is so intriguing. Forget all of the other aspects of Nassib, if he can play, he will play on the Rams’ defense. The mention of Nassib to the LA Rams first appeared in a speculative article by Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine, but the fit is sound.

I didn’t report on it initially, because there were plenty of edge rushers and I expected the Rams to make a move by now. But I have to be honest. The thought of Nassib on the LA Rams roster just makes a ton of sense. And you can add the fact that edge rushers continue to be scooped up by other teams, shrinking the supply of plug-n-play veterans.

Not only can Nassib play, but he was released by the Las Vegas Raiders in March 2022, and he is still a free agent.

Now here is why he is so very intriguing:

Crazy Carl can contribute

The LA Rams defense is already better on paper than one year ago. (Yes, I said that). The Rams did not add Von Miller until mid-season, but this defense has almost everyone back, has added ILB Bobby Wagner, and I think that the addition of DB Troy Hill is way underestimated by many fans right now.

Nassib is a veteran outside linebacker, and the LA Rams need a veteran outside linebacker. That should be enough right there. Bring him in, kick the tires on him, and give him a one-year deal that allows him to seize the spotlight, attract huge contracts in the 2023 NFL Free Agency market, and result in the LA Rams being awarded a solid Round 3 compensatory draft pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

But before all that happens, wouldn’t it be wonderful to have a rotational player charging in who delivers seven to ten quarterback sacks? He only played 251 defensive snaps in 13 games for the Raiders in 2021 and still managed to generate 21 tackles, four quarterback hits, 1.5 quarterback sacks, and one forced fumble. Over his six-year career, he has generated 164 tackles and 22 quarterback sacks.

The LA Rams just vacated five roster spots, and this early in the off-season suggests that the team is clearing room to sign some players. Is Carl Nassib on the LA Rams radar? If not, he should be. The guy can play, and he simply needs the opportunity to do so. He’s quite familiar with AFC West teams, the division that has armed itself to the teeth in order to face the Rams this year.

Carl Nassib can contribute, make no mistake. But only if the LA Rams sign him up.