5 free agents the LA Rams could sign today, and should

Option III: WR Odell Beckham Jr.

You had to expect WR Odell Beckham Jr.’s name to appear on this list, didn’t you? Well, the time for OBJ to be medically cleared to play is rapidly approaching, and that means that the NFL Rumors linking OBJ to NFL teams are heating up just as quickly.

Right now, rumors are heating up between the New York Giants and Odell Beckham Jr. Before that, rumors linked OBJ to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Rumors have him linked to the New Orleans Saints and to the Kansas City Chiefs as well.

But let’s be perfectly clear. Free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. wants to play in the NFL, and any goodwill that the LA Rams had by treating him the right way during his time on the roster is quickly losing ground to his desire to suit up and play in the NFL this year, for any team. The holdup? He can’t deliver now, and many of the teams showing interest, or rumored to be interested, need help now. The Buccaneers have since signed FA WR Cole Beasley to their practice squad.

Show me the money

Nothing happens until a team is willing to sign Odell Beckham Jr. to a contract and assume the risk that he will return to full health and NFL playing form in a matter of weeks. It’s completely understandable, and OBJ himself says it best:

It comes down to the first NFL team to meet his price. Here is why the LA Rams need to be that team. In terms of risk, the LA Rams are solely positioned as the team with the most available information about OBJ’s injury, his rehabilitation, and his prognosis. OBJ is most familiar with the LA Rams offense, so his learning curve to get up to speed should be relatively quick once he is medically cleared to play.

And he, like WR Cooper Kupp, developed good chemistry with LA Rams QB Matthew Stafford in the second half of the 2021 NFL season through the playoffs. So much so that, before he was injured in Super Bowl LVI, many NFL analysts and pundits felt that he was on track to emerge from that game as the MVP.

The LA Rams must understand that they are not the only team with a vested interest in signing WR Odell Beckham Jr. to their roster. The Rams are simply the NFL team that has less speculation in doing so. With OBJ’s medical clearance so imminent, the LA Rams could sign him today, and should.