Does Rams Wagner release mean these 5 unthinkable moves happen?

LA Rams money matters

The LA Rams are quick to increase the compensation packages of their players around their Super Bowl appearances, and yet the team almost invariably retreats and endures lean tims after the fact as the front office must scramble for ways to pay the elite members on the team's roster.

The history of the LA Rams' dead salary cap space over the past three seasons is as follows:

2020 - $38.5 million dead cap, $4.4 million injured reserve
2021- $49.4 million dead cap, $12.0 million injured reserve
2022 - $24. 7 million dead cap, $58.4 million injured reserve

You will note that while the Rams' dead cap space was the best it has ever been in 2022, the actual active player payroll shrank due to so many players appearing on the team's injured reserve roster. Ironically, the year in which the LA Rams finally felt as though there was light at the end of the salary cap tunnel, collapsed on them with injured reserve players.

Time to pay the piper?

That has continued to force the Rams front office to sign today's players with tomorrow's dollars, essentially kicking the can down the road. But the Rams will eventually need to zeroize the salary cap tables. Is that what is going on in 2023?

Until that happens, the Rams must continue to dodge and weave through another round of clearing their cap space. For reference purposes, we will be using the information provided by Spotrac.com as of February 23, 2023, at 7:00 pm PT.

But let's pivot and examine what the Rams may be seeing with their perspective? The Rams offense dropped like a rock in 2022, which revealed that the LA Rams defense may not have been as robust as originally thought. Has this now become a two part refurbish for the LA Rams? In essence, focus on retooling the Rams defense in 2023, and then pivot to improve the offense in 2024, when the Rams hold their first round draft pick in the 2024 NFL Draft? Hmmm . . .