Rams May Deplete Their Salary Cap Coffers in Puka Nacua Extension

Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua is set to become the highest-paid receiver in the NFL. It's not a question of if, but when. And when that happens is most likely this offseason. But when that contract is announced this summer, it will have a lasting impact on the Rams' long-term outlook as it relates to the rest of their 2023 NFL draft class. 

I recently laid out how Los Angeles isn't typically a heavy cash-spending team. But when they see a window open, they aren't afraid to make serious investments over a small timeframe. Well, the window is opening, and the timing aligns with that 2023 draft class becoming extension eligible.

The problem starts with prioritization. And then, it becomes trying to optimize nearly two dozen extension-worthy players under the fiscal constraints of the annual salary cap.

The Rams are starting to spend more

Over the past five years, the Rams have been one of the lowest spending teams when it comes to actual cash. But now the young core they assembled via draft picks is maturing into a group of stars that are looking to get paid in line with their success on the field.

General manager Les Snead is going to have to prioritize which players get paid first. Quarterback Matthew Stafford is the first domino. He fundamentally changed the organizational trajectory when he arrived via trade in 2021, bringing the team the Super Bowl that had been elusive to that point.

After paying Stafford, Snead will also want to keep him happy by way of paying his dynamic play-making wide receiver. Nacua will command top-of-the-receiver-market money. An APY of $43 million or more on a new deal will likely come with a $40 million cash flow in 2026.

And that cash, combined with the raise in cash for Stafford, should put the Rams near the threshold for spending this year that I hypothesized for them in my deep dive. Cash spending of 20% over the salary cap is already a deep departure from their historical average over the past five years, to the tune of almost $85 million.

What that means for the rest of the 2023 draft class

Nacua wasn’t the only star drafted by the Rams in 2023. Guard Steve Avila has turned into a very good, but sometimes-injured, offensive lineman. Defensive tackle Kobie Turner has become a quiet superstar himself, outproducing most of his peers. And edge Byron Young has been a strong complement to Turner and fellow edge Jared Verse.

There's a world where Turner and Young can lock in early. But it's unlikely given the gravity of Nacua's impact on the team and how he will be prioritized over them.

All three of these players would love to lock in early extensions themselves. But with Nacua and Stafford pushing the Rams’ cash spending to 20% above the NFL salary cap, Snead will likely have to tell the trio to hold tight for one more season. Perhaps he can hire Wilson-Phillips out of retirement to break the news?

There is no immediate bad news for Rams fans if and when this happens. All three players are still under contract for 2026 under their original rookie deals, and the NFL-NFL Players Association collective bargaining agreement makes it virtually impossible for a player on a rookie contract to actually hold out. Their contract simply tolls, and they are right back in the same boat next year.

What this means for 2027

Speaking of next year, this does create an interesting logjam. With an ever-increasing salary cap and some veteran players coming off the books in 2027, the team does free up some cash to potentially fit two or more of the Young, Turner, Avila triad into the fold. But at that point, Los Angeles will be staring down the barrel of the bright lights of a situation where free agency lures one or more of these players to see what’s behind door number two.

And waiting in the wings behind those three is Verse, who becomes extension-eligible after 2026 and will command top-of-market edge money of his own.

The team has but one franchise tag to keep a player in the fold without an agreed-upon extension in place. Turner is the most reasonable expectation to get the tag until a longer-term deal can be put in place. That leaves Avila and Young headed for at least a courtship with other teams.

Zion Johnson just got $16.5 million per year in free agency! Jaelan Phillips just got $30 million! Those contracts have to be screaming to Avila and Young, respectively, that free agency might be their kind of town.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow