Rams will soon face a currency conundrum when it comes to the Conductor

The 11-4 Los Angeles Rams have benefited from excellent drafting on the defensive side of the ball in recent years. Getting outside linebacker Byron Young and defensive lineman Kobie Turner
In the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft.

That was followed by outside linebacker Jared Verse in the first round and defensive lineman Braden Fiske in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Both rookie classes have transformed their defense into a championship-caliber unit.

LA paired its draft success with some shrewd free agency moves that allowed general manager Les Snead to save real salary cap cash on the defense. But that is about to change.

At the conclusion of this year, Young and Turner will be extension eligible. Snead will need to make some tough decisions as to which of those four players to prioritize and which to potentially replace down the line. All four have produced to the level of $20+ million APY contracts. Recently, I looked at what an extension for Young would look like. Today, let's take a look at Turner.

Kobie Turner Extension Projection

Using Pro Football Focus stats and extrapolating his current season production out for the remainder of the regular season. He has been one of the team's defensive leaders this year. Here are some of Turner's closest comps over three different time horizons. Here are 3 data tables to compare:

The average of the contracts signed by these comparable players is 9.00% of the salary cap in the year they signed their new contracts. Assuming a $300 million salary cap, Turner would have a case for a $27 million APY on a potential extension.

The Rams should be able to find ways to lower that number. His draft pedigree as a day two pick could help Los Angeles remove Armstead, Lawrence, Williams, Clark, and Buckner from the list. That would leave Madubuike, Ogunjobi, and Jones as the three remaining comps. The average of their deals (allowing for Madubuike showing up twice) puts his APY as a percent of cap estimate at 8.28% ($24.84 million).

Rounding to the nearest million, a $25 million APY would make him the 4th-highest paid interior defensive lineman in the NFL, behind Chris Jones, Milton Williams, and Zach Allen. It would also place him $500k per year ahead of Madubuike, who was his closest comp.

The Rams have a tough decision ahead

That depends on how they align the defensive front pecking order. With Verse and Fiske extension eligible in 2027, along with superstar receiver Puka Nacua, the team will need to account for the future cash flows of any extension, along with projected payments for upcoming extensions.

As a rule, I would think the team is looking to lock in one of their defensive interior players and one of their edge rushers, while waiting on the other two until they are closer to free agency.

Snead will likely try to extend Turner this year, planning on prioritizing Verse next year. This would leave Young facing free agency in 2027 and Fiske in 2028. Turner plays more than Fiske and has been more consistent as both a run defender and a pass rusher.

If quarterback Matthew Stafford decides to retire at any point in the next two years, it would free up additional cash for the team to keep the defensive front together. This plan would allow that to potentially happen without closing the door on Stafford, who is working on an MVP season.

A four-year, $100 million contract for Turner is the ultimate payoff for a fantastic draft pick that literally anchors a special defensive front that could be hoisting a Lombardi Trophy in about two months.