Two Rams players are signing new contracts, and not to play in Los Angeles

The Los Angeles Rams are turning the page to a new chapter for their secondary. For fans, the excitement of welcoming new players to the Rams roster has been fun, a special football bonus at a time when the next NFL season is still months away. But the pangs of parting ways have not hit home in LA just yet.

Well, it's about to.

General manager Les Snead employed one strategy in this free agency market. By jumping into a buyer's role, he has prioritzed improving this year's roster. But in doing so, he's all but eliminated any chance for the team to benefit from the awarding of compensatory draft picks in the 2027 NFL Draft.

Because Los Angeles has been a net buyer, the opportunity to trigger the algorithm used by the NFL to award compensatory picks is unlikely to occur. While the team has elected to upgrade the roster today, the downside is how shopping now impacts their 2027 NFL draft comp picks.

Still, All In is all in. It's a race to get better in time to benefit veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford. So, which Rams are on the move?

2 Rams veterans are heading off to new teams

Not all players who move on from the LA Rams are busts. Les Snead drafted defensive lineman John Frankin-Myers in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft. By 2020, he was playing for the New York Jets. But his career did not explode until competing for the Denver Broncos in 2024 and 2025.

These two Rams hope for a similar career trek.

Tutu Atwell is heading to Miami to play for the Dolphins

As expected, Tutu Atwell is off to a new NFL team.

While he's too small to be viewed as a staple in LA's offense, wide receiver Tutu Atwell could shock NFL fans in the right offense. He hopes to have a better match with the Miami Dolphins. There, he projects as a backfill for the vacancy caused by the swift wide receiver Tyreek Hill.

Atwell has the potential to put up 1000 yards. But he will need a more consistent workload. His largest number of targets was 67 in 2023. When Tyreek Hill put up over 1,700 receiving yards in 2023, he was targeted 173 times. If Atwell was targeted that number of times, he could project to put up 1,585 yards.

Not bad, eh?

Atwell will do whatever is asked of him. He simply was not included in LA's offense very often. The Dolphins appear to have a natural role for him, and that could turn out quite well for both.

Dallas Cowboys are about to welcome CB Cobie Durant

Los Angeles is losing a cornerback, and it's not Derion Kendrick or Ahkello Witherspoon.

It's no hyperbole to declare veteran cornerback Cobie Durant as one of the more likable players in the Horns in 2025. He was one of the most durable and consistent defensive backs in an inconsistent secondary. Now, he will shed his horns and don the Dallas star.

Durant will impress Cowboys fans with his work ethic and blue-collar approach. He doesn't seek out the spotlight, but the spotlight will inevitably seek him out, as he can be a true game-changer. In many ways, as pressure mounts, he performs better.

As soon as general manager Les Snead clipped both Kansas City cornerbacks to graft into LA's defense, the starting roles were claimed. Durant's view of demotion was to move on, and that may serve him well. He will have a chance to compete for significant playing time in Dallas.

And he will likely earn that workload.

Fans have plenty to be excited about in 2026. But free agency is not all positive. Two Rams are on the move, and more may soon follow. Los Angeles hopes to win Super Bowl LXI. Unfortunately, at least two players who helped the team compete in 2025 will not continue the journey with the team this year.

As always, thanks for reading.