The Los Angeles Rams have thrown around a lot of money this offseason and appear on the verge of spending even more.
For the past year plus the Los Angeles Rams and Aaron Donald have been at a stalemate regarding his contract. However, CBS’ Jason La Canfora is reporting that a new deal could be done before training camp.
This news comes on the heals of the Rams agreeing to a 5-year $80 million deal with Brandin Cooks with $20 million of that fully guaranteed.
It’s safe to assume that Donald’s new deal with feature a lot more guaranteed money. In fact, he’ll likely sign a deal that makes him the highest paid defensive player in the NFL. You will have a hard time finding anyone who feels Donald doesn’t deserve that type of money.
The issue for the Rams is that there’s only so much money to spread around. This offseason alone they adding sizeable contracts by acquiring Aqib Talib, Marcus Peters and Ndamukong Suh.
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They also used the franchise tag on safety Lamarcus Joyner and re-signed Nickell Robey-Coleman to a solid deal for a slot cornerback. Los Angeles has somehow figured a way to squeeze all this under the salary camp for the upcoming season.
However, things are about to get very complicated in the near future. One big reason they are able to handle this influx of big contracts is because Jared Goff and Todd Gurley are still working off their rookie deals.
That isn’t going to be the case for much longer with both emerging stars due for an extension in the near future.
Los Angeles also needs to start planning for life after Andrew Whitworth who is 37-years old and on the last year of his deal. His addition a few years back helped stabilize the offensive line which played a role in Goff’s development.
Overall, the Rams appear to be in win-now mode and are set up to make a Super Bowl run this year. The situation is quickly going to change which will require Les Snead to rework the roster to fit under the salary cap.