This offseason for the Los Angeles Rams has been a tough one. They achieved the ultimate goal of winning a Super Bowl to cap off the 2021 season. However, they are now feeling the effects of how they went about that roster construction.
Capped out and lacking assets, the Rams parted ways with a ton of veterans this offseason. Cornerback Jalen Ramsey was traded to the Miami Dolphins and wide receiver Allen Robinson was traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Linebackers Bobby Wagner and Leonard Floyd were both released, as free agency saw a ton of players depart as well.
A’Shawn Robinson, Nick Scott, Taylor Rapp, Greg Gaines, Riley Dixon, Matt Gay, Brandon Powell and David Long all left this offseason. All of those players had prominent roles on the team in 2022 and others will have to step up in their absence.
With an eye toward the future, as 2023 will likely be a reset season for Los Angeles, they can still make some moves to improve their long-term outlook. One move suggested by Brad Spielberger of PFF as one the Rams should make before training camp is signing defensive lineman Dawuane Smoot.
“Smoot tore his Achilles late in the 2022 season, so this is really investing in a younger free agent for 2024 and beyond, but that has been the overarching focus of the Rams’ offseason already. Perhaps Smoot is open to a multi-year deal like we’ve seen recently for players such as Ja’Wuan James with the Baltimore Ravens during the 2021 offseason, where he gets paid around the minimum, has access to an NFL training staff year-round and can then get ready to bounce back in a major way in 2024.
Smoot signed a two-year, $10 million extension with the Jaguars and took major strides as a pass rusher, setting new career highs in pass-rush grade, pass-rush win rate and pressure percentage last season. From 2021 to 2022, Smoot’s 15.9% pass-rush win rate ranked among the top 35 at the edge position.”
Unlikely to contend this upcoming season, signing a player such as Smoot is exactly how the Rams should spend some of their available cap space. While he won’t be contributing in 2023, he could provide immense value in 2024 should he return to form after a year of rehab.
As Spielberger pointed out, the injury for Smoot couldn’t have come at a worse time. He was playing at a high level with the Jacksonville Jaguars the last two seasons before going down and was turning into one of the most efficient pass rushers in the NFL.
Currently short on building blocks after purging the roster, Smoot is an excellent low-risk, high-reward acquisition. It won’t cost the Rams much monetarily to bring him aboard and let him rehab with the team. If things don’t go well in that regard, they could always move on from him next offseason with no harm being done.
