The Los Angeles Rams already began freeing up some cap space this week when they announced the release of Brian Allen, who had been with the team for the last six seasons. Another potential cap casualty is Joe Noteboom, who was drafted the same year as Allen and signed a contract extension in 2022 like Allen did, too.
Noteboom has a $20 million cap hit in 2024, the fourth-highest on the team and much too large for a player who may not earn a starting role next season. If the Rams release Noteboom outright, they’ll take on $15 million in dead money, which amounts to a net savings of $5 million. It’s not ideal, but it might be their best option.
Sean McVay was asked about Noteboom’s future Thursday and he was non-committal on the subject, saying the team is “working through” that right now.
“We’re working through all those things right now,” McVay said. “I think it’s so impressive what Joe did do, the toughness that he showed last year, the ability to really play all four spots with the exception of center. We are working through that. We’ll see what that looks like as it relates to his status with us moving forward. But Joe’s been a big-time contributor and certainly we wouldn’t have done a lot of good things without Joe and his ability to play right tackle, left tackle, right guard. If he had to play left guard, I’m sure he could but fortunately we had a rookie and (OL) Steve Avila that came in and played a hundred percent of the snaps. And so real credit to Joe for what he was able to do and the many contributions he had last year.”
There’s no doubt Noteboom provides value. He can play every offensive line position besides center, and has at some point during his career. Unfortunately, his contract is just too large for what he brings to the table.
If he were still on a rookie deal, there’s no question he’d remain with the Rams as a swing tackle and backup guard. However, at $20 million, it’s hard to imagine your fourth-highest-paid player being a backup.
Perhaps the Rams will ask Noteboom to take a pay cut in order to remain in Los Angeles, but it seems the two sides could be headed toward a split at some point this offseason.