As their roster is currently constructed, the Los Angeles Rams don’t look like a team ready to contend in 2023. They worsened their chances of competing this year when they released Bobby Wagner and Leonard Floyd, and then traded Jalen Ramsey to the Dolphins.
The Rams chose not to make Wagner or Floyd post-June 1 cuts, either. Doing so would’ve saved Los Angeles cap space in 2023 – an extra $3 million for Wagner and an additional $12.5 million for Floyd.
Looking at the moves the Rams have made so far, it’s obvious that they have one eye already on the 2024 campaign. Those three transactions all suggest that.
And you can’t deny that it’s working. By trading Ramsey and cutting Wagner and Floyd, the Rams have already cleared $61.2 million in cap space for 2024. Over The Cap now projects them to have $58.5 million in cap room next year, 22nd in the NFL.
Here’s how it breaks down by player, with each’s cap savings in 2024 now that they’re off the roster.
Jalen Ramsey: $26.7 million
Bobby Wagner: $12 million
Leonard Floyd: $22.5 million
Total: $61.2 million
There’s no doubt the Rams are a better team with Ramsey, Wagner and Floyd on it. And all three of them were still under contract through 2024, so they would’ve been pieces to build around.
But the Rams see more value in the cap space gained by moving on from them than they do the players themselves. This is basically a financial reset for Los Angeles.
That doesn’t mean they’re tanking in 2023. They don’t look like contenders right now, but they’re not throwing the season before it even starts – not with Sean McVay, Matthew Stafford, Cooper Kupp and Aaron Donald on the team.
They’re just gearing up to rebuild this roster in 2024 by accumulating cap space and draft picks, which happens when you offload the big contracts of star players.
They may have only saved $13.6 million in 2023 by moving Ramsey, Wagner and Floyd, but they cleared much more space in 2024. That was the goal with these moves – and the benefit of not designating Floyd and Wagner as post-June 1 cuts.
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