It doesn’t take an expert to understand the Los Angeles Rams aren’t in the best shape salary cap-wise. They’re currently $14.1 million over the salary cap, which has been set at $224.8 million for the 2023 season.
It’s not an issue that they’re over the limit right now because the new league year doesn’t start for another month. On March 15, however, they have to be under the cap, per league rules. They’re also not the only team with more than $224.8 million allocated to players at the moment. There are 13 other teams that are over the cap, too.
With one month until the deadline, the Rams need to make some moves to clear up some space. Whether that’s releasing players or restructuring their contracts, there are multiple avenues to freeing up money.
Two simple moves can get them under the cap before March 15, and it doesn’t require them to release anyone. First, they can restructure Cooper Kupp’s contract, thus creating $14.19 million in cap space. That almost gets them under the cap right there. The second move they can make is restructuring Bobby Wagner’s contract, which would save them another $7.75 million in 2023.
After those moves, the Rams would have $7.82 million in cap space, according to Over The Cap.
It would make sense for them to tweak those two contracts because it’s highly unlikely that the Rams want to move on from either player anytime soon.
If they restructure Aaron Donald’s deal, it’ll cause some pain in 2024 in the event that he retires. A restructure of Matthew Stafford’s contract would only save $251,250 in 2023, so his deal isn’t worth touching. Leonard Floyd could conceivably be a cap casualty, and there are rumors swirling about the possibility of dealing Jalen Ramsey.
Kupp should be on the team for at least the next two years, and the same goes for Wagner. It’s better to restructure the contract of a player who is expected to be on the roster in the coming years than one who could be cut in the near future.
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