Rams First Day of Free Agency Nets Woods, Whitworth
- Updated: March 10, 2017
The Los Angeles Rams had a furious first day of free agency. First, the rumors started swirling that recently-tagged CB Trumaine Johnson, and his $17 million price tag, were on the trading block. An interesting turn of events in and of itself. Did the Rams have a deal already in place? Were they surprised by how quickly Johnson signed his tender? Did they get snubbed in discussions of a long-term deal? No one knows. To this point, no trade has emerged. Vincent Bonsignore reported that the Rams have shopped him, but the asking price was too high. Jason La Canfora reported that an inquiry about Trumaine Johnson for Brandin Cooks got nowhere.
The Rams made an immediate splash, however, by signing the top left tackle in free agency. Although 35 at the time of the signing, Andrew Whitworth graded out as the 2nd best tackle in all of football in 2016. Protecting Jared Goff was clearly priority #1, and the Rams were not afraid to spend big money to achieve that. Whitworth signed for 3 years and $36 million.
Before the proverbial ink had dried on that announcement, the Rams secured another important piece of their offseason puzzle. The announcement came that the Rams had agreed to terms with highly regarded WR Robert Woods, formerly of Buffalo. Woods, only 24 years old, agreed to a 5-year, $39 million contract with the Rams and will be returning to California. He played his college ball at USC and attended Junipero High School in San Mateo before that. Woods is a solid WR in the NFL, with big upside. He averaged 50 catches per season with the Bills and scored 12 total touchdowns. His productivity is expected to go up as his targets increase in Sean McVay’s offense.
As Robert Woods was agreeing to terms with the Los Angeles Rams, WR Kenny Britt was signing with the Cleveland Browns. Britt was with the Rams for 3 seasons under Jeff Fisher. He averaged 50 catches per season, over 800 yards per year, and he scored 11 touchdowns as a Ram.
Los Angeles also traded DE William Hayes and a 7th-round pick to the Miami Dolphins for a 6th-round pick. Hayes spent five seasons with the Rams, primarily in a backup role. He recorded 26.5 sacks as a Ram. This was a cap-saving move.
Los Angeles ended the first day of free agency by adding a QB, Aaron Murray out of Georgia. Murray was quite a prolific college QB. He was drafted in the 5th round in 2014 by the Kansas City Chiefs but has bounced around the league since then. In college, he was a teammate of Los Angeles running back Todd Gurley.
The first day of free agency was a productive one Los Angeles. But with the signings of Trumaine Johnson, William Hayes, and Robert Woods, the Rams are essentially over the cap. Roster cuts are imminent. The culture change new head coach Sean McVay promised is well underway.
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